Do I have a chance for UNC-CH??

OOS
White Female
Income: less than $20,000 (yes I am poor)
GPA: W- 6.5 UW- 3.94
Class Rank: 14/605 (98th percentile)
SAT: 1340
Intended major: Nursing with a minor in Korean

AP classes:
freshmen- Human geo
Sophomore- Art history, Capstone seminar, World history.
Junior- Calc AB, Capstone research, Environmental science, Lang, U.S. history.
Senior- Literature, Bio, Stat, Art 3D, Psychology

Fairly good common app essay

Awards: AP Capstone diploma, AP Scholar with Distinction, AP Scholar, County Solo and Ensemble medallion.

Extracurriculars :

  1. Korean Foreign Exchange program- I studied at Hanyang University in Seoul, South Korea for the summer and stayed with a host family
  2. Self-studied Korean- I self-studied Korean in the U.S. for 3 years using completely free online resources
  3. Chamber Orchestra (requires audition to get in)- I auditioned for the orchestra and played in it for junior and senior year
  4. President of the Art Club- I was officer as a sophomore, VP as a junior, and now i’m the President
  5. Tri-M Honors Society - Music Honor society club where we go around and perform at nursing homes and at churches
  6. NHS club
  7. Beta club
  8. Cheerleader, Diver, and Long jumper freshmen and sophomore year

Congratulations on all of your hard work and accomplishments!

Your SAT is on the low side for UNC (25th% for instate is 1310 and 25th% for OOS is 1360) but admissions will view your application within the context of your high school.

Does your school have Naviance? What is your school’s history with regard to acceptances? What other schools are you applying to? Have you considered applying ED to test optional schools that meet full need (use the NPCs to check for affordability)? Have you investigated schools where you may get significant merit?

To answer your question…yes, as long as you apply you will always have a chance…but keep in mind that OOS acceptance is very competitive.

Best of luck to you!

Congrats on your outstanding HS achievements. Really excellent.

Re UNC - CH just be aware that OOS is limited to 18% of the class per state law. They do this to ensure the NC tax payers have access to their state schools. So the OOS admit is very competitive. It’s great to apply but don’t be disappointed if it doesn’t work because statistically it doesn’t.

For those who love UNC, I generally recommend applying to UVA as well. Very similar in a lot of ways. UVA also has a state mandate but they typically cap OOS at a third so simply more spots. It’s also very competitive.

What state are you in? How is the in state flagship?

You will likely find the “meet full need” privates to be very accomodating to your financial aid concerns so consider some of them. Many of them have shifted away from merit for a few to provide need based aid for many. In some cases it’s less expensive to go to a private than a public. I would play with the calculators on their sites and have a discussion with your parents.

Your SAT is probably too low. Keep taking it and try to improve.

Your social situation combined with your class rank is a plus for admissions. Where else are you applying? You will have a background that a very good school will want to admit. OOS at Ch is just very hard, but best of luck. You will land where you are meant to be.