Lighter than average transcript due to illness. Chance me!

Chance Me / Match Me!
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I sporadically missed weeks of school during my freshman and sophomore year due to illness, and actually had to take my junior and senior year off to recover my health. I was just given this one year (senior year) to finish my courses. I’m a pretty strong student, and I took a number of dual enrollment courses. Due to my illness, though, I didn’t start taking APs until this year (at my school, APs are not widely available until junior year, and though I had planned to take AP Calc, APUSH, AP Bio, and Eng 11H that year, I was unable to).

I took the SAT once this year and got 1560 total- 790 Math, 770 English, and 18 Writing. I took the SAT II Chem in sophomore year and got 760.

My GPA is 4.0263, 3.89 UW. 3 B’s, single semesters. It should go up this year, because I am taking 2 APs and earned all A’s 1st semester. I was in JV sports from freshman to sophomore year, and was the captain in sophomore year. I also have taken high school art classes for 2 years and 3 dual enrollment art classes. I can post my schedule over the 4 years, but overall I have 2 honors from 10th, 3 years of math (maybe 4, because trig/precalc are usually paired for 1 year of credit but I took them in two dual enrollment semesters), 2 APs this year, and Gen Chem dual enrollment this semester. I am not taking math this year.

Vaguely, here’s my transcript:
4 years English, 2 years reg, 1 semester 11 Honors (online course) and 1 semester 11 reg, 1 year AP Lang
Geometry Enriched, Algebra 2H, Trig, Precalc (the latter two were taken in the summer after sophomore year)
Biology, Chem H, GenChem this semester
World Geography (1 semester), World History, US History, and AP Gov/Econ (latter two are current courses)
Art, Media Arts 1, Media Arts 2, 3D design, Ceramics, Ceramics Handbuilding
Chinese 1 and 3

I had a B in Alg2H sem 1, a B+ in 3D Design, and 3 A- grades freshman year (Chinese 1 Sem 1, Geom Sem 1, Health Sem 2- ironically, this last A- was because of missed coursework and poor health).

I would say that I’m a pretty strong writer, and addressed how my hardship helped me grow in my personal essays. Let me know if it would be helpful to see some of them!

Here are the schools I am interested in hearing about:

All UCs except UCR and UCM (in state)
Cal Poly
UW
Emory/Emory Oxford
Smith
Case Western
Rice (fully aware that this is unlikely, but I wrote solid supplements and have an interview scheduled)

If you’ve made it this far, thank you!

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You do have a shot at these colleges. Hope for the best. Good luck.

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UC GPA capped weighted?
https://rogerhub.com/gpa-calculator-uc/

Intended major?

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10-11 GPA is 4.12. 15 As, 2 Bs, 1 HS honors, 3 CC transferable art courses. My major is Biology.

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I just wanted to say that I’m sorry you had to deal with such a serious illness. It is very impressive that you still learned so much and did so well. You must have strong inner resources, perspective and endurance, plus capacity for compassion. These traits will serve you better in life than any AP class you didn’t get to take!

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Thank you so much! I can only hope the admission officers think the same :slight_smile:

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@Gumbymom Sorry, just realized that “reply” doesn’t = tag! 10-11 GPA is 4.12. 15 As, 2 Bs, 1 HS honors, 3 CC transferable art courses. My major is Biology. Also, I was told that my case would likely warrant a supplemental review. I haven’t received a request for one yet- could that mean I’ve already been passed over?

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The UC’s have just starting sending out the augmented/supplemental reviews and it not uncommon that only 1 or 2 campuses will ask for the supplemental information.

Glad to hear you have doing better and were able to overcome and excel considering the circumstances.

The UC data below is based on the UC Capped weighted GPA and not major specific. Since Biology is impacted at many of the UC campuses, having stats above the averages will increase your chances.

Freshman admit rates for UC GPA of 3.80-4.19:

UCB: 12.6%
UCLA: 11.7%
UCSD: 38.7%
UCSB: 53.6%
UCD: 56.5%
UCI: 52.1%
UCSC: 75.7%
UCR: 90.1%
UCM: 96.1%

2018 UC capped weighted GPA averages:
UCB: 4.23
UCLA: 4.23
UCSD: 4.16
UCSB: 4.13
UCI: 4.13
UCD: 4.11
UCSC: 3.96
UCR: 3.81
UCM: 3.71

2018 Data:
25th - 75th percentiles for SAT:

UCB: 1360-1540

UCLA: 1340-1540
UCSD: 1300-1520
UCSB: 1270-1500
UCD: 1220-1480
UCI: 1230-1490
UCSC: 1210-1450
UCR: 1130-1380
UCM: 1020-1280

You are competitive for the UC’s and Cal Poly. Consider UCLA/UCB as Reach schools but you have a chance at all.

