<p>Ok, I think it's official. I will apply early decision here. I'm wondering how much weight extracurricular activities and volenteering will carry? My SAT scores are low and my grades freshman year were pretty poor. I will do whatever it takes to prove that this is the school for me. My essay will be well written, and I plan to spend my summer working on it. I will be applying next fall. With such circumstances, do I have a chance? Will someone give me suggestions on how to look good in the admissions eyes?
Thanks!</p>
<p>Umm i dont think only ECs can outweigh a bad gpa/test scores but i am not 100% sure. What would will be a v. strong essay and ECs that show you as a leader and such.</p>
<p>If you are a junior, you could potentially re-take the SAT or try the ACT if you think your current score is not high enough for consideration. Wellesley is a great school, but is very rigorous. If an applicant doesn’t have a strong academic record, they will not be a successful student.</p>
<p>I agree with college_query. If you have a strong academic performance this year (I’d definitely try for straight A’s or very close to straight A’s) and can raise your test scores, you’ll have a much better chance of getting in.</p>
<p>For the SAT, I’d recommend studying out of the College Board’s official guide. If you’re familiar with common question types and do some practice tests, I’m sure your score will go up. Also, remember that there are the SAT IIs, where you have a choice of which subjects to take. Those are a good opportunity to show off your skills.</p>
<p>Also, next fall, try to get an interview with an alumna. That will probably be beneficial.</p>
<p>The sense I’ve got is that extracurriculars and personal character qualities are very important to Wellesley, but they won’t make up for bad test scores/grades except for in very special cases.</p>
<p>Thank you everyone for your helpful feedback. What SAT score should I aim for? ACT?</p>
<p>To have an idea of the range of scores for successful applicants, I would take a look at the Admissions statistics for Wellesley:</p>
<p>[Admission</a> Statistics | Wellesley College - Wellesley College](<a href=“http://new.wellesley.edu/admission/knowus/admitstats]Admission”>http://new.wellesley.edu/admission/knowus/admitstats)</p>
<p>Also, look at the Common Data Set (most recent currently available is 2011-2012) which includes a lot of useful information about applicants:</p>
<p><a href=“http://new.wellesley.edu/sites/default/files/assets/departments/instresearch/files/commondataset2011.pdf[/url]”>http://new.wellesley.edu/sites/default/files/assets/departments/instresearch/files/commondataset2011.pdf</a></p>