<p>There is a rather significant difference in admission rates between a 30 and 33 at Northwestern.</p>
<p>Difference between a 30 and 33 in terms of NU admissions for the class of 2009 (29% overall acceptance rate. ACT scores for the class of 2011 have gone up significantly):</p>
<p>ACT:33-34, Accepted:49.7% Applied:744, Admitted:370, Enrolled:144
ACT:29-30, Accepted:20.8%, Applied:925, Admitted:192, Enrolled:132</p>
<p>Where'd you get this information? Do they have these stats for the SAT's also?</p>
<p>Information for the class of 2009. Obviously, lower percentages for gaining admission now.</p>
<p>zdub08-
Your last post was puerile.
My comments were dead on, as demonstrated by the stats noted in werner's post.
Rude comments and hominems don't belong on this site. Grow up.</p>
<p>
[quote]
I have impressive ec's, 3.9 GPA with several APs, a legacy connection
[/quote]
</p>
<p>ACT alone is not impressive but needs to be looked at with other factors. The fact is the OP hasn't really provided enough details for people to chance him/her. For example, did he/she give us the class rank? What kind of legacy?</p>
<p>Hmm, too bad they didn't provide that information for the Class of 2010 or the Class of 2011.</p>
<p>Sam Lee-
You are, of course, correct, and I didn't mean to suggest otherwise.
The question concerned only ACT scores - especially whether a 32 was materially better than a 30 - and that's what I responded to.
Clearly, if other elements in the application are compelling, the applicant could be admitted. But there's no debating that a 32 would put the applicant in a stronger position than a 30.</p>
<p>As the OP...</p>
<p>Thanks for all the comments everyone. Some give me hope, some ground me in reality. I hope other people were helped by this as well. </p>
<p>Sam Lee: I didn't really want this to turn into another one of those dreaded chance threads, but here's my quick profile:
30 ACT,
3.9 GPA (school doesn't rank, probably in top tenth percentile),
well-known public school of 3,000
Editor in chief of the school newspaper, a number of writing awards, some international/national, volunteering, student volunteer on a medical mission, founder/president of a service club, student council, citizenship award, etc...
legacy (mom)</p>
<p>I mean, it's a crap shoot for everybody, so these threads are kind of useless. But if anybody feels like chancing (for some reason) that would be great! :)</p>
<p>Your ECs are good. Your GPA is obviously very good, but (i) is that weighted or unweighted, (ii) which APs have you taken (and if any were last year, your AP scores), and most important (with respect to non-AP classes), (iii) how hard is your curriculum relative to the hardest curriculum offered at your school?
Assuming the challenge level of your courses is commensurate with your GPA (and if it's unweighted), you would be a very solid candidate. Keep in mind, however, that most admissions offices at the most selective colleges evaluate applications and then categorize them by number, according to strength - 1 through 7 is typical, but it could be 1 through 5 or 1 through 8. Going with the standard 7 levels, 1 - 3 all have excellent grades, but board scores can change a 2 to a 3 or a 3 to a 4, and the percentage chance of admission drops considerably as the number of your level increases; hence, the material difference between a 30 or 32 on the ACT.</p>
<p>Thanks WCASParent!</p>
<p>To answer your question: 3.9 W, 3.8 something UW, I've taken APUSH and AP English with 4s on both those tests. Other than that, I've taken nearly all advanced/honored, accelerated classes. My curriculum wasn't the VERY hardest (I could have taken AP Chemistry for example), but definitely was made up of nearly all of the most challenging classes available. </p>
<p>That number rating thing is interesting. Thanks for sharing it!</p>
<p>
[quote]
Editor in chief of the school newspaper,** a number of writing awards, some international/national**, volunteering, student volunteer on a medical mission, founder/president of a service club, student council, citizenship award, etc...
legacy (mom)
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Am I reading that right, and you have national and international writing awards? That sounds sort of like a hook...</p>