<p>GPA: 3.7 unweighted
Rank: School does not rank
ACT: 35, SAT Superscore: 2360
SAT II: Biology 750, Chemistry 760, Math Level 2 800</p>
<p>High school: Dual Enrollment Boarding High School</p>
<p>Honors/Awards (won't get into detail but I have more than enough)
Lots of science competitions awards (research since sophomore year)
Lots of music awards (clarinet since 4th grade)
Lots of volunteering and tutoring (400 hours~)
Lots of leadership positions in school and outside of school organizations (related to science and volunteering)</p>
<p>Summer Activities: Stanford Institute of Medicine Summer Research Program (highly selective, only ~5% of applicants get in), research at local university, hospital volunteering</p>
<p>Interest/Application
ED Application
Plan to visit this summer, email regularly with questions, and apply for scholarships
Recommendations: three great ones, one iffy one</p>
<p>Basically, I think everything else in my application aside from my GPA is up to snuff. I am just wondering how much my GPA is going to bring me down, and whether solid test scores and good ECs will make up for them :/
(currently deciding between ED Rice or Washu right now)</p>
<p>Who knows? Your application is quite strong, your GPA is still pretty good, and nothing anybody on this website says will change that. So just apply and don’t worry so much.</p>
<p>I suspect that you will be accepted ED if your curriculum has been a challenging one, as you suggest.</p>
<p>Thanks for the encouragement, guys! Also, I would like to note that I did not exhibit an upward trend; in fact, part of the reason for my lower GPA is because of the second semester of junior year.</p>
<p>^Will that dip be taken as slacking off/bad work ethic (I had way too many activities and commitments going on and I eventually just couldn’t keep up with my grades :/)</p>
<p>If Wash U is your #1 desired school, you’re going to apply anyway, right? So what we say here matters not one bit. Take the time to do what you can to enhance your chances. Wash U Admissions is very hands-on. Find out the name of the Admissions Rep who covers your HS and contact her/him early fall to see when a visit to your school or the area is planned. Visit Wash U and make an apt to see your rep on campus. He/she will schedule 30 mins to talk to you, which is absolutely time well-spent. Wash U wants people who truly want to be there as their no. 1 choice. All the kids who go to Wash U have solid grades and test scores but Wash U does do a good job of making a holistic evaluation of the applicants. This is especially true for ED–let them know how much you truly want to go there. </p>
<p>The fact that your standardized test scores are so high means you’ve got nothing to worry about. GPA varies too much between one school from another, and assuming you’re taking all difficult and advanced courses, you’re doing quite well; you’ll be begging for a 3.7 once you enroll in WashU.</p>
<p>Fun fact: I’m not sure how college admissions have changed in the past few years, but in general, standardized test scores have probably the most weight, because it’s the only fair measure across all students; it can literally more than compensate for any slacking off you’ve done in high school (in your case, not much anyways), and that’s a problem because it’s been shown consistently to be a poor indication of performance in college (Many of my professors agree). </p>
<p>If that’s not enough, the amount of awards you’ve won in your ECs show you’ve got passion and talent outside the classroom, which is often that additional X-factor many schools want to see.</p>
<p>I agree with @idkmybffjil
A “low” gpa + high test scores will probably only harm you when there are a ton of people applying from you’re school and they’ve all got 4.0’s +36’s while you’ve got a 3.0 + 36. Cause that then just (in general) shows laziness. I wouldn’t worry too much about a 3.7 on its own.</p>