Do I have a chance of getting into top schools with a 3.6 UW?

Not impossible at schools that know your school well, esp if your GPA is somewhere in the top 10ish% of your cohort. If it’s outside that, then not likely- and especially not likely based on what you have posted here.

Here’s the thing you may not be accounting for: you are looking at tippy tops- but you may find the T25 harder than you think as well. I know quite a few kids with stats better than yours, and ECs that look at least as strong or more so, who were turned down by schools with admit rates in the mid-20%.
It is harder than you think- and getting more so each year.

No matter where you apply, pay attention to @lookingforward’s point: you need to be doing some serious thinking about what you want from your college experience and what you add to a college class.

To do the former, you need to keep winkling away at the first cut you have made (from your posts you seem to be at a pretty early stage of research on the colleges you are applying to- not a criticism! This summer is a perfect time to be doing it- just be aware that what you have posted so far is pretty superficial).

What do you really want from college? (besides the bragging rights of the name, obvs). What is 4 years at that college like? I almost wrote about how you think the law faculty at Yale will affect your experience as an undergrad, for example (short answer, almost certainly less than you think). Is econ the reason you are looking at UChicago / Princeton, or is it the justification for having those two schools on the list? Have you looked at what the econ major is actually like there? For all of the places you are looking at, what happens if you change your focus (not a rare thing, esp for somebody talking about econ, law and engineering). Would you choose that place anyway? etc.

To do the latter, you need to look at all the pieces of your application and pull them together into a cohesive narrative arc. It doesn’t matter what the story is, as long as it is true to you, but you need to sell your story, and you need to have thought this out before you write your essays. So, when you write your Common App essay you lay out the main parts (elements/themes) of your story, and then use the supplements to draw links to the individual colleges. This autumn, when you give your info to the people who are writing your LoRs, you highlight/remind them of things that contribute to that arc. Note: this does not have to be either linear or literal! the main thing is that all the pieces, taken together, say to an AdComm person/committee ‘this person will round out this class nicely’. This is especially important if your application goes to committee (ie, is not a direct admit/reject), which seems most likely.

Finally, by UCs you probably mean UCLA/UCB/UCSD. Don’t take them, or even UMi, for granted.

@lookingforward said: “I don’t doubt OP’s chances are different at top 21-50.”

Nor do I. :wink:

I would apply to 21-50. I am not sure if you will get in to the harder of those. Depends somewhat on SAT IIs. Apparently, you took only 2 AP exams and got a 3 and a 5. That is consistent with your grades and rigor of classes.

Michigan and BU are reach schools.

@DynamicAero

I have read this thread with interest and agree with the consensus view that other aspects of your application are not going to compensate for a 3.6 UW GPA divided equally among As and Bs in academic subjects. If you want an upper tier school, IMO, the best way to improve your chances would be to apply ED to a school that you would be happy to attend with no regrets and that your parents are willing and able to afford. Additionally, I would be strategic about using ED at a place where strong test scores are prized and/or where ED gives you a strong boost as compared to RD. A few examples off the top of my head would be Wash U, Northwestern, and Case Western. I’m sure there are others.

Ordinarily, I don’t advocate for ED but if your main priority is a top 25 (or even top 50) school and if your parents agree regarding cost it “could” work in your favor if everything else in your application checks out. ED is not a magic bullet that compensates for a soft GPA but it “might” tip the scales. Be advised that if you apply ED, the school will want to see midterm grades so a strong showing in the fall semester of your senior year is also very important. Some schools also offer ED II so you could try this strategy a second time if the first choice does not work out.

Michigan and the better UCs are not safeties or matches, especially if you are out of state.

@mamaedefamilia just a general question. Do you happen to know the difference in acceptance rates between ED and RD for Wash U and Northwestern?

@milee30 you are right about your point about using Naviance. One issue is that there are some schools where admission has become exponentially harder in a few shorts years so unless you know when previous students got in, you really don’t know your current chance of admission. We had a few students get into Stanford but I know one is a highly-recruited athlete while the other is a double legacy. Yet if you looked at the stats cold you’d think your chances were better than they really are.

@intparent post #68 above offers excellent observations & good advice.

@DynamicAero: Most of your ECs show quantity over quality. “Starting” & “organizing” clubs & activities has merit, but the real substance is revealed in the follow up & accomplishments of those activities.

Your 35 ACT score is outstanding !

Apply to whichever colleges & universities are of interest to you. Your essays & recommendations will be important because your GPA appears a bit weak for top 20 schools IF it places you outside of the top 10% of your class.

When you write your applications, try to develop a theme that shows who you are & how your EC activities reveal or relate to those qualities.

If affordable, consider hiring a college consultant to help you to better define who you are & where you want to go career wise.

Weakness: You don’t really know why you want to attend these elite schools beyond the prestige factor. An experienced college counselor should be able to help you better define your motivations, interests & goals.

You do not have to have all the answers at this stage of your life regarding who you are & where you want to go, but you do need to present yourself in a more attractive fashion intellectually & with respect to your aspirations in order to be a competitive applicant for the top 10 LACs & for the top 30 or so National Universities.

If your expansive list of ECs were on a resume or on an MBA application, I do not think that you would get favorable results simply because folks want to see quality & depth of commitment over quantity that suggests shallow involvement & no apparent accomplishments.

@Aneem00: Northwestern University’s most recent ED rate was about 26% & the RD rate about 6.2% (if I recall correctly) for an overall admit rate of 8.39% (which I remember correctly because it is the same overall admit rate for the University of Pennsylvania).

