Final Chances Ever for USC

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Southern California
1

<p>I think I asked a few months ago, but not since I received my official grades for junior year, so final opinions on my chances for acceptance before I apply. In case it matters, I will be applying for either engineering or finance (btw, which one is easier to get accepted into?)</p>

<p>Also, is the online app available yet, and is not taking SAT 2s going to hurt me a great deal (I asked about SAT 2s before, but would like more opinions on how badly it will hurt me specifically)? </p>

<p>demographics:
*I am an Asian Indian Male
*From a competitive public high school in Oregon: Beaverton High School, which was also rated the best AP school in Oregon, so yeah, its a smart school. (On top of that, our graduating class is rumored to be the best class of all time, so yeah, its tough but not necessarily super private school level)
*student body at school = 500+</p>

<p>The Numbers/ECs
*ACT Composite 30 (8/12 on essay) (DANG IT!!!)</p>

<p>-English 30 (Usage/Mechanics 15 Rhetorical Skills 16)
-Science 24 (ouch)
-Reading 31 (Social Studies/Science 17 Arts/Literature 15)
-Mathematics 34
(Pre-Algebra/Elementary Algebra 18
Int.Algebra/Coord.Geometry 16 (ouch)
Plane Geometry/Trigonometry 18)</p>

<p>*Freshman year:
Language Arts (Honors): A/A
Social Studies 9: A/A
Advanced Algebra 2: A/A
Bio/Chem/Phys 10 (Honors): A/A
SAT Math Prep: A
SAT Verbal Prep:A
Spanish 1:A/A
Team Sports:A
Health 1:A
Web Design:A
Computer Programming:A</p>

<p>*Sophomore Year:
AP Chem: B/A
Lit Comp 10 (Honors): A/A
Physics 2: A/A
Pre-Calc: A/B
Social Studies 10 :B/A
Spanish 2:A/A
Symphonic Band: A/A
Team Sports: A
Health 2: A</p>

<p>*Junior Year
Human Anatomy: A/A
IB Biology: A/A
Spanish 3: A/A
IB Calculus: A/A
IB Psychology: A/B
Team Sports: A
IB Seminar: P
IB English: A/ A
IB TOK 1: A</p>

<p>*Senior Year Anticipated Courseload If I get my choices:
IB Physics SL
IB TOK 2
IB Biology HL 2
IB English HL 2
IB Math HL 2 (Calc 2 basically)
IB Spanish SL
AP Statistics
Biotech/Economics (not the same course...the slash indicates I'll take one or the other for 1 semester)</p>

<p>In summary: I currently have a 3.913 UW GPA, and 4.152 W GPA. UW class rank = 31/520 and W = 17/520.</p>

<p>Extra Curriculars:
*NHS (2 years)
*OHSU Dental exploring program
*Doing research on anti-viral medications.
*Will probably volunteer at a hospital and then OHSU during the summer.
*Varsity tennis 4 years (possibly captain next season).
*Science Team 4 years.
*World Quest Trivia 4 years
*Portland Youth Philharmonic Organization (2 years)
*Mathfest Participant 4 years
*Oregon Museum of Science and Industry Rising Star Program (will have 150-175 volunteer hours done)
*Mathcounts Tutor (about 50+ volunteer hours)
*Model UN (1 year)
*maybe DECA next year</p>

<p>Awards/Honors/Leadership:
*Possibly tennis team captain
*Science Club Treasurer (1 year)
*Science Club VP (2 years)
*Math Club (4 years) (VP 2 years)
*IB Diploma Candidate
*6th Place at World Quest out of 32 10th grade
*Mathfest Algebra 2 1st place freshman year
*Oregon Invitational of Mathematics Tournament Participant Fresh Year</p>

2

<p>you should apply to whichever one you most want to pursue... esp since if you get in one school, you can't just switch majors from a different school, you have to apply so just go with the one you're most interested in.
other than that, your stats look great, just keep it up senior year.</p>

3

<p>more opinions?</p>

4

<p>your ACT is right in the middle 50% and you basically have all a's from what i see and you have good ec's. do you really need that many other opinions?</p>

5

<p>based on your grades it seems like you could retake the ACT and score higher (and the essay is not part of your comp score, so dont even worry about it. i got 8/12 too and was invited for a presidential interview... my comp was 33)
so yea, a few more points on the ACT and you'd be in the competitive range for the FAT scholarships</p>

6

<p>Yeah. If you wrote good essays and had good recommendations, I would be surprised if you got rejected because USC is not terribly selective. Then again, you never know...</p>

<p>Retake your ACT again to raise your chances (and so they look on par with your grades), but now most of it relies on how well you make your application to be.</p>

7

<p>well is my ACT really that pathetic that I desperately need to retake or what? See the thing is that I've been taking practice tests and doing WORSE, and I mean A LOT WORSE. I got a 28 on one, so I'm not sure if my ACT will go up. So is it really that big of a problem, or should I be fine even with this?</p>

8

<p>(^not sure what "terribly selective" is. US News puts USC in the "most selective" category- same as Dartmouth.)</p>

<p>Since your GPA, class schedule, and EC's are very good, the only thing to criticize is your ACT score. You will probably be ok with your 30 if you write very good essays and have some good recommendations.</p>

9

<p>Your test score is fine, and your overall profile is about a match for USC. You certainly don't have to retake the ACT, but a 32+ composite can make the school your safety.</p>