Ok so I’m about to enter my senior year of high school and the college application process is quite daunting and upcoming. I feel as though I have enough EC’s and AP’s to make my application competitive however I’m super worried about my standardized tests scores. My unweighted GPA is a 4.0 and my cumulative average is a 100.045556. My class rank is number 2 out of 350 but that won’t be official until next semester is over. We take several prepatory tests before the ACT or SAT our junior year. After I receiced my pre-ACT and SAT scores I was projected to score a 21 on the ACT which is on my transcript. However I took the ACT in December and scored a 26 and then again in March and scored a 27 and my super score is a 28. I’m definitely going to be taking the test again because I want a 30 or higher but I’m worried that my score won’t hit that and might stay the same. My biggest fear is that the score on a 4 hour test will ruin my chances of going to Johns Hopkins or University of California San Francisco which are my dream schools. My EC’s include Marching Band and Orchestra, as well as Student Government and National Honor Society. I’m also an active member of my youth group at Church and Ive had a part time job at Plato’s Closet for a year now. My leadership experience includes being the Drum Major of the marching band for the last 2 years and being section leader my sophomore year. I’m also the incoming Student Body President which I’m sure will look great to the admissions office. I’m working on my community service hours but I currently have an estimated 50 which I know isn’t a ton but I’m hoping to have around 200 by the time summer is over in addition to the 50. I will have taken 6 AP classes by the time I graduate with at least 1 in every core subject area. Will my ACT wreck my application if I’m not able to reach the 32 range? And if so which competitive schools are in my range?
The University of California, San Francisco does not accept undergrads only grad students. There are 9 other UC’s to choose from. How much can you and your family afford? Are a California resident or OOS? Are you in need of financial aid? An ACT would be competitive for all the UC’s.
Given your GPA, I would strongly encourage you to look into test-optional colleges. An ACT under 30 is not competitive for JHU or UC Berkeley, as a general rule. Your grades would give you at least a shot at some top-notch test-optional colleges. Go to fairtest.org for a list. Some very elite colleges, such as Wesleyan and Bowdoin, are now test-optional, and the list keeps growing.
Typo: I meant to say an ACT of 32 would be competitive but at your current level, not for JHU or the top UC’s.
You’re not competitive for JHU or UC’s (assuming you don’t live in California). Agreed with Post #2. Applying to test optional schools should be a serious option for you, given the fact that you seem like a strong student but standardized tests don’t define you in the most positive way. Competitive schools in your range would probably include your state flagship, whichever one that may be, depending on WHERE you live.
I live in Tennessee about 35 minutes from Nashville and my family is technically poverty level. And I didn’t know that about UC SanFran so thank you
Sit down with your parents and run the Net Price Calculator (NPC) for the University of Richmond (a reach): https://npc.collegeboard.org/student/app/richmond
You need to have an understanding of what a 100% need-met school is likely to give you and whether you can afford the Expected Family Contribution (EFC). If you can’t afford it, it will be very hard to find a school that will give you sufficient need-based & merit aid, with a 27 ACT, that will compare with the resources of UT Knoxville.