<p>Hello, everyone. I'm a bit of a lurker here but I've created my own account to do one of these chance threads. I'm only a rising Junior, but I thought I'd see where I stand at the moment.</p>
<p>Gender: Female
Race: Caucasian
High School: Very competitive school - I believe it was in the 200's for "Top 500 Public Schools in the U.S." in a magazine - Newsweek, maybe? Sends students to many top colleges & universities.
Weighted GPA: 4.31
Unweighted GPA: 3.86
Course Selection: Challenging. Multiple honors and AP classes in every year. (Well, except freshman because they only offered one honors class - but I took it.)
Location: Bay Area, California
Background: Upper Class</p>
<p>AP Scores: 4 on Language and Comp., 4 on European History.
Next year I will be taking the tests for U.S. History and Spanish IV and expect to do well.</p>
<p>SAT Scores: (These are possibly going to be raised with a retake.)
Math: 690
Verbal: 720
Writing: 700</p>
<p>EC'S:
- 10 Years on a Division 1 Club Soccer Team.
- 10+ Years of horseback riding. This is my main passion - I ride three-five times a week, compete at state and national levels and own my own horse.
- Have had the same summer job for 3 years working as a camp counselor and instructor at my barn.
- Editor on my school newspaper - I am possibly in the running for Editor in Chief my senior year.
- My friends and I at my stables established a charity fund to raise college money for the young children of the Mexican immigrants who work to take care of our horses. So far we have raised $4000+. Charity work is one of my main passions so I will probably be putting a good deal amount of time into this project or others in the future. </p>
<p>I feel slightly inadequate - so many people on here have long, long lists of EC's. But these ones take up most of my time and I do really devote a lot to them.</p>
<p>Other:
National Honor Society
Excellent Teacher Recommendations
I am a strong writer, so essays should not be a problem.</p>
<p>Here are the schools that I am interested in so far:
Amherst (Legacy)
Mount Holyoke (Legacy)
Carleton
William & Mary
Vanderbilt
Haverford
Wesleyan</p>
<p>I am considering applying ED to a school (such as Amherst, where if you are a legacy and apply ED apparently it raises your admission chances to about 50%) - do you think it would be significantly worth it? So far, it seems like I would be happy at any of these schools. Also: if anyone has recommendations for east-coast or Midwest safety schools, I would LOVE to hear them because I haven't been able to find good information yet.</p>
<p>I don't know, Amherst may expect better scores from someone of your socioeconomic background - I probably wouldn't mention "owning a horse" in your application.</p>
<p>Testing is not my strong suit, but hopefully I will be retaking them and getting them all up into at least the 700's.</p>
<ul>
<li>My friends and I at my stables established a charity fund to raise college money for the young children of the Mexican immigrants who work to take care of our horses. So far we have raised $4000+. Charity work is one of my main passions so I will probably be putting a good deal amount of time into this project or others in the future. </li>
</ul>
<p>Maybe it's just me, but this seems to make you sound really pretentious and spoiled--almost like you treat the lowly stablehands as charity cases to help in your free time. Colleges might see it and translate it as rich WASPS helping out foreigners by throwing money at them, in turn indirectly showing that they're superior.</p>
<p>Any idea what I can do to NOT come off like that? I can see how the situation can be easily interpreted in that sort of light. But I am very friendly with the stablehands, and these are the little children who I play with and practice my Spanish with (they giggle at me) every week. Maybe I should write my essay about my personal experiences with them?</p>
<p>"But I am very friendly with the stablehands". How very nice of you. THIS is the kind of statement fushiondogg is referring to. What the heck is a stablehand anyway? Do you mean someone who takes care of your horses???</p>
<p>Maybe you don't need to be so specific with this EC--don't mention, perhaps, that they're Mexican immigrants (and very possibly illegal immigrants).</p>
<p>Go easy. Someone who is spoiled and self-absorbed does not spend their time raising money to help poor kids have the same opportunities they do. This sounds like a really good impulse to me. As for making this sound as serious as you mean it to be--the best path for that is to get behind it in a substantial way and raise more money so it isn't dabbling. What form does this take? Have you set up a scholarship for which families apply? Is it merit-based? Purely need-based? Have you donated it to a larger organization? Do you have some sort of non-profit set up? You do not need to answer these questions here--but they matter in terms of what this activity really is and the potential for raising additional funds out in the larger community.</p>
<p>I don't doubt that her heart is in the right place, but mentioning that she owns a horse and whatever else will not help her case much. Neither will saying "I don't test well".</p>
<p>I think you guys are focusing on her ECs a bit too much. The ones you have are great, they show you have dedication.</p>
<p>Raise your SAT scores, particularly math. What I'm worried about is your Weighted GPA. Is it low or your school does do weighted GPAs differently? Have you been taking the most rigorous class schedule?</p>
<p>Good Luck</p>
<p>good chances everywhere amherst might be a little reachy but yea.
horse riding ey?</p>
<p>Your test scores are weak and your ECs are only average. Still, none of these schools are necessarily high reaches, and your UW GPA is excellent.</p>
<p>My goodness. o_0 It's a bit wild in here. Sorry my lingo or whatever comes off as pretentious - I normally would call them "the guys" or by their names, but of course you wouldn't know who I am referrring to. And by "I am friendly with them" I mean that we have Halloween parties and drink sodas together, not that I throw them dollar bills and smile patronizingly at them. Geez. The fact that I don't test well is the truth - I get nervous, make silly mistakes and overanalyze things - but I think I know not to put that on my applications. I am making it one of my main goals to raise my test scores.</p>
<p>Thank you nimby58 for your good advice - if anyone's curious, it is an independant, non-profit, need-based charity.</p>
<p>As for weak EC's - I am thinking of starting a literary magazine at my school as well as commiting 3 or 4 hours a week to helping disabled children take horseback riding lessons. Would these ideas be a good boost?</p>
<p>I don't find these extras average at all. Sure, they might not be THE BEST extras ever, but even at very competitive schools these are above average extras. Owning a horse and competing in horseback riding is certainly (usually) a sport of privilege, but the recruited rowers, squash players, fencers, etc. at many elite schools indicate quite clearly that elite colleges are not particularly disdainful of those talented in expensive, upper crust sports (I know that not everyone who competes in these sports or in horseback riding is super privileged, but it's a generalization that I feel alright making). Also, I find it awfully presumptuous to assume that these must be illegal immigrants. The OP should certainly parse her words carefully not to sound spoiled or like an airhead, but so should all applicants who plan to write about their community service. </p>
<p>Anyway, that said, if Amherst is your first choice, apply ED or you have no legacy advantage. That might be a bit of an exaggeration, but not much (speaking as a double legacy student who did not apply ED at that school--it was the right decision for me, but it was also the only realistic chance I had at getting in (I was rejected RD, and not because I was a poor applicant...I just wasn't a top 7% applicant)). You definitely need safeties, because at most of these schools, you are a fair applicant with a decent shot at admission, but far from a lock. Mount Holyoke w/ legacy is probably a safety, and William and Mary might be a match (I don't know much specifically about admission there), but the rest are pretty solidly in the high match/low reach/reach category, barring applying ED. </p>
<p>As far as suggestions for safeties...not all of these are safeties, per se, but none are harder to get in than the schools you already have on your list: what about Grinnell, Macalester, Bryn Mawr, Bard, maybe even Tulane if you like Vanderbilt? Hope this helps...</p>