Emory RD Chance?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Emory University
1

<p>School Type: Catholic Private school, starts at 8:00 AM, ends at 4:45 PM
Ethnicity: Asian, but born in USA</p>

<p>GPA: 3.40 UW
I know this GPA is extremely low, but my school's courses is known for being extremely difficult, and my school is nationally recognized.</p>

<p>I also speak English, Mandarin, and to a certain extent Spanish fluently.</p>

<p>Courses: My school only allows Juniors and Seniors to take AP courses
4 years of English/Literature
3 years Honors Spanish
AP Calc AB, AP Statistics, AP European History, AP Computer Science, AP Chemistry, AP Physics B
2 years Honors Latin (gold & silver medalist on National Latin Exam)
4 years Theology
1 year Stained Glass
1 year Media
Honors Geometry, Honors Precalculus
U.S. History, World History
Honors Chemistry, Honors Biology
Art History</p>

<p>Test Scores:
ACT: 31, Superscore 33 (35M, 34E, 31R, 30S)
SAT: 2030</p>

<p>Extra-curriculars:
Cricket Club(Founder)
Chess Club (member)
TEAM+S (our team was 12th in the nation just last year)
the TEAM+S is an engineering club and besides earning 10th in the nation last year, we also won state last year.
Debate Team (member)
Violin (played for 10 years)-I have recently started playing for a selective chambered ensemble (small orchestra)
Anime Club (member)
Investment Club (Co-Founder)</p>

<p>Sports:
Cross Country (Varsity) 6 years
Track and Field (JV) 6 years
Swimming 8 years
Intramural Soccer 6 years</p>

<p>Volunteers:
-I have roughly 300-400 of volunteer service
-2 Gold Presidential Awards for Community Service (a 3rd is coming soon)
-St. Louis Children's Hospital: I teach children, watch over patients, and also go in and help patients, assist nurses
-Participated in a Gateway Festival (violin) Charity in Washington University of St. Louis where we raised thousands of dollars
-Local Soup Kitchens- served food to the homeless
-Helped teach ESL to 50 Chinese exchange students and was the chief translator
-Worked at a camp and watched over children</p>

<p>I have also hosted Taiwanese and Chinese exchange students from for the past 5 years. I don't know if that will do anything but just thought about adding that in there </p>

<p>Work:
I work at Kumon, tutoring other kids every Saturday</p>

<p>Teacher RECS:
My teacher recs should be very good. They were from Wash U and Harvard .</p>

<p>And have 3 college credit hours for Saint Louis University in archaelogy (idk if that does anything)
I also got invited to a Computer Science/Programming conference in UC Berkeley and Stanford</p>

2

<p>What is they? Did you take courses at WashU and Harvard or were your teachers former instructors or alum there. Kinda confused. Either way, it looks good (GPA may be okay). Any reason you’re interested in Emory (as in, other than the other schools being a crap shoot. If you have a decent reason, it’ll shine in the essay). Based upon stats. and ECs, it “could” be a yes even for RD. However, there will of course be some higher stat. students w/similar EC’s. I wouldn’t bother applying if Emory isn’t a good fit (are you into the CS and engineering stuff for undergrad?) for you, even if it is a top 20, but I’m sure that if admissions was only based on those credentials, they’d be glad to have you.</p>

3

<p>My teachers were alum there.<br>
I am interested in Emory because it has a strong pre-med program. </p>

<p>Also, do you know if Emory superscores? That would help me a lot. </p>

<p>Thanks for the reply!</p>

4

<p>I don’t know if Emory will care where the rec. letter writers graduated (then they’d have to be biased against students who attended schools without such folks on staff/faculty. Needless to say, such a bias won’t favor some socioeconomic categories). They probably only care about the quality of the letter.</p>

<p>As for superscore. Yes, it does, so your ACT is very good! Also, that reason is vague (okay: I mean generic: all the top 20s are strong in that area. Most pump out businessmen, doctors, and lawyers like it’s nothing). What do you think you want in a pre-med program/experience (as in, other than good teachers and good grades)? Anything make Emory’s pre-med/science curriculum stand-out to you, or maybe the resources/opps. Like what do you want to do at Emory, while pre-med, that may be harder to do than at other schools that are similar? I’m just grilling you because I think the adcoms are now trying to look for something different/more academic diversity on top of great ECs and scores, so describing that Emory is awesome for pre-med may no longer cut it. You’ll have to demonstrate some knowledge about the offering, resources, and also intellectual curiosity through some means (the EC’s kind of help, but an essay or interview gives more information. In addition the “why Emory” essay apparently now tells you to cite things other than “weather, CDC, etc”; you know, common things that students who don’t know as much say). Seems that is what they are trying to move toward (while they don’t do demonstrated interest anymore, they’ll use the essay prompts to determine fit, and if you’re the type that would seriously consider us, even if admitted somewhere similar).</p>

<p>Also grilling you because they may look at the ECs and the schools that some of them are associated with and then read more closely because they could believe that you are much more likely to seriously consider those institutions as opposed to Emory (whereas, Emory is just “another school that isn’t that tough to get into that has a strong pre-med program”). You’ll want to go that extra mile to show that you want admission/and possible enrollment through the supplements.</p>

