I’m currently a freshman at one of the smaller UNC schools, and I graduated hs with around a 3.9 GPA and an ACT score of 30, which was the second highest in my entire school. I applied last year and was rejected, presumably because of my GPA (I took the most rigorous classes available, every ap my school offered except one of them, so it lowered my gpa a bit, sadly) and my test scores. My awards, essays and ECs were my promising points. Two science fair awards, a scholastic gold key, highest grade in all the spanish classes, ap scholar awards, as well as over 75 hours of community service through the national park, local animal shelter, and a local elementary school. I also served as president of my school’s gay straight alliance and helped found the club, did research, was on my school’s leadership team, NHS, and had jobs from my junior year until a month before I graduated. I grew up in an EXTREMELY rural area, so I tried to use every resource available to me to succeed. My teachers said my current University would be a good starting place for me until I could transfer, but I don’t feel like I have a good shot at Duke at this point. I’m in my college’s Honors program, taking honors courses and participating in their mentor program, as well as playing club sports, but because of my school’s strict policies about freshman not having cars, I can’t volunteer like I used to. I’m thinking about going into Radiology, so I had set up to volunteer at a hospital (which we didn’t have at home, so I was very excited!) but at the moment, I can’t reliably get there. Since I did research in high school, I was excited about possibly doing research in college as well, but you have to apply a year pior to qualify, so unless I can try to do something independent or get someone on board to help me continue what I was studying in high school, I can’t do it through my college. Besides this, I am autistic, and wanted to start an Autism awareness organization and support group on campus, but so far I haven’t garnered enough interest and members to found the club yet. Also, I haven’t been able to network and make connections to get good letters of rec yet, which is extremely important. I have so many things I want to do, and I am making A’s in all my courses so far, but it feels like no matter how hard I try, I can’t stack up to a lot of other applicants. A person on another forum even told me I was too stupid to go to Duke because of my math scores. I thought about retaking the ACT, but would it even be worth it at this point? I really think I can bring a unique perspective to Duke, and I am incredibly interested in Autism research and advocacy, so I think this place could open a lot of doors for me. I have visited campus, and fell head over heels in love with the ambition and atmosphere of Duke. I want to keep pursuing my transfer application, but do I have even an inkling of a chance?
Am I correct that you have only been at university a few weeks?
Also, is your high school 3.9 GPA weighted or unweighted?
Reading your post, I have to wonder whether this is written in the same style as your essay when applying to Duke. You might want to work on your skills at organizing thoughts in order to improve the readability of your text.
Does your currently school have a good program in your intended major (if you have decided on a major – many freshmen have not)? There are a lot of very good universities. Not knowing which school you are at I can’t comment on it directly, but many students do very well at universities that are a bit lower ranked than Duke. Also, if you really want to end up doing research on Autism, then you are going to need to go to graduate school. You might want to do very well where you are for four years, and then think about Duke or other top schools for graduate school.
I think that you should focus on fitting in and doing well at your current university. This does not preclude your also applying to transfer to Duke, but you should think of transferring as a long shot.
Why not look at some other colleges/universities? Duke has a very high retention rate so not many spots open for transfers, and they already said no once.
You have just started college, yes? Work hard and maintain the highest GPA you can, as that is what schools you might want to transfer to will look at, with your ACT.
Also maybe consider smaller private colleges, which can allow closer work with professors on research. Some offer merit aid as well to students in their top quartile, which sometimes can bring costs to being similar to in-state publics.
A weighted 3.9. Sorry I tend to ramble a lot in social media posts, my academic writing is extremely different than my personal spiels. I had one of my teachers, a Columbia alumn, proofread my essays and make sure they were coherent and engaging, so I’m not too worried about them at this point.
In regards to my major, my school’s Computer Science and Neuroscience programs are rather weak, which is another reason why I preferred a more STEM oriented school like Duke. There are a lot of ridiculous gen ed classes at my college that aren’t required at Duke (My school doesn’t even have a 50% graduation rate, as students are not being able to complete their major course of study due to gen ed requirements)
I got accepted into University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign last year, and I’ve heard they have good research and tech programs, but the tuition was insane compared to what I would be paying at Duke with financial aid.
First issue may be you wanted Duke but don’t know what they want and look for. So you may not have presented the right view. A 3.9w says nothing. It matters what actual grades in what courses. Plus your awards snd ECs may not have been the challenging bump you thought.
If Duke rejected your app last year, based on what that was and how you presented it, what makes you better now, with no record at the current college?
Stick where you are, develop a superior record, learn what Duke really wants, not just what you want. Take tge time to integrate and take on challenges. Read what Duke says about transfer chances.
Who cares what everyone else says? Just try your best, give it all you’ve got and if Duke accepts you they do, if they don’t go on to bigger and better things!
I don’t think that’s the right attitude @Empireapple. Guidance counselors are placed at high schools for a reason and part of that is to offer advisory on admissions chances. It’s good to have ambitions but probably better to couple it with a realistic sense of one’s chances. No one is saying the OP should not apply and I’m sure he/she will still give Duke a shot regardless. The key here is to apply with a thorough understanding of what the likelihood of admission is and history says the odds are actually worse for transfers than first year admission.
Jwest22 if everyone approached life with a thorough understanding of what was most likely possible for them, most of the amazing success stories would never have happened. If the OP doesn’t get into Duke, there is something even better meant for this individual.
Duke specifically states they do not have a minimum gpa or test score. You should review the information Duke provides about what kind of students they seek and be sure your application highlights how you fulfill those characteristics. http://admissions.duke.edu/application/overview
Right ^. And a week or so into first semester of freshman year, what does OP offer that’s any different from his last application?
Suggesting a kid jump in with blind faith is encouraging. But maybe not as helpful as a more careful and informed approach.
I have been doing my research, don’t worry. I don’t plan to transfer in until next year, and get all that I can out of my current school first.
It sounds like your ACT scores were the main reason. The 25th percentile for Duke (Trinity) is 32. So a 30 would place you well below the 10th percentile. Students with scores this low have a really big hook (athlete, URM, etc).
But it sounds like you are a hard worker. Just work really hard this year and try to shoot for a 4.0, and then apply as a transfer. You have nothing to lose. Once you start college, your scores from HS are less important. You have just as good of a shot as anyone else.
Just make sure you present a cohesive story about why Duke should accept you as a transfer, and how you stand out from the rest.
Assuming you are in-state NC, you should really consider either NC State or UNC. They are excellent schools, affordable for in-state, and you would have a far, far greater chance of admission. Best of luck.