<p>Hey guys! I'm a first gen Taiwanese-American daughter of two Taiwanese immigrants that moved to the US for college/grad school in the US. I am wanting to be a biology major, just not sure which part of biology. I know I do not want to doctor humans, maybe work in a lab, with plants, animals, or microorganisms. I'm a junior in Wake County (academically strong school district). My #1 choice is UNC CH, but I also love State and would be thrilled to go. State is currently my low reach/reach school. Here are my accomplishments and grades from the past few years:</p>
<p>Freshman: All A's in all classes except for a C in honors geometry (I got a C because I was afraid to ask for help, but I have learned from this and a big part of my academics now is seeing a peer tutor and they help me greatly!). All my academic classes were honors. I took honors chemistry online over the summer and got an A but now I have a very poor foundation in chemistry because I couldn't retain the information. This worries me for when I hit chem 101 in college.</p>
<p>Sophomore: All A's except for a B in AP human geography and a B in honors algebra II. A in my other AP class, environmental science. Got a 5 on my APHuGe exam and a 4 on my APES exam. Go figure. I took honors civics and economics online over the summer and got an A. Two semester of honors wind ensemble.</p>
<p>Junior: APUSH, APEngIII: behind in both of them and struggling with time management in general. I dropped out of honors pre-calc because with my grades the first week, I talked to my teacher and she said it is likely I will get a high C if I work hard. The pace was too fast for me to get a good foundation for calc. I went into academic AFM and it looks like I might get a high B/low A. I have honors pre-calc for next semester because I need to get in calc for college. I registered to take honors English IV over the summer. I am taking honors anatomy and physiology online this semester and Chinese III online next semester. AP bio either this year or next. Does it look bad if I have two "holes" my junior year even though I am taking two online classes to fill them?</p>
<p>Senior: AP psych, yearlong AP calculus AB, intro to college math honors OR AP stat, AP gov? AP chem? With all the summer school I did to do extra credits, I can either have two holes or take something like honors physics.</p>
<p>Extra-curriculars:
-Marching band all four years (favorable that I might be band president or drum major my senior year because I am extremely dedicated to band and am working extensively on conducting and leadership. I am also in a band class every semester and during my sophomore-senior years I am in the highest level honors wind ensemble)
-Apex Youth Council for five years (I held the board position of historian freshman year, then event coordinator junior year, and next year looks like I am on track to be president/chair of the group)
-working as a cashier at a grocery store for three months now. I hope I will get promoted this year and continue working until I graduate.
-Tri-M Music Honor Society (secretary, youngest member on board! I'm turning the club around into something serious, determined to make Tri-M known. Will run for president next year)
-shot put and discus on the winter/spring track and field team (I scored some points just because there were never any other girls to compete against. I wasn't that great but I was loved doing it, was dedicated, never missed practice, my coach liked me. I only had time to do it my freshman and sophomore year for three seasons total. Would having this on my application show lack of commitment? I might leave this off too if that's the case. I might do spring track my senior year if I find more time.)
-NHS (will apply to be on board next year, we'll see how that goes)
-play in a church handbell choir
-sophomore year: 12th place clarinet in the central district honors band, 2nd place marimba in the central district honors band (very difficult to make)
-1st place marimba in the Eastern Regional Orchestra (also a rigorous orchestra to make)
-Triangle Youth Leadership Conference alumni (application selected (only 50 teens picked), weekend conference held at NC State for NC teens run by Park scholars for leadership)
-awarded the bronze level Presidential Volunteer Service Award for 123 hours served in 2013 (I've volunteered at the library, with my youth council, in the Key Club, as a day camp counselor with the Town of Apex. I will probably hit 80 volunteer hours this year. I currently have over 200 hours total and will probably be over 300 by the time I apply for college)
-Key Club (weaker in my participation, should I just leave it off?)</p>
<p>I will apply for NC governor's school for music this year, but I am not confident about getting in because governor's school is very difficult to get into. It would be thrilled to learn there but it would also jeopardize my ability to be at band camp that summer if I was drum major. I also have two language credits of Mandarin Chinese because I attended Raleigh's Chinese Language School for ten years. I would LOVE to go to Girl's State! It is also one of my dreams for this coming summer.</p>
<p>7th grade SAT: 1530 (8 on my essay)
Sophomore PSAT: 178
June 2014 Sophomore SAT: 1900 (7 on my essay )
took a released ACT with a tutoring center: 29, but with the essay factored in I got a 28 (typically my English teachers have said my writing is among the best of their honors classes but I think I do poorly on the timed writings.)
Junior PSAT: ??
Junior SAT: ??
Junior ACT: ??</p>
<p>To sum it up, the questions I want answered are:
Should I take AP chem senior year to beef up my chem skills?
Should I apply undecided major if it improves my chances?
What can I do to improve my timed writings?
What can I do to improve my chances at NC State? Tips for Carolina is great also!
Should I take Mandarin Chinese III online next semester to solidify my language credits? or drop it and have a hole to focus on APUSH/APEngIII? Is it worth staying in?
What are other colleges at the NCSU/Chapel Hill level?
Do I seem like NCSU Honors college material?
Any chances of recruiting for the marching band at UNC or NC State?
From an admissions prospective what does it mean to them when I have so many music accreditations? I've had my music teachers tell me I am a good fit to be a music major, personality and talent wise, but I have never really been interested in studying music as a career
As a high school student, how did you pick the major that was right for you? Or did it not happen until you were in college?
How do I explain why I got a C my freshman year to colleges?
Strengths/weaknesses of biology programs at Chapel Hill/State?
Does it look bad if I have two "holes" my junior year even though I am taking two online classes to fill them?
Should I leave off Key Club in my apps because I wasn't that involved in it? Should I leave off track and field since I only did two years and was not a prominent scorer?
Could I be in the running for any scholarships since I am female, a minority, and first generation?</p>
<p>I believe I am well rounded and have good grades so far but I have had poor time management the past few weeks, at the beginning of my junior year. At the end of last year I was extremely unmotivated and tired. I come from a large school with 700+ juniors in my class but I do not know my class rank yet. I've had several student tutors help me with math, and I am very grateful for them; I am considering starting to pay them because I am trying very hard for help in math and want them to be available for me more often. I am making a conscious effort in academics and I want to make a difference in everything I do! I am so sorry that I wrote so much! I appreciate any words you can give me, thanks so much :)</p>