<p>Just telling you that you’re great credential wise, but make sure that you “know” or get to know Emory before applying and writing those essays. Don’t think all places w/strong pre-med programs are the same and go about it in the same way (and of course there is everything outside of the pre-prof./career prep stuff and classes that make the schools vary dramatically). Demonstrate that you know what you are getting.</p>

5

<p>How would having recs from WashU and Harvard alumni help you? You are applying to Emory.</p>

<p>As for your application, I don’t think you will get in. Your GPA is too low. Best case scenario would be waitlist and then subsequent acceptance.</p>

<p>However, if your school has a history of sending people to Emory and those people have traditionally had a GPA around yours, then you’ll be in for sure.</p>

<p>Having a good reason for wanting to go will also help. But I don’t think you can do much to overcome the GPA.</p>

6

<p>I’ve seen people from very rigorous schools (usually IB schools or boarding type of schools though. There is this one in Jacksonville, Fl…and several up North and even in Atlanta area)with a 3.4-3.6 gain admission (the closer to 3.6 from these schools, the better). However, in most cases, they probably had stronger test scores (like ACT maybe 34-35 or something). Also, I think OP is banking on ECs which are solid (perhaps more solid than many, if not most applicants). They just need a much more compelling reason or explanation for being interested.</p>

7

<p>His ECs are amazing - I agree with that.</p>

<p>3.6 is good for his stats. If he even had a 3.5, I’d say he was in for sure. But a 3.40 is very low. It’s probably like 15th percentile. Maybe he has a class rank to give a benchmark for the GPA?
I just want him to be realistic.</p>

8

<p>Yeah, a class rank would be nice because I’ve heard (from students who have attended) that some private/parochial schools (or maybe even IB programs) are difficult (content and workload wise), but grades are usually inflated somehow such that students who take AP/IB don’t usually receive below B+. This is different from being in a rigorous program at a school not necessarily nationally recognized, where the teachers grade harshly and don’t curve and will give failing grades to students (as was my magnet program which was like a small bubble in a larger school that was overall not good). I would argue that many of the elite colleges grade more harshly (especially in sciences) than most of the “difficult” high schools (when you take a challenging instructor at Emory, for example, not only is the workload/exam style very difficult, and then w/low exam averages, you are generally put on the C+/B- type of curve despite the fact that everyone in it is well above average in terms of incoming ability). The only reason many people end up finding a place like Emory easier is generally because they choose easy instructors/courses or simply because they are taking less classes at any given time (many HS’s are more like the quarter system, so coming to a semester system college can often be a nice break unless it’s somewhere as tough as the engineering schools, princeton, JHU, or Harvard. Emory is more likely to be semi-challenging if you come from a 4x4 block school or something). The point is, despite the OP’s school known for being “difficult”, a 3.4 could even be low within that context as it often is at such schools. And given the new credit hour system which essentially encourages most to take 5 courses several times, I would look at GPA more closely than normal (especially for those claiming to be “pre-med”).</p>

9

<p>Exactly.
Usually 3.4 is on the low side - regardless of school.</p>

<p>If you’re getting a 3.4 in high school, you’ll probably be getting a bit lower in college. Which is a death sentence for premed.</p>

<p>For the most part, people who get higher GPAs in college than they did in high school were either:</p>

<ol>
<li>Very lazy in high school</li>
<li>Did not challenge themselves in college</li>
</ol>

<p>Neither are very good.</p>

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<p>In theory, pre-meds are supposed do number 2 lol (you know because, supposedly, “all science courses are challenging” so why look for an even bigger challenge than normal. We all know science courses w/around 85 or higher averages are too hard because it’s not 90), so if the OP gets in, maybe they’ll be okay. Playing the game is fairly easy at Emory. You start with some freshman Escobar and Tovrog (guy hired from Ga. perimeter because the chem. dept can’t control its enrollment numbers), then some sophomore Liotta (Menger, Davies, Scarborough, whoever), perhaps some junior biology biochem (course is basically a joke. Probably intellectually simpler than gen. biology, at best like taking escobar twice or thrice lol). and then you’re on your way to med. school. I wouldn’t be shocked if the OP got a higher GPA in college if they came here. Emory makes cheating simple. The new MCAT on the other hand…probably not as much.</p>

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<p>The kid can do well. He’s smart and interesting. It’d just be a shame if he never reaches his potential because he’s taking spoonfed courses if/when he comes to Emory.</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>The sad thing about this is that the BSchool curves to a B+. Which is even higher than an 85 average. But I’ll save that rant for another thread.</p>

<p>Speaking of which, have you heard about the difference in the math department about math250? I got the emails earlier this month.</p>

