<p>Hello, I am a QB finalist, first-gen, and very low income (~15K). Both of my parents died in the summer after my sophomore year and I spent a year out of school to cope, which basically destined me to be a junior when I should've been a senior, which I am now. I wrote about this in my personal statements and feel confident that I discussed it well. These are my other statistics:</p>
<p>SAT: 1900
GPA: (W) 4.01 (UW) 3.66
Rank: 24/544 (top 5%)
SAT II: Wasn't able to take (couldn't get fee waiver in time and can't use money for additional stuff ----> 15K)
APs: WHAP (4), EngLang (5), APUSH (5), and I am taking 6 AP classes this year (intent on taking 4 tests)
Teacher Recs: Don't know, but both teachers know me very well and one of them is absolutely great at recommendations
Interviews: Yale (Above Average), Princeton (Excellent)
EC's: 4 years of Volunteer tutoring, AP Club President this year as well as Academic Decathlon Club President, and I founded a Student Union
Personal Statements: Written well and I explain all of my grade dips, primarily a result of taking care of ailing parents and not having good financial opportunities.</p>
<p>Given this information, do I have a chance at Princeton? I know that my stats are well below the average, but I think I told my story well and I had teachers who recommended me well</p>
<p>Your EC’s are pretty weak, and that’s what Ivy’s love. Noticed you started a thread in both Princeton and Brown with the same ask so you have a thing for Ivy’s. Do more research on them and try to talk to accepted students for your major. Deadline for this year is closed also. So either way looking at your chances all i have to contribute is work on those EC’s! apply and be ready next semester for EA!</p>
<p>Let’s be honest: Nobody has any idea what your chances are. Your objectives are simply not Stanford caliber; however, you have obviously overcome a great deal of hardship to get to where you are today, and Stanford will surely look upon that favorably.</p>
<p>Also, asuranirosuki, I believe (s)he’s already applied and just wants to know chances; OP stated senior status, and has already interviewed as well.</p>
<p>I won’t rule out your chances completely, but know that your objectives are not quite there. You are moreorless dependent on your essays and force of personality to make them see you as an applicant worth admitting.</p>
<p>Harsh; Philovitist does have a point. That is, to say your grade dipped because of such a loss is very justifiable, however, an SAT score is unlucky to fall 300 points because of such an event. If, for instance, OP had pulled a 2300, then seeing as the SAT is an aptitude test, it would be clear that the OP easily had the potential to be a 4.0 student and rather his situation disrupted him.</p>
<p>However, considering that that the SAT score was only 1900, admission will likely reasonably conclude that even if OP had had a normal life, his academics may not have been up to par. So no, the SAT isn’t everything, but especially in a case like this one, where a dip in grades can be attributed to an externality, a stronger SAT would have made a world of difference by placing the OP, in the admissions pool, in the same academic “category” as 4.0ers because he could have gotten one. With a 1900, it could reasonably be concluded that the OP simply is not as academically capable as other applicants, hardship or no.</p>
<p>I repeat, your objectives just aren’t there, family hardship or no. That being said, Stanford looks in to a lot more than academic potential when they admit an applicant. You have displayed a remarkable tenacity and willingness to overcome which will certainly work in your favor, and thus, as I mentioned, you are pretty dependent on your essays and force of personality.</p>
<p>I only took the SAT once and wanted to take the ACT because I really disliked the formatting of the SAT and the idea that an IQ test would be a large determinant of acceptance at big schools like Stanford really rubs me the wrong way. Honestly, my parents’ passing and my financial hardship have always gotten in my way when it came to succeeding in school. They also did not magically die out of nowhere. It was a slow process and it was my job to take care of them even before their passing and it ate up my freshmen and sophomore year. I had a fair grade dip in my Junior year, but my two previous years were riddled with B’s as well, a result of my stress and depression from watching those very close to me slowly whither away. It’s always difficult for me to take advantage of the opportunities I receive because I linger so much on the past. As pitiful as such a thing is, I have done every thing in my power to help those like me who are similarly disadvantaged, often at my own expense. I knew going in that it would be remarkably difficult for me to gain acceptance from such a wonderful school like Stanford, but I did it because I believe in the power of my own story and the heart that I was able to inject in my essays. I will never take back that time I had with my parents. I would gladly do it again, but now I am free from those shackles that formerly held me and I want to start anew.</p>
