<p>Hey guys, i'm a sophomore in high school, and i'm wondering if i have any chance of getting in to duke university with my low GPA and soon to be great test scores. Sadly, the title is misleading. I'm asian, which makes me an ORM. :'( Northwestern is my dream school, but i'm still applying to other schools, some of which are crapshoots and some of which i think i can easily get in. Anyway, the test scores are my guestimates of what i'm going to get, but they should be pretty accurate. The PLAN test (ACT performance predicting exam administered by the same company who administers the ACT) put my score in the 34 range, and i'm taking intensive personalized tutoring for the ACT, with the hope that it will bring my grade up by even one point, hopefully two! My PLAN test score was also in the top 1% of all college bound students in the nation, and in middle school i was always in the top 1% of my state (no nationwide exams in middle school). I think my performance on the SAT will be similar to my performance on the ACT. Anyway, here goes. </p>
<p>GPA: 3.4 out of a 4.0 scale (UW) [4.23 W]
ACT: 35-36
SAT: 2300-2350
Class Rank: Top 10%
EC: Football Fresh/Soph years, Wrestling all four years, tennis Soph-Senior year, debate team, youth in government, NHS, Newspaper club sports editor
AP: Taking 9-10 by the time i graduate
Course Rigor: I've taken all the most rigourous courses our school has to offer
Recs: Really good
Essay: Hopefully really good? </p>
<p>Yes, i realize my GPA is much lower than the median GPAs of the schools i want to apply to, but i really hope my test scores help add some balance. But it's an upward trend, so hopefully that helps! And yes, i'm positive i'll test as well as i project. Also, the school i go to is not really that competitive (4.23 Wgpa puts me in the top 10%, embarassing, huh?). Well i think i've covered everything! Do you guys think i have a fair shot?</p>
<p>Just continue to work hard and you’ll have a shot. If you have a 3.4 while you’re done with only HALF of high school, you can easily bring that up to 3.6-3.7 if you make A’s junior and senior year. Duke truly is a crapshoot because so many talented students apply yet they can only accept so many. But I think it might be a little bit too early to start worrying about college, so just focus on high school and worry about the college business next year.</p>
<p>oh and ballerduke14, would i have a decent shot with a 3.6 or a 3.7? because i’m not sure if good testing would override my subpar gpa, and i call a 3.6-3.7 subpar because most of the other applicants are probably somewhere between 3.85-4.0, from what i’ve been hearing.</p>
<p>Good testing almost never makes up for a low GPA at top schools - too many applicants have great GPA’s and great test scores. I know from experience.</p>
<p>Yeah 123collegeforme hit it right on. That being said, you also can’t take any justification in the fact that “it would be okay if my GPA was not as high as everyone else’s who’s applying.” However, what I meant with the whole raising the GPA some points was that if you struggled freshman and sophomore year, yet make a turnaround and get straight A’s junior and first semester senior year, Duke will definitely see that growth. Also, you can use that to your advantage by talking about that personal turnaround in your essay (which is what I did). But like I said, just continue to work hard and achieve the highest level of excellence you can possibly achieve because there’s no point in dwelling back on the past and lamenting your “sub-par GPA” because it’s not going to change. The only thing you can change is the future upcoming years’ GPA.</p>
<p>Please do not plan out the next two years of your life based on a desire to get into Duke. It will most likely not work out in your favor… My advice, which you will undoubtedly ignore, is to enjoy yourself. Don’t spend the next 24 months locked away with a tutor or starting countless clubs you care little about or caring about every single tenth of your GPA. It’s not worth it.</p>
