<p>GPA: 4.22 W , 3.83 UW
Rank: 50/1021 , Top 5%
Asian
Male
Hopeful Major: Chemistry (Pre-med track) , WCAS
Soon to be Senior</p>
<p>Classes:
Freshman: No honors classes
Sophomore: 2 honors classes
Junior: AP Psych, APUSH, AP Eng Lang, AP Stats, 2 honors classes
Senior: AP Calc BC, AP Chem, AP Phys B, AP Eng Lit, 1 honors class</p>
<p>Test Scores:
ACT: 27 , Will retake in September (that was w/out studying or anything, I have prepared for the test significantly this summer and am getting an average 31-32 on each test)
SAT: Will take in October , (studied for this over the summer and am getting an average of Crit Read: 650-690 , Math: 730-760 , Writing: 730-760)</p>
<p>EC's:
Varsity Cross Country
Varsity Track and Field
Cross Country and Track and Field Captain
Spanish Club Member
EXCEL Member (Volunteer group thru School)
CEC Member (Tutors less advanced academically kids at school)</p>
<p>Other stuff:
-AP Scholar with Honor
-A representative of our school's conference athletic leadership program
-Might be part of School Newspaper and NHS next year
-Earned all high honor roll status for each semester
-Many athletic academic awards and varsity letters
-NO VOLUNTEER Work (this is what really is making me worried)
-Will get great recommendations from Counselor & AP Teacher
-Will write very good essays
-Northwestern has always been my goal since I was young
-1st generation student</p>
<p>Compared to others, I know that I seem like a rather far off chance to getting in but I'll ask anyways on what do you guys think my chances are. Please make as harsh comments as need be , I truly appreciate all of your responses</p>
<p>not as far off as you think. if you do improve your ACT score to a 31 or 32 you are right up there as a competitive applicant. Your SAT scores are also fine, your grades and rank are excellent, you're a 1st gen student (which helps), and you have pretty good ECs (at least great athletics from the sound of it).</p>
<p>are going to do ED? if NU has been your goal for a long time, you should since you'll a much better chance. even with the improvements in test scores that you mentioned, to be honest, you're ec's dont stand out and no leadership positions at all outside of sports. (have you won many races and stuff in xc and track...make sure to mention all these achievements b/c these are your biggest ec's). i think 1st gen is a great plus since I am 1st gen and know it helped me. Do your parents have jobs that are blue-collar? (like for me, my dad's a mailman and my mom works as assembler) with test score improvements, and taking into account even greater competition then this past year, ED you have an average chance (probably around 35% this upcoming year) and 15% RD (average chance again). great upward trend though on course difficulty...good job on that.</p>
<p>do you go to plano?</p>
<p>i dont go to plano (not sure where that is)</p>
<p>i have a strong desire to go Northwestern but how should i go about attacking the essays to show this? also, can Early Decision + Strong Essays offset the flaws in my resume?</p>
<p>once again thanks to everyone for thier responses</p>
<p>ED will of course help. look at the other thread about the Why NU essay. the common app one can really be anything you want it to be. Mine was really unique. i chose a character in history that had really influenced me and, being a huge sports fan, I wrote about how one day I watched a biography on Bill Russell and how he influenced me through life decisions, firm beliefs and always standing up for what he thought was right even though he didnt have to. try to do something unique, i think mine was. the short answers are really impossible to help you on b/c they will be so unique to each person.</p>
<p>thats neat your application was sports related. i'm a runner, and for all of us runners, the story and work ethic of steve prefontaine as well as his tragic death all serve as inspiration and motivation for us in not only athletics but other places as well, do you think it would be too cheesey to go with this sort of idea or could it be a way to show my passion for NU by using one of my favorite athletes as a vehicle?</p>
<p>Are you planning on running at NU? If so, no problem, in my opinion.</p>
<p>If you are a competitive high school athlete, I understand that a lot is forgiven if ECs are lacking. Coaches and admissions officers understand that training for a sport takes up a lot of time time, leaving little for anything else outside of that endeavor. But I think you need to be pretty good at it for that theory to hold true.</p>
<p>i dont think NU has a D1 cross country or track team, but they do have a running club i think and if so , i'd like to join. no, i'm not that great too warrant lacking EC's but hopefully it will minimize the negative. like ridewithbd24 said, a sports related one may help...but im worried that the main thing they'll see on my ec's involves running and that the essay is on running so they may judge i'm one dimensional (i'm truly not but i could see why my resume indicates that way).</p>
<p>If you are truly not one dimensional, you will need to find a way to profile the other parts of you through your essays. Can you get some ECs together in the fall?</p>
<p>ECs in the fall wouldn't look good on an application. It would look like he scrambled to get some activities at the last minute.</p>
<p>I just want to clear up one of my questions:</p>
<p>Can I apply early decision to Northwestern and still apply early action to some other schools at the same time?</p>
<p>If the schools aren't single choice early action (SCEA), then yes.</p>
<p>This is from Northwestern Admission Site:</p>
<p>"Applicants who choose Early Decision send a strong, positive message to Northwestern. Given their high level of interest and overall academic and personal strength, the rate of admission for our Early Decision applicants is higher than our overall admit rate. We do not make a practice of deferring Early Decision applicants into our Regular Decision plan."</p>
<p>Is it the case for most/all ED applicants that the result will either be Admit or Reject and no chance of being dropped to the RD pile?</p>
<p>yes. NU does it the right way. you will know in Dec whether you are accepted or rejected. i personally believe hanging an applicant with a deferral is stupid. the reason you apply early is to get a decision early.</p>
<p>"Can I apply early decision to Northwestern and still apply early action to some other schools at the same time?"</p>
<p>So what happens if you, at the same time, get accepted to one of your early action schools and get accepted ED to NU??</p>
<p>^^ i guess you decline your EA acceptance</p>
<p>yes, thats what i was told at an information session. i heard of someone getting deferred a few years ago, but it might be a new policy.
i hate this policy.</p>