Hey Guys, this may be a bit long but I’d really appreciate it if you guys read it all and provided HONEST opinions only that’ll allow me to get a good feel of where I am at currently and what I can work with.
Currently, I am entering my junior year as it is summer after my sophomore year at the moment. My school is loaded with incompetent teachers and I am not using that as an excuse by any means but after this you’ll understand. So going into my freshmen year I was EXTREMELY determined and motivated to achieve great lengths of success and prosperity to keep myself at the peak of my class, but unfortunately it didn’t turn out that way and I did absolutely terrible that first year in 2 classes. AP Human Geography and Geometry: my ap human geography teacher was the literal definition of incompetent … he was 24 years old had just gotten out of college and majored in a completely different field and was nowhere near equipped with the skills needed to effectively lead the class but our equally incompetent principal hired him because it was easier than scouting for legit teachers, but I worked hard at it and ended up with a B as my semester grades…
The second class i performed poorly on was geometry and by poorly I mean D’s and F’s . Having to study for Ap human for 3 hours a day since the teacher never taught anything took time away from me studying for an important subject like math which came very difficult to me and once I got left behind in geometry it was really hard getting back because every chapter is in correlation with a future chapter so if i didn’t know how to apply it the first time i was pretty much screwed the second time as well, but needless to say those two classed took an enormous hit to my gpa.
In Sophomore year, after discussing it with my guidance counselor, I decided to re-take Geometry but instead of Geometry Honors I took Geometry regular because the weight difference was minimal and it was easier. I passed the first semester with an A and the second semester with a B + but it should be an A because my instructor inserted the wrong grade for me. So Geometry is fixed , THANK GOD. I took AP Bio, AP World, AP Seminar, and AP Psych as well Sophomore year. In bio i got a B first semester and a C second semester. In world I got a C in the first semester and a B in second semester. In AP seminar i got a A both semesters, and in Psych i got a B in both semesters… but then spanish 4 came and punched me hard in the gut. In the first semester I got a C and a D in the second semester because the teacher was out for four months with her son being born and we were tested on material we were not exposed to and yes everyone failed spanish 4…, YES i do plan to redo spanish .
My stats so far-
UW GPA - 2.98
Weighted GPA- 3.98
I am in the top 18th percent in my class rank
Extra curriculars: Model UN founder and president, President of my JSA, and soon-to-be president of my debate team
I know statistically it can’t be proven but I am much smarter than what the numbers depict . I’m taking APUSH online and an Honors science class as well as 4 AP classes Junior year. If i manage to get straight A’s both semesters and all A’s my first semester senior year can i get it up to a 3.5-3.6 range . I still have to take Algebra 1 honors online because i skipped it to take Geometry which was the worst decision of my life so take into account two automatic semester A’s when I take Algebra 1 online which will be before the year ends. I’m aiming for GW University, Carneggie Melon, NYU, University of Florida, UNC Chapel Hill, University of Miami, Georgetown, Tulane, Boston University, and Emory.
PLEASE tell me what I have to do to get my GPA to a 3.6 and what I have to get on my SAT AND ACT exams to realistically have a great shot at getting into these schools, BE HONEST **********
@prospect_15 see what I said on your other thread- essentially just work on improving every other aspect of your application (including GPA however since colleges LOVE upward trends) and if your standardized test scores are very high you stand a chance at great colleges.
Your GPA is very low. Scores need to be perfect or near perfect to subsidize that. Even then, there isn’t anything particularly noteworthy about your ECs. Unless something changes, I wouldn’t say you have much of a chance.
I understand. But amazing ECs that really stand out and have years put into them don’t just pop up. Also, keep in mind that everyone has service hours and most competitive applicants will have far more than you. Not trying to hate on your accomplishments, I’m just being realistic.
i have the highest position in 4 of the largest school organizations and i still have two years high school left and you’re telling me that doesn’t stand out? @RoundGenius
You are applying to colleges, not the United Way. I am just pointing out that solid EC activities are impressive on top of high grades, less so in their absence.
Some elite colleges are filled with students in the top 3% in the country. Being in the top 18% of a single high school is problematic for admission to top schools. My advice is to reduce your EC time and maximize time improving your gpa. There is no easier path and now arcane wisdom of the admissions process that would mitigate the numbers - except certain hooks.
UF and Miami are a little easier. GWU as well. Florida’s 25/75th percentile for the SAT are 1810-2060, 27-31 for the ACT. They report a weighted GPA for the entering class of 2014, listing the middle 50 as 4.1-4.5. Prepscholar.com lists the U’s middle 50 as 1820-2110 or 1300-1470 for the new SAT, though I can’t say whether that is accurate. Based on the experience of people I know, I would think BU is, after those three, the most realistic option, but it is still a reach. UNC, Georgetown, Emory, Tulane, and CMU are going to be very difficult.
Please read my post on the other parallel thread. You don’t need to simply get in to these schools but do well once you get there. Why in the world would you be considering schools like CMU? You can take admissions tests over and over again. And you can take courses again. And I suppose that will make your application look better. But the grades you got the first time you took each class are more telling than those you got the second time around-even if the grades from the first try are expunged from your record. If you got into CMU you’d be taking classes with peers who got A’s in algebra and geometry, many times when they were in 6th or 7th grade, and who took calculus 1 (or AB) as freshman and who earned 5s in physics, as sophomores and who nabbed 5’s easily on the AP tests-and who never took a class twice. Realistically, if you really have to take high school classes a couple of times before earning a good grade you’d be crushed at CMU. You are getting B’s and C’s the first time you take classes with students who are not necessarily in the top 10% of the distribution of aptitude. What will you get when you are in classes with only students who were in the very top echelon?
Honestly…you need to select a different group of schools that will include some that won’t put you at such high risk for doing poorly. .
You can raise your unweighted gpa to about 3.3 by the end of your junior year, but only IF you earn a 4.0 junior year. Junior year gpa is the one you use to apply to colleges.
An upward trend is somewhat helpful, but even with perfect 4.0 junior year, you’d be left with an overall UW gpa that is low for those schools. Note: If you never get another grade below an A in high school, your unweighted gpa will be about 3.5 at the END of senior year … Too late for the college admission process.
There are helpful threads on here for 3.0 -3.4 students. You should look carefully at those for ideas.
Not reading the other comments because I’m lazy, but you have a 0% chance for carnegie mellon with that GPA no matter your scores. Also, I hate saying this but the EC’s are weak even if you are heading into Junior year and if you want any chance dedicate yourself to class and clubs and you may have a chance. Other schools are very close to that like U of B and Georgetown.