Competitiveness for these schools?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>These are my stats and short biographical sketch. I just want a "Yes, you will be competitive for these schools against other applicants" or "No, you'd be wasting your time."</p>

<p>Applying to:
Stanford University (Regular Decision w/ art supplement, or should I do Restrictive Early Action?)
Columbia University (Early Decision)
Yale University (Regular Decision)
University of Pennsylvania (Regular Decision)
Amherst College (Regular Decision)
University of Chicago (Early Action)
UC Berkeley
Washington & Lee University
Colorado College</p>

<p>I HAVE SAFETY SCHOOLS</p>

<p>Academics/Test Scores
ACT (raw): 32.25 (English: 35, Math: 33, Reading: 33, Science: 28) I'm so unhappy with this score because I was literally one question on any section away from a 33.
Unweighted GPA: 3.94
Weighted GPA: 4.54
No SAT or SAT Subject Tests (not majoring in engineering)</p>

<p>Senior course load:
AP AB Calculus
AP Chemistry
AP European History
AP French 5
AP Literature & Composition
Festival Singers (highest choir class in the school)
Anatomy & Physiology</p>

<p>Online:
Civics (through BYU)
Hiking and Running
<em>both required for graduation</em></p>

<p>Extracurricular Activities:
12 years of competitive performance piano (multiple state, local, and studio awards)
3 years of competitive club archery (couple state awards, couple club awards)
Dedicated and active member of the church
-youth group pianist and singer
-dancer/singer/event planner for many performances for the church
-representative member of church volleyball team
-monthly soup kitchen volunteer (singer for pre-dinner worship performances)
-monthly trailer park community volunteer (babysitter, Bible coach)
-Camp Barnabas counselor (annual camp for physically and mentally disabled children and teenagers of Christian families)
-Desperation Conference Sunday school group leader
Black Forest fire aftermath cleanup (helped sift through ashes of friends' houses, helped rebuild part of a burned-down elementary school)
Black Forest National Park and trail cleanup w/ friends
Model for cultural attire at Korean Culture Day at the library, co-coordinator with my mom
Volunteer for multiple events at the public library through Teen Advisory Board
Weekly volunteer at local hospital
Member of Junior Volunteer Leadership Team for Memorial Health System
Volunteer and management for annual blood drive at Memorial Health System
Fundraising for child leukemia patient through the school
<em>There's more but I can't think of them at the moment</em></p>

<p>Work Experience
-internship this past summer with Penguin Random House (publicity department, exploring career options)
-earned credit through a community college
-waitress and hostess at a restaurant
-babysitter for kids I know through the church
-tutor for elementary and middle school students (basic algebra and geometry, reading comprehension, writing skills)
-finalizing plans to shadow an anesthesiologist until graduation</p>

<p>Race: Asian (specifically Korean - first generation living in America, going to school in America)
Estimated annual income: ~$100k</p>

<p>Can't really think of a hook. Would the fact that I'm a first generation Asian living in America count as a hook? I don't know.</p>

<p>Anyway, any answers appreciated!!</p>

2

<p>What’s in-state for you?
if you’re not from CA, Berkeley OOS will be unaffordable for a 100k family.</p>

<p>Stanford University (Regular Decision w/ art supplement, or should I do Restrictive Early Action?)
=> RD (there’s an actual drawback to applying early to Stanford, since they tend to reject rather than defer the kids who don’t make the cut.)
Columbia University (Early Decision) = big reach
Yale University (Regular Decision) = big reach
University of Pennsylvania (Regular Decision)= big reach
Amherst College (Regular Decision) = big reach
University of Chicago (Early Action) = big reach</p>

<p>=> I would pick 3 out of these 6 because typical odds are about 1 in 15. Your resume is impressive but isn’t an immediate standout in the pool these schools are used to. You’re in the top range though.</p>

<p>UC Berkeley = unless you are in-state, too expensive for 100K income; if you are instate, apply to UCSD/UCD as a match.</p>

