Northwestern Class of 2022 RD Results

Colleges and Universities A-Z Northwestern University
1

Since Northwestern just released their decisions, I thought I’d post this now.

*** REMEMBER to remove brackets before posting! Good luck everyone!

[ size=6][ color=green][ b]Decision: Accepted**[/color][/size]
[ size=6][ color=yellow][ b]Decision: Waitlisted**[/color][/size]
[ size=6][ color=red][ b]Decision: Rejected**[/color][/size]

[ b]Objective:**
[ list]
[ *] SAT I (Comp, Essay, CR, M, CW):
[ *] ACT (Comp, Essay, Eng, Math, Read, Sci):
[ *] SAT II (Type, Score):
[ *] Weighted GPA (out of ??):
[ *] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0):
[ *] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):
[ *] AP (place score in parenthesis):
[ *] IB (place score in parenthesis):
[ *] Senior Year Course Load:
[ *] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
[ /list]

[ b]Subjective:**
[ list]
[ *] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
[ *] Job/Work Experience:
[ *] Volunteer/Community service:
[ *] Summer Activities:
[ *] Essays:
[ *] Teacher Recommendations:
[ *] Counselor Rec:
[ /list]

[ b]Other**
[ list]
[ *] State (if domestic applicant):
[ *] School Type:
[ *] Ethnicity:
[ *] Gender:
[ *] Income Bracket:
[ *] Assets:
[ *] Property:
[ *] Extenuating Circumstances:
[ *] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):
[ /list]

[ b]Why you think you were accepted/not accepted and general comments:**

MODERATOR’S NOTE:
This thread is for results only. General discussion should be placed on the following thread:
http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/northwestern-university/2041211-northwestern-rd-class-of-2022-discussion-thread.html#latest

2

Decision: Rejected

[ b]Objective:**
[ list]
[ *] SAT I (Comp, Essay, CR, M, CW): 1570, 770 English, 800 Math
[ *] ACT (Comp, Essay, Eng, Math, Read, Sci): 36, E36 M36 R35 S36
[ *] SAT II (Type, Score): 800 on Math II, 750 on US History, 740 on Lit
[ *] Weighted GPA (out of ??): School doesn’t do that
[ *] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
[ *] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/49
[ *] AP (place score in parenthesis): Euro (4) US (5) Stats (5); Human Geography, Literature, Calculus pending
[ *] IB (place score in parenthesis):
[ *] Senior Year Course Load: AP Lit, AP Calculus, AP Human Geography, Honors Econ, Honors Gov, Honors Latin IV, Honors Anatomy & Physiology
[ *] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
[ /list]

[ b]Subjective:**
[ list]
[ *] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Quiz bowl and history bowl all four years (current captain), Varsity golf all four years (captain for two), volleyball club, the First Tee, Robotics for two years, started a band and played talent show
[ *] Job/Work Experience:
[ *] Volunteer/Community service: Helps run/moderate middle school quiz bowl tournaments, coaches kids golf and life skills through first tee
[ *] Summer Activities: Playing on junior golf tour, helping kids learn golf
[ *] Essays: CommonApp one is okay, Why Northwestern is pretty generic
[ *] Teacher Recommendations: One is 9/10 bc idk if he can spell well… the other is 7/10
[ *] Counselor Rec: She probably wrote one for my whole grade bc that’s something she’d do so… who knows
[ /list]

[ b]Other**
[ list]
[ *] State (if domestic applicant): Tennessee
[ *] School Type: Public Magnet
[ *] Ethnicity: White
[ *] Gender: Male
[ *] Income Bracket: 100k-120k
[ *] Assets: ?
[ *] Property: ?
[ *] Extenuating Circumstances: None
[ *] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Zero
[ /list]

[ b]Why you think you were accepted/not accepted and general comments:**
Honestly expected a waitlist bc that’s how it’s been going elsewhere. Was probably fourth or fifth choice so I’m not too mad

3

Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1550, 800 M, 750 CR
ACT (breakdown): 35 E, 35 M, 34 R, 34 S
SAT II: 780 US History, 780 Math II
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Weighted GPA: 4.4
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): None
AP (place score in parenthesis): 5s on APWH, APUSH, Eng Lang, Stats, Calc AB & BC, 4 on Physics 1
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Gov, AP Macro, AP Eng Lit, AP Art History, AP Music Theory, AP Psychology
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Jazz Band of America, GRAMMY Jazz Band Finalist, Youngarts Winner in Jazz Composition

