Just got my ACT score back. Did I open up any doors?

Just got my ACT score back. I somehow pulled off a 35 Composite!

Composite: 35
English: 36
Math: 35
Reading: 36
Science: 33
Writing: 8/12

Now for the bad news. My GPA is pretty low (3.35 Weighted) but my HS is well respected and known for its rigor. My GPA is low because I didn’t try Freshman year (Got around 2.7), but have had an upward trend ever since. I have good EC’s (I have my own business, 3-Summer Internship @ Software Company, Tech blog writer) and have taken 4 AP’s. I want to major in Computer Science and plan on submitting an ED application to Cornell tomorrow (Big reach, I know). Are there any other schools (good for computer science) that I should take a look at and could realistically get into? How much will my score help/make up for my low GPA? Here’s my list so far:

U of Texas, Austin
U of Wisconsin, Madison (#9 Comp Sci)
U of Florida (I’m a Florida Resident)
U of Washington, Seattle (#6 Comp Sci)
U of Michigan
U Penn
Cornell (#5 Comp Sci)
Carnegie Mellon University

I also plan on applying to the UC schools because they don’t consider freshman GPA, which will work in my favor and make me a more qualified applicant (My GPA would go up to about a 3.6-3.7). I’d like to go to a prestigious “name” school but also a school that I think I could do well in. Most of the schools that I am already applying to (from the list above) are very selective, and if I’m not accepted I’ll probably end up doing a 2-Year route from a state university.

Thanks in advance for any advice!

Have you talked to your parents about cost constraints and run net price calculators on various college web sites? The out-of-state publics are likely to be expensive with little or no financial aid.

In any case, 3.35 weighted GPA (presumably somewhat lower unweighted) makes it difficult to get into a highly selective university like those you name, and the computer science major is often more selective than the university overall.

CMU also does not factor in freshman grades. But it has a very low acceptance rate for CS.

Any hooks? Are you female?

I think your best bet is University of Florida; I would highly adjust your list though to account for more matches and safeties. Your ACT score definitely opened a few doors, but your GPA (4 year record) is going to have serious weight. I think depending on the UC school you apply to you can get in (probably, UCI, UCD, and maybe UCSD as a slight reach), but to the UC’s GPA is the most important admission factor more so than test scores once you pass the threshold. That will probably keep you of UCLA and Berkeley. Also, 4 APs is kind of light in my opinion. I don’t believe that is enough “rigor” to offset a lower gpa, however, I’m not sure how much rigor your schools honors/regular courses offers so I can’t attest anything upon that. I think you can get into a really good school. Maybe not one in the top 50, but definitely a good school. I would just advise you to find some more schools where your gpa is within reason to the schools range.

Can you afford all those OOS schools? From another thread your home state is FL. You won’t be getting merit aid with that GPA.

I’m male. OOS tuition is a concern but not a major concern. Are there any other schools that do not consider freshman GPA?

If 3.37 is your UC-weighted-capped GPA, then you fall short of the minimum 3.40 GPA to be admitted to any UC as a non-California resident.

Congratulations on a great score! Well done.

Just curious how you just got your score back when they won’t be released until Nov 8?

Take a look at Trinity University in San Antonio.

They offer merit aid based on a “grid”, that cross references your test scores with GPA. You should still qualify for substantial merit aid from them.

Trinity is Tier I for CS, and I can share that my son is a CS major there in his sophomore year, and is extremely impressed with the CS department and faculty. Plus, he is taking most of his classes in their brand new $230M integrated science building, which is gorgeous.

This might be an excellent, affordable option for you to pursue your interest.

Good luck!

I would apply to other state universities within FL other than UF. It is unlikely that the OP will be accepted to UF with a 3.35 weighted GPA.

Only 1% of accepted students at UF have a GPA under 3.49. If the OP is a FL resident he (she?) should know that UF is a difficult school for admissions. Lots of people on CC think that the state flagship is a safety but in FL you have to be a very good student to get admitted to UF.

