I am applying to Stanford, CalTech, and Columbia for engineering. I have a 690 in physics and 700 in math II. My scores have already sent and it’s too late to take another one. How much will they hurt my chances of admission if i have 5.0 GPA, 34 ACT, and am at the top 5% of my class (my school doesn’t have ranking)?? I also have a good amount of extracurriculars, leadership roles, and service hours.
It’s the number of extracurriculars you have, it’s the quality. I wouldn’t count on admission to any of those 3. They’ll have their pick of students with perfect SATII scores. What other colleges have you applied to?
Generally, you only have to report one of the scores (ACT or SAT), so pick the one that puts you in the best light, which appears to be the ACT.
Have some matches and safeties. These schools are beyond competitive for almost everyone. I’ve seen up closely about a dozen years worth of kids from top high schools going through the college process. I’ve known several dozen kids who’ve gotten accepted to Stanford, MIT, and the Ivies. Almost every single one was a recruited athlete.When you see Stanford accepts about 4% of students, understand that that includes recruited athletes, famous/wealthy children, and students who have significant national achievements. The only one I can think of who was accepted to Stanford who was not an athlete was on the Forbes 30 under 30 list. For a regular, unhooked, non-recruited athlete student, even with top grades, the acceptance rate is probably in the neighborhood of 1-2%, if that.
But I bring good news as well. There are many, many outstanding, world-class schools with amazing students, professors, and staff where a student can get a transformative education. It really his HOW you go to school that’s most important, not WHERE you go. So apply to those schools, but know too that we are fortunate in the US to have many, many fantastic options. You’ll enjoy studying at one of them. Good luck!
(Whoops, just reread that you have sent the SATs. I think my same comments apply though.)
Honestly, I think for a school like Stanford and Columbia, those SAT 2 scores will hurt. Not that they are bad (they are pretty good), but those schools are so competitive. But they won’t make or break your application. But I really cannot comment too much because SAT Subject Tests are a small part of your application, and I really don’t know much about you as a person. Your ACT is great though! And, damn that GPA is impressive!
Take what I say with a grain of salt because I’m not an admissions rep or anything like that.
@bouders All my extracurriculars are pretty quality and consistent. I’m part of student council and NHS, VP of math and science honors societies, president and founder of Physics Club, and a member of Science Olympiad. I’ve applied and gotten into less selective schools. Those three are just my reach schools.
Honestly, you probably don’t want to attend Caltech without top math scores. It’s a lot of work, and not all that much fun for people who go from being top in their class to being in the lower half of the class. The math is very proof-based. Most of the students there have 800s in Math II and a science, plus probably a 36 on ACT math or the equivalent.
It’s good that you’ve gotten into less-selective schools. Do you have some schools in the middle of the selectivity range?
Academically, if you got a 690 in physics and 700 in math 2, do you think Stanford and Caltech are the best place for you. Almost everyone in engineering at these schools can get 750+ without too much effort.