<p>just wanted to ask something. my test scores are fine:
1510/2310 (SAT)
3 800s and 2 780s (SAT 2's)</p>
<p>but my gpa is about 3.65+ unweighted <em>cries</em>. weighted gpa is probably 4.38 or around there. my freshman year was my best year, ironically enough, and ever since then my entire academic record's been slipping...with junior year (last year) being the worst of all :( i'm really embarrassed and hate myself for slacking off so much that it killed my gpa. i take the hardest courseloard possible (junior year was all APs and honors courses, 4 APs/3 honors) and senior year will be just as competitive but with chorus and health which are required credits. </p>
<p>what kills me is that i've gotten a LOT of B's junior year and am realllllly worried about that because junior year was my worst year (yet my most difficult courseload yet also) but it is considered the most important year in college admissions :-/</p>
<p>my extracurriculars are fine, i have about 5 more or less top leadership positions and actually have a small business (but it's very new, no revenue...yet) and more that i'm not too concerned to elaborate upon right now. i'm a pretty good writer as far as essays go, and teacher recs will be good/adequate i'm assuming.</p>
<p>what i'm asking is will i have a shot at any ivy leagues? i know nothing is definite and certainly nothing is guaranteed given my gpa case, but i want to know how and where i stand. of course i am planning to get a 4.0 gpa first semester senior year, so i can definitely raise my gpa to a 3.7+ unweighted. but where should i apply with the best chances:</p>
<p>1) duke ED?
2) upenn ED?
3) columbia ED?
4) unc-chapel hill, uchicago, and notre dame EA?</p>
<p>i would also like to inquire about my chances on applying regular to georgetown, northwestern, cornell, and wash u in st. louis. if you guys have any personal anecdotes or advice please feel free to tell me! i know all those colleges above are very good, but don't worry i've got my safeties and matches already, but for these, i want to know the extent of the crapshoot and admissions chances that i as an applicant am looking at. my high school sends about 20-30% to ivies and has a very good rep with top colleges.</p>
<p>i want to major in biology on the premed track.</p>
<p>
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my high school sends about 20-30% to ivies and has a very good rep with top colleges.
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Go to your GC/college counselor. See what GPAs those students have. Anything too low, thats a legacy or athlete admit. If your GPA is in line (or at least on the lower end) you might be fine. ED is a bad move for someone like you. You NEED straight As first semester senior year to show colleges that you can do the work.<br>
How big is your school? To send 20% to Ivies, either Penn and Cornell take a boatload, or you go to a very small school.</p>
<p>wait, sorry, let me clarify that. my high school sends 20-30% to top tier colleges, including ivies, not exclusively ivies, sorry for my error. i meant ivies and top universities like northwestern, duke, uchicago, etc.</p>
<p>the thing is, i read in a book that i should apply ED because that applicant pool is comparatively less competitive than the EA pool, because the ED pool would be full of legacies, athletic recruits, and minorities and of course the "advantage" applying ED gives you. but yes, my gpa is holding me back...as opposed to the EA pool where people who are confident of getting in or are very interested but not to the ED extent in going to that college apply - that pool is a lot more competitive than if i apply ED.</p>
<p>so are you saying i should just apply everything regular decision then? or certain universities EA?</p>
<p>my class is about 500, the whole school is like 2000 total students</p>
<p>Which state do you live in? If you live in California (probably unlikely) consider applying to UC Berkeley or UCLA based upon your test scores only.</p>
<p>(You can still do this if you are out-of-state also, but in this case the cost to attend the schools are outrageous.)</p>
<p>A downward grade trend and only 3.65 UW GPA makes you pretty unlikely to be admitted at most Ivies--although it sounds like you've taken nothing but the toughest courses. Perhaps one of the "lower" Ivies is a possibility--maybe Penn, Brown or Cornell--and possibly WUSTL. I think Duke, Northwestern, and Columbia are definite reaches, however.</p>
<p>P.S. Keep in mind that most Ivies go by rank in the class, not by overall GPA. You have not mentioned your rank here, but I doubt that it is in the top 3%, which is what is normally needed to get into an Ivy-league school.</p>
<p>i live in maryland, calcruzer, and am not interested in UCLA or UC Berkeley, but thank you for that info tidbit, i suppose. </p>
<p>i still have senior year first semester so i can certainly bump that unweighted to a 3.7+ unweighted GPA.</p>
<p>my school, and county for that matter, do not rank. i agree, i don't think i'm in top 3% either, but perhaps top 10%.</p>
<p>do my chances still look very distant? should i apply anywhere ED or first get a 4.0 senior year firts semester and apply everywhere regular? because of this GPA issue i think applying ED or EA anywhere would hurt me...</p>
<p>Wait, I think you are in solid shape. You have nice SAT and SAT II scores for the schools. I would strongly consider applying ED to your first choice. Seriously, and honestly, I doubt you will get a 4.0 first semester senior year considering the competitiveness. Your school is similar to mine in the high competitiveness (and oddly so are our profiles), out of the three schools you are considering EDing...if you want the highest chance choose Duke. Duke likes high SAT scores and accepts over half of the kids with over 2300. GL.</p>
<p>are you sure fredfredburger? a 3.65 uw and 4.3 w seems pretty weak. average accepted unweighted GPA to Duke, according to my school's admissions records, is a 3.87 uw and a 2225 SAT. </p>
<p>i understand what you're saying fred but i am really determined to get a 4.0 first semester, so that i can bring it up to a 3.7 uw and a 4.38 w GPA. to me i think there's a big difference between a 3.65 and a 3.7</p>
<p>right now i'm trying to find out my exact rank before i make any definite decisions...but in the meantime, what about the EA route? UNC-chapel hill/uchicago/notre dame EA?</p>
<p>i'm most concerned about uchicago EA - don't they mostly emphasize the essay and finding the "real" you? would my high scores compensate for my terrible GPA? or if i apply, should i just stick to regular? average accepted GPA there from my school is a 3.86 uw and a 2270 SAT.</p>
<p>My question is WHY do you want to go to an Ivy. Your initial description sounds like a very bright but not intellectually passionate kid who is into business and entrepreneurship. I was thinking that you would be a shoo-in at a school where you could make a convincing case for yourself and where that made sense--of the Ivies, maybe UPenn/Wharton, or maybe someplace like Babson--then you suddenly say that you want to go into medicine? Are any of your activities oriented towards medicine? Can you make a case for yourself? Are you sure that that's what you should be aiming at?</p>
<p>BTW, I don't see any reason not to take a shot at ED/EA somewhere. Just choose it wisely.</p>
<p>average accepted unweighted GPA to Duke...3.87 uw</p>
<p>*my high school sends about 20-30% to ivies and has a very good rep with top colleges.
*</p>
<p>Yes, 3.65 puts you at a disadvantage in the GPA department. However, did those kids get 3 800's on SAT ii's? I doubt it. Your SAT is about 90 pts above the mean which is significant as well. Also, don't be too worried about UChi, 20%+ of their class is not ranked in the top 10%. You are looking into averages way too much. How many kids applied to those schools? Look, I'm not saying you will get in, however if you use the ED card you seem like a strong candidate. Also, if 20-30% of the kids go to Ivy like schools or Ivies and you are in the top 20-30% (which you are I'm assuming, probably top 10-15%), I would not sweat it too much. The B's junior year aren't going to help your case however you are in a good, (not best) situation. Use the ED card as well, it can compensate for your GPA as well.</p>