UCF has a good reputation for engineering. I am not sure about CS. At UCF roughly 10% of admitted students had a GPA under 3.49. I think with a great test score the OP would have a better chance of admission at UCF.

^^pretty sure UCF has a great hacking team if that’s any indication of the CS dept (not that it is per se).

Agree with @Proudpatriot about UF.

Purdue and Indiana Bloomington might be tempted by the ACT score. Bloomington more likely than Purdue. Case Western might be another to consider.

Wisconsin and Michigan will be tough out of state admits with the gpa, despite the ACT score.

In contrast, UCs do not care much about very high ACT or SAT scores; your GPA will be the limiting factor in your chances at UCs, if you are even eligible to be admitted. If your GPA is just barely over 3.4, you are unlikely to get into any UC other than perhaps UCM.

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UCs do not care much about very high ACT or SAT scores; your GPA will be the limiting factor in your chances at UCs, if


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@ucbalumnus Yes, we know that the UCs give more of a weight to GPA for instate students. And, yes, a higher minimum GPA is needed for OOS students. That said, I can’t wrap my head around the idea that once an adequate OOS GPA is achieved that the UC’s aren’t going for high OOS test scores to help compensate for some of the low test scores they’re having to accept instate due to high GPAs.

That said, it appears that the UC GPA for this student will be too low.

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I’m male. OOS tuition is a concern but not a major concern. Are there any other schools that do not consider freshman


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What does that mean? It’s a bit like being pregnant or not pregnant. Either you have cost covered for schools like UCLA…or you don’t. If your parents won’t pay $50k-65k per year, then it’s a major concern.

What are your parents saying?

I think only a tiny number of Calif schools. I think Stanford may be one, but not sure.

I think a tiny number of Calif schools do this because the UCs don’t use Frosh grades.

@ucbalumnus
So, if I’m below 3.40 and OOS, I can’t even be considered? This seems kind of odd. Do they account for the rigor of the applicant’s HS?

@STEM2017
It’s actually my September Test… It just came out really late

@Proudpatriot
I plan on applying to UCF very soon as a safety. I’ve toured and wasn’t a fan of it, so I’d like to avoid going there if possible. Also, as for 1% of UF students having under a 3.49, my school is different. The average accepted GPA + ACT to UF from my HS is 3.65 (Weighted) and a 29 ACT. The acceptance rate is also 59% with 424 of 683 accepted (from my HS).

@Midwestmomofboys
I could get into Purdue with my GPA and a 28 ACT. I’m not really interested in applying there, though.

Sorry to hear it took so long. Terrible by ACT company.

I tend to agree about UF. Given that the OP is in-state, I second that should still apply to UF, but also should apply to USF or UCF as safeties. Unfortunately, none are that strong in CS, but he should get into one or both and they are affordable.

Otherwise, the OP is in a strange spot. I would recommend applying to a number of top quality private CS schools. These include:

MIT
CalTech
CMU
Princeton
Cornell
RPI

He probably would not get in, but you never know when an adcom will ignore the low freshman GPA. He should also apply to a number of mid-level private schools that might offer merit for the 36 and place less emphasis on the GPA. This would include schools like:

CWRU
TCU
Baylor
Tulane

The big OOS public schools in the OP’s original list would be less likely to accept him and even less likely to give merit or other financial aid.

Good luck!!

http://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/counselors/q-and-a/selection/#3

GPA in this case is recalculated by the UC method. This is from 10th-11th grade course grades in a-g subjects, with +1 for up to 8 semesters’ worth of honors courses (for non-residents, only AP and college courses count).

The UC a-g subject requirements for frosh applicants include a year long visual or performing art course (a semester long college course or AP art credit can count), which many out-of-state prospective applicants do not have.

@Zinhead

Thanks for the insightful response! I’m pretty confident for UF because I also have a little inside help and they also have pretty decent relations with my HS. I agree that it’s worth applying to some top private CS schools. I plan on submitting my Cornell ED Application today (forgot to mention it in my original post). Do you know if any of these schools or similar schools weigh test scores more heavily than others, or if any of them exclude my freshman year from my GPA?

Thanks!