<p>Okay.. Let's see. I have some..shall we say... shyness issues. I have ADHD and some anxiety that seems to enjoy my company. I'm interested in computer science.. I don't think I'll feel out of place with programmers.. Haha.
I'm sooo nervous that I won't get in anywhere... I'll probably post this again in the UCSB thread since that's my first choice but USC is my second choice because I am WAY underqualified.</p>
<p>My unweighted GPA for all 4 years is 3.24..HORRIBLE, right? :( For this school anyway.
I got a 2140 on the SAT ..
640 Math
730 Critical Reading
780 Writing</p>
<p>and on the subject tests..
770 Literature
670 US History</p>
<p>My extracurriculars stopped after my sophomore year.. I had 100+ hours of volunteering in both freshman and sophomore years... I just couldn't do it anymore. Stupid.
Anyway, my essays are not going well. I need help on those ~_~
What do you think? :(</p>
<p>Have you considered doing an essay on the ADHD/shyness/anxiety issues? It sounds like you could put together something both humorous and compelling. If you have ADHD and still managed a 3.24uw there are probably some interesting strategies you have used to accomplish that - making an essay out of that will both help explain your current GPA and give reasons you feel you will be successful at a challenging school like USC (your test scores certainly indicate you can be successful ).</p>
<p>IMO, I don’t think ADHD is that big of a hook these days. I know a great deal of kids who have ADD/ADHD and they all do just fine with meds. Some of them are even 3.9-4.0 kids, not really a smaller percentage than those without ADD/ADHD.</p>
<p>Still, give it a shot. You say your essays aren’t going to well, in order to overcome your GPA, you need to put more time and thought into them and write amazing essays. If you have some other hook or talent you can write about, that would be perfect. With great essays, and your SAT score, you should stand a fighting chance at admission.</p>
<p>Booknoodles,
This may be a silly suggestion, but is there something extracurricular or volunteer-wise that you could get involved with NOW? You say you were involved freshman and sophomore year but then quit, so that means you didn’t do anything outside of school your junior year. Now your a senior, right? Is it possible to find something outside of school that you’d really like to be involved with now? Is it possible that finding something outside of school that you care about might even help with your shyness and anxiety issues? Plus it would be a little something to add to your app to show that you have interests and are involved NOW. OR is there something, maybe not a formal ec, but a hobby or something you enjoy on your own that you haven’t thought of putting on your app?
Best of luck!</p>
<p>I want to make two points but I also want you to know that I’m writing to help and not criticize unfairly. Okay, disclaimer out of the way…</p>
<p>1.) Anyone reviewing your college app will be struck by the inconsistency of your stats: good SAT’s and low-ish GPA. Most will come to the conclusion, fairly or otherwise, that you are smart but maybe unmotivated. You’ll be labelled as a ‘gifted slacker’. We don’t want that label my friend. No, no, no we don’t because that is the kiss of death in college admissions.</p>
<p>So a huge part of your essay space needs to go toward explaining why you are NOT a slacker. It has to be honest and it has to be believable and it has to be well written. Which takes me to…</p>
<p>2.) Write your essays from your core. What are you passionate about? What do you find incredibly interesting? It might be computer science. You might believe that the binary world is flat and that trinary is where it’s at. Convince me, make me a believer, make me want to read more about it. Don’t write what you think SC wants to hear (they already get thousands of those essays!), tell them about something that fascinates you. Pure, direct and well written.</p>
<p>By the end of the essay the reader must see you as not only a non-slacker but also special in a certain way. Colleges love ‘special’. That’s a label you’re looking for, that’s the one you want.</p>
<p>Thanks for asking, my daughter is loving college! I could write for an hour about all that has gone well for her but I can sum it up by saying that everything that could have gone right, did go right. She loves her classes, her professors, she likes her roommates and she even likes the food. Not just a good fit - an amazing fit for her!</p>
<p>As a fellow parent you know how much of a relief it is for me to see her start off on the right foot as she starts this new chapter of her life.</p>
<p>Both of us truly love USC and especially Roski and we recommend it whenever we can. We do that because we both believe in the outstanding quality of education at USC and the wonderful opportunities to grow as an artist within Roski. We also both feel the need to repay the love (no other word for it) that the Roski staff showed my daughter during her application and acceptance process. Wonderful people that all of USC can be proud of.</p>
<p>Ahh thank you for your sage advice… It isn’t the first time I’ve been called a gifted slacker. I’ve been hearing it (lamentably) since first grade. It wouldn’t be entirely inaccurate.
I sort of tried to smother the oddball aspect of my persona, yet it is still glaringly apparent in my essay. I couldn’t do normal if I tried. I’m sure it does appear quite “special.”
I did explain a major slip up of mine in my essay that bogged down my GPA so dramatically.
Thank you, Wheaty, for your candid advice which will definitely be taken into account :D</p>
<p>Wheaty–so glad to hear all your good news about D!</p>
<p>booknoodles–please don’t feel like you must “smother” any part of your true persona. It may seem like the round world is made for round pegs, but there comes a time when originality, inspiration and creativity demand certain rough and beautiful edges. My suggestion is that you find a way to present your true authentic self that plays up any of these “pros” (independent thinking, working long hours on a single vision, etc) rather than projecting those very same traits as negatives (don’t fit in, not a wide range of interests, etc). We are all many things–the essay is our chance to present those aspects that will reveal our greatest potential.</p>
<p>Like any game or competition, you need to have the energy to give your college apps your best shot–and then let go. Artists with unique talents and the ability to do an intense amount of focused work, tend to succeed at producing a great body of work–no matter which school they end up attending.</p>
).</p>