Dont get mad, chances please...

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - Berkeley
1

<p>Stats:</p>

<p>SAT: 650 (M), 630 (V), 660(W) 11 Essay
ACT: 27, 90th percentile, did like 95 percentile and higher in math and English massacred in science
SAT II: 720 US History, 670 World History</p>

<p>GPA: 4.1 (W), 3.6 (UW)
Rank: Top 3 or 4%
Other Stats: Regular stuff, I guess</p>

<p>Subjective:</p>

<p>Essays: A+
Teacher Recs: A
Counselor Rec: A- Big School doesn't really know me personally</p>

<p>Location/Person:
State or Country: Southern California
School Type: Competitive High School Suburban 2000 students, i believe
Ethnicity: South Asian
Gender: Male</p>

<p>Other Factors:
Major: Psychology and Cognitive Science
JV and V Tennis Team
Extensive research at local university for past 4 years
Been to state science fair past 3 years, all related to intended major
Volunteered at Hospital
President of clubs and school site council
Tons of local awards
Community service: around 200 hours</p>

2

<p>Why would anyone get mad??</p>

<p>Are you a senior now that has already applied for Fall? If so, my opinion is you are a "slight reach to match" dependant on how strong your essays were and if they were what Cal is looking for.
Good luck!</p>

3

<p>Samtheclam:</p>

<p>UCB (in-state)- Slight reach/match</p>

4

<p>slight reach.</p>

<p>good luck.</p>

5

<p>With that SAT and GPA, I'd say reach.</p>

6

<p>Average SAT I scores (middle 50%) </p>

<p>Reading: 580-710
Math: 620-740
Writing: 590-710</p>

<p>Average GPA: 4.26</p>

<p>He's doin' pretty okay.</p>

7

<p>Avg. GPA = 4.26 <em>sigh</em></p>

8

<p>kevster1001,</p>

<p>Did I say something wrong?</p>

9

<p>Well, it looks statistically not good, but he'll probably get in. Most people with those stats can make it into Berkeley in-state, especially if you are first-generation or something, though the OP is probably not. The UW GPA might hurt though, but his higher WGPA indicates he took harder classes and did pretty good in them.</p>

10

<p>At the very least, I'd say that he's no more than one standard deviation from the mean in either direction, putting him squarely in that nice creamy center of the bell curve.</p>

11

<p>i would say reach.</p>

12

<p>I like the nice creamy center of the bell curve imagery! :)</p>

<p>Yeah, he's right in there, which will help him.</p>

13

<p>Oh, you should hear some of the stranger things we say in econometrics classes...</p>

14

<p>also, UCLAri....you always seem to love bringing out those averages, however those averages you so strongly believe in dont tell the whole stolry. For example, although the range of SAT match scores is 620-740, applicants with SAT Math scores from 600-700 (this is the range the OP falls in) only stood a 27.7% chance of admission. Applicants with SAT Critical Reading scores from 600-700 (the range he falls in) only had a 32.2% chance of admission. Applicants with SAT Writing scores within 600-700 stood only a 31.3% chance of admission. </p>

<p>So, those averages you bring out dont tell the whole story. So while the 25th percentile had a math score of 620, he was probably outstanding in every other way to make up for that. </p>

<p>That my friend, UCLAri, is definetly a reach. With his scores, the highest of his chances (as measured by experiences of recent applpicants) is only 32.2%. </p>

<p>Is that not a reach? In fact i would argue a high reach.</p>

15

<p>by the way the stats i showed came from this site:</p>

<p><a href="http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/admissions/undergrad_adm/selecting/camp_profiles/chart_ucb.pdf%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/admissions/undergrad_adm/selecting/camp_profiles/chart_ucb.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

16

<p>
[quote]
So while the 25th percentile had a math score of 620, he was probably outstanding in every other way to make up for that.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>This is a dangerous statistical assumption and cannot be made either way. We have to take it at face value, for better or for worse. </p>

<p>Match doesn't necessarily mean that some has a 50% chance of getting in, but that they are within one standard deviation of the mean in either direction and are representative of the largest group of admits.</p>

<p>I don't have a scatter plot of admit data in front of me, but I bet that most of the OP's scores are right in there with the average admit, making him a match.</p>

<p>I'll give you another example: Someone applying to Yale with what would be considered "match" scores would still probably only have around a 10% chance of being admitted. Even someone with 99th percentile scores would probably not have much higher than a 20% chance. But they are still, by the seemingly commonly accepted definition of "match," a match.</p>

<p>It's not how high their chance of being accepted is, it's where they fall in relation to the mean.</p>

17

<p>point accepted..... but with the way you define match, the word match can be very misleading</p>

18

<p>I only use match as the vast majority of other posters use it: you are pretty much the average admit.</p>

<p>Let's consider the range of terms commonly used on CC.com.</p>

<p>Far reach
Reach
Slight reach
Match
Safe match
Safety</p>

<p>The way I see it, it's a bell curve, with match in the center, and the two tails being defined by the opposites of "reach" and "safety."</p>

<p>Most other posters, based on how they interpret scores, also do this (whether consciously or not.)</p>

19

<p>You're a little low on the standardized tests and GPA is just ok. But with that said, it seems like you've done more extracurricular activities than many applicants so if you wrote good essays talking about these things I'd say you have a decent chance.</p>