I give up......chances please!

Colleges & Universities A-Z Amherst College
1

<p>Ok, I’ve succumbed. If I could get any feedback of any sort, I would greatly appreciate it.</p>

<p>I’m a junior at an extremely small, poor public school in California. We have only a few sports for extracurriculars and few advanced courses, but some advanced classes are available online. Most students go on to community college, state university, or the UC system. I think the most competitive school anyone has gone to in recent years is Berkeley. One girl is applying to Cornell this year. Basically, I’m looking for schools out of my area and I fell in love with Amherst. I think my chances are pretty low, but advice would be great.</p>

<p>Race: White
Gender: Female</p>

<p>SATs: 1990: 660 V, 540 M, 790 W, 12 essay (the math is abysmal, I know)
SAT II’s: 550 Bio (as freshman), 630 World History
Class rank: 1-2/25 (school doesn’t rank, but this is most likely right)
Current GPA: around 3.8 UW, unsure at the moment</p>

<p>Classes:
Freshmen: english 9, geography, integrated science, biology, IMP 2 math, state requirements
Sophomore: english 10 intensive, chemistry, world history, PE (required), Algebra 2, spanish I
Junior (present): english 11 honors, AP U.S. History online, spanish II, art
Projected second semester junior: english 12 honors, AP U.S. history online, physics, trig/pre-calc</p>

<p>Extracurriculars/Activities:
Varsity Volleyball - 2 years
Varsity Basketball- 3 years
Varsity Softball - 2, maybe 3 years
Boys’ varsity soccer substitute - 1 year
Private piano lessons - 3 years
Youth and Government - 1 year
I’m looking to start a school debate club and a swing dance/jazz club, but lack of funding is a problem
120+ community service hours
Cabin leader at week-long children’s camp - soph.
Regional Science Bowl team- placed 9/25
Quiz Kids game show - team won first round, waiting for next
Summer: volleyball camp at Stanford</p>

<p>Awards/Leadership:
Best Student in English 9
Best Student in State Requirements (9)
Best Student in World History (10)
Best Student in English 10 Intensive
PE excellence awards (one of four people)
Two scholar athlete awards</p>

<p>Class president sophomore year
Student council secretary junior year
Several published poems
1st place (English) in poetry contest with cash prize</p>

<p>I know my scores are pretty low, but I took the tests without prepping. Bad decision on my part, yes, so I’m planning to take them again. I seem to choke on math tests, so any advice on that would be great. I also plan to take a more rigorous courseload in senior year. I’m trying to do the best I can at my school of limited opportunities and become competitive enough for Amherst. I visited and absolutely loved it!</p>

<p>Any feedback, tips, or advice would be fantastic!!!</p>

2

<p>I'll send a funny joke to the first person who responds! You know that's irresistible. </p>

<p>Just told my brother and he thought it was great.</p>

3

<p>I don't think so. Sorry. Your record is perfectly fine but the competition for Amherst is even stronger.</p>

<p>No joke necessary, I have enough bad ones of my own.</p>

4

<p>Get those test scores up. There is no absolute at any of the elite schools. Make sure your essays are awesome, and you might have a chance. The fact that your school doesn't usually send someone to the elites may work in your favor. My D was the first Amherst admitee and was the only one to apply there. I know one girl there whose school didn't have any AP classes, but she showed intiative, taking courses online that they didn't offer. How about taking one or 2 college classes? Even if the opportunities aren't there, it would look good if you took the initiative to find them yourself. Good luck! As to choking on the test - the best thing to stop that is test preparation. If you are confident in that, it makes the test easier for you. Take a lot fo practice tests, compare your scores, and when you feel comfortable with your performance, it should improve in the actual situation, since you know what to expect. Good luck!</p>