@Publisher That was an extremely helpful comment, and I’ll try to respond to some of your concerns.

When it comes to my ECs, I just gave a list of things that I have done since 9th grade that I could think of. If you want me to go more in depth when it comes to the impact of each, then that would be similar to the application, right? Essentially, describing how each EC has had an impact on me and how it’s impacted others, if I understand you correctly.

As for my weakness, I do need to spend some time really looking deep into some colleges and seeing how they offer something that is shiny to me other than the name itself. I identified some that I really wanted to go to, but I will narrow down my list as I understand better. I’ll probably make another thread in a few months after I’ve fleshed everything out.

One thing that I think I would be able to do is have a cohesive application with a common theme for my ECs and that also relates to the possible career I might want to take. I’ll take time to think about that, but I think I have a strong idea of what I might want to do regarding having a theme and expressing that in my essays.

@WoWMaster: I do not agree with several suggestions made in your post above.

OP: ED often makes a very significant difference for one’s chance of admission to the most competitive colleges & universities. Two clear examples are the University of Pennsylvania & Northwestern University.

Northwestern admitted about 26% ED & about 6.2 % RD for an overall admit rate of 8.39%.

Penn admitted over 18% ED & somewhere near 6% RD for an overall admit rate of 8.39% (same as NU).

A few LACs value ED so much that they offer two rounds of ED (ED 1 & ED 2). An example is Davidson College in North Carolina.

You wrote: “Your ECs seem very solid…”. I disagree with this statement because they show quantity rather than quality.

I probably should not have written that “I do not agree with several suggestions” as most of what you wrote seems reasonable & well thought out. And for that, I apologize @WowMaster.

The reality of ED is that competitive colleges & universities want to rise in the US News rankings–or maintain their current lofty positions-- so that accepting over 50% of each incoming class ED reduces overall rate of admission & keeps these schools competitive for US News ratings & rankings.

An ED application shows commitment & demonstrates interest in that particular school.

Also, I do not think that OP should disregard schools ranked lower than #50. There are two primary reasons with respect to National Universities ranked below #50. Many have outstanding Honors Colleges that often come with significant benefits such as honors only housing, priority course registration, small intro classes & extra counseling regarding courses, internships & career planning.

The other reason is that many National Universities ranked below #50 offer major areas of study not found elsewhere & may have particular majors that are outstanding & very highly ranked. Of course, it helps if the applicant has a specific interest or career in mind.

“It would be best to provide productive suggestions as to how OP can optimize their chances at the reaches”
No. This is on OP. If you want top college and thenywant that energy and savvy., you need to show it to it yourself.

Not look to another to explain.

Oh, @WoWMaster — you, too, have been infected with “Top 20-itis”. There are hundreds of schools outside the top 20 that can launch you on any career you choose. You are blinded by brand name. You know my kid who got in everyplace she applied, including a top 5 school? She picked the 4th highest ranked school she got into (outside the top 20 universities). Had an amazing undergrad experience and is now happy in grad school in her chosen major.

Me? I went to a top 3 undergrad business school (was actually top 2 at the time). My classmates and I have had nice careers, but it was no golden ticket.

You and the OP are obsessed with the wrong thing. I think most students obsessed with top schools are really insecure about their ability to succeed on their own merits, so feel like a name brand school is essential. But employers say, “That’s nice — but what can you actually do for me?” Have a little more confidence in yourselves — your personal characteristics and work ethic are what are going to help you the most in the end. Not whether you went to a college ranked 10 vs 50.

Disregarding schools ranked below 50 is one of the worst pieces of advice I’ve ever read…ANYWHERE. The rankings have major, MAJOR flaws, not the least of which is that they have nothing to do with the college experience. They are easily rigged. Does USNWR’s ranking tell you how big your classes will be? Does it tell you who will teach them? Dig deeper and you will find, not all is rosy with the highly ranked schools. One, has a lecture with over 1000 students. One uses undergrads to teach other undergrads. There are MANY great schools ranked outside of the top 50. If you fall for that advice all I can say is caveat emptor.

@WoWMaster I think I get what you’re trying to say, but please try to be a little less careless about it. “Even 26-50 shouldn’t be too huge of a reach.” That isn’t necessarily true, and if I’m wrong please tell me where you heard that from. I have read your threads before and you’re in the same position as OP. I don’t think you (or I, or anyone that has not been through the college admission process) are experienced enough to be giving unwarranted advice. And please try not to hijack OP’s thread by posting some of your own stats. Noticed this on other threads too. Thanks.

^ When I said that isn’t true, it’s because this isn’t about just stats. Yes the majority of it is, but you shouldn’t be taking anything for granted no matter what! :slight_smile:

NO. The point of the thread is to “chance” him for “top” schools. Nearly everyone has stated that the odds are extremely long with a 3.6 GPA.

Deluding a student into believing that they can shine their application in the ninth hour to overcome one of the most important things every school looks at (don’t take my word for it…let me know when you find a single school that doesn’t rank GPA in the top category, very important, on their CDS) does said student a disservice.

"Well, the point of this forum isn’t to help OP find and get into schools outside the top 50. It’s to help the OP get into the top schools.
Actually, it’s not. There are many points to this forum, but with regard to “Chance Me” threads, the point is to give someone advice as to what is a realistic list of schools to whom the applicant should apply. @WoWMaster I believe you are a high school kid who also has a lower GPA, so you are looking for validation that a lower GPA won’t hurt you. We are telling you - and the OP - that it might. And the only reason we are telling you this is so that you don’t experience a giant disappointment next spring.