<p>I'm really interested in getting into Tufts University, and I'm aware that my chances are extremely slim if nonexistent. I'd really appreciate any help with where I stand acceptance wise.</p>
<p>I've got a 3.54 unweighted GPA. I know it's very low. I was more or less fine until my first semester of junior year (Family troubles, grandfather passing away, financial troubles).</p>
<p>My school doesn't calculate weighted GPA or class rank.</p>
<p>I've taken AP Bio and AP US History and scored a 4 and a 5 respectively. I've got a fairly challenging schedule for senior year too.</p>
<p>I got a 2250 on my SATs. I only took them once.
Critical Reading- 790
Math- 700
Writing- 760 (10 on the essay)</p>
<p>I've taken 3 SAT II's.
Bio-700
US History- 690 (I'm retaking this one)
Math II- 690 (I'm retaking this one as well)</p>
<p>For the past couple summers I've shadowed doctors a couple times a week. Maybe 10-12 hours a week. I've seen open heart surgeries, general pediatric visits, etc.</p>
<p>I'm testing for my first degree black belt in karate (11 year commitment).
I'm president of the Robotics club in my school.
I've participated in Science Olympiad and the chess team.
I've played tennis for the past 8 or so years. I was on the JV team sophomore year.</p>
<p>I have great relationships with my teachers, so I don't think getting letters of recommendations will be a problem.</p>
<p>My parents are from India, though I was born in the States. I heard that this may make a different in the application process.</p>
<p>Thanks, I'd really appreciate it if someone would let me know how I stand.</p>
<p>You definitely have a shot. Your SATs are fine. Your SAT subject tests could be a little stronger (they will count only your top two scores). APs are fine. ECs are fine, even if not extraordinary.
So your GPA is a little low. You haven’t said much about your curriculum. How hard is it, and what are you taking senior year?<br>
Also, will you be applying RD or ED?</p>
<p>I go to Barrington High School which is a Blue Ribbon School in RI. It’s a difficult school to do well in. We have the second best SAT scores in the state. </p>
<p>I’ll be taking AP Calculus AB, AP Chemistry, Economics/Government, Anatomy, Spanish for Health, and AP English.</p>
<p>I’ll be looking to apply ED.</p>
<p>Do my chances of admittance increase substantially with ED and my course selection for next year?</p>
<p>Taking 3 APs is a plus, especially if you do well in them the first term.
IF you are SURE that Tufts is your first choice, I would apply ED. It can’t hurt, but it could conceivably help (ED being the ultimate in demonstrated interest), so what have you got to lose?</p>
<p>I’ll put in my two cents…
You’re SATs put you in a very strong position…considering that Tufts isn’t looking for exactly a 2350 or an international award…you can consider yourself to be one of the stronger applicants…
I’m from India and I don’t know the GPA sysem or it’s corelation to our scores so I can’t comment on that…but here’s some advice, put all your family troubles which caused your GPA to drop in your Tufts essay (you’ll get plenty of chances) and make sure their eyes leak…
I don’t see you not making the cut if you apply ED…</p>
<p>I disagree slightly with Lightbearer. Yes, you do have good SATs, but Tufts gets many applicants in the 2200+ range and can’t accept all of them.
