ED2 Chances?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Vanderbilt University
1

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): n/a
ACT (breakdown): 33 (M:35; E:35; R:32; S:31; W:32) one sitting
SAT II: Math II: 700 USH: 710 (probably wont send these)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): My school doesn’t do UW but weighted is 3.71 (obviously my largest flaw, but strong upward trend)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): n/a
AP (place score in parenthesis): only one I might send would be a 4 on APUSH
IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
Senior Year Course Load: AP Gov, AP Micro, AP Macro, AP AB Calc, AP Physics II, AP Lit, Honors Latin IV, Transformations
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Commended

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Student Investment Fund 10,11 (Founder/President),
Varsity Golf 10, 11,12 (Co-captain),
World Affairs Club 9-12 (Chancellor),
Crew Team 9
Environmental Awareness Club 9, 10,
National Junior Classical League 11,12 (Consul)
WR Teen Board 11,12 (Officer)
RMHD Teen Board 9-12 (Officer)
NHS 11,12
Tutor for Middle School Students 12
Ex Libris Club 9,10, 11

Job/Work Experience:
-Summer Intern at a Private Equity Firm the summer after my Junior year
-Worked at a Veterinarian’s office the summer after my Sophomore Year

Volunteer/Community service: 375 hours cumulative since 9th grade

Summer Activities:
-Was 1 of 40 students chosen nationwide to attend TCU Investor Challenge for one week and take business classes taught by Professors at the University
-Have participated in the UT Dallas Online Top Trader Nationwide Competition for the past 2 summers and placed in the top 10 and 15th respectively of over 100 participants
-Went on a community service trip to new orleans the summer after my freshmen year to help rebuild the wetlands

Essays (rating 1-10, details): (9/10)- wrote about how I first became interested in trading stocks at a young age and how that hobby manifested itself into a much larger part of my life

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 10/10- English teacher loved me and I consistently received A’s in the class
Teacher Rec #2: 9/10- Latin teacher, I was an active participant in this class and always maintained high grades
Counselor Rec: I don’t see why it would be lower than an 8/10
Additional Rec: n/a
Interview: n/a

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: no
Intended Major: Economics
State (if domestic applicant): TX
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: 250k+
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Double Legacy, Grandfather and Uncle both attended Vanderbilt

2

Your test scores and GPA both seem a bit weak for Vandy, in my opinion. I was definitely leaning towards “No” at that part of your description.

But then the strength of your ECs (Student Investment Fund, investment competitions), PE summer internship, and double legacy status were all solid enough to have me saying “Yes.”

I’d put ED2 chances at around 60%, but it’d really come down to how great your essays/recs are.

3

bumpb

4

Your numbers are fine/in the range, but aren’t your strong suit. Your EC’s are what would make your application; they are unique and are based on a central “theme” of economics. Use your essays to highlight your interest in econ/banking and explain why it is so important to you, and to show who you are as a person (something more sophisticated than “I like making money.”)

As it stands, I would say you are a borderline applicant. I could see it going either way. However, if you are successful with your essays, I would say you have a good shot.

5

@fdgjfg when you say my “essays” I’m assuming your talking about the Vanderbilt supplemental essay? As for my common app essay, I did write that about my passion for investing.

6

@mat324

Yes, I was talking about the Vanderbilt supplement and common app essay in combination.

Just use the classic principles of “show, don’t tell” and avoid dry, repetitive description. Then, try to use each essay to highlight a different characteristic in a united way. For example, in you main essay you might describe your passion for investing, and use it to emphasize how you have always appreciated the real world application of knowledge, rather than memorization of esoteric facts. Then you might use the supplement essay (it’s based on your most significant ec) and write it about the investment club, and how you enjoy “using your skills for good” through peer mentorship and teaching younger students. This will be personal, so you can write it about any of your EC’s. What I’ve written above is just an example.

7

@fdgjfg little bit of topic, but do you think vanderbilt will take into consideration a strong upward trend in gpa?

8

@mat324

Yes, I believe that they would take an upward trend into consideration.

9

bump

10

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