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Lots of jazz, I’ve gotten awards for my playing and composition.
Humanities Conservatory
Job/Work Experience: Internship with Tech Consulting Firm
Volunteer/Community service: Music related, 50+ hours
Summer Activities: Jazz camps for the most part
Essays (rating 1-10, details): 8/10
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1 (rating 1-10, details): 6/10 Probably okay he wouldn’t stop talking about me to his class the next year according to his students
Teacher Rec #2 (rating 1-10, details): 7/10 she saw me struggle in biology and then get one of the highest grades in chem two years later.
Counselor Rec (rating 1-10, details): 7 Probably decent, she knows me and likes me
Additional Rec (if any) (rating 1-10, details): 9/10: from a pretty famous jazz trumpeter that knows me quite well

Other:
Applied for Financial Aid?: I forgot lol but I’m not getting it either way
Intended Major: Jazz Studies and Economics Dual Degree
State (if domestic applicant): CA
Country (if international applicant): USA
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: About 250k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None

Reflections: I’m super thankful I got in. After my audition I was not feeling super great about my chances but this was a nice surprise.
Strengths: Grades, Test Scores,
Weaknesses: Lack of academic ECs, not enough APs
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Good grades and jazz department must have liked me
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:

Deferred from Harvard,

Accepted at Berklee College of Music, University of North Carolina, Cornell (Likely letter), UCSD, UCLA, University of Michigan, McGill University, Lawrence University,

Rejected from Juilliard, Johns Hopkins University

4

Decision: Accepted

Objective:

SAT I (Comp, Essay, CR, M, CW): 1560, 7 7 7 essay, 790 M, 770 R
ACT (Comp, Essay, Eng, Math, Read, Sci): N/A
SAT II (Type, Score): Math II - 800, Biology (Molecular) - 760, Literature - 740
Weighted GPA (out of ??): 4:82 out of 5
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.95
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 21 out of ~310
AP (place score in parenthesis): Calc AB (5), Chem (4), Bio (5), Chinese (5), US Gov (5), World History (5), English Lang (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: Econ, English Lit, Advanced Comp (creative writing elective), Orchestra, Stats, Calc BC, AP Compsci
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP scholar with distinction, National merit finalist, a bunch of state orchestra awards, first/second place at FBLA states

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Lit mag (founder/co-editor/website manager), National English Honor Society (Honor Society liason), NHS, FBLA, programming club
Job/Work Experience: Server at Pizza Hut
Volunteer/Community service: Volunteered at a retirement home, part of a community service club at school
Summer Activities: Assistant camp counselor at nature camp, Intern at NIH
Essays: I honestly thought my why NU supplement wasn’t that special. I mentioned how I would take advantage of their research opportunities, which clubs looked interesting, and included an anecdote about my tour when I went to visit (7.5/10).
For my common app essay, I talked about my passion for diversity and the need for minority (PoC, LGBT) representation in the media (10/10).
Teacher Recommendations:
10th grade English teacher: She hasn’t had me for a while but she sponsors my school’s NHS so I still talk to her during their events. She’s a pretty good writer and I did well in her class so I guess it was decent (8/10)
12th grade Advanced Comp teacher: She sponsors the lit mag that I run so I’ve known her pretty well for over 2 years. I’m also currently in her creative writing course and I’m doing well so I think this one is pretty strong (9.5/10)

Counselor Rec:
Probably generic, but he probably knows me better than some of his other students since I’ve requested meetings and gone over my resume with him in person (7.5/10)

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yeah
Intended Major: Communication studies
State (if domestic applicant): MD
School Type: public
Ethnicity: East Asian
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: ~100k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Nope

Why you think you were accepted/not accepted and general comments: i don’t really know why/how I was accepted but I’m really happy about it!!! I started screaming the second I clicked on the status update and saw the “Congratulations” and got my whole family into it. NU was one of the schools I kind of gave up on as decision release days approached, but I guess they liked my passion and experience involving my prospective major

Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Rejected Penn (ED), UChicago (EA)
Deferred UNC
Accepted at UMD Honors, BU

5

[ size=6][ color=green][ b]Decision: Accepted**[/color][/size]

Objective:

SAT I (Comp, Essay, CR, M, CW): 1570, 21 essay, 800 M, 770 R
ACT (Comp, Essay, Eng, Math, Read, Sci): N/A
SAT II (Type, Score): Math II - 800, Chemistry - 790, US His-800
Weighted GPA (out of ??): 4.5 out of 5
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.95
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):

AP (place score in parenthesis): Human Geo (5), Calc BC (5), Chemistry (5), World History (5), Psychology (5), Seminar (4), English Lang (5), Chinese (5), Physics 1(5), US History (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Econ, English Lit, Advanced Comp (creative writing elective), Orchestra, Stats, Calc BC, AP Compsci
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Finalist, AIME Qualifier, Lots of Piano and Voice Comps (see below)

Subjective:

Note: I lived in Texas from 9th to 10th grade and in Illinois from 11th-12th.

