Hey, I’m interested in a few Engineering schools (at least I think I am).
I’m not entirely sure about what I want to do with my life and I need some advice regarding college admissions.
GPA - 4.0 UW 4.62 W (I’m the presumptive valedictorian of my class)
Scores (Please note that I plan on retaking these. These were my first attempts without studying)
ACT - 31, 32 E 34 M 27 R, 30 S (Studied for a week using the Red book and scored a 34 on my last practice test)
SAT - 1430, 650 R 780 M (Still haven’t started studying for this one)
APs -
Sophomore year - AP Human Geo and AP World (I can’t remember what I got)
Junior year -
AP Calculus AB - 5
AP Chemistry - 5
AP Lang - 5
AP Psych - 5
APUSH - 4
AP Spanish - 3 (I don’t come from a Spanish speaking household)
I got the AP Scholar With Distinction award btw
Senior year (which just started) - AP Physics 1, AP Statistics, AP Literature, AP US Gov, AP Macroecon, AP Calc BC, AP Computer Science, AP Bio
ECs -
National Honor Society Vice President
Student Government Association Public Relations Officer
Science club president
Head tutor for the AVID program at my school
Worked a part-time job all 4 years at my parents’ store
Spanish Honor Society
Academic Team (which I got a varsity letter for lmao)
Soccer club for two years and Ultimate Frisbee for one
Founded the Debate Club at my school
Once again, I plan on retaking both the SAT and ACT and taking the SAT II subject tests in Math II and Chemistry.
If I got my ACT/SAT scores up, would I stand a shot at schools like UC Berkeley/Cornell/Columbia etc?
If not, PLEASE tell me what I should focus on senior year!!
Also, is it even worth it to go to an elite school? Will I really be THAT much greater of an engineer if I go to a school that costs a ridiculous amount of money?
Thanks.
If I got my ACT/SAT scores up, would I stand a shot at schools like UC Berkeley/Cornell/Columbia etc?
Yes. Columbia is a reach for everyone though.
Also, is it even worth it to go to an elite school? Will I really be THAT much greater of an engineer if I go to a school that costs a ridiculous amount of money?
Depends on the school, its opportunities, and what you make of it. Also run the NPCs and talk to your parents about how much aid you’ll need and how much debt you’re ok with.
Are you in state for California?
Otherwise, cross out UC’s since they no longer offer financial aid to oos applicants.
Focus on our matches and safeties first - what are they?
Cornell or Columbia are ‘reach for everyone’ - you must be able to apply and know you won’t get in even if you put your everything into it. If you’re lucky and do get in, congratulations but always focus on your other schools because our odds there are so small no matter how Qualified you are.
I would try and get your SAT up to 1500 at least, but a 1550 would be the ultimate goal. But don’t worry about test scores too much, since your GPA is excellent which will certainly make up a bit for your test scores. Otherwise, your ECs are pretty good, so I’d say Berkeley would your best bet right now.
I’d encourage you to apply to some match and safety schools. I’m not sure what state you are in, but if you are in Cali, then UCSB or UCD would be nice schools. If you’re are NY, SUNY Buffalo, or Bing would also be good choices.
If you plan on majoring in Engineering, I would recommend that you focus on courses closely related to your intended engineering. In your case, that would be AP Physics for sure, and maybe AP Comp Sci and AP Stats.
Finally, to answer your question on whether it’s worth it to go to an elite school: It depends on what you want to go into. Going to a good school will certainly give you the prestige and connections later on, but in reality, I don’t think people would question your academic credentials if you chose to go to a much cheaper state school instead of an expensive private institution. Moreover, if you plan on going to grad school(med, law, etc), then grad school matter SO much more than undergrad. Of course, going to a good undergrad(again, it could be your state school) would help you get into a better grad school, but I know people who have went to average undergrad schools and end up at Harvard/Yale for grad school.
Good luck this fall!
Chance me back? http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1911277-early-to-yale-or-cornell-chances-for-other-top-schools.html#latest