<p>GPA 4.0 weighted, 3.5 or so UW (horrible -_-)
rank: bad, i'm gonna say 75/500
school size: medium to large
Asian male, OOS (Cali)
prospective major: engineering (most likely EE or computer eng.), should i apply undecided instead b/c of my low GPA?</p>
<p>Course load: sophmore (ap euro, ap stats, chem h, eng h, chinese2), junior (ap eng lang, ap us, physics IB, pre calc H, chinese3; self studied for calc and physics AP tests, though i don't think the ad coms will notice that), senior (ap calc bc, ap chem, ap eng lit, ap psych)</p>
<p>SAT I: 2160 (800M/710W/650CR)
SAT II: 8002c, projected: 750 for physics and chem </p>
<p>EC's:
math counts california 26th place and 7th place novice news LA county (i think both are worthless b/c they're not top 3 or major statewide events)
school newspaper sports editor
president of an engineering oriented club at school
VP of helping hands (tutoring kids who need help at school, esp in math/science)
Tutoring K-9th grade kids, 4 hours/week
100 hrs at local hospital (volunteering)</p>
<p>do you guys see anything else i could possibly do to offset my low GPA? if i get straight A's the first half of my senior year, would NU see this? would it be factored into my GPA? (i saw someone mention this a few threads down)</p>
<p>thanks</p>
<p>scratch that, 3.33 UW actually</p>
<p>Your GPA (W) is not even that bad. It's actually well above average for NU. So you are fine there. Plus, your SAT IIs are completely amazing. Your SAT I is slightly above average. However, I would not recommend retaking unless you really, really think you can do a lot better, because it really isn't worth your time senior year when the score is so high already. Instead, focus on EC's and your essay, which are crucial. Everything else seems set, and your GPA is nothing close to "low." Your unweighted GPA may be average, but other than that, you have a pretty good chance. ED or RD?</p>
<p>Oh, and I don't know if they count senior year grades. Probably the first trimester as per usual.</p>
<p>are you sure about my GPA being above average?</p>
<p>i have like a bunch of B's, this is 4.0/5.0 and 3.33/4.0 for W/UW</p>
<p>
[quote]
are you sure about my GPA being above average?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>nah, that's not right. northwestern doesn't release specific GPA data. what's more important is your class rank, and not being in the top 10% is really going to hurt you. i'm pretty sure your first semester senior year grades will count (if you apply RD) but again call the admissions office to make sure.</p>
<p>also, in the interest of honesty, your SAT is not great. your SAT II scores look really good though (do you just go to a very difficult/competitive school?)</p>
<p>i'd say you are a slightly below-average applicant and will need to put a lot of work into your essays and selling yourself as a person to give yourself the best shot at admission.</p>
<p>try submitting supplemental materials, too, always helps.</p>
<p>thanks elsijfdl</p>
<p>what supplemental materials do you suggest i submit?</p>
<p>and yea, i'm retaking my SAT's november for RD (NU superscores right?)</p>
<p>i go to a very, very bad school (ok, not horribly bad, but it's awfully bad)</p>
<p>
[quote]
what supplemental materials do you suggest i submit?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>well, when i applied i sent in a story i had written, letters of congratulations for various accomplishments i made, you know, just anything that is both a positive reflection on you as well as a sign that you really care about getting in.</p>
<p>
[quote]
and yea, i'm retaking my SAT's november for RD (NU superscores right?)
[/quote]
</p>
<p>yes to the best of my knowledge northwestern superscores. if northwestern is your top choice i would strongly recommend applying ED, especially if you are a borderline applicant.</p>
<p>good luck in your application, remember, work on those essays!</p>
<p>Sorry, I meant that your SAT I was slightly below average, which is a 2190ish.</p>
<p>bump~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbp</p>
<p>I got into Northwestern without any waiting list business and on regular admission. I go to a very good high school, J.J. Pearce. It has its own Wikipedia entry. I had a GPA of 94.8 or so and was 96 out of 451. I had a 2180 SAT (800 Critical Reading. 710 Writing. 670 Math) and 770 on the English SAT II, 750 on US History and 710 on World History. I took no APs freshman year. AP World History Sophomore year, AP US History and English Language Junior year, and AP Government, Economics, and English Literature Senior year. Pending the last three, I got all 5s on the AP tests. I was in the top band for 4 years and the drumline for 3. I was in Academic Decathlon for two years and captain my senior year. I was in Mock Trial my senior year as well as the webmaster. I was admitted into the School of Communication. Hope this helps.</p>
<p>well your gpa is a lot better than mine -_-</p>
<p>"also, in the interest of honesty, your SAT is not great."
1450 is a good score. 75% is 1500 so she's not far from that.</p>
<p>bump!!!!!!!!!!!!!!</p>
<p>
[quote]
1450 is a good score
[/quote]
</p>
<p>she's applying to EECS, the average SAT score in mccormick is 1430 and EECS is a high-intensity major even as engineering goes. 1430 isn't a bad score but being outside the top 10% with a slightly above average SAT score is not going to take her very far, that's why i said essays would be important, she can't count on her stats to get her in</p>
<p>bump~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</p>
<p>Hmm. You don't really have outstanding EC's, but it's kind of late to work on that. Your SAT's are on par. I'd suggest raising it if you can, and also raise your GPA to be competitive. Write awesome essays, get glowing recs, and you'll have a shot. Best of luck!</p>