9th-10th grade ECs (Texas)
Piano: Placed at many state-wide competitions and won an International Competition + $1500 :smiley:
Voice: All-State Men’s Choir member (9th grade), All-State Mixed Choir Member (1st Chair, 10th grade), got 2nd Place at a state voice competition
Choir Section Leader
Varsity Swim Team member
Founder of Math Club
VP of Free Thinkers Club
Taught piano from home

11th-12th grade ECs (Illinois)
Piano: Placed at many national competitions and represented USA at one of the biggest international competitions in the world…prepped 1.5 hrs of music for it r i p
Voice: Finalist in the Schmidt National Voice Competition, Illinois All-State Choir Member x2 (1st Chair), won a state competition in Illinois
Math: Placed at ICTM State Math Competition, AIME Qualifier, State top 2 finisher in Purple Comet Competition
MUN Participant
Taught piano for free
Picked up bodybuilding as a hobby :))

Volunteer/Community service:
Over 200 hours in church teaching kids, leading worship, etc.
Taught kindergarteners science at local elementary school’s science club

Essays:
NU Essay: Talked about my current piano teacher (who is a professor at NU) and talked about why I love their economics program (9/10).
Common App Essay: talked about how I changed my attitude towards music after one of my piano competitions(9/10).

Teacher Recommendations:
11th grade English teacher: I ate lunch in her room every day last year and during that time we really connected on many different levels. She knows me very well as a person and not just a student (10/10)
11th grade Physics 1 teacher: He is also one of my favorite teachers. Always called me a cool nickname in class :smiley: and ummmm yeah hes a pretty chill dood (9.5/10)

Counselor Rec:
Probably generic but she knows about my moving struggles but idk if she put them in my letter r i p (7/10)

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yeeeeeeeeeeeee
Intended Major: Econ + Piano!
State (if domestic applicant): IL
School Type: public
Ethnicity: Chinese (R I PPPPPPPPPPPP)
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: ~100k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Nope

6

Decision: Waitlisted

Applied to: School of Education and Social Policy

Objective:

  • SAT I (Comp, Essay, CR, M, CW): 1390 (18/24, 700/690)
  • ACT (Comp, Essay, Eng, Math, Read, Sci): 30 (8/12, 34, 26, 30, 30)
  • SAT II (Type, Score): World History - 720, US History - 680
  • Weighted GPA (out of ??): N/A
  • Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.987 out of 4.0
  • Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1 of 619
  • AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Human Geography (5), AP World History (5), AP Psychology (5), AP US History (5), AP Art History (4), AP Statistics (4), AP Biology (3), AP English Language and Composition (3), AP Physics 1 (2)
  • IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
  • Senior Year Course Load: AP European History, AP English Literature and Composition, AP Spanish Language and Culture, AP Calculus AB, Anatomy and Physiology Honors, Varsity Mixed Choir Honors, Show Choir, Mentorship Honors
  • Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): QuestBridge NCM Finalist, QuestBridge College Prep Scholar (w/ Quest for Excellence in the Arts), Gates Scholarship Finalist, TMEA Music Scholar, Tons of choir awards (TMEA Region 3 Top 15 Soprano 2, 1st chair Soprano 2 Honor Choir, UIL Solo and Ensemble Superior Ratings, Chamber Choir, etc.), Tons of UIL Academics awards, Some Speech and Debate awards

Subjective:

  • Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Family Responsibilities (Caretaker, In Charge of House When Parents are Absent), Choir - Chorale, Chamber. and Show Choir (Choir Librarian, Soprano 2 Squad Leader), NMHS Musical Theatre (Select Dance Ensemble, Principal Role), Superintendent Student Advisory Council (One of 25 Student Representatives in School Board), National Spanish Honor Society (Secretary), UIL Academics (Participant), Student Tutor
  • Job/Work Experience: N/A
  • Volunteer/Community service: Mesquite Children’s Chorus (Student Manager), National Honor Society, Student Council Spirit Committee
  • Summer Activities: Dual Credit Classes at Community College, Several Summer Choir Camps (including TAMU Commerce All-State Choir Camp), Center of Creative Youth (from QuestBridge Summer Program Scholarship), QuestBridge National College Conference
  • Essays: Common App (9/10) - Musical Theatre theme; Why Northwestern (7.5/10)- Goals of teaching in low-income, under served schools. Could have been better organized.
  • Teacher Recommendations:AP Physics and AP World History/Psychology Teachers
    Teacher Rec #1: Talked a lot about how I strove for excellence in everything I did despite being shy and introverted, and how he saw me in a new light when he saw me perform on stage. (9/10)
    Teacher Rec #2: Haven’t read it, but talked about how open-minded I was during discussions in the classroom and how I always strove to understand different perspectives on an issue. (?)
  • Counselor Rec: Haven’t read it, but I talk to her more than most about my goals and problems so we’re pretty close.

