<p>So UF screwed up my first application, their serves didn't save my final edit property and sections of my application were just left blank. Obviously, I got denied. My grades are slightly under their middle 50%, but I have decent ECs and some reasons why my GPA is at a low 3.9 </p>
<p>For one, when I appeal to UF, do i get to write a new application? If i'm not allowed to, I might as well not even bother. </p>
<p>Second, In my new application (if i get one) I need some advice on my essay. There are a number of things I could talk about, but I wanted to know if I should talk about the more difficult and serious things that have happened to me. For instance, I could write about overcoming my heart disease to be able to play in a soccer rec league when I was younger (i think this might work against me since I couldn't play sports in high school because of this heart disease.) Another thing I could talk about overcoming is my father's suicide the summer before freshman year (this is also the main reason my gpa is so low.. freshman gpa was 3.4 or so... junior is 4.6). Or I could write about something less extreme.</p>
<p>Third, I'm going to have to write an essay about why I want to be at the school. Anyone have any suggestions for that?</p>
<p>Fourth, I'm retaking the SAT, what is the best online class that I could take to prepare myself for the test, which is a month away. </p>
<p>Fifth, I don't know whether or not it would be a good idea to tell them that, if i was denied, I would go to UCF for a year then transfer, so id end up graduating from UF anyway. Do you think that is a good idea?</p>
<p>Im sure ill remember more questions later. Thank you for helping me.</p>
<p>You might want to start with an attitude change … Blaming their servers is not a great opening line to get them to re-look at you with an open mind. You seem to have a lot of excuses for why you are in their bottom 50% of their applicants, too. Admit it, your application was not compelling enough for them to consider you further. </p>
<p>I would put your energy elsewhere (another school) and focus on what you can and should be doing to develop yourself and take charge. No more excuses … You are going into an adult world.</p>
<p>Honestly.— NOTHING— you mentioned was grounds for reconsideration.
UF does want excuses why your GPA over your high school years was below average. They just don’t care, unless you have a —LEGITIMATE— reason such as recovering from cancer.
Everyone writes a good essay, so unless your essay includes a solution to end world hunger, don’t bother.
Do you seriously think after all the admissions have been offered, the admissions committee will allow you to retake the SAT at this late time and resubmit them for reconsideration.
Telling them that if not accepted, you will wind up @ UCF for a year then transfer… This one may get into trouble as Florida doesn’t allow transfers without your AA degree.
Be a man. Just admit it that you didn’t make it…Go to UCF, get all A’s, get your AA, then apply for a transfer admission.</p>
<p>One major problem is that you had the opportunity to fix your application months and months ago. When you submit your application you have the option to review it after it is submitted. Therefore you could have called a looong time ago and gotten it fixed instead of waiting until after decisions came out… This is very bad and I would NOT put this on your appeal if I were you.</p>
<p>I agree it is too late to retake the SAT unless you’ve spoken to an admissions officer at UF. But I don’t see why you shouldn’t appeal - if you want to go to UF then you should try at all costs to get there.</p>
<p>Wow, harsh replies. I think a parent’s suicide and a history of heart disease are pretty compelling but unless that information belongs in a missing part of the application, I doubt it is relevant now.</p>
<p>I think it is okay to discuss with them that the application wasn’t complete because of server error (I mean if whole sections are blank then that seems reasonable to me) and I don’t think your GPA at 3.9 is bad. Is that really below the 50% for UF?</p>
<p>I assume when you discuss it with an admissions counselor they would let you fill in the missing blanks and then re-evaluate. I doubt they would let you re-write parts that are already there or retake tests.</p>
<p>I reviewed all of the postings on this thread. Your situation is unique as to a partially completed application and I am not sure if UF would as part of the appeals process allow you to submit a completed application. The issue about your father to the extent it was not disclosed on your application is relevent. The UF admission decision appeal process will only review new information not previously submitted. Only if that information would have resulted in a sufficient basis to change the admission decision will the appeal be granted. There are on average 200-250 appeals filed each year with only 4-5 granted. The appeal packages will be available from the UF Admission Office as of March 1. They must be fully completed with supporting documentation and returned before the deadline set forth in the application. Good Luck.</p>
<p>Brendan, sorry for being so harsh earlier … and I am sorry about the stress and hardships you experienced prior to your freshman year. My point was, those should have been part of your original application … don’t appear to try to spin that into your story now.</p>
<p>If you do go through with an appeal, focus on what has happened since your submitted the first time. Don’t try to re-invent yourself as if it is a new application altogether.</p>
<p>If the UF server was unable to process your entire application than there may be a chance at a successful appeal, but your odds are fairly slim IMO. Still, I would certainly try an appeal. If you are knee-bent on attending UF and your appeal is denied, my best recommendation is to transfer.</p>
<p>@deadmoonrising You don’t need an AA degree in order to transfer unless the specific college requires it. Just 60 or more credit hours.</p>
<p>As for transferring, the UF admissions office that processes freshman admissions does NOT review your transfer application and make a decision. They usually check to see that you meet basic requirements (2.0 GPA, 60 credit hours, etc.) and forward the application to the specific college you are applying for (i.e. CLAS, Engineering, etc.). Preserve a good GPA before you transfer and you should have an excellent chance of getting in.</p>
<p>You may want to consider attending Santa Fe Community College for two years and then transferring to UF. I know several people who are doing that. Good luck!</p>
<p>I think you should just call the school and ask if you can appeal on these grounds and submit a new complete application. Sorry, but it seems dumb to rely on people here when you can talk to someone who actually works for UF. They’re done with their heavy lifting now, so they have time to talk to you.</p>
<p>I agree it’s too late to retake the SAT. I’m surprised you didn’t take it again in November, December, or January if it was so bad. But I’m thinking maybe it wasn’t so bad if you got into UCF, in which case retaking it again might not help. My daughter’s score improved a lot between her first and second time but that was because she stupidly DID NOT GUESS at all the first time she took it, so she lost a lot of points (Her score went up about 350 points between the first and second time). Most people, if they get a decent score the first time will not do significantly better on future takings.</p>