We got the EA decision yesterday from UW Madison. My son was not accepted.
GPA: Not great. 2.97/4.00 unweighted
Academic rigor: Excellent (18 AP/honors classes in high school)
Extra curriculars: Excellent (stellar recommendation letters supporting extra curricular activity)
SAT: Very good (1460, 99th percentile)
Lessons learned: No point in high academic rigor if the higher rigor causes lower GPA.
Question: Has anyone tried to reach back out to admissions department of a school which gave a decline and tried to explore ways of getting back in - e.g. via conditions such as GPA from senior year etc? Any suggestions? We would really like for him to go to UW as we’ve grown up here in Madison and really like the school (not to mention the benefit of instate tuition). Thanks in advance.
I am in a very similar situation as you. 35 act, 3.17 weighted GPA, amazing extracurriculars including many science awards at the international level, 500+ CC hours, glowing letters of recommendation. It is extremely upsetting to see students from my school who went test-optional and took the easiest courses getting in with a 3.5 GPA and practically no unique extracurriculars. Madison is my state school, and I have lost hope in all of my other applications after being rejected. I somehow neglected to fill out the residence for the tuition portion of my application on my portal, and was wondering was that maybe the reason I got rejected? I am on track to have a 4.0+ GPA for the first semester of my senior year, and I came across an article that said in unique circumstances where new information becomes available (i.e strong senior year grades), students can apply for an appeal and will receive a decision within 6 weeks.
I’m from nearby.
I have had friends kid’s denied from UW-Madison with practically perfect GPAs and amazing extracurriculars.
As noted, you have 30 days to request a deny repeal. However as the website states, there has to be new information or information not included on the original application. So for OP, you would need to show a much higher GPA senior year which was not included in the original application. However as it is so competitive, yes, the “higher rigor” will likely not overlook a lower GPA.
Thank you for your response! We plan to give the appeal a shot along with some new information, esp. his grades from this semester which are much better.
Best of luck. People who use UW-Madison as a safety are likely to be disappointed. While I understand its a great school, there are other options such as going somewhere else for a year and attempting to transfer in. I would not hold out high hopes though for an acceptance based on GPA.
That’s a tough lesson to learn that you describe and I think it is true. Could he consider applying to the nearest branch campus and then transfer to Madison? Can he still be considered for Regular Decision? (Even then, if he can get waitlisted, I know someone who was accepted to Madison off the waitlist in April.) UW Madison is a great school and great town. Also, did he take the ACT - I think more take the ACT for UW. (My son did SAT too.)