Columbia - Please Chance Me! Thank you!

Colleges and Universities A-Z Columbia University
1

<p>Class: 2010
Gender: Female
Race: Asian Indian
School: Diverse, highly competitive, and in the city of Plano, TX
GPA (weighted): 4.157777778
GPA (unweighted): 3.7
Rank: 51/1390 (effortlessly. I'm more of a volunteering-type person, as you shall see)
Hooks: Lots of volunteering. Teen attorney at the Plano Municipal Teen Court.</p>

<p>Major: Business</p>

<p>Transcript[The way it is right now]:</p>

<p>SAT:
reading: 700
math: 700
writing: 630</p>

<p>I have yet to take the ACT and my Subject Tests</p>

<p>EC:
Teen Court at the Plano Municipal Court</p>

<p>I became a teen attorney during my junior year after going through a selection process for the first time last summer. Court is held on Mondays and I come in after school at
around 5:30 to prepare my case. Essentially, I strive to convince the members of the jury of the reasonability of my recommendations for service hours to give to the defendants based on the severity of their class c misdemeanors.</p>

<p>Habitat for Humanity</p>

<p>I am currently vice-president of the Plano East chapter of Habitat for Humanity, and enjoy building houses that bring ever-lasting joy to precious families. My responsibilities include managing registration during the builds (every Saturday), recruiting members, dealing with logistics, managing the teen volunteers at the builds, running errands, and basically helping out in every way necessary to have the builds and the club run smoothly. I am hopeful of securing the president seat next year.</p>

<p>Debate</p>

<p>I’ve been in debate since sophomore year and adore it. My ability to present myself well, articulate my thoughts effectively, analyze information quickly, and, in short, communicate in a way that makes my presence known has improved drastically since joining debate. The competitions held practically every Saturday provide a forum through which I can voice my opinions, expand my knowledge, and, in general, gain a better, more comprehensive and insightful view of the world. </p>

<p>I am the vice-president of the Plano East Chapter of Future Business Leaders of America, which entails conducting the meetings, organizing fundraising events, preparing the team for upcoming competitions, and raising awareness about the business field. In addition, I am going to be advancing to the state-level competition in the individual test event of Economics. </p>

<p>In terms of another business club, I am a member of the Economics Society at Plano East (a club that started this school year though the collective initiative of the committee of which I am a part of). Every other week meetings are held and the committee addresses current economic problems and we discuss and debate upon the economic issues that are clearly prevalent in our society today. We also discuss economic theory and concepts such that we gain a better understanding of what is currently being taught in our International Baccalaureate economics class (I am a student of both the International Baccalaureate and Advanced Placement programs). </p>

<p>I am a member of the Plano Teen Court team, as previously mentioned, and as such it is here I would like to note that we have recently been rewarded a 1st place victory at the 2009 North Texas Teen Court Competition, which entailed competing and winning against other Teen Courts in the region by successfully conveying a sense of realism and professionalism in our portrayal of mock cases based on class c misdemeanors. The experience has taught me the essentials of responding to a dynamic audience (the judge and jury members), dealing with unpredictable, unknown people (the opposing mock defendants, witnesses, and attorneys), and adeptly adapting to changes in situations (the path of the trial). </p>

<p>I am a member of the National Honor Society (an extension of my involvement in the community since 7th grade when I was working to be inducted into the National Junior Honor Society).</p>

<p>I have volunteered at a multitude of organizations including the Plano Engineering Department, Carpenter Recreation Center Kid Capers Camp, Plano Stages, and Plano Children’s Theatre. The volunteering experience is an integral component of my life as it helps me stay grounded and true to myself amidst all the Machiavellian competition students face at my school.</p>

<p>Summer:
I got accepted to the Cornell Summer College</p>

<p>I have recently sent applications to Wharton's Leadership in the Business World summer program
and
the University of Texas at Austin's Business Summer Camps.</p>

<p>Awards:
Debate
Teen Court</p>

<p>AP tests:
I've only taken one thus far
Human Geo: 5</p>

<p>I'm taking the following in May:</p>

<p>Macro/Micro Econ
English Language
Comp Sci I
US History
Statistics</p>

<p>I'm in the IB program</p>

<p>I want to be chanced for:
Columbia
Cornell
NYU
UT @ Austin
Dartmouth
UPenn</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

2

<p>Your SATs could be better...and your rank isn't the best, but you said you're from a competitive school, so that's understandable.
But your ECs are fantastic, I think. So as long as your essay(s) and recommendations and SAT IIs are good, I think you have a fair shot.
(Oh, and you can already easily get into NYU without trying; UPenn's probably the hardest out of your list.)</p>

3

<p>thanks so much :)
in terms of rank, I know i really need to do better. :/
it pains me so!</p>

4

<p>how about UChicago?</p>

5

<p>Your EC's are good, but everything else is mediocure. Your SATs and UW GPA will cause you a lot of problems at all of those schools (except for NYU and UT). The fact that your school is very competitive doesn't excuse your GPA, especially considering your low SAT scores. You should definitely study and try hard on the SAT IIs.</p>

6

<p>ouch. but point taken. thanks so much! </p>

<p>do they consider GPA in terms of if it's balanced with good EC's?</p>

7

<p>You have to remember that Ivy Leagues and all other top colleges/universities are Academic Institutions. So obviously, they value your GPA very highly. Basically, EC's cannot save a low GPA, but EC's can push a person with a high/good GPA to an acceptance. </p>

