As far as ECs, chess club president, FBLA officer, marching band for his first 2 years, programming internship with a Silicon Valley startup, not much else. One of the top players in the country for his age group in chess. Which we thought was a big hook, until we found out that one of his friends who ahead of him in chess ranking with similar grades and test scores didn’t make it into UCB. He did do a lot of volunteering work over the years with chess and other different activities to better the community.
For the record, I also think he might have gotten accepted for USC, except he never submitted his 1st semester senior grades. USC asked him about 3 times to submit them. (No other school asked). Once he found out he wasn’t going to get one of the USC merit awards, he pretty much ruled them out.
So how do you plan to compete with the thousands of students, applying to Berkeley, who do those activities and also have phenomenal stats?
Those are the types of activities many of the accepted students have accomplished as part of their holistic packages.
You keep mentioning the reach UC’s and you have no clue what they are looking for, insisting that you’re a shoo-in. Activism and service sets those students apart.
Have you even researched Berkeley? Have you seen it’s history? Do you know who teaches there?
Have you seen the vitaes of the students who have been accepted?
When one speaks of tippy tops, empathy and good wishes from others are not replacements for the work, the long record of work, and the level of thinking that leads/has been leading to that action. It’s not about a last minute scramble to find or achieve some pinnacle or two. It is so not about doing x or y at the end of hs, thinking it’s some trump card to get an admit. It’s not about thinking you can come up with a killer essay that works special magic.
Adcoms will look at the whole record. And the thinking behind choices and actions, over 3.5 years. The record shows this. Or not. The writing in the app/supp, all of it, shows this. Or not. Even among the very best candidates, chances are slim.
OP, asking repeatedly doesn’t change the odds. You can google them. Do that. What you have to grasp is that thousands and thousands of kids will have perfect stats, the right balance of ECs, an awareness that shows through in every bit of the app. And even then, no perfect shot. Instituional needs, majors, geo diversity, and very fierce competition from other kids all make it tough. You don’t just apply, get rubber stamped.
@gallentjill I didn’t say, “some advice from a professional or other adult who is savvy about the college process” wouldn’t be helpful. I was making a different point.
A kid has to be aware, if they want colleges that value awareness, savvy, the energies that go with that, along with a record of high achievement You can’t just say, “What are my chances?” or “Don’t worry, I’ll write a compelling essay” or “I’ll win an award.” And then think a paid counselor will explain it and magically whip a good app together for you. The level of kids they want starts higher.
The student with similar grades, similar test scores, teensy bit better quantifiable EC ranking- didn’t get in. Nobody can predict absolutely.
This long thread keeps coming back to the same point: you are applying to very competitive schools with a package that is not as strong as you feel it is.
The jist of most of the 100+ responses is straightforward: adjust your expectations.
So, go pick out 2-3 of your dream schools; apply and be prepared to not be gutted if you don’t get them.
Pick out 2-3 of what you are currently identifying as safeties and consider them matches; apply and be prepared not to be gutted if you don’t get them.
Pick out 2-3 schools where you are way into the top end of admitted students, and that if they are the only places that you are accepted you will not cry or be embarrassed to tell friends and family that you are going there.
Pro tip: one way to get to that feeling about schools that you feel are beneath you is to do serious work & find what they have that makes them special. Look at the research they are doing, look at the individual professors. There will be something: an NSA grant for doing research in X. A professor who is known as the superstar of X computing, a robotics lab that is doing really exciting work. Etc. These things exist- but you have may have to look harder for them, rather than relying on relative prestige to help you pick. (nb, this is also worth doing for any schools you apply to that have a ‘why us’ essay).
OP, you asked whether you could craft a good application around being social. Before I answer, I want to remind you that I am NOBODY. I’m just a parent who is learning this process the same as you. I have one daughter in college who wrote a brilliant essay about a turning point in her life that was beautifully tied into her intended major and life goals. I have a Jr. who is looking for pre-med and honestly, she has no idea what she is going to write about. In an effort to educate myself so I can help her, I have been reading a lot of essays. Both successful ones and, where I can find them, unsuccessful ones. I have seen some mundane topics turned into truly moving essays that made me want to meet the writer. I have seen amazing achievements turned into boring, cliched narratives that would probably turn off most AOs. So, do I think its possible? Sure. But it still isn’t going to change the chances of you getting into MIT and Stanford. 98% rejected. NINETY EIGHT PERCENT. Please follow the advice you are getting to develop a real list with safeties and matches. In fact, you might consider closing this thread and starting a new one, listing your record, your financial ability and your goals and have us help you generate this list. This place will give you some good ideas for safeties.
I also worry about kids who are willing to change their desired major just to get into a specific school. Its one thing if a student is really undecided. But when people say they really want to study CS but are willing to throw that away to get a prestigious school, it makes me wonder. Why wouldn’t you rather go to a school where you can study what you love and prepare for the career you want? My D1 had a specific major she really wanted and so we targeted schools where she would have the opportunity to do it. If a school was really prestigious but couldn’t give the major she wanted, it wasn’t on the list. If she was not guaranteed direct admit to the major, it was off the list. We crossed off one prestigious program because it would have required yearly reviews to stay in the major-- high numbers of kids cut each year – OFF THE LIST
My advice: Think about what you want your LIFE to be after college. Remember that college is a stepping stone to get you to that life and then start looking for colleges that can give you what you want.
