Entering into senior year. Need advice on what I need to complete before I start college admissions.

Applying to College
1

Hello everyone,

I recently finished up junior year in high school and in the fall I will be applying to a variety of colleges. Here is my academic info for the past three years:

(My school goes on a 4 point GPA scale. AP classes receive a bonus point added)

Freshman:

9th Lit/Comp: 92
Accelerated Algebra/Geometry A: 80
AP Human Geography: 90 (Got a 4 on AP exam)
Honors Biology: 90
Engineering 1: 98
German 2: 98
Personal Fitness/Health: 98

Weighted: 4.0
Unweighted: 3.857

Sophomore:

Honors 10th Lit/Comp: 88
Accelerated Algebra/Geometry B: 87
AP World History: 87 (Got a 3 on AP exam)
Chemistry 1: 96
German 3: 94
Intro to Comp Sci: 98
Engineering 2: 99

Weighted: 3.714
Unweighted:3.571

Junior:
(Currently waiting on AP scores)

Accelerated Pre-Calculus: 81
AP Lang: 90
AP Chemistry: 82
AP Comp Sci A: 91
APUSH: 91
Engineering 3: 94
German 4: 99

As a senior I am planning on taking: AP Economics Micro/Macro, AP Compsci Principles, AP German, AP Calc AB, AP Physics 1, IB Design Tech, AP Lit

SAT/ACT:

Old SAT w/ Essay:

November 2015:
Total: 1780
R: 590
W: 570
M: 620
(Since then I decided I did not like the SAT)

ACT w/ Essay:

December 2015 :
Composite: 30
E: 26
M: 28
R: 33
S: 33
W (not factored into composite): 19

April 2016:
Composite: 32
E: 26
M: 31
R: 36
S: 33
W (not factored into composite): 21

I am thinking about retaking the ACT to aim for a higher score because I know that if I study my English I can raise it at least a point. Also I am thinking about taking the SAT Subject tests.(Most likely Math 2 and Chemistry) (I haven’t taken any because the colleges I’m applying to don’t require them.)

Honor Societies: NHS, NTHS, NGHS, SNHS
Biggest Extracurricular: Senior officer for chapter and competed nationally for FBLA.
Others: TSA, FIRST Robotics, BEST Robotics, VEX Robotics, Electric Car Team (1st place in the state), German Club (won 1st in an event at the state level)

Work:
1 tech related internship last summer as well as another internship this summer in a tech related company.

Letters of Recommendation: I’m still trying to figure this out because the teacher(s) that I was hoping would write my letters have left the school starting next year. I have a letter of recommendation from my first employer but I don’t know if that will work because it’s old and not through the common app system and many schools want letters from teachers.

Wanted Majors: Computer Science/Computer Engineering and Economics

Wanted Colleges: I’m trying to get a baring where I am in the spectrum and will create a more detailed list from there. My dream school is Stanford, however I know that I have an extremely unlikely chance of getting in.

Personal Details:
Race: White
Financial Aid: I don’t qualify for a majority of financial aid programs.

What do I need to do before chaos erupts in the fall? Thank you so much for reading all of this, and all advice is welcome.

2

If your schools don’t require SAT IIs then don’t bother. It won’t matter. Work on upgrading your ACT score. Here are some good merit aid options: http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com/

3

  1. you said you don’t qualify for fin aid – what can you and your family afford? This will direct you in your search enormously. Each US college is required to have a “net price calculator” in their fin aid webpages. Run your family’s numbers and see if any of the schools on your preliminary list are simply impossible to afford.

  2. rec letter: you can still get one from the departed teacher. He/she doesn’ t have to be at your school currently. I’d still contact him/her and ask.

  3. use the SuperMatch function on the left. Also make an appt w/your guid counselor to see where kids of similar academic credentials have successfully targeted. This will help you develop a broader list.

If you can, even visit some of the nearby ones this summer and get a feel. Good luck

4

you are on the right track. with your academics and ECs, a state university might want you to go to their college, and may give you a full scholarship.

I have a college recommendation for you: Delaware State University, which is a HBCU in Dover, DE. They are wanting a more diverse student body, so they are giving generous financial aid to Caucasian and international students. I’m an in-stater, but the out-staters have great opprotunities for scholarships. They have Computer Science as both Bachelors and Masters (for Economics, there is only an Accounting major/minor). With your background, you can easily be accepted.

Another college recommendation is University of Delaware - Newark. They offer more degree programs, but the financial aid is less. However, you are more likely to get accepted. So look into these 2 colleges. Plus both are in close proximity of great vacation spots & tourism destinations

SOURCE: I live in Delaware, and I am a incoming DSU freshman, majoring in Middle Science/Math Education.

5

I don’t qualify for financial aid in the sense that my family is well off and has a higher than the accepted salary. There are two instate scholarship options which I qualify for but that’s not what I’m trying to figure out.

6

Are your parents going to help you, or is it on your own entirely?

7

My parents will be helping me, and I’m very grateful for that. My hope from this thread would be to figure out if I’m competitive enough for some of the top schools and figure out what I need to accomplish by fall.

8

Look for a college that is within reach and is easy to get into (and one that is close by too). You are lucky. I only applied to one college (Del State), and they accepted my application immediately. My parents can’t afford to help me, but I am grateful that I got everything paid for by the college (I get a refund check this semester for about $500. its not bad, but it is worth it not to be in debt!).

