I think some of your reach schools should be in the match section! Your ACT is really good and if you end up being NM you should be able to get into almost any school you want. Great job and keep up the good work. My only suggestion would be to apply Early Decision so as to increase your chances at getting into each school. Good luck!
@“Erin’s Dad” I see, thank you for clarifying that. How would you say my list is? Do you think I stand a chance at any of my reaches (if they are reaches) and do you think my matches and safeties are on target?
If you’re a CA resident then UCSD and maybe UCLA would probably be matches, especially if you have decent ECs. Pomona, CMC and Cornell seem to be more holistic and less stats-based than the public schools so those would probably be the only true reaches, since all your stats are solid. If you have good ECs and essays you have a decent chance at those too. Do you know your intended major or department yet?
Ask your parents to help you run the Net Price Calculators at the websites of each of these places. That will give you a better notion of whether or not any of them might be affordable. Parents who haven’t looked at the cost of college recently can be really shocked by the numbers, so have a box of tissues and some adult beverages handy in case there are tears.
@nac7890 Thank you! and yes, I’m looking into molecular bio/biochem. How do you think my chances are for this major at uci, ucd, ucsd, and ucsb? (my top 4)
@wormholes I might be wrong about this (im not really that familiar with the UCs ) but I was under the impression that only Cal and UCLA really admit separately according to department. With that in mind you seem statistically solid for all those schools. When it comes to Cal and UCLA, you might run into some trouble just because your Chem scores are a bit weaker than your scores in math etc. I’ve heard of some people getting into UCB but only in a different department from what they wanted, and then finding it nearly impossible to get into classes in their desired department afterwards. This might only be a problem in engineering and similarly ultra competitive fields though, I’m not really sure.
@“Erin’s Dad” Really? That’s strange. I thought @nac7890 was right. From UCSD’s website: “The campus does not admit students on the basis of academic major or choice of UC San Diego undergraduate college.”
Also, a student admitted to a campus but not a specific major should check whether the desired major requires a high GPA or secondary admission process to enter.
You need to talk to your parents and check whether the colleges on your list are likely to be affordable (based on their net price calculators). It is absolutely essential to know that your safeties (and any school you are considering applying ED to) are affordable.
@ucbalumnus We are in state for UCs and CSUs, and thankfully, money is not an issue. I don’t think I’ll be able to receive any need-based aid unfortunately. However, I do have a couple of questions that you may be able to answer:
With my stats, do you think I could qualify for any merit-based aid? (Regents is a long shot I know, but maybe CHP at Irvine?)
How do you think my chances are, with my UC GPA, uncapped GPA, and ACT at UCD/UCSD/UCI/UCSB? And U Mich EA?
what do you guys think my chances are at my reaches, if they are reaches?
How do you think my list is though, and how do you think my chances are at my matches and reaches?