Sure I’ll create a new thread with all the info in one place. I just want to see where I have a reasonable chance at and how I can improve my chances for the reaches. Don’t worry, I definitely have safeties.
Huang, does your high school have Naviance? If so, you should go check out the scattergrams for UCB for your school. They don’t break down by incoming major but it will at least give you an idea of what percentage of kids with your stats got in.
I’m looking at the breakout for my kids’ high school, which looks like they haven’t finished updating for 2018 yet. We’re in the Bay Area, suburban, lots of AP courses and bright kids who are motivated to get into selective schools, racially diverse. Looking by ACT score, of kids who scored a 36 ACT, 5 were accepted and 3 denied (including one with a 4.0 UW GPA). Of kids who scored a 35 ACT, 7 were denied (including 2 with a 4.0 unweighted GPA) and only 4 accepted. Like I said, this doesn’t say who was applying for EECS vs L&S or other school so no idea beyond that. But it definitely shows that a 35 is not at all a sure thing, and if you are applying to the most selective program and the rest of your stats skew a bit lower, Berkeley is going to be a long shot for you.
@washugrad yeah, we do. Though it only shows SAT/ACT and weighted GPA. For Berkeley, weighted GPA is right in the middle (average is a 4.45 but there’s a few that are significantly lower than mine) and my ACT is better than ~95% who got in from my school (average is a 31, but I see that someone got in with a 26).
My stats are probably fine, but I’m a bit more concerned about my ec’s. Naviance obviously can’t help with that. I created a new thread with all my detailed data aggregated in one place. Please feel free to take a look at that.
Anyone that was significantly lower than you probably had a large hook. Look at the ratio of acceptances with ACT of 35+ and SAT of 1560+, and weigh your mediocre ECs and GPA in comparison to that.
OP has high SAT IIs and pretty much all AP classes too. I would say he probably won’t get into Berkeley in CS or top 30 schools. However, he has a decent chance at UCLA or USC. I would apply to some top 50 and top 100 schools, but also apply to like UCSD and UCSB and some mid to lower level UCs and maybe a CSU.
Don’t forget the top UCs are holistic. You don’t significantly up your chances by pointing to relative stats. That’s not even the sort of thinking, the perspective one needs.
It’s important to be realistic, but I wouldn’t sell OP short too much. There are many students accepted at say 70th ranked schools who don’t have his level of course rigor or many 4s on AP exams. Some of the test scores are really good, so if he is realistic in what he applies to, he likely can get into somewhere decent. Ar least,he should have a really good shot at somewhere like UCSD.
“It’s important to be realistic, but I wouldn’t sell OP short too much. There are many students accepted at say 70th ranked schools who don’t have his level of course rigor or many 4s on AP exams. Some of the test scores are really good, so if he is realistic in what he applies to, he likely can get into somewhere decent. Ar least,he should have a really good shot at somewhere like UCSD.”
I agree with this… I just got a little invested with this kid and want him to be in a place where he’s going to be excited and happy when he gets into the program he wants at UCSD and/or UCI as opposed to bummed because he only got into UCSD and not Stanford or Berkeley. And maybe to look a little more at some realistic out-of-state options just to have more choices next April.
@washugrad I in no way need to go to Stanford or a top Ivy, but I don’t want to throw Berkeley or UCLA out of the question. My test scores are certainly high enough and my GPA is on the low end, but I have a lot of rigor. Plus I have some experience related to my intended major. So do you think it’s still within the realm of possibility?
But honestly, if I could get into UCSD, I’d be really happy.
And I still want to invest in 2-3 reaches. MIT is probably the top choice. Maybe there’s a way I could increase my chances??
So do you think it’s still within the realm of possibility?
You’re still asking. Do you understand what we’ve been saying?
MIT is not a safety. You know it’s about a less than 4% chance.
Anything is in the realm of possibility. Make this summer productive whether it be taking classes in CC, or an internship, or meaningful volunteer work. Start thinking about what you’ll write on your essays. Figure out what schools you might want to ED. A reach school(s) is probably the one you want to ED for. All everyone is saying is that it’s very difficult to get into all the schools on your list.
Another thought is this: if you looked at the list that my kid applied to, be didn’t apply for any safeties. He was fully prepared to continue on at community college if he didn’t get into the schools that he really wanted. In his case though he would have had sophomore standing already so he would have applied again everywhere the following year, with a clean slate and a 4.0 going for him. That’s perhaps something you might want to think about as well.
@ProfessorPlum168 well, he’s guaranteed a safety if he’s elc qualified. He’s almost certainly in the top 9% of California students with those stats.
Also, what concerns me is that he was waitlisted at UCSD and UCI, which have ~40% acceptance rates. His stats are definitely better than the vast majority of admitted students and maybe average or a little below average for CS.