Hi! I live in Florida and I am a junior in an IB school (very rigorous). I take a lot of AP classes… last year I took 2 AP classes and this year I’m taking 4. My extra curricular activities are competitive dancing, singing for 5 years, and competitive tennis for 8 years. I’m in the relay for life club, dance marathon club, co-founder of the multicultural club, and president of the Indian Student Association Club. I am also on the varsity tennis team, my ranking is #2 and I hope to be captain next year. I have over 150 service hours. I haven’t taken the SAT or ACT yet but I plan to do well on those (fingers crossed). Only problem is, I have a crappy GPA. My unweighted GPA is a 3.18 and I think it might drop to a 3.0 because junior year in IB is hella hard. My weighted GPA is a 4.54. I have one more semester left before I apply to colleges and I hope to do well so I can raise my GPA. I also got a 1220 out of 1520 on my PSAT this year. But overall, I think I’m pretty good other than my GPA. Is it possible for me to get into any of these universities if I write an amazing essay?
University of Florida
University of Miami
Emory
Case Western
NYU
Wake Forest
Carnegie Mellon
University of Michigan
Nova Southeastern University (7 year dental program)
Boston University
Right now, my back up schools are USF and UCF but I REALLY don’t want to go to either of those schools. My top choice is UF. So do I have a chance?
Lol yeah i know its a big stretch. But I just thought that if I did well on the SATs i would have some chance. I’m at a 1500 out of a 1600 right now on my practice tests.
Of course you’re fine with your GPA, as long as you get a much better SAT score and put your heart into extracurriculars. Don’t expect your essay to do wonders on its own though.
I’m relatively new here, and I don’t really have experience with what colleges want, but my observation is that most posters here are pretty negative / harsh. This board attracts mainly the super-achievers, with great GPAs and great test scores. They’re often nervous about their own chances - and they’re not crazy, because it’s really hard to get into the top schools, no matter what your stats are. So I think they tend to assume that kids with worse stats than them have no chance. Which is probably over-simplistic.
My guess is that if your GPA and test scores disagree, your application might be viewed differently by different schools, maybe even by different readers at the same school. You won’t have a good chance at any of these top schools - but don’t be too discouraged. If you have the energy, try a bunch of them. Maybe you’ll have exactly what they’re looking for otherwise…
Of course - you’re a junior now. The best thing you can do for your college chances is to try to get your GPA as high as possible…
Agreed^, also I’m an Emory student, no reason for me to feel nervous of chances.
Also, while I do agree having a split application (high gpa, low test scores or vise versa) can be looked into but there is still a certain threshold.
I believe for Emory college the acceptance rate for people with 3-3.25 gpa is around 2-5% and thats probably filled with urm, superlegacy, etc. so yes chances are pretty much 0. Harsh? Yes, but its reality.
So then parents of super-achieving kids, with high GPAs and high test scores…
But I do agree that a 3.0 GPA, unless it can be explained away and is trending upwards (e.g. 2.5 / 3.0 / 3.5 because my loved one died / I had a medical issue / whatever), might be too low to even get considered.
What college you enter as a freshman doesn’t define your life. If you want to be a dentist, look more into 7 year dental programs.
I don’t know why someone would pursue both IB and AP.
This part makes me crazy:
“My unweighted GPA is a 3.18…My weighted GPA is a 4.54”
Apparently you are getting 2.0 extra for IB and/or AP courses?
If that is the case, I would say not to worry too much for the less competitive schools on your list.
As for Emory let alone CMU, focus on doing well in college and transferring to one of them if it pans out. As a Florida resident, I’m not feeling that UF is out of reach for you.
But I don’t understand your PSAT score - isn’t there an index that they give you for the NMS? If that index is above 200, you should be in good shape I think.
One of the #1 issues I see with juniors is not having taken the SAT once as of second half of junior year. The main problem with this is that the math material is very early - before pre-calc - so it is to a student’s benefit if they are on track to take pre-calc junior year, let alone above that, to take the SAT in sophomore year or at least the first half of junior year. Please consider taking the SAT or ACT as soon as possible.
I took a couple of online classes too. Is my weighted GPA considered good? UF has a great dental school and I really want to go there. What else can I do to help me get admitted other than increasing my GPA? I doubt I can raise mine super high at this point because junior year in IB is TOUGH.
You are finding classes difficult. That should tell you something. Some schools and some programs are seeking students who can easily nail the toughest classes and still participate in the wide range of activities available to students at their college. The most important aspect of an application is performance in classes. ECs rarely compensate for poor grades. Some leeway is given for students with skills that will enhance the school, like athletes who play for the team. They are given credit for having developed a skill that they will use to contribute to the school climate. You mention being number 2 in tennis. Is that #2 for your state’s graduating class (tennisrecruiting) or a USTA rating? If so and you will play for your school your chances at a top school are markedly better.
2 of the AP classes are mandatory. APUSH is mandatory for SL history junior year. And I’m taking AP Lang which is mandatory for HL english. And my other 2 electives, Ap micro and Ap macro are my electives.
@gatorgrl What is your national ranking? You don’t need to give exact number for confidentiality reasons, but a range would be helpful. I can’t figure out mathematically how someone’s weighted GPA could be more than 1 point higher than their unweighted GPA, even with your taking online courses. It’s hard to believe your school’s rigor is the reason for your sub-par UW GPA, since a 3.18 seems about fitting for someone with a 1220 PSAT score. Regardless, I wouldn’t be surprised if you made it into UF. Good luck.
