Classic Case of Can't Stop Stressing

Applying to College
1

<p>I've got the classic case of stressing to the max, but I've got more questions then that.
Hopefully I can get this all in clearly and concisely. </p>

<p>My intended major: Computer Science (Maybe a double major in something, like Italian or BA or idk)
Current Colleges that I'm applying to (no specific order):
Harvey Mudd [First choice but haha let's be realistic]
Stanford [Apply ED]
Polytechnic Institute of NYU
Carnegie Mellon
WashU
Hamilton College
Berkeley
University of San Diego
UMass - Amherst
McGill University (Canada)
And I guess University of Missouri (I really, really, really, REALLY don't want to go here.)</p>

<p>This looks like I'm stressed out of mind doesn't it? Accurate reflection.</p>

<p>I have never taken any AP classes, because my school only has three (AP Calc, AP English & AP Physics) - I couldn't take Calc (I'm in trig), I couldn't take AP Eng (Didn't take honors, got denied my freshmen year because of handwriting & Physics just didn't fit (and I wasn't that great at it, although I liked it))
But, I did take Chemistry my sophmore year and Physics my junior year (most never take either)</p>

<p>My Extra Curriculars:
Ive done community service, not like heaping amounts, but I've done it
I am the VP of FBLA
I did JROTC my freshmen and sophmore year and did Drill Team, Exhibition Team & Color Guard, all of which required a HUGE HUGE time commitment.
I participate in our schools technology club, now a game development club.</p>

<p>As a side note, my school only has a few clubs (six) soo</p>

<p>Now, my next "deficit" as many would see it
I have zero foreign language credits, why you may ask?
1) My school only offers Spanish & French, just not interested. They also took out German when I was a freshmen.
2) I took classes relevant to my interests and career such as PC Technology: Hardware & Operating Systems [Double blocked 2/8 possible classes] and Network+ [Yet again double blocked 2/8 possible classes]
3) My school has such stringent requirements to graduate they just never fit, so I challenged myself by taking Chemistry & Physics.
4) I will have three hours college credit in Spanish but meh. </p>

<p>Next, I decided to graduate early, why?
Basically because I've exhausted every hard class I can take and I am going to a local community college for the second semester to:
A) Get some college experience
B) Challenge myself</p>

<p>Next, my school has added honor classes for freshmen and sophmore classes such as:
Honors Physical Science (freshmen science)</p>

<p>How is a college supposed to know that this was added after I've taken it?! Mutiny! [Ok maybe not that far :p]</p>

<p>Next, I am really trying to stand out from my school because even the kids with better GPA's and whatnot are not even considering in the slightest schools like I am they are all Mizzou fanatics (University of Missouri)</p>

<p>Oh and my course load for this semester:
1A: Web Development & Animation
3A: You & The Law I
4A: ACT Prep & College Readiness
5A: A+ Tutoring [A Missouri program where you are basically a teacher's assistant, except I am more like the teacher some days]
1B: Not even going to mention it, its so shameful.
3B: Trigonometry [Tough]
4B: Desktop Publishing
5B: Word Study [Tough]</p>

<p>Lastly, I will be the first in my family to attend, and graduate college and I have wanted to attend college my whole life, this is no exaggeration but I LOVE learning and I love being challenged.</p>

<p>I hope that summarizes all my burning questions as I am stressed to the max and couldn't care less about my senior year.
If I missed anything let me know.</p>

2

<p>^Need test scores</p>

3

<p>I’d also like to add [for some reason I can’t edit this post twice]
Schools like Stanford, I am applying to because I don’t want to regret for the rest of my life for never having tried, even though my chance to get in is like .001% because I am not a “god”, although I value my intelligence over anything else (Can’t think of anything else atm?). I mean, I’d killllll to go to Caltech or MIT but wow I am not perfect and stretched in a thousand different ways.</p>

4

<p>Well, my GPA is a 3.55 unweighted (no weighted classes until trig, school only has a few)( I WILL get a 4.0 unweighted this year, maybe ill get a 5 in trig, we’ll see)
and my ACT, from April, first try, no study was a 26 (bad bad) but I just took it on Saturday I feel that I did much better since I studied and practiced. I am also taking Math I and Math II SAT subject tests in October, ill take the ACT again too, just 'cause.</p>

