I’m applying as a Computer Science major at Georgia Tech. I am also considering applying for a Physics major (or minor). Describe to me what I should expect based on my stats.
Unweighted GPA: 3.92
Weighted GPA: 4.21
AP Coursework: Calculus AB, Calculus BC, Computer Science Principles, Biology, Psychology, Chemistry, Physics, Statistics, Music Theory
I have strong grades/scores for Calculus, Comp Sci, and Physics
I am currently taking Chemistry, Statistics, and Music Theory in my senior year
SAT: 1440 - ERW: 670 Math: 770
SAT Math - 800
SAT Physics - plan on taking soon (aiming for 750-800)
ECs:
State-Level Winner of OMEA Solo Violin Competition (2 years)
OMEA All-state Ensemble - Violin I Assistant Principal (1 year)
NAfME All-NW Ensemble - Violin II Player (2 years)
NAfME All-National Ensembles - Violin I Player (1 year)
Portland Youth Philharmonic - Violin Player (2 years)
Masterclass with Charles Castleman
Model United Nations (4 years)
National Honors Society (1 year)
Honestly, pretty low …
ECs do not reflect any interest in STEM at all. No awards listed like AIME, USACO, hackathons etc.
Stats: Low and since you are OOS, it just hurts chances
Coursework: Why no AP CS A? That’s going to hurt you …
Your chances are likely higher as a Physics major than CS.
As said by @GoBears2023 , the biggest issue I see is the lack of any STEM related activities. For a school as competitive as Georgia Tech, just taking STEM related courses in high school may not be sufficient enough to prove your passion for your major.
The key thing that Georgia Tech has been redundant about every time I have witnessed a presentation from them is how well their applicants fit their motto of progress and service. These are the characteristics that Tech values most. If they wanted students who were more focused academically, they may have made SAT subject tests mandatory etc etc.
If I were you, I would go to a blank Google Doc and list all of the extracurriculars which were on your application when you submitted it. Go line by line and ask yourself: "Does this activity demonstrate progress/service? In other words, has this lead to a positive impact in my community?
Remember, almost every applicant who applies to Tech has killer test scores and a weighted GPA over a 4.0 (or any GPA which demonstrates an A).
For most universities, GPA and test scores are just a threshold which act as the first barrier determining whether or not you have demonstrated that you are academically committed to your school work. After that is done, then the holistic stuff begins where they see what makes you stand out and if you have what Georgia Tech values most.
Your application should not be a brag sheet, it should be a clear representation of who YOU are, not what you have to be to increase your chances of getting into the school.
@pleaseacceptmeGT username checks out 
Great advice by the way!
Admissions depends largely though on whether you apply by Oct 15, if you are girl, if you are a first generation college student, so I would not worry about these opinions on chancing. GaTech is a stats school and wants to increase the number of girls. If you are out of state its a lot harder as well. There is no way to chance you without knowing your state of residence, gender and whether your parents went to college or not. Unfortunately college admissions is NOT fair. Also race matters a lot. I would say the ECs matter some lately, but all depends on these factors you cannot control. Music is a good extra curricular and you have taken master classes. Thats wonderful. If GaTech does not want you, you can go to another college, so don’t worry. GATech is not the be all and end all of education. In fact, with your music talent look at Case Western Reserve University, as the violin, orchestra and chamber music options are really good there. Both physics and CS are very strong at CWRU.
Actually, even with that information @Coloradomama, it is still not appropriate to chance the OP user. Georgia Tech is about 50/50 now in terms of the gender ratio (it used to be wayyyyy worse in the 90s), so being a girl does not add as much to your chances as it used to. Also, the first generation college student concept could possibly help with financial aid, but I doubt that it is considered in the admissions process. Why would they reduce your chances of admission because of someone else? Unfortunately, I do see race playing a larger factor recently. If you look through previous college confidential posts showing students who got admitted, the diversity in ethnicity it shown very clearly. After visiting the campus myself as well, I can say that Georgia Tech does strive to open arms to as many different cultures as possible. Your extracurricular activities do matter, and they can help you a lot depending on what they actually are, and if your activities are actually practical. For example, I don’t think NHS means much to them, because I am pretty sure that almost every applicant is in the NHS at their high school. Just some things that have stood out to me after viewing some admissions blogs from GT.
@pleaseacceptmeGT many university admissions committees favor first generation students, including GaTech, read this article
http://admission.gatech.edu/firstgeneration
And here you can see that FIRSTGEN at GaTech was started in 2013, so its been a trend at least since then.
https://www.gatech.edu/hg/item/187341
MIT’s freshman class is now 20% first generation college students by design. Gatech, the common data set may give that information or another article, its a bragging point for a lot of universities to admit a large number of first generation college students and also give them special scholarships.
If neither of your parents attended a four year college, you can and will get into schools that other kids
who’s parents attended college have no chance at, even with higher grades and test scores, but typically
these first generation students are very bright with good grades.
Quest Bridge is a service that looks for top first generation students, and GaTech is NOT part of Quest Bridge yet,
as far as I know, but Quest Bridge students get pushed ahead of other students at these partner schools–
https://www.questbridge.org
There is one public university, U of Virginia, who is a partner school for Quest Bridge. The other 39 schools are private schools, including Emory University in Atlanta.
@pleaseacceptmeGT
Here is another article from GaTech about first generation college students:
https://www.news.gatech.edu/features/first-their-families
I have not found the exact percentage yet of the GaTech freshman class, but I would expect it to be 10% of the seats saved for first generation college students.
Very wealthy private schools are now saving up to 20% of the seats for these students.
The reasoning is, that students who’s parents went to college, will succeed anywhere, and most top US universities
want to participate in bringing up the US standard of living for everyone.
You may disagree with the trend, but the trend is real and measured at many universities, its a bragging point
for many, and may even result in federal grant money coming their way, to the university as a whole. Also ranking
of universities now in part depends on Pell Grant eligible freshman,in some cases, although Pell Grant eligible students may have had both parents attend a 4 year college, usually not.
I read an article by the head of GT admissions once that said he likes to admit students that their home community will miss most.
@Greymeer
Sounds about right. They want kids who presented change in the community, not kids with perfect GPAs.
Can somebody comment does GT values if you are employed in a big university as a Research Assistant in engineering? My son was an intern (junior year) for one year and then hired as a research assistant (senior year) in the second year. He is applying for mechanical engineering based on his interest due to internship and job at the university. Does this increases his chances?