Help a fellow freak!

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Please Help!</p>

<p>I am a rising senior and I am greatly anxious over my chances at the top LAC’s. Well here it is…</p>

<p>1st generation Korean-American
Born in Georgia, now residing in suburbs in California
Income bracket <40,000</p>

<p>GPA: 4.0 unweighted, 4.67 weighted
Rank: 4/517 (for now…I think I will be moving up to 2/517 by next year)
PSAT: 190
SAT: ugh…690M, 650W, 640CR----I am currently studying to retake in Oct…my goal is to get 730+M, 700+W, 700CR
SAT II: 660 Math IIC, 670Bio E, 710 US History—retaking in Nov.</p>

<p>Special Circumstances: nothing really, except that I moved from GA to CA in the second semester of my sophomore year and that GA did not offer AP classes to sophomores…so I technically had only 1 semester of AP World History…</p>

<p>10th:
AP World History: A (5 on exam)</p>

<p>11th:
Pre-IB Pre Calc/AP Calc AB: A
AP English Language: A
AP US History: A
AP Biology: A</p>

<p>12th:
AP English
AP Calculus BC
AP Art History
AP Govt
AP Economics
AP Physics</p>

<p>EC’s:

  1. National Honor Society 2 years</p>

<li><p>California Scholarship Federation 2.5 years </p></li>
<li><p>Latin Club 4 years (founder/instructor)
I had previously taken Latin in GA however, moving to CA which did not offer Latin, I decided to create a latin club and teach latin I and the culture to those interested)
I also took the National Latin Exam for Latin I and got bronze medal</p></li>
<li><p>Future Doctors of America 2 years (founder/co-president)
Basically, we bring guest speakers to our club meetings (neurosurgeons to pediatric cardiologists) who talk about their occupations, do volunteer work at local hospitals/Red Cross, and provide hands on experience to those interested in pursuing a medical profession.</p></li>
<li><p>LiNK-Liberty in North Korea 3 years (co-secretary/promotions director/public relations)
Spreading awareness upon the humanitarian crisis in North Korea and doing humanitarian activist promotions (ie: organized an all-day LiNK awareness assembly at school, protests in front of the Chinese Embassy in LA, sending petitions to various embassies and release North Korean detainees, host a benefit concert and raise $5,000 for SAFE Haven orphanages in China that are posts involved in an Underground Railroad to help NK refugees) I am a great advocate for this cause while many ppl in my church have dissapproved b/c they feel that I am simply straining the already tense relations our motherland: SKorea and NKorea and US. Nevertheless, I this issue itself is my passion and energy not only b/c of the horrendous atrocities being committed right under noses but also b/c some of my family members are in NKorea right now…and so, its not only a matter of human decency but of ultimate necessity. </p></li>
<li><p>Model UN 2 years (cofounder/activities director)
My involvement in LiNK led me to intiate our school’s 1st MUN chapter. (our school just opened in 2004…hence our class is the 1st graduating class for 2007!)</p></li>
</ol>

<p>Here are the colleges I am interested in applying…
Bowdoin
Barnard
Carleton
University of Chicago
Wellesley
Middlebury
Emory
UCB
Macalester
UCLA
UCSD
Scripps
Mount Holyoke</p>

2

<p>crazedjunior:</p>

<p>UCB/UCLA: Slight Reach
UCSD: Match</p>

3

<p>anyone else?</p>

4

<p>Carleton: Raise test scores a bit and show interest.
University of Chicago: Raise test scores a bit more and write awesome essays.
UCB: Agree with flopsy, unless you want engineering -- then it's a reach.</p>

5

<p>Definitely true that North Korea is running a brutal regime, but "protests in front of the Chinese Embassy in LA"? </p>

<p>China is not North Korea. American imperialism has been too deeply ingrained in South Koreans. China is helping the people of North Korea to survive the brutal regime and serves to act as a counter to America and Japan's wild ambitions. If it was not for China's presence, Japan would have long ago recaptured South Korea.</p>

<p>Anyways UC Berkeley/ UCLA slight reach</p>

6

<p>excuse me, I have been to china and have personally met with north korean refugees and if you get your facts right you will see that china has been repeatedly accused for their offenses in repatriating refugees back to north korea when caught...if you can't take my word for then go to google and type in children of the secret state and watch it yourself...also check out the LiNK site, hopefully afterwards you see what really goes beyond what the media portrays...and moreover, I am Korean-AMERICAN, not korean born, but i really think you should stop trying to generalize what south koreans may think or may not think...and if you think american imperialism has been too deeply ingrained in south koreans they have a reason to be and many other foreigners outside of korea, asia, and the united states think so-may not be true but it sure is prevalent in alot of societies...</p>

7

<p>I think this person knows what they're talking about when it comes to North Korea...</p>

<p>Anyways, I'll do all your schools. First of all, you've got some good EC's. Normally I'd call clubs a minor help...but these are unique and more distinct clubs you've been involved in and founded. So, they should help.</p>

<p>Bowdoin - This is a match, but I don't know if you should send in your test scores...they aren't above the top 50%, and if you wrote some good essays about your interests (particularly the stuff involving North Korea), I think you could get in.
Barnard - Reach. Test scores need to go up.
Carleton - Reach. Again, test scores are the main issue...
U of Chicago - Slight reach. Need to improve test scores, but other factors are taken more into consideration here.
Wellesley - Reach. Test scores are the trouble, again.
Middlebury - Slight Reach. Show more interest in this school, and you'll have a better chance at getting in.
Emory - Reach, test scores.
Macalester - Slight Reach to Match. They don't value test scores as much as the academic GPA, and what you have is outstanding right now. Improve your test scores still, but you have a better chance of getting in here than all the other places you've listed so far.
UCLA and UCB - Slight reach for both, and I believe if you write great essays you'll get into one of them.
UCSD - Match. SAT scores are on, and your GPA is above average.
Scripps - Slight reach.
Mount Holyoke - Match. Test scores are considered less here, so maybe it's a safety...but still, they aren't high enough to really call this a safety. You'd still have to write a great essay and get good recs to get in.</p>

<p>You definitely lack safeties. You might want to apply to one additional UC as a safety, like UC Irvine or UC Davis -- I believe both would be safeties for you.</p>

<p>Also, I would consider some of the more prestigious liberal arts schools (which you seem mostly interested in) that don't even consider SAT scores. Hamilton is one that comes to mind. Sarah Lawrence is another, but I kinda doubt that's your kind of school.</p>

<p>You should be able to get into one of the schools you've listed...but you really want a backup, just in case.</p>

8

<p>Well I have looked in Hamilton but the one thing that kinda throws me off is the fact that its very homogenous in its student population. UCI and UCD are definetly safeties and I am already going to apply them and I am actually almost not considering middlebury/macalester anymore because those two have been low on my list of interest and I need to start shortening my list! but I do have another college in mind: Bryn Mawr---any feedback?</p>

9

<p>in at mt holyoke, scripps, bryn mawr.</p>