5

<p>What is odd is your graduating early yet not taking your AP classes. Yes, you’ve mentioned difficulty in scheduling them – but with a 3.55GPA, I’d assume that even your teachers and administration do not consider you one of the top scholars of your class. You must understand that for you, your transcript and scores will get you admitted or rejected. While you’ve taken pains to detail your ECs, the first hurdle you must get over is academics. 3.55 won’t grab anyone to say:“Wow, what else does this kid offer?” So leaving HS early won’t help your case. </p>

<p>Lastly, which of those schools can you afford?</p>

6

<p>I can’t take AP Calc, I can’t take AP English and AP Physics doesn’t fit, I really wanted to take AP Calc and AP Physics but it just didn’t work out. I also took Statistics, and I decided to go with harder classes and lower GPA rather than easier classes and a higher GPA; Within the context of my school I feel that I went above and beyond what was even closely expected. Also my school does class rank with weighted GPA’s, how is this even fair?</p>

<p>Also, thanks for your consideration on financials but I’d rather keep this academic focused, I’ll just say, if I got into Stanford, it would happen.</p>

7

<p>“Also my school does class rank with weighted GPA’s, how is this even fair?”</p>

<p>Are you sh1tting me? I will never be in the top 10% because my school bases ranks off of UW gpa only. Get real.</p>

8

<p>How is it fair that I am at a disadvantage in class rank when I have not had a weighted class until now? I don’t see any point in having a 4.5 GPA.</p>

<p>Also I have perfect attendance for all four years</p>

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<p>

</p>

<p>LOL are you trying to be funny?</p>

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<p>^^The people who take harder classes and get good grades, though maybe not perfect, should be ranked higher than those who breeze through high school with easy schedules. That’s the point in weighted GPA’s: so that those who take harder classes aren’t at a disadvantage.</p>

11

<p>No? No reason to be an *******, I’m sorry I don’t fit your perfect northeastern private prep school 36 ACT, 2400 SAT, president of everything and uncountable number of hours of community service.</p>

<p>Now back to my point, I don’t know anyone that has done this, to me, it shows dedication…</p>

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</p>

<p>No need to jump to conclusions here. I am sorry if i ****ed you off but having perfect attendance is not the best thing to publicize. </p>

<p>P.S. I didn’t get a 2400/36 score, if that makes you feel any better. I can understand your pain and im sorry.</p>

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<p>^Theres the midwest fire that we all love to see. :slight_smile: Just for the info, and plz don’t get ****ed off at me or the poster above for being the bearer of bad news, but no college cares about perfect attendance. It’s kind of just a personal thing. For advice, please consider applying to more matches because a lot of those schools are severe reaches because your leaving school early and your gpa. Good Luck :)</p>

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<p>Why is leaving school early bad? I can take blow off classes or take tough, actual college classes…
And also, I was angry because it is an item of personal pride and then made fun of.
I can understand it being personal, but still. </p>

<p>And ive spent SO many hours looking for colleges and my goals + intellectual standing = don’t match my GPA (my fault I know).
For me it either seems like Mizzou or Stanford kind of thing, I don’t know much in between, Poly & Carnegie Mellon are more of a mid range.
And a lot of those schools are the top computer science schools, the main reason I chose them, among other reasons.
(^ I know this post is just a jumbled collection of thoughts)</p>

15

<p>^What about the university of washington, isn’t that a good computer science school? I’m not sure about this but I think you would have a good shot at UW.</p>

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<p>Hmmm… random points I suppose:</p>