Other:

  • State (if domestic applicant): Texas
  • School Type: Public
  • Ethnicity: Filipino
  • Gender: Female
  • Income Bracket: 83K
  • Assets: N/A
  • Property: N/A
  • Extenuating Circumstances: Born half-blind (Didn’t mention that in application though)
  • Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): First generation US college student

Why you think you were accepted/not accepted and general comments:

I’m actually pretty surprised I got waitlisted despite my test scores being lacking, but still thankful regardless. I thought I was gonna get rejected for sure. I’m still waiting for most of my college decisions though and I’m not too bumbed. Congrats to everyone who got in! To any future applicant looking through this thread, don’t freak out about your stats or doing something for the sake of the college. Just continue being you! The pieces will fall into place before you know it. Good luck!

Accepted to (So far): Swarthmore, Trinity University, and Texas A&M
Waitlisted: Williams, Pomona, and Northwestern
Rejected: Colby, UChicago
Still Waiting: Emory, Rice, Vassar, All Ivys except for Columbia, UPenn, and Cornell, Duke, and Vanderbilt

7

Rejected. Out of state with 3.83 UW and 4.05 W with three concussions. 1470 superscored SAT with 760 math and 710 english. EC of varsity volleyball (captain senior year, 2nd team all league senior year, state and norcal regional champion junior year), performing arts (school musical all for years, advanced choir three years, advanced drama), activism (feminist club, QSA), and a job for two summers. Congrats to those who got in!

8

Decision: Accepted, CAS
Objective:

  • SAT I (Comp, Essay, CR, M, CW): nope
  • ACT (Comp, Essay, Eng, Math, Read, Sci): 34 (36, 32, 36, 31)
  • SAT II (Type, Score): 800 Spanish, 730 USH
  • Weighted GPA (out of ??): 4.6
  • Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.7
  • Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 18/744
  • AP (place score in parenthesis): APUSH (5), AP Spanish Lang (5), AP English Lang (5)
  • IB (place score in parenthesis):
  • Senior Year Course Load: Ceramics, AP Euro, AP English Lit, Band, AP Biology, AP Calc AB, AP US Gov, AP Macro
  • Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Some selective music awards, NHRP Scholar, AP Scholar, played with a Grammy-winning conductor once.

Subjective:

  • Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Mostly band. Youth Symphony, Band Captain of state champion marching band, student conductor, and most generic clubs at my school.
  • Job/Work Experience: none
  • Volunteer/Community service: Youth symphony, school clubs.
  • Summer Activities: none
  • Essays: This was my forte (ha!). Common App: Impact of music on my life, cliche topic but tailored it to my own experiences. Very creative digression regarding impact of music on reading literature.
    Why NU: Very creative as well. Compared NU to a Hawaiian Pizza, making connections between collaboration of students and ingredients, among other things.
  • Teacher Recommendations: AP Lang teacher, we’re pretty close and I am one of his most memorable students. 8/10 most likely.
    AP Calc and previous math teacher did the other one. It was alright, most likely a bit generic. 6/10
  • Counselor Rec: Probably alright, a bit generic. He knows me well, so it was probably personal but I’m pretty sure he just listed the clubs I’m in, etc.

Other

  • State (if domestic applicant): FL
  • School Type: Public, large
  • Ethnicity: Hispanic
  • Gender: Male
  • Income Bracket: 40K
  • Assets: none
  • Property: none
  • Extenuating Circumstances: none
  • Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM, creative writing?

Why you think you were accepted/not accepted and general comments:** Completely shocked. My essays were definitely the reason I was admitted. Congrats to us! If you were rejected, I’m sure you’ll end up at a fantastic place!!

Also Accepted at: WashU, Northeastern, Grinnell, UF, FSU.
Waitlisted at Swarthmore, rejected by BU (lol?)

9

Been a long-time CC lurker so I’m excited to finally get to do one of these now!!

