<p>@RaviOnIce
For future reference, I think you flipped Low Match and High Match. Imagine a spectrum, high anything is on the reach side while low anything is on the safety side. It doesn’t mean high likelihood, as you might be thinking. Thanks for the chance!</p>
<p>Since everything here is hypothetical, it’s definitely harder to figure this all out. I think you have a decent chance, but EC’s are a little low.</p>
<p>@wohs2015 Low as in low quality or low quantity?</p>
<p>It seems like your ec’s and academic results reflect what you want to do at uni! Good luck 
</p>
<p>I think you will have a great chance if you make this list come true…
Duke is reach for you and the rest are all matches. 
</p>
<p>Thanks for answering my question on my thread! </p>
<p>I actually think you have really good chances at Duke, <em>IF</em> your class rank is high, as well. You have the same problem as me with the low GPA. But, your test scores seem like they will turn out well and your EC’s have long time commitments, so that shows dedication. Just remember not to slack off during junior year. </p>
<p>@sirswish7 Thanks! Junior year actually appears to be my best year, because I was able to choose teachers that I know/are easy. Last year, i was stuck with a rumored to be racist teacher who happened to also hate me. </p>
<p>Our school doesn’t rank us, though. But, I’m also working on another project, so I hope that’ll boost me.</p>
<p>@Woandering: Oh, that’s actually a really good idea! And oh, wow, that sounds cool. Hope it works out for you. </p>
<p>Woandering, you sound like a terrific candidate for all the schools on your list, but I must correct
the perception by micmatt513 and a couple of others on this thread, when they tell you that Duke is a reach, and Claremont McKenna is a low reach. CMC, like Duke, is a reach for virtually everyone. In fact, with this year’s entering class (2018), CMC’s acceptance rate (10%) is actually lower than Duke’s (10.7%), and for the first time surpassed acceptance rates of Williams, Amherst, Swarthmore, Pomona, et al to become the most selective LAC in the country. </p>
<p>[Ivy League & More: College Acceptance Rates for the Class of 2018 - See more at: <a href=“http://www.applicationbootcamp.com/2014/04/ivy-league-college-acceptance-rates-class-2018/#sthash.xHUkOCz8.dpuf”>http://www.applicationbootcamp.com/2014/04/ivy-league-college-acceptance-rates-class-2018/#sthash.xHUkOCz8.dpuf</a>]</p>
<p>I’m not saying its the hardest LAC to get into - I’d have to give that to Harvey Mudd, where a score of 800 on SAT Math
is considered ‘about average,’ and roughly 40 % of its incoming class are valedictorians.In effect, Mudd’s applicant pool
is ‘self-selecting’ …i.e if someone is not a brilliant math/science student, he/she would never apply to Mudd in the first place. </p>
<p>CMC, on the other hand, has slightly lower stats, in term of ‘pure academics,’ than Pomona, Swarthmore, etc. even though it is ‘more selective…’ IF one measures selectivity purely as a function of # of acceptances / # of applicants.
That is largely because, although all colleges purport to look at ‘the whole person,’ CMC really does downplay test scores , within reason, in favor of more intangible ‘leadership’ qualities. </p>
<p>Woandering, back to my original point, Duke is obviously a great research university, much more global in scope and well-known among the general public than CMC, the ‘young upstart’ LAC…it is, in fact, by far the youngest college in the US News top 10.</p>
<p>So, you were correct in your initial feeling that CMC is as much of a reach as is Duke. They are both great schools, and you should visit both…just remember, exhibit passion and emphasize your leadership potential, and you’ll have a decent shot at both!</p>
<p>@stagalum - Simply put, Woandering is a more competitive applicant at CMC. At CMC he is almost 75th percentile for everything, whereas at Duke he is somewhere in the top 40-33%. Duke also has more history of rejecting qualified applicants than CMC does. I don’t think CMC is a bad school by any means, but putting it in the same tier as Duke in terms of difficulty is a bit biased in my opinion.</p>
<p>@Woandering
I guess I did thanks, sorry I’m new here</p>
<p>I think you have a decent chance at all, like most people have already said! I know Duke really looks for students who have a passion for learning, so make sure to highlight that in your app. You could have some stronger ECs, but your test scores and GPA look great. Good luck!</p>
<p>Woandering,
I apologize … . .didn’t intend this to evolve into a debate about whether Duke, or CMC, is ‘more difficult’ (to use micmatt513’s wording) to get into.</p>
<p>micmatt513, you just backed up my point:</p>
<p>CMC, on the other hand, has slightly lower stats, in term of ‘pure academics,’ than Pomona, Swarthmore, etc. even though it is ‘more selective…’ IF one measures selectivity purely as a function of # of acceptances / # of applicants.