<ul>
<li><p>Generally a weighted ranking system is considered more “fair” usually because many students out of apathy or greed choose to take the easiest classes possible and maintain a perfect GPA, often taking the valedictorian spot or something similar from more deserving students.</p></li>
<li><p>Of course Weighted GPAs themselves aren’t given a huge amount of consideration by colleges. They are very fond of nonweighted GPAs because every school has a different means of weighting grades and so on, and nonweighted GPAs are usually less inflated. Usually a combination of the 4.0 scale GPA and course rigor is described as the most important factors.</p></li>
<li><p>Now then, it’s unfortunate but scheduling conflicts is very rarely an excuse for not having the insanely intense schedules a college might be looking for. This may be mitigated by a counselor recommendation that addresses this, but mainly whether you have been taking difficult classes or not is the final question. If your school offered them you are expected to have hunted down the means to get them. That is some schools (Harvery Mudd, Stanford, etc) expect you to have walked into high school taking the highest level math courses possible and clearing AP calc by the time you graduate. The fact that you didn’t have the prereqs isn’t that great of a reason. You are expected to have the prereqs, if that means taking two math’s one year and not having the opportunity to take the course in which you have the greatest interest (your computer science classes) then so be it.
However, this is all done in relation to what you have available. The fact that there are only three AP courses offered at your school helps your case, but if you had managed to take one it would have helped you moreso. </p></li>
</ul>

<p>The lack of language classes may be detrimental but might be explained. The lack of interest isn’t that much of an excuse. Some colleges might be a bit harsher on this than others. I know my state public school won’t consider you for admission unless you have two years of the same language in high school (Spanish 1 + 2, French 1+2, etc). Though that is on a school to school basis, but for some this may not be a recommendation but a REQUIREMENT. It really is difficult to say whether this will be an issue or not.</p>

<p>Taking physics and chemistry actually isn’t that impressive. What you have to consider is that at many of the schools you are considering applying to you will be up against National competition. If locally it is rare for your friends/students at your highschool to take either of those classes, that isn’t necessarily the case across the country. It actually is rare in my school for a student to take both, but in many schools, not only is this commonplace, it is mandatory.</p>

<p>Graduating early can look somewhat impressive but is quite a risky move. It is looked highly upon if you have already exceeded whatever expectations the college may have of you in highschool. So if you’ve gotten the graduation requirements out of the way and already have a selection of more difficult classes under your belt, then graduating early can be nice. But doing so otherwise eliminates an opportunity to rack up further classes/GPA improvements/etc that may help your case when applying.</p>

<ul>
<li><p>Test scores are a bit low for the schools you are aiming at, but at the same time, test scores are one thing you can honestly change in your favor. Given the time and preparation you CAN score whatever it is you need. Whether it’s a 30 or a 36 you can get there if you can apply yourself to it. And it just so happens these forums have several resources to help you improve (though most of them are in relation to the SAT, you should try the SAT at least once if you have the time).</p></li>
<li><p>Perfect attendance honestly can be a plus, and definitely isn’t a detriment. It’s just that it generally isn’t regarded as the most helpful factor. You can and should include this on Applications if you have the space.</p></li>
<li><p>You are FIRST GENERATION. At smaller and lower tier schools this doesn’t mean much. At bigger and more prestigious schools this is an EXCELLENT hook. Unfortunately a hook alone is by no means enough for admissions, but if you can improve your image it will mean you have not only a decent chance, you would have more of a chance than many others.</p></li>
</ul>

<p>Mainly, if you can improve your test scores to miracle levels you could get into virtually any of those schools. I’m not sure what colleges will think if they see a 36 ACT with a less-than-perfect transcript. Maybe they’ll think you didn’t know how to best prepare for college (again the first generation thing comes in a LOT), maybe they’ll think you were unchanged due to where you attend school and therefore unmotivated to excel to your full potential, maybe you’ll look like a troubled genius who couldn’t bring themselves to apply their intellect, or maybe you’ll look lazy (which definitely doesn’t sound to be the case). Of course that assumes you get magical test scores. There are other ways but without much time/opportunity to change your high school career they don’t seem to be very feasible.</p>

<p>Gosh, I really had no intention of being critical at all and would have very much liked to have tried to relieve stress where possible. But I tried to be honest. You have the opportunity to get in where you want but it will be remarkably difficult.</p>

<p>Best of luck.
If it’s any consolation I am just as stressed as you.
God help us.</p>