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<p>Spoonfed is okay, depending on the level of stuff you are being spoonfed Like Vandy spoonfeeds in its organic and gen. chemistry and , but it’s at a decent level (gen. biology there is good too. We have our Spell, Passalaucqua, and Gilson, and then there are folks like Escobar, Cafferty, and Shepherd. Most schools of Emory’s caliber seem not to go as low as the latter 3 even if not as high as the 1st 3). It’s nowhere near like say, the level of Mulford, McGill, Gallivan, Soria, or Weinschenk even at their hardest (as in, their most difficult instructors are nowhere near as challenging), but the baseline level is appropriate and sufficient to get a decent grounding. The problem with Emory is that some instructors are at a completely inapproapriate baseline level and at times, may comprise half or more of the sections of these courses. So you’ll have “extremely rigorous and of high quality” vs. “lower than some community colleges and of mediocre/poor quality”. The latter cases will naturally fill first (they would at any school, including elites, but most don’t even give such options) Harvard appears to have a similar system to Vanderbilt (classpacks and that sort of thing) as well, it’s just that the instructor is always at a very high level (something akin to the folks I mention above). Something just tells me that the level of these pre-med courses at most selective institutions is kind of monitored and regulated to ensure that it’s at the appropriate level whereas it isn’t as much at Emory so there is no consistency (I would guess the depts involved don’t have as much muscle when it comes to the teaching mission and quality control). You can get a strong, rigorous, and solid science education, or it could be subpar depending on which path you choose. Other schools don’t really allow subpar. Some people may say it’s great that they have choices, but it’s probably over-rated, especially when certain key courses are supposed to give background in areas on a difficult standardized exam that may decide one’s future. </p>

<p>As for math, haven’t heard of it (I primarily hear of the crap happening in chemistry and maybe NBB) Feel free to tell me via pm if you don’t feel comfortable discussing it here.</p>

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<p>Wow, so many comments in such a short time!<br>
First of all, thanks for all of these in depth replies. </p>

<p>Second, my school does not rank, but I would estimate that I am definitely within the top 20%, if not higher.</p>

<p>Third, I apologize for putting my recommenders’ colleges on there. (I copy and pasted this from my other chance thread, and thought this addition would help me…:slight_smile: But yes, they wrote great letters for me</p>

<p>Also, a 3.40 gpa (as low as it sounds), is kind of like a B average (I do have several A’s, just more B’s haha) for our school. On my Naviance account, students with around a 3.5~ and similar test scores have gotten in, so I was kind of judging my chances off of that. </p>

<p>I am also interested in Emory not only because of its strong academic reputation, but also because when I visited Atlanta a few years ago, I stopped by Emory, and I just really liked the feel the faculty gave me.
(It is actually one of the top colleges on my list)</p>

<p>Oh and @bernie12, those schools associated with my EC’s aren’t even on my list of colleges.</p>

<p>Some Random Questions:
Does Emory offer interviews?
I am retaking the ACT once more in December-- will that look bad since it would be the third time I have taken it??
Would you consider me a qualified and diverse applicant?</p>

<p>Thanks</p>

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<p>According to my alumni page thingy, </p>

<p>

So it doesn’t look like St. Louis offers interviews. But, IDK much about this.</p>

<p>I wouldn’t take the ACT again. </p>

<p>I’d considered you a diverse applicant. But IDK if I’d consider you qualified. Just because of the GPA.</p>

<p>

This is valuable information. You probably know more about your own chances than any of us do. Any idea how these kids did once they came here? If they all sucked, then admissions will no longer view your GPA favorably. If they were amazing, then you are in a better spot.</p>

<p>A 3.4 is still much lower than a 3.5 though in my opinion. You should look for students at around a 3.4 and see what their hooks were.</p>

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<p>Sounds good, you can just research (you may not remember who they were) and figure out what faculty impress you most and why (or what you may have saw in a classroom or meeting that sold you). Showing that you actually care about what the faculty have to offer is great (as opposed to naming random academic attributes that could be applicable to almost any school of similar caliber).</p>

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<p>@wumanizer
I think you have a fair shot at getting in. Your EC’s definitely make up for your GPA and your scores seem to be on par for emory. good luck! :D</p>

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<p>Thank you!</p>

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<p>Emory takes the “Why Emory” essay very very seriously. I would not advise doing what bernie12 suggested about looking up faculty. I currently attend Emory and hang around the admission building alot, and from my impressions and discussions I have had with admissions folk I can say they are not interested in who is the best at using Google to find interesting facts about Emory. They want to find the people who are applying to emory for the right reasons. I know 3.0 GPA’s who have been admitted and valedictorians who had been denied because of this factor.</p>

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<p>Thanks for the very helpful info theatregreek234!</p>

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<p>

</p>

<p>That is a ridiculous statement.</p>

<p><a href="https://www..com/colleges/admissions/emory_university/139658.aspx%5B/url%5D">https://www..com/colleges/admissions/emory_university/139658.aspx</a></p>

<p>Link got edited out. It’s “college took kit” without the spaces. </p>

<p>There’s ~6 kids every year who attend Emory with a 3.0-3.24. And I’m sure most of them are closer to a 3.24 than a 3.0.
Let’s not kid ourselves. Unless you are some combination of native american, black, etc, you’re not getting in with a 3.0.</p>