<p>This is not including stellar athletes that are "recruited".</p>

8

<p>your gpa isn't bad, but the fact that you've taken only 1 AP in a highly competitive school by junior year and your SATs don't bode very well. and the fact that your not-too-high rank was achieved effortlessly indicates that you really could have worked harder. im sure you're a very intelligent person, but i think columbia is for a different type of student. you will likely be able to thrive at a less-selective institution, but something like columbia requires your best effort all the time. are you willing to do that?</p>

9

<p>Ok, get off her back. First of all, a 3.7 GPA isn't BAD or LOW. I know someone who got into an Ivy with a 3.6 GPA (although I admit, he did sports, but I'm sure that wasn't the only thing because he really is smart). In this case, I think your ECs make up for your academics AS LONG as you a) do the best you can in school and b) bring up your SATs and do well on the SAT IIs. </p>

<p>If academics were the only major thing that mattered in the college process, my shot at getting into a good school would sky rocket. You have better ECs than I ever will/had, so don't worry about it. Good luck to you.</p>

10

<p>^existentialism</p>

<p>Obviously you did not read my post. </p>

<p>Academics are required. Your EC's is what makes you stand out. So obviously, it's not just academics, but EC's are not going to save a person if their scores simply are not good enough. (I'm not referring to the original poster)</p>

<p>Plus, she is also asian and we all know how that goes.</p>

11

<p>Wonderful ECs. I get a sense of your personality and what you value, it's a breath of fresh air. Most of the threads on here start with what I call "magical numbers." And, honestly, once you're in range it doesn't mean a thing.</p>

<p>You have drive and passion. You're also able to sensibly articulate these intangible things. Keep working at it and you'll be unstoppable.</p>

12

<p>honestly people, I am not hurt in the least bit by any of these comments. Be honest, i value honestly and am not about to shy away from constructive criticism. No one's on my back, at least it doesn't matter to me. I have a semester to improve, and I'm taking my AP tests in May, so it's okay, keep the honest comments coming. This is the way my transcript stands as of now, during spring break. We got our ranks in Jan. I'm sure i've gone up. I checked (i believe I'm in the high 20's right now). </p>

<p>So for assessment's sake let's say I am currently at</p>

<p>25/1390.</p>

<p>How's that?</p>

<p>And again,
thank you</p>

<p>this is exactly why I value college confidential so much :)</p>

13

<p>Top 2% is really nice, BUT your SAT's cast doubt on your high ranking. It makes it seem that your rank does not translate to actual competitiveness.</p>

14

<p>I need to take my SATs again soon yes.
The scores are from Jan 2008...</p>

15

<p>You're a Junior, so you have at at least two more opportunities to retake the SAT. If you're planning to study for your SAT IIs, you might consider taking those in May, then the SAT I in October and November. If not, maybe take the SAT I in May and October and the SAT II in November. You get the idea. Make sure you get in a good amount of time to study, because you want to raise that score by at least 200 points. (I now direct you to the SAT Prep board). </p>

<p>Also, goes without saying, try to bump that GPA up. You don't want to be applying with an A- UW GPA. In Ivy Speak "A Minus" is "A Phailure."</p>

16

<p>do colleges prefer unweighted to weighted?</p>

17

<p>b/c currently I have a GPA of 4.246153846-->weighted. My unweighted is a 3.70769230769231</p>

<p>but the info I have above is my transcript. And my school calculates GPA and rank at the half year mark...or at least, that's when it's given to us. They don't calculate it again for us until two weeks into senior year, for those of us planning on EA.</p>

<p>Question:</p>

<p>Has anyone here taken the World History AP exam?</p>

<p>I took Humanities/World History last year and the year before (2 year course). It's our gifted program, so the material is rigorous.</p>

<p>So if i'm not in the official "AP" world history course, would you think I'd still be able to take the exam, given that I have taken a course, with just as much rigor.</p>

<p>that would bring my APs to 8, after May.</p>

18

<p>um, your school should have talked to you about taking exams. ask your guidance office ASAP, since registration is due in a few days. </p>

<p>3.7 isn't an A-. it's an A. 3.5 is an A-. and A- doesn't equal failure. </p>

<p>And you're planning on taking 7 APs this year? that's quite alot. you think you can do well on 7?</p>

<p>colleges see both weighted and unweighted, although they look more at UW. weighted just gives them some perspective on the strength of your course schedule.</p>

<p>the fact remains, gambling on boosting your SATs by 200 points isn't very smart. I think Columbia is just too far beyond your reach. That may be for the best. I'd shoot for an easier school, perhaps with scholarships, and take the opportunity to do EC stuff there. I don't think you're not intelligent enough, since I have no way of knowing. But your academic record doesn't match up.</p>

<p>your list is almost all ivies. that doesn't bode well. you will likely not get into any of them. try finding either some in-state colleges or some smaller LAC-esque places.</p>

19

<p>^I disagree. Your scores are not too low. People exist on the Columbia campus with lower if not equal scores to yours currently. The writing is honestly not hard to bring up if you prep, and you're in the range for the others. A 700 is honestly fine for an ivy league because it means you know how to read and do math...A 750 <em>looks</em> better, but you are no different than that person who scores the 750. </p>

<p>Okay, I think you have a good chance, but just retake the SAT again though don't obsess over it. Of course, you need safeties, especially today when admissions is somewhat arbitrary due to sooo many great applicants, but don't think you stand 0 chance.</p>

20

<p>thanks, both of you.
yes i plan on taking my SATs again</p>

<p>also, my ACT prep is going well. I'm certain that at my current state of practice I can get a 30. And I started last month.</p>

<p>as for safeties:
UT Austin
NYU
Wake Forest
SUNY</p>