my first and last *chance* thread

Colleges & Universities A-Z University of Pennsylvania
1

<p>as much as i HATE chance threads... i'm inexplicably drawn to making one... because right now, i feel SO helpless...and that i will not get into any of the universities i want to because of my lackluster act/sat scores. dammnn i want to be strong...but i can't.. i hate CC sometimes!!! grr</p>

<p>so, please... let me know if i should stop worrying.. or if i should indeed keep worrying. BLAH</p>

<p>stats:</p>

<p>4/430 ish (top 1%)
hardest course available basically... all A, A+'s since sophomore year
--Will only post my highest stats stuff
SAT (670-CR 700 M, 700 W, 11 Essay)
SAT II (760 Math II, 740 Chem)
ACT 31</p>

<hr>

<p>ECs, my main one is music...</p>

<p>Winner of the 2005 Lakeland Civic Orchestra Young Artists Concerto Competition.</p>

<p>One, and the youngest, of the twelve semifinalist in the 2006 PianoArts North American Biennial Piano competition. </p>

<p>Member of our area's Youth Symphony (2007-present)</p>

<p>Winner of the 2008 Concerto Competition with this symphony</p>

<p>Participated in the 2007 Junior Jury debut of the 2007 Cleveland International Piano Competition.</p>

<p>First Prize winner of the 2008 Cleveland Showcase Young Artists Competition. </p>

<p>One of the 6 finalists selected in the 2008 PIANO/OHIO Competition sponsored by the Cleveland International Piano Competition.</p>

<p>A second prize winner of the 2008 and 2009 Bradshaw & Buono International Piano Competition. Invited to perform in the Kosciusko Foundation in New York City. </p>

<p>Recipient of the 2008 Irving S. Gilmore International Keyboard Festival Master Class Fellowship in Kalamazoo, MI. </p>

<p>First Prize winner of the 2009 Performance Pacesetter Competition at Heidelberg University. Received cash award and scholarship money.</p>

<h2>I recital extensively at my music school and such, and in churches, etc. i practice bout 2-3 hours a day.. yeah, definitely i sent in a rec from my teacher as well as a dvd</h2>

<p>so, in school.. i'm in our school's asian club, newspaper, quiz bowl, NHS.. the norm</p>

<hr>

<p>volunteer at hospital, retirement center and library.. i'd say ~250 hours.. </p>

<hr>

<p>paid internship at a hospital -- research</p>

<hr>

<p>okay, these are my schools</p>

<p>UPenn CAS ED
Uchicago EA
Northwestern
Duke
Rice
Johns Hopkins
Amherst</p>

<hr>

<p>yea... they are all reaches..i know... sighh. i'm going to be adding to this list, don't worry. i know i need some backup schools (i have a couple, just didnt list) any suggestions? </p>

<p>i need someone to help me gage where i am...</p>

<p>thanks you guys.. i would really appreciate some constructive feedback..
(btw... you may tell me to take those ACTs/SATs again..but i don't think i can..i've exhausted so much effort studying for them..trust me..and well, it just doesn't work out for me :/... )</p>

<p>so, what do you think? can i make it into penn? heh.. i don't see a silver lining :/</p>

2

<p>I’d say ur in for CAS, dunno about wharton. Ya and I hate overachievers who claim they fall short. It kills those who ACTUALLY suck.</p>

3

<p>REALLY? aww thanks haha… i’m not applying to wharton…helll no</p>

<p>that makes me feel a lot better… although… heh… most people on here would say otherwise</p>

<p>…and , i think you are being way too generous :)</p>

4

<p>Your SAT scores aren’t that great, but they aren’t horrible. </p>

<p>in this case they won’t hurt you</p>

<p>I think your application looks pretty solid. </p>

<p>Best of luck to you!</p>

5

<p>gpa/class rank are strong…sats are a little on the low side but won’t really harm you id say…piano is a great thing…shows accomplishment and devotion so hopefully you played that off in your app, but other than that your ecs seem a bit bland w/ a lack of leadership but please correct me if im wrong…id say you have a solid chance</p>

6

<p>haha… yea… i guess lack of evidence of leadership plus a little low SATs are my weaknesses.</p>

7

<p>I think you are looking pretty good. I don’t think your ACT will get you in, but a 31 is respectable and I really doubt it could keep you out. You have solid subject test scores which is a huge plus and your GPA/rank is outstanding and right on par for Penn. Your music passion really adds to your application. You don’t seem like a robotic student going through the motions with a laundry list of activities. You are obviously dedicated and passionate and that’s what I believe admission officers want most out of student ECs. So you are solid in that area. I honestly think you have a good shot at all schools. I have a feeling that you’ll get into Penn and won’t have to apply elsewhere!! :slight_smile: If not, I think you are looking really good for all of the other schools… IDK about JHU and Amherst though, they seem a little testing based (I could be wrong, but I’m judging from their really high average test scores).</p>

<p>Anyways, I think you’re looking really solid. Best of luck! :)</p>

8

<p>mm… I’m a bit irked by Furda’s remark that the quality of applicants has gone up indicated by higher test scores… this makes me really nervous… as my test scores lack… tremendously. (can you really say a applicant is a higher quality just bc of higher test score?)</p>

<p>:/ bump.</p>

9

<p>AHHHHHH. ■■■. that would be my problem toooooooo.</p>

<p>im scared.</p>

10

<p>^^ i still think the avg sat score will be under 2200 for acceptances (as it usually is)</p>

11

<p>I read that also in the article but I think the average score will be under a 2200 as well. I know that test scores are important but obviously your rigor in high school and your grades throughout make up for any lack there. It wouldn’t really be fair if they just accepted people with higher test scores than others just based on that aspect of their application. (atleast I hope so: I go to a public school that is not very competitive and have a 30 on the ACT. I hope that Penn just sees that my school’s average SAT score is around an 840 out of 1600 and that I am in the 99th percentile for my test scores at my school.)</p>