As far as your family circumstances, things like death and financial troubles typically don’t make for a good essay topic. You could talk to your guidance counselor see if he/she will write about it in your recommendation, though. Basically, try to get it on the app somewhere, but I think the essay would be a difficult place to fit it in.</p>
<p>I agree with hebrewhammer. Communicate the personal difficulties by way of explanation somewhere in your application; having your advisor deal with it in his/her rec is fine. But your essay is about who you are. As the Dean of Admissions describes it, it is your “voice.” Don’t let your problems be your “voice.” They can be explained if you think it’s important, but they should not be exploited and should not become the representation of who you are in the admissions process.</p>
<p>Sorry… but I was commenting based on my own addmission…
My SATs were only slightly higher than yours… I had a 75% in academics while the highest in my class was 90%…
My ECs weren’t anything stellar…
But my essays had liberal doses of the difficulties in my life and optimism about my future thrown in… I’m not saying that your essay should read like a complaint notice…make it the best essay you ever wrote…but put in everything that you think should make a difference in your admission decision…
But I don’t think they should go into your recomendation…that way it will just seem like you’ve been complaining to the whole world…</p>
<p>Once again I disagree. If there’s anyone who should know about you having those types of problems it would typically be your guidance counselor, who will be writing the recommendation. I haven’t seen your app or read your essay, but it sounds like your view of the admissions process is a little skewed.</p>
<p>Ya, why wouldn’t your GC include all of your unfortunate circumstances in his/her letter of rec.? I completely disagree with having an applicant exploiting them in the essay section of the application where the space should be used to flaunt your better half. If somehow the family/financial troubles have impacted your life so profoundly that you have grown/matured/developed into a better person from it/who you are today - THEN maybe i would include them. If not, then just let your GC take care of it. And remember, don’t force it into your essays if it doesn’t come naturally.</p>
<p>and @
I don’t even understand this. The applicant is not writing the recommendation… So how would it possibly seem like he/she is “complaining to the whole world,” when he/she is not even writing it?? Did I miss something in between all those “…”'s you use to separate your sentences/phrases?</p>
<p>The Tufts supplemental essays give a lot of scope for putting in your life’s troubles…
for example last year’s ‘quaker philosophy - let your life speak for you’ and how your surroundings have shaped you… I read plenty of essays from others last year who told their tales of woe through those essays…and of course you’re supposed to come off better at the end of it all…
But on the other hand… going crying to your guidance counselor about your family/financial troubles and asking them to put it into their recommendations sounds a lot lamer to me…(even more so to me, because I only had my Headmaster)…
Tell me…do high school students disclose their families’ financial woes to their GCs over a casual lunch ???</p>
<p>I honestly didn’t take advantage of my guidance counselor, and didn’t really need to, but the point of a guidance counselor (at least in this country) is to have someone at the school you feel comfortable talking to. It may be that there’s some other teacher who fills that role, but if you’re having troubles like what the OP says he had then it’s not uncommon for a student to make an appointment with their guidance counselor to discuss it, especially if it’s effecting their school work. I’m going to assume that you were unaware of this aspect of the job of a guidance counselor, but it’s basically what they’re there to do. It’s not that he’s going and whining to his counselor, it’s that he has legitimate issues and concerns that the counselor may be able to help him with, at least on the academic side of things.</p>
<p>I suppose that the “let your life speak” essay might be an acceptable place to discuss some of these, but I think that’s only if you have something positive to draw out of the experience, not if you’re just going to put a laundry list of things that have held you back.</p>
<p>First of all…I know that I don’t know as much as you guys about the american system…but here’s something…
I want to ask the OP whether he has spoken to his GC till date about how his family etc troubles are affecting his academics…because I seriously doubt if he has done so… if he hasn’t, I think that this trend will be reflected on most students and addmissions committees wouldn’t fall for it … they would realize that the candidate specifically told his GC to include it in his recommendation…
And I already said his essay shouldn’t read like a complaint letter… say that you’ve come out as a better person for it…
If life’s been handing you **** while the other candidate’s life has been a bed of roses…the admission’s people would like to know about it…</p>
<p>I haven’t told my GC about any of this. I talk to her, but our conversation is restricted to school stuff.</p>
<p>I don’t think that mentioning that stuff would be necessary to do in either my essays or recommendations. Well, I think I may be able to talk about family issues in my essays. Does Tufts give interviews when they receive one’s application? I feel like if they asked about it, that’s when I’d tell them. I don’t think I’d just be able to mention it.</p>
<p>I requested an interview on my application, but ended up not receiving one. If you don’t feel comfortable with putting it in your essays/rec’s then don’t.</p>
<p>If you find that they are unable to interview you in person…then ask them for a phone or skype interview…there are instances of people getting interviews only after asking them repeatedly…</p>
<p>Yea, I had to email Tufts again asking them if they could interview me. They said that they can’t gaurentee since the interviewer responsible for my area could possibly be very busy but I got a call from the interview a week later fixing a date for a face-to-face interview.</p>
<p>Hi im soon going to be a junior and im looking to apply to tufts. The thing is my annual income is only 75,000. Does tufts offer some type of need based financial aid???</p>