That is largely because, although all colleges purport to look at ‘the whole person,’ CMC really does downplay test scores , within reason, in favor of more intangible ‘leadership’ qualities.</p>
<p>Your statement about OP being a’more competitive applicant’ at CMC’ because he’s almost 75th percentile vs 40th percentile at Duke (not sure how you arrived at those figures) , is obviously based solely on his test scores, which CMC doesn’t give as much weight to as some other top schools.</p>
<p>But, to Woandering’s point, these numbers don’t lie:
Class of 2018 acceptance rate
Duke = 10.7%
Claremont McKenna = 10%</p>
<p>How that could possibly be construed to say Duke is a reach, while CMC is a low reach, defies logic.
I’m not slighting Duke by any means. The name ‘Duke’ speaks for itself, and as I mentioned in my earlier post,
it is a world-class research university, with a reputation recognized by many more people throughout the globe than
Claremont McKenna, a fledgling LAC.</p>
<p>But, that in no way should detract from the meteoric rise in standards, academic and otherwise, by CMC in such a short time. Woanderig, i think when you visit both campuses, you will get a good feel for which one is a better fit for you.</p>
<p>I think you have a good shot at both CMC and Duke, even though both are reaches…LOL! </p>
<p>@stagalum I have already visited CMC, albeit in the summer, and I likely won’t get a chance to visit any other schools or CMC anymore, because my parents believe it to be a waste of time and money. I’m definitely fine with that, since I have already visited a few I love, including CMC.</p>
<p>Do you think I have demonstrated enough of my leadership ability for CMC?</p>
<p>@Woandering:<br>
I’ve been very involved with Duke for many decades. As you’re aware, admission to Duke is difficult for virtually everyone, including many applicants with clearly excellent resumes – and yours is quite competitive. If this were your senior year and the data you provided was your “application package,” I’d estimate that you’d be in the grouping of outstanding candidates, many of whom – but not all – will be offered matriculation.</p>
<p>With this said, however, there are some areas that you may wish to improve in the time remaining before you apply, including:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>GPA: Although this is obvious, conclude your transcript with impeccable grades and in the most demanding subjects available (Duke especially recognizes intellectual rigor, so please don’t opt for the “easy A” course).</p></li>
<li><p>Essays: Duke will receive approximately 33,000 applications for '20, and will accept about 10 percent (for '18, the aggregate admissions rate was 10.8 percent, but every year this marginally declines). Therefore, how can you differentiate your application from literally tens-of-thousands of extremely accomplished competitors, far more than half of whom will be denied? I respectfully suggest, your essays – and your recommendations – are THE best answer. You have time – and superior essays will require LOTS of thought and effort – to focus on explaining how your background and your goals/passions differ from the “distinguished pack” and why this will make you a real asset to your classmates (and to the faculty and the university, if possible). Your plain objective should be for your essays – substantiated by your recommendations – to compel both the applications reader(s) and the regional Admissions Officer to say to the Committee, “he’s very good and he BELONGS at Duke, even if we must deny an individual with marginally better statistics.”</p></li>
</ul>
<p>I sincerely wish you success in becoming a Blue Devil. </p>
<p>@TopTier thank you so much for your extremely thoughtful response. </p>
<p>The application essay has constantly been at the back of my mind, as I take more care to note my personality and qualities. While I do take note of what I might like to say in my essay next year, I’m not too sure how else I could prepare. Please let me know your suggestions.</p>
<p>Furthermore, could you please tell me what special quality Duke might favor? And also, the Duke short essay supplement topic? Or type of topic?</p>
<p>Thank you!</p>
<p>Very rushed this morning, so this will be brief:
a) Really both essay – if required – to get your key points across.
b) While Duke generally favors the discussion of near-unique qualities you might bring to your class/classmates and how your experiences have shaped you for college and beyond – especially “Knowledge in Service to Society” – I would NOT force your essays in these directions; rather, your enthusiasm and sincerity with almost doubtless provide a stronger response than some contrived answer that addresses “hot points” with clenches.</p>
<p>Please stay in touch.</p>
<p>@TopTier
Absolutely; I just needed to know, in case I can actually write a great essay on that topic. Thank you!</p>
<p>You have a great chance at Bucknell, Claremont, and Rochester! I dont know enough about Grinnell and Duke may be a high match or low reach! Best of Luck</p>
<p>You’ll get into everything </p>