Hispanic Ivy Chances -- Help

Applying to College
1

<p>I want to apply to Harvard Early Action program. During my junior year, I switched from my regular high school, a real bad D low-income mostly Spanish speaking school known for sending at least 1 student to Harvard a year, to the dual enrollment program, School for Advanced Studies, at Miami Dade College. This program allows a student to take three high school courses during the morning instructed by high school teachers, on the college campus, and finish their +3 plus college classes of their choice in the afternoon. At the end of their senior year, the student should have enough credits to graduate with an Associates in Arts degree that is transferable to any university in Florida, allowing them to enter with Junior college status at any state university. </p>

<p>HISPANIC
Cuban - American from low income family (miami)</p>

<p>SAT: 2100 (V:700, M:680, CW: 720)
SAT II: Spanish: 790, Bio M: 740, Bio E: 730, US History: 700, LIT: 710
GPA: 3.56 U 4.53 W (upward trend during junior year) (only As & Bs)
COLLEGE GPA: 4.0 U 5.0 W (5.0 HIGHEST)
TOP 5% (very small school)
HISPANIC SCHOLAR W/ DISTINCTION
(FEW CREDITS AWAY FROM A.A DEGREE)
GRADUATING W/ HONORS FROM COLLEGE</p>

<p>AP:
(sophomore) BIO: 4
(junior) AP LIT: 4 HISTORY: 5
(SCHOOL ONLY OFFERS 3 AP'S A YR)<br>
PYSCHOLOGY: 5, SPANISH: 5 (test taken w/o AP class)</p>

<p>CURRENTLY TAKING: AP CALCULUS, AP LANGUAGE, AP GOV'T,
(college)
ORGANIC CHEMISTRY + LAB, MICROBIOLOGY+LAB, and PRINCIPLES OF BIOLOGY II + Lab</p>

<p>IN COLLEGE: (ALL HONORS CLASSES)
- TOOK 2 SEMESTER SEQUENCE OF INORGANIC CHEMISTRY + LABORATORY CLASSES (4 CLASS TOTAL)
- TOOK ANATOMY & PHYSIOLOGY I and II + LABS (and high school anatomy) (5 CLASSES)
- TOOK PSYCHOLOGY, HUMAN GROWTH, MUSIC THEORY, SPEECH, LITERATURE, TRIGONOMETRY, ETC.
- GERMAN I and II</p>

<p>CLUBS
- PRES. German Club
- VICE Pres. German Club
- Honor Society
- College Honor Society
- FEA
- PRES. Hispanic Leaders of Tommorow
- MODEL UN
- STUDENT GOV'T
- PRES. SCIENCE CLUB
- JUNIOR ACADEMY OF SCIENCE
- CUBAN-AMERICAN FOUNDATION FOR YOUNG STUDENTS</p>

<p>E.C's</p>

<p>+210 hours tutoring high school students in Science</p>

<p>+150 hours English Initiative Program for hispanic/low-income students who can not read (teaching English to non-English speakers)</p>

<ul>
<li>20 hours German Expansion program at former high school </li>
</ul>

<p>+110 hours tutoring low-income minority children for FCAT (Standarized test in Florida that many children fail)</p>

<p>+50 hrs Created STD awareness program </p>

<p>+20 hours Anatomy+Chemistry tutoring for college students</p>

<p>AWARDS:
1st place - German Poetry Competition
2nd place - German Poetry Competition
4th place - German Grammar Competition
2nd place - German Art Competition
2nd place - Model UN </p>

<ul>
<li>I want to go Pre-Med </li>
</ul>

<p>FISHING FOR:
YALE, HARVARD, STANFORD, COLUMBIA, DARTMOUTH, BROWN</p>

<p>SAFETY:
UF, FSU, UM, FIU</p>

<p>It seems so competitive to get admission into these schools. Does anyone have any suggestions on what my chances might be, please?</p>

<p>Good recommendations from College Professors and Doctor</p>

2

<p>You want something between the state schools (and UM) and the Ivies - right now you have nothing between the 15th best national university on the US News ratings and the 50th. Consider JHU, UNC-Chapel Hill, Rice, maybe a LAC or two, UVa, Georgetown...</p>

<p>HYPS - Reach. A 3.5 really is quite a lot less than a 4.0 and your SATs though fine don't stand out even as an URM. Your ECs are very good but, again, don't seperate you from the pack. How are your essays?</p>

<p>Columbia, Dartmouth, Brown - Match-reach. Don't get lazy. Work hard, contact professors and generally make yourself known.</p>

<p>UF, UM, - Safety.
FIU,FSU - The Mother of All Safeties</p>

3

<p>"You want something between the state schools (and UM) and the Ivies - right now you have nothing between the 15th best national university on the US News ratings and the 50th. Consider JHU, UNC-Chapel Hill, Rice, maybe a LAC or two, UVa, Georgetown..."</p>

<p>The thing is he might not care about having any "middle" schools because he can go to UF for just about next to nothing</p>

4

<p>What could I have done to increase my chances?
What would you have changed?</p>

<hr>

<p>How many Hispanics actually have high SAT scores? Would it be better if I were to increase my SAT Math score up to a 700? My Gifted English teacher used to tell us that we were competing against a very small pool of students. Of course, small represents a few thousand or hundred Hispanics. </p>

<hr>

<p>I thought that the college program I did would be benefit me because it showed that I was able to handle AP classes, judging by my scores, and that I wanted to excel from my regular high school and pursue hands-on experience with the laboratory classes at the college since each lab is an entire semester and 4 hours long a week, basically leaving me out of school at 9pm at night. </p>

