<p>So my little brother is currently a senior in high school and is trying to decide whether or not to apply EA and I am not quite sure what to tell him. I'm kind of thinking RD, but I wanted to get some other opinions first. Here are his stats:</p>
<p>GPA: 3.68 UW (I think that puts him in the top 15%, but school doesn't rank)
SAT: 1990 (700+ for both Math and Verbal, but in the 500s for writing...)
ACT: 29 (don't know the breakdown here, but I believe Math and Science were 30+)
APs: 3 US History, 4 European History, 4 Calc AB
Course load: a lot of advanced classes, will have 6 APs by the time he graduates I think
School: One of the top private schools in Minneapolis</p>
<p>ECs: He has been very involved in Boy Scouts with several leadership positions and is about to become an Eagle Scout. He has also been very involved in acting and doing tech work for school plays throughout high school. He has one of the main roles in a current production. He attended a National Youth Leadership Conference a couple years ago and went on trips with People to People student Ambassadors twice. He was also an editor for the high school literary magazine and has a fair amount of service work as well. He also plays guitar.</p>
<p>Research: He has been doing chemical engineering research 40 hours/wk at the University of Minnesota this past summer and will be entering his findings in several science competitions this fall.</p>
<p>Awards: He has some Spanish awards, AP scholar, leadership awards from when he traveled with People to People, made Honor's List or Dean's List every semester (I think these are top 20% and 10% respectively), and lettered in drama/stage tech a few times. He's also won some car show awards for a classic car that he and my dad built. I don't know if that's worth anything on a college application, but I think he wants to mention it.</p>
<p>He will have excellent recommendation letters (his teachers love him) and his essay should be decent. I am the only one in the family who has attended ND before him (just graduated this past spring).</p>
<p>That's all I can think of now. Please let me know what you guys think!</p>
<p>Congrats on the med school acceptance again. Job well done.</p>
<p>Alright, I think your brother is perfect for RD and has an okay shot EA (I bet he would get deferred though). Here is the way I see it.</p>
<p>The 500 writing SAT score jumps out as a potential problem. Does he have any SAT II’s, essay competitions, etc. that demonstrate his writing ability? It’s not a horrible score but with high math and verbal scores it sort of stands out.</p>
<p>ECs look strong and diversified. The research experience is truly unique. GPA is good, rank is up there, and everything else looks solid. As you know, the recent alumni family connection always helps.</p>
<p>I would personally go RD but a lot depends on how confident he is with his ECs and research. If he can generate some quality papers, presentations, posters, etc. with his research then I think EA is a realistic shot. ND loves to see that sort of thing and it frankly screams EA. Otherwise I would advise him to go RD (unfortunately his SAT writing and rank are not stellar). Make sure he asks his sister for help with the essay and be sure to have him contact his regional admissions rep.</p>
<p>I’m not sure if he really has anything to offset his writing score (I think it was like a 560). Honestly, writing just isn’t his strong suit. I’m hoping it will help if he applies with a solid application essay (don’t worry, mom and big sister are all over editing that, haha). He’s very good at coming up with creative ideas to write about, but isn’t so hot with getting his writing to have proper grammar/good flow/etc.</p>
<p>As far as the research goes, he probably won’t have any awards/papers/etc ready by the time he’d have to apply EA, so that might be another reason for him to apply RD.</p>
<p>I think RD would be a good route for your brother. ND is very conservative during EA admissions, and advises that most people apply RD unless they are extremely well-qualified across the board. It sounds like your brother is off to a great start, especially with those EC’s. But applying RD will give him some time to put forth his best application possible. He’d have time to retake a standardized test in October, write a fantastic essay, and raise his grades a little during first semester. All those things will help him in the admissions process.</p>
<p>EA, IMO, has historically been numbers driven. However, given the other aspects of his stats and provided that a truly unique essay can round out the app, EA might be doable. If he’s not accepted EA, I would imagine deferred to RD with a very good chance of acceptance. So, in the end, it probably wouldn’t hurt to apply EA!</p>
<p>Haha, SouthJerseyChessMom, what do you mean by that?</p>
<p>Anyway, I’m just afraid that since his numbers are a bit low, he would get deferred EA and I have heard that those deferred don’t get as thorough a look the second time around…</p>
<p>Thanks for your input, guys! I’ll pass this all along to him. Let me know if you have any further thoughts. :)</p>
<p>Shellzie, I recall you were in such debate about Dartmouth or ND many years ago, so I would think that ND was pleased you attended. Wouldn’t it be a good thing to be your younger brother </p>
<p>If it’s true that the deferred students don’t get a thorough look during the RD would be an issue.
S was accepted EA round, so don’t know what happens when deferred.</p>
<p>RD. Speaking from experience here, I am concerned about the test score. We have 2 kids, one a senior at ND and the other a freshman at Cal. Our youngest applied last year to ND with a 4.3 and a 31 on the ACT regular decison and was rejected. It was not her first choice, but it was still a surprise. Your brother should retake the SAT or ACT and apply RD. That score is low for ND.</p>
<p>Good luck in medical school. I really enjoyed all your previous posts.</p>
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