Anyway, I wish the best of luck to you for your senior year. It was stressful for me because of AP Lang and AP Physics 1 & 2 (Algebra Based, very easy!!) . I passed both with a 95 each, and get my scores in the fall. Don’t stress yourself too much! :slight_smile:

9

OK - you don’t qualify for financial aid. Does that mean your parents are willing to spend up to $70,000 per year to send you to school (that’s what the most expensive places will cost)? Most kids who say, “I don’t qualify for aid” don’t really mean “Money is no object to my parents.” This is why people are asking for more information about your money. We’re not trying to be too nosey: for most kids, keeping an eye on the costs is part of building a college list.

Here are the first two college finance terms you need to learn: EFC = estimated family contribution, the amount federal and college board formulas think your family can afford, and NPC = net price calculator, which shows the approximate price the college expects you to pay. It’s often higher than your EFC, but for some generous colleges can be lower than EFC. If you do not get any aid or scholarships, you pay the COA = cost of attendance.

You need to know what your family’s budget is as well as your EFC, so that you know whether you should look only at state schools, or can consider private schools in certain price ranges, etc.

Look for an EFC calculator on the college board website.
Look for an NPC calculator on each individual college’s website.
Your family budget is up to your parents to help you figure out.

10

Thank you for educating me on that, I’ll look more deeply into it with my family soon. Funds aside though, going off of pure stats, can I reach for the top schools? I’m just trying to get an estimate of where I stand.

11

Your ACT 32 is good for many schools. But 32 plus your GPA isn’t stellar enough to make you competitive for the top schools. Try the SuperMatch tool on the left margin bar. Good luck

12
  1. Make a list of all your ECs, when you did them, about how many hours a week, and descriptions.
  2. You only get 10 slots for ECs on common app, so start categorizing them. Like you may want to categorize all Robotics together, or split them up somewhat.
  3. Make sure to mention what leadership you have in those ECs, even if not a formal position…and talk about what you did as a leader.
  4. Choose a Common App essay prompt
  5. Write a draft of your essay this summer. Give it to your GC/English teacher to review in the fall.
  6. If you haven’t already, choose who you want to ask to write recommendations for you. If your major is STEM, ask a Math and a science teacher.
  7. See what your HS Guidance office wants you to do for college apps…(look on their website)…Do they want you to complete a brag sheet or something else to help the GC?
  8. Visit some local colleges…like your State flagship, a smaller private school…see what you like and don’t like about them.
  9. Come up with a list of what you want in a college…major, location, urban/rural, size, etc etc
  10. Based on that, use Naviance, Supermatch (here on CC), Fiske Guide, etc to come up with a list of colleges
  11. Find out from your parents how much they can spend on college each year
  12. Run the Net Price Calculator on those colleges to see if they are affordable
  13. If not, look at colleges that give automatic scholarships and see if they are good for you http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1348012-automatic-full-tuition-full-ride-scholarships.html#latest
  14. Try to visit some of those colleges over the summer if possible
  15. Do all this and you will thank me in the fall…you will be taking the toughest courses of your academic career and usually having leadership activities in your ECs…you will be so busy but so happy you have all the grunt work out of the way for college apps.

Looking at your stats, you are a very good student but you probably are not Stanford material. But that is okay, there are many many other good schools.

What state do you live in? Look at your state schools first, and definitely apply to one of them.

13

You have a lot of robotics on your EC list - and robotics takes a lot of lab space and resources to do right. If you are still interested in that aspect of Computer Science, I would look at your state flagship university. Most of them should be accessible and affordable with your instate tuition. There are some exceptions - UCBerkeley is a reach for everyone, for example. At others, like U of Alabama, there are probably generous merit scholarships for your 32 ACT. Sometimes the best school for your particular field is not the flagship. For example, UMass Lowell is fabulous for robotics even though Amherst is considered the flagship of that system.

There are some smaller engineering schools where you could do Computer Science and Engineering with those stats, but you will have to dig to find the ones that have good robotics programs.

14

Thank you everyone for the advice and I would greatly appreciate more.

15

@gwh2016 The lacrosse coach from DSU contacted my daughter-- she is a junior and we were wondering if the diversity was rising too. She is going to visit in a couple weeks and also meet the coach. The scholarship money that they expect she can get is definitely significant and she is also looking at computer science/web design

16

@toomanyteens that’s good. I’ve heard great things about their lacrosse team. the school has been increasing in diversity (more international students are enrolling), and the Computer Science program is ok (for web design, look under the Mass Communications program). I looked into it, but I changed my mind to study Education (I personally love to help children/teens). anyway, she would have a great future at DSU.

17

@curiousINTP Your test scores (particularly that 32 ACT) are fine for your GPA level. The main thing you need to do is not more testing, but to build a college list with more places besides Stanford on it, with lots of realistic choices. The next most important thing to do is write your common app essay. You will be surprised at how hard it is to find time for it once classes start senior year. If you build your list early enough in the summer, work on your supplemental essays, too.

Building a college list is the most crucial step in college admissions. People who have great choices in March are those who started with great lists in September. Period. The people who are panicking because they either didn’t get in or couldn’t afford where they got in are the ones who didn’t build their list wisely and realistically up front. And, once you realize you made this mistake in March it is way too late to go back and fix it.