<p>Many of my friends, Hispanics as well, have been accepted to these colleges with similar criteria. Shouldn't taking Organic Chemistry at a college, while AP Chemistry ends with Inorganic Chemistry, be a bump upward? </p>

<p>I understand my GPA is kind of low but my school is very difficult. However, it only offers 3 AP classes per year and that is what I am bound to since the college classes only count as honor classes. </p>

<p>The Tutoring E.Cs were done because I'm very good at explaining information to others. I thought it would look good because, since I come from a really low-income D school, it would be as if I helped those that were at the bottom try and excel to become something greater. I really don't care what they think about it because it was a really great experience to help others. </p>

<p>Thanks for everything, you guys. Everything you tell me helps me improve myself and my application as a whole. </p>

<p>Tell me what you think.</p>

5

<p>hi</p>

<p>I think you have at least a decent/average chance at Harvard. It seems like you've worked hard and have really applied yourself. I thought your stats were impressive. You might want to retake SAT 1 just to see if your Math score can break 700.</p>

<p>From what I understand, Harvard is looking for diversity (I know that is a loaded word)..... they are actively trying to recruit qualified applicants from lower income areas. Someone from Harvard called my son a few months ago; we didn't think anything of it until someone informed us that Harvard doesn't just call everyone. </p>

<p>Check out the Undergraduate Minority Recruitement Program (UMRP) on Harvard's webpage. </p>

<p><a href="http://www.admissions.college.harvard.edu/prospectiv%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.admissions.college.harvard.edu/prospectiv&lt;/a>
e/applying/minority_recruitment/index.html</p>

<p>Here are some UMRP contacts at Harvard if you have any questions:</p>

<p>Latino/Latina
Shirley Cardona '06
<a href="mailto:cardona@fas.harvard.edu">cardona@fas.harvard.edu</a></p>

<p>Sonia Miranda-Lopez '06
<a href="mailto:smiranda@fas.harvard.edu">smiranda@fas.harvard.edu</a></p>

<p>I'm not saying that you have a higher chance than others, but I think you have a decent shot. You should submit the best application you can and go after your dream. Use the essay portion of your application to really highlight who you are. </p>

<p>If you get in, don't forget to PM me to share the good news! :-) </p>

<p>I wish you all the best.</p>

<p>FresnoMom</p>

6

<p>What grade are you in? I'm also in that program, Im from Texas and I'm a junior in highschool.</p>

7

<p>I think you have a very good chance at all of the Ivy League schools, considering your background and your college grades. If you don't get into Harvard EA, you should still get into another upper-level school.</p>

8

<p>A cuban whos interested in things German. Prez of German club, German competitions...I commend you for being unique. Brown loves this kind of diversity. All the better if you bring up your GPA. Good luck.</p>

9

<p>So, do you think I have a shot at the Ivies because it seems so competitive out there?</p>

10

<p>I think it will be tough for you to get in, but you have a better shot than most considering your background.</p>

<p>Your SATs are very weak. A 2100 isn't going to get you in and neither is a 3.5. If you write some really moving essays, it will definitely help to improve your chances. That being said, it is still so tough to get in and even if you do everything "right" you may not get in.</p>

<p>If you want a number:
Right now: 20% chance.
With a completely mind-blowing essay: 40% chance.</p>

<p>If I were you, I would apply. It's a $50 bet on your future and so worth it.</p>

11

<p>I think that you are a slightly competitive. Nail your ESSAYS!!!</p>

12

<p>My opinion:</p>

<p>Your strengths
ECs and Leadership (very good imo)
The college classes, though I've heard that universities don't put as much weight on them if it is a school program.
Being Hispanic</p>

<p>Your weakenesses (in comparison to Harvard)
Sat scores: 25%tile for Harvard according to USNews is 1400 M/V, you have 1380 so more than 75% of the accepted people are higher than you.
GPA</p>

<p>I would also not mention that </p>

<p>"My Gifted English teacher used to tell us that we were competing against a very small pool of students. Of course, small represents a few thousand or hundred Hispanics."</p>

<p>it just shows you're inclined to take the easy way out and expect AA to get you in.</p>

<p>Overall I estimate up to 35% to get it with good essays, I would definitly apply</p>

13

<p>I don't know about the other Ivies, but I do know that Columbia loves diversity. My friend (who is African American) got into Columbia's Class of 2009 with a 1260/1600 SAT and a 97 weighted average. She didn't have any phenominal ec's and I'm sure she had a well-written essay. I'd say you have a decent to good chance there, however, nothing is certain with that 11% acceptance rate.</p>

14

<p>By the way, I recieved my new SAT scores:</p>

<p>V: 740 M: 700 CW: 760</p>

15

<p><a href="http://www.collegeboard.com/prod_downloads/about/news_info/cbsenior/yr2005/03_v&m_percentile_ranks_gender_ethnic_0506.pdf%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.collegeboard.com/prod_downloads/about/news_info/cbsenior/yr2005/03_v&m_percentile_ranks_gender_ethnic_0506.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

16

<p>with those scores i like your chances</p>

<p>99th percentile for all</p>

<p>combined 2200</p>

<p>looks like you have a good shot.</p>

17

<p>have you already applied</p>

18

<p>What people tend to forget is the process is really a very wholistic one so having great scores and not having really good grades are not going to do a lot for your cause.</p>

<p>I would suggest that you read the thread: My dinner with an Admissions officer on the parents thread to help give you more insight.</p>

<p><a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=118616%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=118616&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>