<p>Washington & Lee University = match, potential Johnson qualifier</p>

<p>Colorado College = match</p>

3

<p>@MYOS1634‌ thanks for the reply! Honestly, the only highly selective universities I WANT to apply to are Stanford, Berkeley, Columbia, and U of Chicago. My parents are pushing me to apply to Yale and UPenn.</p>

<p>Berkeley: I live in Colorado, and I have a friend who graduated a couple years ago and he went to Berkeley. He said there are so many financial aid opportunities once you get in, so I was trusting his word on that.</p>

<p>Washington & Lee: I got a fee waiver in the mail saying I didn’t have to write an essay, but if I write one then it’ll make me eligible for the Johnson scholarship :slight_smile: definitely going for that!</p>

4

<p>Bump. Please offer any input regarding the schools I listed that you happen to have! I’m the first member of my family to go to college in America and I need all the help I could possibly get!</p>

5

<p>Well, if your parents are paying the application fees, apply to the schools that make them happy. Odds are you won’t get in…
Spending 55k on UCB in the hopes you’d get better FA as a sophomore is a very very risky move, not one I’d advise for your parents’ sake.
Have you read Washington and Lee’s description in the Fiske Guide or Insider to the Colleges or Princeton Review’s Best Colleges? It’s heavily Greek and a lot of activities involve alcohol. In addition, it’s very formal, dress-wise. It also is a superb LAC with a gorgeous campus and the Johnson is a terrific opportunity.</p>

6

<p>@MYOS1634‌ I did a lot of research on W&L when I got the letter in the mail and I found that Greek life is HUGE there (I was actually planning on joining a cultural or academic-based sorority anyway.) As for the alcohol, I’ll manage :slight_smile: I haven’t given in to peer pressure yet so there’s no reason I’d change to fit the social scene in college. I think you can have fun without having to indulge in alcohol, to be honest. I’ve been doing it for the past four years.</p>

<p>I plan to visit the campus for W&L because I’ve heard so many great things about it. But what’s an LAC? Is it Learning Assistance Center?</p>

7

<p>hm, if you don’t drink and don’t intend to drink, then, you may not be a good fit for W&L. It’s not a matter of resisting peer pressure, it’s a matter of 85% students on average getting wasted at parties, which reduces the opportunities for fun for the 15% remaining, since those at parties are not at film night or planning hiking trips etc, and the school doesn’t have as much of an incentive to offer different activities since so few students would participate.
There’s also the issue of noise and drunken-ness - which are fun when you’re drunk, not fun when you’re not.</p>

<p>Social fraternities/sororities are NOTHING like cultural/academic fraternities. :slight_smile: </p>

<p>LAC = Liberal Arts College. A place, typically small-ish to small (1,500 to 3,000 students) that focuses on undergraduate education, so there are no older(“grad”) students teaching (only professors), undergrads can join in on research projects, and there’s a specific ethos whereby developing critical thinking through breadth of learning is considered essential (as well as Honor Codes, sometimes, and/or particular traditions.) You can watch the Josh Radnor’s film “Liberal Arts” to get a better idea. :)</p>

8

<p>Berkeley as a OOS probably won’t be a good decision. However, you could probably get into one of your reaches with good essays. You’re EC are very good though.</p>

<p>Chance me back?</p>

<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1690073-give-it-the-panda-a-chance-get-a-panda-chance-back.html#latest”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1690073-give-it-the-panda-a-chance-get-a-panda-chance-back.html#latest&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

9

<p>@snowboardchick97‌ </p>

<p>Based on what you have I think you have great chances to get in all the schools in the lists except the Ivies-Ivies are reaches for everyone, so it’s not just you. And,…Uchicago can be odd frequently,
By the way, W&L is a liberal arts school too</p>

<p>However, as two other posters already said, UC schools as OOS will be costly.
Hey, btw I am a Korean too :-).</p>

<p>@MYOS1634‌ are parties at W&L really that intense? </p>

10

<p>@snowboardchick97‌ - Applying to Columbia ED and UChicago EA is a good plan, as long as you willing to “settle” for Columbia. I was unaware this is possible until now. If you would be happy to end up at Columbia and never know if you might have been accepted at Yale or Stanford, then go for it. They are very different schools though…have you researched Columbia thoroughly to make sure it is a good fit for you?</p>

