I have a 3.86 unweighted gpa with a fairly tough schedule of honors/ap classes. My EC’s arent that bad either and I feel pretty confident about them. What hurts a lot is my 28 act. I have yet to take the sat and I don’t know if i’ll score better, so if I apply early decision with my 28, is there even a chance I could get in?
With a 28, your chances are very slim, unless you have a very very very good talent/extracurricular activity. Try taking an SAT practice test and see how you fare; if you do better, forget the ACT and concentrate specifically for SAT and getting a 2200+, but if you do worse on your practice SAT, forget the SAT and focus on raising that ACT to a 34 (75th percentile) to be good.
Oh and show a crap ton of interest to Wash U; visit, go meet with the Wash U rep when he/she comes into your area, etc. But, also maybe write a “Why WashU essay.” Yes, I know that there aren’t any supplements, but if you do go out of your way and write this (300-600 words) essay, I believe that it will surely help, as people with 36, 35, etc. still get wait-listed. Also, I am an RD applicant this yr and haven’t heard back, so take what I say with a grain of salt.
OP–It sounds like you are a junior in HS? If so, take the ACT as many times as you can. In addition to helping to better your score as you acquire more knowledge (of the test itself and in the subject matter areas), Wash U does superscore, which may help in a pinch. I absolutely agree with what Epic says about expressing your interest. Do so now, and keep it up–Wash U Admissions Office will tell you who the recruiter is with responsibility for your HS. Contact him or her, ask if/when they are planning to visit your school and introduce yourself. Schedule a visit to campus with him/her. You can easily arrange a short, informal “interview” at that time. This would be critical for you.
I agree, definitely try to get your ACT up as much as possible and demonstrate interest - both are crucial for WashU.
However, I applied this year, and to my knowledge, there is no option to submit a “Why WashU?” essay. You simply submit your CA essay, and then write essays for the merit scholarships, but I don’t think any of them ask “Why WashU?” (or at least not in such a straightforward manner).
I also would recommend against taking the ACT as many times as you can. It is typically looked down upon to take a standardized test more than 3 times. Study up, take a lot of practice tests, and then take the test in June (I would recommend April, but unless you have already been prepping, I don’t think you have adequate time to prepare). If June doesn’t pan out, you can either adjust your list, or try for one last go in the fall of your senior year.
Give the SAT a shot too - some people do better on one vs. the other. Certainly no harm in trying a few practice tests.
Good luck!
@butterfreesnd @illini89The “Why WashU” essay isn’t asked for by Wash U, I just thought about doing it because I am extremely interested in Wash U and I wanted to relay this information to the admissions office. I emailed this essay to my admissions counselor to put on my file. Also, another friend of mine, admitted a few years back, wrote it in the “additional information” section on the common app. Also, yea, take the ACT a max two more times, with extensive practice in between and aim 34+ or just take the SAT if your better at that
I had forgotten this when I replied earlier but I now recall a post here (I think in one of the threads on ED results right after those decisions came out–or a related thread by parents maybe?) late fall last year mentioning an applicant who was admitted with a similar ACT score to yours. IIRC, there was something in the chain about what (s)he did to create a compelling picture for the Admissions Dept. You might want to see if you can find that and look into it.