<p>I’m incredibly doubtful that the admissions office will make that conclusion. Did you not read the part where he said his parents died? Or are you just here trying to make other prospective students feel inferior because of your own insecurities?</p>
<p>Honestly, you can’t be this dumb. It’s HARD recovering from the death of a parent, let alone both. It’s not something that you just forget, or get over overnight. It sticks with you, and the fact that he pulled through, got his **** together and actually applied to Stanford given his circumstances is pretty spectacular compared to most other students who have two parents, a house, a steady income, among other privileges you seem to not understand that you have over other students. Sorry, but that’s the truth. SATs aren’t everything, and thank goodness schools like Stanford have holistic admissions, otherwise they’d be full of two dimensional kids who have only focused on getting that 2400. There are more to people than that, just letting you know. ;)</p>
<p>PhilosopherKing, although I hope the best for you, it’s hard to give you chances for a school like Stanford. But really though, keep on keeping on.</p>
<p>I want to say thanks to the posters for giving me feedback. I don’t want there to be any hostility among any of you. I appreciate all of the words given here, whether they were sharp or soft. I don’t want to be coddled when I know that a great beast waits before me. Stanford and Princeton are my dream schools and if I don’t get accepted into any one of them, then that is alright. It was a long-shot anyway. I will be the first person in my entire family to go to college and having that chance alone is something that I should be proud of. It would be nice to go to Stanford though :D</p>
<p>Well, being a QuestBridge finalist and granted free applications, I applied to Princeton, Brown, Haverford, Yale, Columbia, Trinity, and Tufts. I also applied to 4 UCs: Berkeley (3rd on my list), LA, SD, and Davis. Being from California, it is easier for me to gain acceptance into Berkeley and I also received a supplement from there, which gave me the opportunity to expand on my situation with my parents as well as provide a teacher recommendation, which was worked on relentlessly by my English teacher. I don’t doubt that I will get into a good school, but I am utterly obsessed with Princeton and Stanford. Acceptance to one of those schools will be a sort of validation for me, more like a moral victory than some thing I really have a shot at. It will be a miracle for me to get into one of them, but college is college and I want to go where I will be happy. I just want to make my parents proud, whether I am trying in Stanford, Princeton, Berkeley, or Yale</p>
<p>You seem…to have a hang-up. No one here has done anything to deliberately make anyone feel inferior or assert the all-importance of standardized test scores. So you are strawmanning others to make yourself feel morally praiseworthy in some twisted way. But…you do understand that the SAT is important, right? Especially when other stats are weak? </p>
<p>PK isn’t getting into Stanford just because he has a unique background. He has to demonstrate academic potential, too. But nothing in what he’s posted besides some AP test scores and a decent class rank reassures me that he wouldn’t have a really hard time succeeding at these schools he adores. There’s a serious risk of mismatch.</p>
<p>The risk might be present because his background prevented him from getting the most out of his education, but whatever the reason, it is present. And colleges will think a lot about that, even if his story and Questbridge status keeps him from being auto-rejected. :/</p>
<p>What baffles me is that we have people here telling him that he’s probably not academically ready for Stanford. Umm…what makes you think that? You do realize regardless of SAT scores any admissions officer would be impressed with what he’s done given his circumstances. He has a decent GPA, above average scores, good class rank, is a QB finalist, etc. True, it might be absolute garbage compared to anything you’ve done <em>eye roll</em> but that’s what holistic admissions are for, to make it fair for everyone. It definitely wouldn’t be fair to look at everyone through the same lens on SAT scores, it’s important to see how far someone has come given their hardships. That’s all.</p>