<p>I think you have chances at all of these schools, and would not be wasting your time in applying to any of them.</p>

11

<p>If you do SCEA at stanford, as you know, you won’t be able to apply early to other schools.(which is why I don’t like SCEA…)</p>

<p>I think that unless Stanford is your No.0, go for the Columbia ED, EA to Uchicago and Colorado College, and RD to other schools. By the way, Colorado college has both ED and EA. </p>

12

<p>@Paul: yes they are, and famously so.</p>

13

<p>Oh wow…now I think I am lucky not to be accepted as a waitlist…because I am not a drinker…(God know where I should go lol: ALABAMA)</p>

14

<p>Yes, Alabama has big parties too, but because it’s a large school, you have other possibilities. “fit” is most important at LACs, since they are small ie., self selective and tend to attract a subset of what a large university would.</p>

15

<p>Some of my friends do drink, but they never force me: I always tell them that I will lose scholarship if I get caught drinking(well, if I get caught three time, but they don’t know lol), and they respect my choice. BAMA is such a big school that not drinking can be definitely an option.</p>

16

<p>Wow, lots of replies! Makes me happy xD</p>

<p>@MYOS1634 I’ll discuss W&L with my parents and my counselor. I’ve dealt with drunk friends before and I’m not sure if I want to deal with a whole campus of drunk strangers -_-</p>

<p>@TheMaskedPanda I’ll try to chance back! I’m new to the college scene so I may not be able to offer any helpful input.</p>

<p>@paul2752‌ I didn’t know Berkeley could be so expensive out of state :stuck_out_tongue: I’ll put some more thought into it. I just saw some research their labs did with an Ebola virus glycoproten and a human survivor’s natural antibody attached, and I grew some interest in Berkeley. Plus, I visited the campus this summer and I really liked it :slight_smile: and YAY! A FELLOW KOREAN! :D</p>

<p>@BldrDad‌ Columbia and Stanford are my dream schools. If I had to choose which one I favored more, though, I’d definitely say Stanford, but I can’t apply Early Action there because it’s restrictive xP (who even thought of that? So aggravating.) I’ve researched all the schools I’m applying to and, like I said in an earlier post, I’m only applying to Yale and UPenn because my parents are pressuring me to. But good to know that I won’t be wasting my time on the millions of writing supplements I have to finish by mid-October to get reviewed by dozens of people :P</p>

<p>@MYOS1634 @paul2752‌ yeah, I’m definitely not a drinker. The only alcohol I ever had was a sip of wine when we had guests over and a sip of champagne at a wedding reception; my parents allowed it, but I hated them both. And I heard beer’s really bitter and I’m more of a hot chocolate with marshmallows kind of person x) #childatheart</p>

17

<p>Oh, and one more extracurricular activity I mentioned on the Common Application:</p>

<p>Online author on a site for amateur writers - nearing 2000 subscribers
-> I write about social and world issues (ex: bullying & suicide, cyberbullying, feminism, corrupt government officials and the negative results of their consequences, improper healthcare and hygiene in third world countries that could lead to detrimental results, etc.)</p>

18

<p>Have you looked into Scripps, Mount Holyoke, Wellesley, Bryn Mawr? (wrt to social conscience + hot chocolate :p)</p>

19

<p>@snowboardchick97 - HYPS are restrictive early action because otherwise most applicants would be applying EA to all four. One reason for early action is to raise their yields and allow more control over the composition of the class- a school with an 80% yield has much more say over the final makeup of the class than one with 30% yield.</p>

<p>You could apply Stanford early action but it means you couldn’t apply UChicago early action at the same time. It’s your call…it may well change your path in life, but all paths are good when you have these options.</p>

20

<p>@BldrDad yeah, I’m really putting a lot of thought into this and I can’t seem to come to a conclusion :stuck_out_tongue: </p>