I have many things that I need cleared up.

Applying to College
1

<p>I am your slightly-above-average student who wants to major in Accounting. [I'll place all of my statistics & college choices near the end.] Pardon my wall of text. I do apologize ahead of time and I am very grateful for you putting up with my incompetence.</p>

<p>1. Will my senior year schedule affect me?
----- AP Classes: Environmental, Calculus, English, Honors Spanish, & Human Behavior (previously called Psychology)
- As a note, I have taken all honors since Freshmen year with full schedules.
- I've opted out of History because I'll be honest; I've had such trouble with it and I'm not interested in it at all, so I did not see the point of taking it.
I have 1 study hall in my schedule, which will add on to the one I had last year [that one was only 1 period a week due to double lab].
I actually want to keep it there because it's right before Calculus, so it will give me time to study before hand.
I know that American Law is available in the spot where my study hall is, but I don't feel too good about taking it. Mainly because I'm not interested in law or politics of any sort so I know for a fact that I will not put much effort into trying to do well in the class [basically what I did with Honors Chemistry].
Is this a bad choice? Should I try filling in the spot with an elective or just leave it be?</p>

<p>2. Will my application essay ruin my chances?
- I am a horrendous writer. I've hardly improved since Freshmen year and it's so difficult for me to personalize my writing.
I've read in some places that the essay isn't too valued, but in others it's a make-or-brake deal. So this inconsistency has made me uncertain.
I will put my heart into my college application essay, you can be sure of that. And I will have my English teacher read it over and proofread it for me.</p>

<p>3. My scores and ECs aren't phenomenal.
- [look at the bottom for my stats & ECs]
As you can see, I don't have a very strong transcript. Or maybe I'm being debasing myself too much? I tend to do that often.
I mean, compared to many of my classmates and friends, my transcript looks like a flimsy cheeseburger next to a gourmet steak dinner. .____.;</p>

<p>4. What exactly is the Common Application?
- I've seen this Common App mentioned in several places and I've read a bit behind it, but I'm still not sure what it is. Could any of you explain it in layman's terms for me?</p>

<p>---------------------------</p>

<ul>
<li>I'm Asian [I don't even know if I'm considered minority anymore - apparently not according to several sources] with financial issues. I checked the FAFSA4caster and it gave me an estimated $7600 for financial aid [parents' gross income since last year - approx. $50k - 60k].
My mom says it's not nearly enough, so it worries me more since colleges I've chosen have a yearly tuition + other college related things of about $25k - $40k.</li>
</ul>

<p>Chosen Colleges
1. Rutgers: New Brunswick
2. The College of New Jersey
3. LaSalle University
4. University of Delaware
5. Arcadia University</p>

<p>--- I feel more confident about the private colleges than I do about the public ones, but Rutgers is still my top choice. To get considered for a scholarship, I have to get at least a 1950 on the SATs, which isn't looking too hot right now.
I think all of these schools are matches/safeties for me, not reaches. I could be wrong though.</p>

<p>Stats
GPA: 4.0 --- I don't know if this weighted or unweighted. My counselor hasn't ever specified. I'll just go with weighted.
Class Rank: 24/198 as of Junior Year.
SAT: 1890 [super score] --- I improved 290 points since last year, so does it count for anything? Or are college admissions going to just look at my super score?
SAT II: Math II - 640 || Biology M - 740
AP: Stat - 1 || History - 3 || Biology - 4</p>

<p>Extra-Curricular [years done]
- Concert Band [9 - 12]: This is a class rather than an EC, but some of my teachers have considered it an EC. I'm confused.
- Science League [9 - 11]: This isn't available for Environmental, so I won't be able to do this for my senior year.
- Amaranth [11]
- Math League [11] - I only attended 2 meetings. I do plan on being completely active senior year.
- Bowling [11] - I received a Junior Varsity letter. I doubt it counts for anything, but I might as well put it down.
- 60+ hours at my local library [10, 11]
- 120+ volunteer hours at a Chinese school [10, 11] [I do not speak Mandarin or any related Asian language fluently.]</p>

<p>As an extra note, I have home obligations. I don't know for certain if they really count for anything; some people have told me that they do, but again, I'm not certain.
I cook dinner everyday because my parents don't come home from work till around 6:30 pm or later, so I have to make sure everyone gets something to eat.
I also have to be home for my brother because for whatever reason, his school feels "worried" that there isn't an adult at home after he comes home, even though he's 10 now. And I also have to tutor him since he's behind in school and has a very mild case of ADHD.</p>

