I’m about to be a senior at a school in New York City. I have a few schools on my list of where I want to apply. But I’m not sure if I can get in or if I would even like them.
I want some place that is in a city or large town. Where Greek life isn’t the main source of socializing, a school that is somewhat well Known, and is also medium sized. Not to big or too small. I’m not really sure what else.
My grades in high school were alright. Nothing great mostly mid 80’s, but junior year my average was a 90. I am in 4 different clubs at my school and am pretty passionate about my art work, which I pursue outside of school. I am also mixed race (don’t know if that means anything) and speak 3 languages fluently.
However, my act score was only 21. I am retaking it in October and have a tutor, but I’m not sure how much I can get it up because I am a HORRIBLE test taker. Please help me if you think I should just take some of these schools off my list completely and any other insight on schools,test taking, etc. would be extremely helpful.
Here is my list:
University of Vermont
Temple
American
George Washington
Northeastern
Boston college (I know this one is a total reach)
Emerson
U mass
U mass Amherst (?)
Drexel
Skidmore
Amherst college
U of Colorado
U of Rhode Island
Elon univ
I don’t know this is what my mom and some of her friends have come up with.
University of Vermont Average ACT is 26
Temple
American Average ACT is 28
George Washington Average ACT is 29
Northeastern Average ACT is 32
Boston college (I know this one is a total reach) Average ACT is 31
Emerson Average ACT is 28
U mass
U mass Amherst (?) Average ACT is 26
Drexel Average ACT is 26
Skidmore Average ACT is 28
Amherst college Average ACT is 32
U of Colorado Average ACT is 26
U of Rhode Island
Elon univ
Your scores are OK for UMass Boston and UMass Dartmouth. Maybe Temple. Maybe University of Rhode Island. Maybe Elon. You should aim to have scores within a couple of points of the school’s average. Otherwise it’s a waste of time.
Please, everyone is looking for help here, so a better title will get more people interested in opening your thread.
That was nice of @bouders to list all those scores for you. As you see, some of these are out of the question even if you raise you score you can’t get it up that high, so like s/he said, waste of time. But your mom and her friends must think very highly of your potential for a reason. What was your psat? Some people do better on SAT. You might want to consider test optional colleges that may value your art talent. Have you mom and you look at these:
So urban-ish, med size, not much Greek, artsy? Studying anything in particular yet? You might try Supermatch on this site, see the link in the left hand column under FIND A COLLEGE.
What about cost? Do you know if you are eligible for aid? Because a lot of these are very expensive privates or OOS with tuition if you are not instate. I can’t really suggest anything without knowing the situation.
Mixed depends on mixed what. URM are african american and hispanic and that can help at colleges that want diversity. However you can’t be so unreasonably far out of range of the test scores as Amherst or BC. Having multiple languages is a plus. Being a talented artist is a plus. Plus factors only help you somewhat unless you are getting accepted based on a portfolio. Do you have one?
I agree with BrownParent - look at test optional schools, that will take a big burden off of you. I think you’ll be surprised by the excellent schools on that list. Also, look at your positives -you speak three languages fluently?! That is pretty amazing. Your artwork will help as well.
My daughter had a better average but she thought she might want to major or minor in ceramics so she made sure to include pictures (not a formal portfolio) of her best work. Every school she applied to commented on her work, with Alfred (the private, not the state school) calling to suggest she apply to the Ceramics school, which she wasn’t interested in.
Do some research on the test optional schools and focus on your positives, choose ten schools that might work, then come back and ask about those schools. Good luck!
You say that you are a terrible test taker. Well doesn’t that mean you will tank on tests in college? I’d advise you to select smaller schools where multiple choice tests are not common. I hear students say they are poor test takers when their SAT scores are low. Often those same students do poorly on the college multiple choice tests too. Get better at them or don’t go someplace that relies on them-and I mean in the classroom.
Try SUNY Brockport, Buffalo State, and Purchase. All 3 have ACT score ranges of ~20-24. How much can your family pay/year? It costs ~$20k/year to dorm at a SUNY.
Make sure you have a couple safeties (schools you know you can get in, afford, and would be happy to attend) on your list. A CUNY or two might make good safeties. Lehman and York both have ACT scores in your range.
