<p>Here are my stats:
International Student
SAT 1: 2010 (CR: 680, Maths: 730, Writing: 600)
SAT 2: Math 1c 730, Physics 780, Chemistry 760)
GPA: 3.1 (my school does'nt have a ranking sysrem)
8 A's nd 3 A's in O-Levels and A-levels respectively (think A-levels are equivalent of AP's)
Have decent ECAs.
The thing is I need a lot of aid and with my stats is it possible to get in?</p>
<p>They are not known to be good with financial aid. Check the college guides. Your SATs are far above the average, but they consider GPA more important. The average GPA is about a 3.7. It is possible to get in, but I don't know what your chances are.</p>
<p>You have well over a 90% chance.</p>
<p>All JMU cares about is your GPA, bottom line. You could be basically and idiot and if you took slacker classes and have a decent GPA you will get in. </p>
<p>I think you will be waitlisted, even if you have 10 AP's with that GPA. Just my opinion. JMU is notoriously GPA driven. It makes them look better than they are. Everyone knows this.</p>
<p>i find these posts very interesting. i actually know kids, one in particular who support this overemphasis on GPAs and nothing else....this student went to a very weak high school, which offered few APs, and those they had were poorly taught. she had only a couple of these APs, low/average SATs( under 1200 on old scale), and only 2 years of science...after a few days in regular physics, she dropped out, saying it was "too hard" ! but yet, because of the lack of rigor in her classes and the over-inflated school system, she had a 4. someting GPA, and got in to JMU!</p>
<p>happycollegemom, that is interesting. I always thought that they require 3 years of a lab science, but perhaps not. The phrasing does not actually indicate "must have", which I never noticed before (should minimally have is a lot different than must, IMO). I retrieved this from JMU's website after searching for their admission requirements:</p>
<p>Competitive applicants should minimally have the following: </p>
<p>four years of math (one full year beyond algebra II);
three years of laboratory science (preferably including biology, chemistry and physics; general science or earth science usually does not count as a lab science);
three to four years of the same foreign language or two years of two different foreign languages;
four years of English; and
four years of social studies.
Students who challenge themselves with the upper-level courses offered in their high school (i.e. Honors-level courses, Advanced Placement classes, dual enrollment) increase their competitiveness. Although schools provide different opportunities, applicants should pursue the most demanding college preparatory programs available. Because strong students come from many different types of schools, we evaluate applicants within the context of their high schools.</p>
<p>happycollegemom, does the student you know who got in with a lack of rigor come from a rural part of VA? I had heard that if one is from NOVA, one has a much tougher time getting in than if one is from another part of VA. I don't know how true this is.</p>
<p>hi northeastmom! no, this student is OOS, tho fairly rural. i know the physics story is accurate, and perhaps it was 3 years of science, tho i thought 2. but i know for a fact she never took physics. and she never seemed to have much homework! that's what i mean about lack of rigor.
as far as NOVA goes, yes, it's incredibly competitive, and so they in fact kind of hurt each other as they ALL can't get in to a school with VA requirements for VA diversity. this is especially true and frustrating for the NOVAs who miss out at UVA, as they MUST take from all over VA. i was told if it were solely based on VA high school competitivenes, most of UVA would be from NOVA! :)</p>
<p>hi happycollegemom! Perhaps the student that you know had what JMU considered 3 lab sciences (maybe bio, chem, and AP bio, or maybe they counted earth/physical science as a lab science)? </p>
<p>Also, no flames please, but when I went to an info session in NC, I was specifically told that some states have more grade inflation than others. I was told that a student with a lower gpa from an average NJ high school would be accepted than a student with the same gpa from an average hs in NC because NC is known for grade inflation, and NJ is not. This is not my opinion, but it is what was said by an admissions counselor at a NC public U. Perhaps the same reasoning applies to the OOS student that happycollegemom is speaking about (maybe yes, maybe no).</p>
<p>sorry, i can't remember,but i don't think so on AP Bio. i guess my point is that altho she was a 4.---- GPA, she was a bland student. wouldn't even take SATIIs and only applied to schools that didn't need them. i think she was good in math, but had little homework in APcalc, which is my point about a weak school. have no idea how any AP tests were, if she took them.</p>
<p>A lot of strong students don't take the SAT IIs either. I don't think someone who takes AP calc is taking a weak program. They don't need to take a laundry list of college classes (APs while in hs).</p>
<p>kids at my school with 2.7 and 1200 SATs get in</p>
<p>i dont thikn it's purely gpa</p>
<p>Not everybody at JMU has a 3.7 or above. A lot of kids there have below that, it is just an average. However, if you want to talk about GPA look at Virginia Tech. Atleast JMU sort of cares about ec's and awards. At VT, you either have the numbers, or you don't. They don't care about extra curriculars. By the way, I am knee deep in the competition of Northern Virginia, and it sucks, but hopefully it will work our for me (JMU is my second choice behind Tech).</p>
<p>the mere fact that you're an international student is a huge deal. jmu is constantly boasting about their diversity (even though we're about 85% white) and such. freshman year for me here was actually a bit of a culture shock because of the sheer amount of caucasians in one location. but yeah, anything that they can say they have another student from spain or wherever you're coming from is great for them. there's even a dorm devoted to international students. i'm from virginia and i got in with 3.1, so you may not even have to worry about that aspect.</p>