Hi I’m a junior and I am trying to apply to uiuc. I am instate but the tuition is a lot of money so I was wondering if you could not only tell me my chances of getting in but my chances of getting the presidential scholarship or another scholarship the gives around 15k.
Gpa- 4.5 unweighted
5.1 weighted
Act- 32
I’ve taken many AP and honors classes and I’ve never gotten a C in my high school career
ECs
NMSF
Nhs
Dance team
Invited to a national medical conference in Boston with Nobel prize winners
(Couldn’t go due to financial issues)
Played uiumgo soccer league for 12 years
Choreographer for a dance team that dances to raise money to rebuild villages in Africa
Helped raise a fundraiser gala for a Nigerian town called ukpor(it’s in Africa where I’m from)
Key club
First generation American
I know that my act is really holding me down but if I am able to bring it to the 30’s range would I be able to get a good scholarship? I would also be majoring in a science and I live in Illinois. If I am not able to get 15k off then I won’t be able to go to my dream school. I already qualify for an almost full ride at mizzou if not. Please help! The schools that I am looking into are uiuc. Thank you!
Your ACT of 32 is fine. It’s at or above the 75th percentile for anyone not applying to the college of engineering.
I don’t know what scale your school uses for GPA (5-point scale?), but since you haven’t gotten a C in your HS career I’m going to assume your grades are OK (meaning top 20-30% of your class). If not, say so.
The above means you’re academically quite a strong applicant, especially given you’re in-state. Your extracurriculars seem fine, given the lesser importance of ECs at schools below the tippy-top tier.
A few questions.
-You say you’re from Africa. Are you African-American (black)? If so, this’ll help a lot, as you get a significant admissions boost at many US colleges.
-Will you be the first in your family to attend a 4-year college? Again, this can be helpful in admissions.
-Are you applying for financial aid? I assume the answer is yes, since affordability is a concern for you. It may be that you’re eligible for significant need-based financial aid, which could reduce the cost of attending UIUC in your case.
I can’t speak to the possibility of scholarships - I don’t know enough about those to say anything helpful - but the above is my two cents.
I am African American and my dad went to a 4 year school. I’m not really counting on fafsa because I am in the middle class so I make too much money to get fafsa and too little to afford college. Anyway, thanks for your input! I appreciate it! @NotVerySmart
Many universities will offer their own financial aid, independent of the FAFSA.
Obviously, not everyone has a 30+ billion $ endowment like Harvard, so they can’t offer full tuition to each student who needs it. However, there’s still a chance that you could get some financial aid. Even middle-class students may be eligible (you could also get federally subsidized Stafford loans, which are significantly cheaper to service than private loans).
Each school is required by the federal government to provide students with a Net Price Calculator, which will provide some estimate of what you’d pay to attend (the cost of attendance minus financial aid). Here’s a link to the UIUC calculator.
I’d ask your parents to fill it in, just to get some idea whether it’s worth applying for financial aid. If it says you’ll get $0, perhaps not. Otherwise, you may want to look into a FA application. Even $5000 could make a big difference - that’s $20,000 over 4 years - and larger sums, like $10,000 or $20,000, can be game changers.
At the very least, the NPC allows you to make an informed decision about applying for aid (or not). Fill it out and see what results.
UIUC is very competitive with scholarships. I would encourage you to take the ACT again. You have time and with practice could increase. I think with a 34 ACT and your high grade point average you will be in a better position if you are looking for merit aid.