<p>Edit:
Damn. That came out much longer than I intended it to.</p>

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<p>Moodragon hit it. Please reread it until you see the gift of frankness. Your competiton will be fierce. Fierce. Students with the right balance of traditional classes, APs, ECs…and not “You and the Law” or “ACT Prep.” No asterisks back at me. We’re trying to help with the same sort of advice many parents give kids or that peers share with peers. I believe all schools you list will have a stated expectation that you have the language years. You would have to make an absolute/no excuses committment in community coll to making up for the classes that were not available in hs- or that did not “interest you” in hs- AND achieve top grades and higher subsequent SAT scores- in order to be a qualified candidate. Maybe even devote a full year or two to this monastic determination to put yourself back on track. Is that a possibility? Btw, the extra consideration for being first generation is there, but the added points are low. You have to have the goods in the first place. Please breathe and make your dreams a reality by getting back on track. .</p>

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<p>University of Washington - Yeah, its a good CS school, but they have 40k kids, thats just too many for me.</p>

<p>Mooddragon - Thanks, I understand all of your points, I really wish I would have made it to AP Calculus but, at the time when I was taking Geometry, I could not take Algebra 2 simultaneously, and of course, the next year later they changed that, and you 100% cannot take Trig and Algebra 2 at the same time. And I know my initial test score was low but like I said, I feel much confident about this test than I did previously, we’ll see in thirteen days. I would have taken AP Physics but the class that fills that block is a requirement to graduate and that is the only block it is offered so…</p>

<p>I wanted to take harder classes this year so I didn’t seem like a “senior slacker” but my school just doesn’t have them, and it frankly sucks.
Also, I would never include “just not interested” about foreign language anywhere else, I was just trying to be as honest as possible, ha.</p>

<p>Lookingforward - No astricks, lol. Pretty much same thing to you ^</p>

<p>As a side note: There’s always two sides, the optimist in me says I can do it, the realist says: Ha, not a chance. We’ll see.
It’s pretty much sucking the life out of my senior year. </p>

<p>I also tried to take spanish this year but EVERY SINGLE SPANISH ONE AND TWO CLASS WAS FULL, with 30+ kids. (typical class is 20-25)</p>

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<p>You need matches. Your list is full of reaches.</p>

<p>No foreign language is going to hurt you. In our public school district, you need 3 years of foreign language to graduate.</p>

<p>You’re only taking math through trig----another bad thing, especially if you want to major in computer science. Since when is trig a weighted class? Colleges recalculate GPA’s when reviewing applications. They are not going to consider a weight in a trig class.</p>

<p>No AP classes.</p>

<p>Please, put some safeties and matches on your list. Forget about Stanford–it’s not going to happen. Save the application fee and use it on a safety school application.</p>

<p>Also, rank should be based on weighted GPA’s—it makes it fair to the kids that are taking the most rigorous curriculum rather than trying to breeze their way through by taking easier classes and earning an easy high GPA.</p>

<p>Graduating HS early and going to college early should be considered only if the student has exhausted the HS curriculum. You have not taken any AP courses (and only 3 years of math). You have not taken any foreign language. Thus, I seriously doubt that you have exhausted your curriculum. </p>

<p>Perfect attendance is a personal satisfaction honor. No one cares other than the person who achieved it. </p>

<p>You are definitely college material. However, you need to adjust your college list. There are too many reaches on it.</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.cmu.edu/ira/CDS/pdf/cds_2009_10/c_first_year_admissions.pdf[/url]”>http://www.cmu.edu/ira/CDS/pdf/cds_2009_10/c_first_year_admissions.pdf&lt;/a&gt;
^link to the common data set for Carnegie Mellon.
Notice the required: 4 years math, 2 years foreign language. Average ACT composite=31</p>

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<p>[Stanford</a> University: Common Data Set 2009-2010](<a href=“http://ucomm.stanford.edu/cds/cds_2009.html#admission]Stanford”>http://ucomm.stanford.edu/cds/cds_2009.html#admission)
^link to Stanford’s common data set. Note the recommended: 3+ years of foreign language and 4 years of math. Note the ACT composite and breakdown.</p>