Gap Year + Reapply

Applying to College
1

<p>I am a graduating senior who applied to many schools and was accepted to many fine schools but not the "top tier" in the U.S. (was accepted to Oxford but cannot afford due to international student status). Before Sunday, I was scheduled to enroll at Carleton College this fall, but I was accepted in to the Global Citizen Year program to spend a year abroad completing and internship and living with a homestay family. I plan to go, and I'm wondering - should I reapply?</p>

<p>The main reasons I would reapply are two: first, I was in an emotiontionally treacherous condition when I applied for schools and my applications were poor. Second, after battleing through my eating disorder these past few months, I have very different priorities. And while Carleton would be very good, it's not quite as good of a match. Do you have suggestions for which schools I should look at? I like quirky, academic (but not as "out there" as, say, Reed), and most importantly MATURE. I would like to eventually become a therapist, but for undergrad I plan on majoring in environmental science and stats.</p>

<p>My main questions are, should I reapply? How would I complete the common app as a non-traditional student? Do I have a shot at these schools?</p>

<p>Schools I would like to apply to:
Brown
Swarthmore
Wellesely
UChicago
Princeton</p>

<p>Objective:
•SAT I (breakdown): Not sending
•ACT: 35C (35E 31M 36R 36S)
•SAT II: 760 Math II 800 Biology<br>
•Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.96
•Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 14/409
•AP (place score in parenthesis): Calculus AB (5), World (5), Psyics (4), U.S. History (5), English Lit (5), English Lang (5), Gov (5), Spanish Lang (5), Biology (5), Environmental Science (5)
•Senior Year Course Load WAS: College English and College Social Science, AP Environmental Science, Honors Orchestra, IB HL Math, and an internship working with making sustinable forestry an economically viable option in the Pacific NW
•Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National AP Scholar, National Merit Commended, All-National Orchestra, All-State Orchestra</p>

<p>Subjective:
•Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): JV Cross Country, Youth Symphony (Highest Division, principle), music competitions (All-State for solo, All-State for Orchestra, All-National for orchestra, honorable mention for Seattle Young Artist, etc.)
•Job/Work Experience: 20 hours a week since Junior year
•Volunteer/Community service: 500+ hours mainly volunteering at Seattle Children's Hospital, volunteering as a summer camp counselor, and performing at charity events
•Summer Activities:Work, volunteering, research
•Essays: I plan to write about my journey overcoming the eating disorder
•Teacher Recommendation: THROUGH THE ROOF AMAZING
•Counselor Rec: Stellar
•Additional Rec: Not sure, maybe my boss who LOVES me?
•Interviews: I am very, very good at interviews. But I'm not sure that they count for much.</p>

<p>Other
•State (if domestic applicant): WA
•Country (if international applicant): N/A
•School Type: Public
•Ethnicity: White
•Gender: Female
•Income Bracket: $65,000
•Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): ED, gap year decision?</p>

<p>Reflection
•Strengths:Standardized Testing, ACT anyway.
•Weaknesses:Everything else
•Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
•Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted: Purdue, KU, OU, TU, Vanderbilt
Rejected: Duke</p>

<p>General Comments:
Help!</p>

2

<p>I reapplied after a gap year abroad, having been waitlisted at my first choice, and was accepted. If you want to reapply, I can’t think of any reason not to do so, assuming that your Carleton deferral doesn’t prohibit it.</p>

<p>You’re not a non-traditional student. You complete the Common App basically the same way you did the first time.</p>

<p>FWIW, I would not recommend writing your essay about overcoming an eating disorder, unless that ED were “old and cold,” and maybe not then. No one is going to go back and look at last year’s application and reject you because they can’t figure out why the first app was lousy. But someone is likely to wonder if you might relapse under the stress of school.</p>

3

<p>If you don’t think Carleton is “Top Tier”, I’m not sure what you mean as it’s in the top 10 LACs in the country; as far as how you describe yourself, it seems to fit your perfectly, too.
Ask for your deferral to do Global Citizen Year and make sure that you’re allowed to apply to other schools during that time. The schools you list would all be “wild cards” for anyone, but you seem to have a shot especially with the Global Citizen experience. In short if you’re allowed do, why not, but do give a better look at Carleton.</p>

4

<p>Hello, this may sound blunt but, you asked for feedback, so here goes…from previous posts it looks like you got into several fine schools, including Smith and Wesleyan-- like Carleton, some of the best LACs in the country. It must have been a hard choice but you chose Carleton. Are you just getting “cold feet”? </p>

<p>Do you really think your chances will be that much better after a gap year? You might end up in the same place (a great school which is financially feasible). Holding out for Brown is not a good idea for anybody, it has a less than 10% acceptance rate. And why go for Wellesley if you didn’t like Smith? </p>

<p>You asked for advice. Stick with Carleton and make the most of it.</p>

<p>If the study abroad experience is that appealing, can’t you do it junior year? Or if you really can’t wait, see if Carleton will let you defer. But throwing the whole college search and admissions into the mix sounds really out of left field. </p>

<p>Best of luck!</p>