2

<ol>
<li><p>No, it won’t. That’s a good schedule; it shows rigor and toughness and that you’re working hard.</p></li>
<li><p>Your essay is definitely important. It tells admissions committees what your “voice” is. If they have your app and 10 apps with identical numbers, they’ll choose the ones with the essays that show writing ability and a good personality. Ask your english teacher to help you edit it; also, ask that smart girl who’s good at writing to take an honest look and give you some pointers. Start writing a daily blog to get used to writing more. Try to vary your sentence types, be articulate (but don’t just thesaurus words you don’t know), and there’s a basic structure to a good essay. Try to tie it around a larger metaphor and a personal quality that shows why you’ll succeed in college. The structure is to have a solid intro, body, and conclusion. Your individual paragraphs should sort of build up their content with the last sentence being shorter and direct; this creates a better sound and flow.</p></li>
<li><p>Your scores aren’t phenomenal HYPSM status, but they’ll still get you into some great places.</p></li>
<li><p>The CommonApp is a website a lot of schools use as their application. Make an account just to take a look at it. There’s the basic core application where you put your classes and GPA and scores and an essay. Then, you add schools you want to apply to, and for those you may have to individually fill out some more info and probably a supplemental essay saying why you love their school. It’s very efficient for applying to more schools, I must say! I’m glad it exists. hahah</p></li>
</ol>

<p>List home obligations as an extracurricular. They want to see that you spend your time (that isn’t at school and sleeping) doing something productive or with a purpose… not sitting on your butt in front of a TV all the time. Babsitting, cooking for the family, and stuff like that DEFINITELY counts, so list it.</p>

<p>Your application will be just fine, don’t worry. :)</p>

3

<p>Your totally fine. Your freaking out for no reason. I got into Rutgers out of state with a 3.7, granted I had been good ec’s. Don’t stress to much, it all works out.</p>

4

<p>2 and 3 - Look up the Common Data Sets for the schools you are interested in. For instance here is Rutgers: <a href=“http://oirap.rutgers.edu/instchar/Cds/NewBrunswickRegion10.pdf[/url]”>http://oirap.rutgers.edu/instchar/Cds/NewBrunswickRegion10.pdf&lt;/a&gt; Section C7 shows that class rigor, GPA, scores and rank are very important while the essay and ECs are only considered.</p>

5

<p>" I checked the FAFSA4caster and it gave me an estimated $7600 for financial aid [parents’ gross income since last year - approx. $50k - 60k].
My mom says it’s not nearly enough, so it worries me more since colleges I’ve chosen have a yearly tuition + other college related things of about $25k - $40k."</p>

<p>I have never used the FAFSA4caster, but it looks to me like the $7600 is your estimated Expected Family Contribution (EFC). For a more accurate estimate, print out the FAFSA formula itself, and work through it on paper: <a href=“http://www.ifap.ed.gov/efcformulaguide/attachments/101310EFCFormulaGuide1112.pdf[/url]”>http://www.ifap.ed.gov/efcformulaguide/attachments/101310EFCFormulaGuide1112.pdf&lt;/a&gt; The formula changes a bit each year, so google for the new one in October or so.</p>

<p>The FAFSA EFC is used to determine whether or not you are eligible for certain kinds of federally determined financial aid. If you are eligible, and your college participates (there are two or three colleges in the US that don’t), then you will get that aid. It doesn’t guarantee that you will get a cent of aid other than the federal aid.</p>

<p>Some colleges do guarantee that they will put together a financial aid package so that you only have to pay your EFC. Most don’t. Most will leave a big gap between their aid package and the EFC.</p>

<p>You need to find out from your parents how much they can pay. Can they pay that EFC or not? How do they feel about you taking student loans? How do they feel about you working during the summers and during the school year? That information will help you determine which colleges are affordable without a lot of aid, and which aren’t. </p>

<p>You need to be sure that at least one of the colleges on your list a) is affordable without any aid other than federally determined aid, and b) guarantees admission for you based on your grades and exam scores. For ideas on how to find that kind of school, spend some time reading through the threads in the Financial Aid Forum.</p>

<p>Wishing you all the best!</p>

6

<p>You should definitely include your family responsibilities as an EC. It’s a big responsibility and time-consuming. And band is an EC because you spend a lot more than class time on it: I assume you have to practice your instrument for many hours every week and attend games where you play.</p>

<p>There are lots of books out there with advice on writing college essays with sample essays included. Get a few from the library or buy a used one on line to see some examples. You might want to start writing now (this summer) if you are applying in the fall. It takes weeks to write a good essay.</p>

<p>I wouldn’t worry about math league: becoming active in your senior year really isn’t going to add or subtract anything from your application. It’s more important to put your time into researching schools and writing a good application. If you and your family have time and resources, plan to visit a few schools on weekends and sign up for interviews. (Did you know you can go on-line right now and add your name to the mailing list for the schools you are interested in? Check out the school visit schedules - tours and interview information.)</p>