<p>After visiting NU for the second time, I am having second thoughts about applying to the Medill School of Journalism. I love NU and I love Medill but I'm scared I woun't get in because of the large number of applicants for Medill and the much smaller number of spots available for Medill. My mom says I should apply to their school of Arts and Sciences (Weinberg) and then try and transfer but that's a difficult process and transferring isn't a guarentee. The Admission counselors say that applying to one school over the other doesn't matter but after talking to the students there, it sounds like it really really does. I'm applying ED which might help my chances but my test scores were much lower (ACT: 27) then the average but my curriculum (ap calc, ap gov, ap lit, journalism II) and GPA (3.96) and my extracurriculars are significantly better. I'm an editor for my school paper (features page) and I have an internship at a local news station but I don't think that's enough. Does anyone have any suggestions on what to do or what Medill is looking for in an applicant? Should I apply to Medill and be at risk of not getting in at all or apply to Weinberg and if I get in, be at risk of not getting into Medill (the sole reason I initially looked at NU)? Help!</p>
<p>Overall competitiveness at Medill and WCAS is very similar but the focus of the admissions review is somewhat different. Your weak ACT score will hurt you applying to both (hopefully to be somewhat offset by your strong GPA), but your strong EC involvement with journalism will help substantially more with a Medill app. In addition, of the 160 or so kids who start each year at Medill only 1-3 will typically transfer out. Transfering in is VERY difficult. If Medill is where you want to be, for both these reasons, I'd strongly suggest you apply there.</p>