Cal Poly SLO would be a Match and Cal Poly Pomona a Safety.

Best of luck.

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@Gumbymom Thanks so much! This is very helpful and definitely a relief.

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I’m also curious about SDSU Weber and Pitt Honors. I was already admitted to the schools themselves, but am waiting on Honors results. Would anyone be able to chance me for those? @Gumbymom @hailtopitt1787

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I think you have a very good chance at Webers. Did you apply during the priority application period?

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@Gumbymom Yes, before Jan 15. While I have you here, would you happen to know how SDSU Weber compares to SLO or a UC in terms of reputation, quality, and rigor? For Bio in particular. Thanks :slight_smile:

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I think the Weber Honors college is a great option since you get to work closely with your professors and have an inside track in doing some Research. You get priority registration and a few other perks mentioned on the website.

Not sure what your career plan as a Biology major but SDSU have a great Mentorship program also (not limited to Honors college participants) that pairs students with alumni whom help you with networking, internships etc…

Comparison of SLO vs. SDSU vs. UC’s. If you are geared more towards Research and Graduate school then the UC’s would have more of an advantage although Cal States offer these opportunities also but not as widely. You will get a very good education at any of these schools and a lot is dependent upon you to take advantage of the many opportunities that are available at each school.

Much depends upon your career path. Biology majors are unfortunately a dime a dozen so you need to figure out what you will do with your degree to be marketable when it comes to jobs.

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@Gumbymom Alright, good to know. I hope to become a doctor and would like to have access to good advising, so I’m glad to hear that’s available at SDSU.

While it makes sense that the UCs can provide a more holistic education, I’ve also heard it argued that it’s better to go to a CSU (easier to get a good GPA and stand out). Of course, I’d rather feel confident in my ability than have great stats and not know what I’m doing. UCSD has been a top choice for me for a while. Do you have an opinion on this?

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SDSU does have a very good Health professional advising center since you are considering Medical school.

http://hpao.sdsu.edu

I think UCSD is a great school. They do have many hospitals that would offer you Medical related EC opportunities but as in most UC’s, the competition is tough in the so called “weed out” classes that all Pre-Med students need to take. I am not sure how good or helpful their Pre-professional advising center is for Pre-Med students.

CA unfortunately is one the worst states for a pre-med to be a resident of. Large population; not enough med school seats.

CA produced over 6200 med school applicants in the last cycle. Only 16% of the those 6200+ matriculated at a CA med school (public or private). Another 25% matriculated at an OOS med school, but most CA applicants (59% or 3652) were not accepted into ANY med school.

Nationally, less than 40% of med school applicants are accepted into any medical school in any given year.

https://www.aamc.org/download/321466/data/factstablea5.pdf

Which school you end up attending will up to you but having a school where you have a good chance of achieving a High GPA but academically challenging, has many medically related EC opportunities and is affordable are attributes you will want for your Undergrad education.

My only other comment is what will you do with your Biology degree if Medical school is not a possibility? Every Pre-Med student needs a backup plan.

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@Gumbymom Wow, those are grim statistics! I’ve applied to some OOS schools, but I wouldn’t qualify for financial aid. Unless I get a solid merit aid package from an OOS public or LAC (not sure what my chances are for that), my parents would want me to stay in state.

Good point on the backup plan. I’m curious about pharm and OT, but I also love the humanities. This year, I’ve really enjoyed learning about ethics and how they factor into our Constitution and Supreme Court decisions. Additionally, I’m an analytical person and a strong, logical communicator. Therefore, I’d like to dip my toe into law at college. I’m curious about medical ethics in particular, but I’ve been told (by my parents) that I’m not cutthroat/socially adept enough to succeed as a lawyer. They might be right; I’m focused, a quick learner, and very meticulous with my work, but tend to rely more on acquired knowledge than reflexes and intuition to navigate arguments. Don’t know if that would hurt me in the office and the courtroom. More importantly, taking pre-med courses at the same time as pre-law courses seems like a recipe for disaster.

Overall, I’d probably choose medicine over law. I want to be in a field that’s always bustling, growing, and evolving, because that translates to endless opportunities to learn and innovate. Should that fall through, though, it would be nice to have a similarly appealing backup.

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Pharmacy, OT, Physician Assistant Nursing , PT, Public Health are all good backup choices and also competitive programs. Just know there are options beyond Medical school but you need to go with your interests and strengths.

Best of luck.