<p>Depending on the test date, the difference between 100 to 200 points on the SAT can be 3 to 6 questions. Are you seriously insinuating that because he didn’t break a 2000 score he is “academically incapable”? Get over yourselves; that mentality toward those handicapped by life will get you nowhere and god hopes not into Stanford.</p>
<p>Actually, you’d be wrong. The difference between a 600 and 700, or 2300 and 2400 could be six questions. However, the SAT is graded on a bell curve of students taking it; that means that the number of question needed to change a score by 100 points gets larger as you move towards the middle - the difference in the number of questions is going to be larger as you move towards the middle. If the difference between an 800 and 2400 was really going to be 48 questions, as you seem to have suggested, then why does the SAT have 170 questions?</p>
<p>Nowhere did we insinuate that he is academically incapable. We did insinuate that his academic stats are not going to be up to the standard of the rest of Stanford’s academic pool. That is a fact, whatever you may want to say about it. To be totally honest, if I were an admissions officer, I would be nothing but impressed by his GPA. To do that with the hardship taken into consideration is nothing short of amazing; however, the SAT is not something which is as affected by external factors as a GPA. A GPA is built up over a long period of time, and it is easy to see how something like parents’ illness could negatively affect it. An SAT, however, is something that occurs once, for four hours, on a Saturday morning. Unless you were ill the day of the test or the death was very recent, one imagines that a student could be able to focus for four hours and give a reasonable, even if not ideal, representation of his ability.</p>
<p>In no way do I have anything but respect for the OP, but I am just making him aware that his SAT score is going to hurt his chances. I’m not going to sugarcoat it for him and hold his hand and tell him everything is going to work out beautifully; I’m going to be honest and tell him what he has going for him and what he doesn’t. He asked for chances, not reassurance.</p>
<p>And on the note of the dig you took about “god hopes not into Stanford,” I happen to be an REA admit. Your dig hasn’t exactly affected me. And I find it equally, if not more shameful that you call him “handicapped.” </p>
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<p>I’m not the admissions office, and it’s personal opinion that they might conclude that. Yes, I did read that part. Your inflammatory post isn’t helping. And as mentioned, I don’t really have a reason for insecurities.</p>
<p>I find it absolutely ludicrous that the OP asked us to chance him, and when his weaknesses in objectives were pointed out, we were immediately attacked. The simply fact is, his objectives simply are not there (actually, his class rank and GPA might be reasonably close to there, but that’s beside the point). I would ask you to present me with one example of a student who did not break 2000 on his SAT that was admitted solely based on academic merit. His SAT is simply going to hurt him in a sea of 2200+ and 34+. I’m not saying that he can’t get in; as I mentioned, he does have his personality and willingness to overcome hardship going for him. But his objectives aren’t there - is there anybody there who would like to contest this fact?</p>
<p>And PhilosopherKing: I forgot to mention, it seems, that I wish you the best of luck. I hope to see you in September. And should you be accepted to all the schools you apply to, just remember that West Coast Best Coast ;)</p>
<p>Those in the sea of 2200+ and 34+ probably also spent 1K+ or 100+ hours on studying, something OP could not do given his situation. Calling the SAT an aptitude test can be misleading. A 1900 no prep and with emotional burdens are pretty impressive imo. I think your essays will make or break you OP, which is something we cannot chance, good luck!</p>
<p>Nobody I know has spent that much time or money on the SAT or ACT o.O</p>
<p>I suppose that if people do that that could be a valid point; my impression was that it is a very small minority that do that. I know a rather large number of people who have 34+ and 2200+ with no studying or prep, to my knowledge. If that is true, and my knowledge is a misrepresentation of the general populace, I suppose the 1900 isn’t going to hurt as much as I thought it would.</p>