Decision: Accepted

Objective:

  • [] SAT I (Comp, Essay, CR, M, CW): N/A
    [    ] ACT (Comp, Essay, Eng, Math, Read, Sci):34C (Essay 8, 35, 32, 34, 33)
    [] SAT II (Type, Score): 660 Math II and 650 English Lit (rip for days)
    [    ] Weighted GPA (out of 4.1): 4.057 (my school has a weird weighted system)
    [] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0):3.97
    [    ] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 11/520
    [] AP (place score in parenthesis): Bio (4), English Lang (4), Calc BC (3)
    [    ] IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
    [] Senior Year Course Load: AP Psych, Multivariable Calc, French 4, Symphony Orchestra, AP Gov, Economics, other electives
    [    ] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): None

Subjective:

  • [li] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): [/li] - Lead in school plays (9)
    - Tech crew for musical (10)
    - Student director for a middle school play (10)
    - Junior Rotarian (11)
    - Business co-captain of robotics team (11-12)

    [li] Job/Work Experience:[/li] - Team member at Taco Bell (summer of 10th grade)
    - Sales associate at Express (12)

    [li] Volunteer/Community service:[/li] - Student director for a middle school play (my main volunteering activity ig haha)
    - Some minor STEM educational events with my robotics team

    [li] Summer Activities:[/li] - Work at Taco Bell
    - Performed in and helped build a set for a community production (9)
    - Interned for a local city council campaign (11)
    - 2-month candidacy for my hometown’s ambassador program (11)

    [li] Essays: Common App (6/10): wrote about my messy room and how it relates to my interests in writing and literature. Not the most interesting essay, but it got the job done.[/li] Why Northwestern (7/10): talked about how running my robotics team’s business department sparked my interest in economics and how I want to expand my econ knowledge at Northwestern. I did mention specific courses I wanted to take in my essay but didn’t spend too much time actually talking about the school itself.

    [] Teacher Recommendations:
    US History Teacher (8/10): Haven’t had him since freshman year, but when I did have him we developed a strong bond. He saw me grow as a student a lot so I think he probably did a good job of capturing my love of learning.
    AP Calc BC/Multivariable Teacher (7/10): Had him for two years, but we’re not super close. I think he wrote an eloquent letter but I’m not sure exactly what he said about me.
    [    ] Counselor Rec (9/10): Knows me very well so she probably wrote a solid letter.

Other

[ul]
[] State (if domestic applicant): MN
[] School Type: Large public
[] Ethnicity: White
[] Gender: Female
[] Income Bracket: $50K
[] Assets: N/A
[] Property:N/A
[] Extenuating Circumstances: N/A
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None[/li][/ul]

Why you think you were accepted/not accepted and general comments: I have no how or why I got in lol. Compared to all the highly qualified applicants who applied to this school, my profile is very unimpressive so I’m not sure what drove the adcom to admit me. Congrats to everyone else who got in, and for those that didn’t, don’t let it get you down: college admissions is way too unpredictable to get hung up on and honestly it doesn’t matter where you go in the long run.

Accepted to: UMN-Twin Cities, Univ. of St. Thomas
Waitlisted: None
Rejected: UChicago
Still waiting on: Georgetown, Brown, UPenn (rip)

10

Decision: Accepted (to the college of arts and sciences and the Bienen school of music)

Objective:

  • SAT I (breakdown): 1460, 730 math 730 English
  • ACT (breakdown):
  • SAT II: 790 math 2, 740 literature
  • Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.96
  • Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): school doesn’t rank, but probably top 10%
  • AP (place score in parentheses): Euro (4), Music theory (5), US history (3), Spanish Lang (4), will take macro, micro, BC calc, physics C mechanics, and physics C E&M
  • IB (place score in parentheses): none
  • Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics C (technically 2 classes- one for course material, one for labs), AP calc BC, AP Econ, English 12, government, independent study in music composition
  • Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): national merit finalist

/list Subjective:

  • Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): professional kids’ choir at a church in DC (senior chorister and theory coach), professional adults’ choir at the same church, GSA (president), a cappella group (founder, director, arranger of music), rec soccer, tales for tots club, school principal’s advisory board, “ROCS” (respect others, community, self) committee at school
  • Job/Work Experience: none unless you count some professional singing
  • Volunteer/Community service: none that I mentioned
  • Summer Activities: Curtis institute of music young artist summer program (I was there for composition), Royal School of Church Music summer course, Westminster choir college composition week
  • Essays: common app 9/10- wrote about my choir and how much it means to me, why Northwestern- I don’t really remember but it wasn’t completely generic
  • Teacher Recommendation: both probably 10/10
  • Counselor Rec: doesn’t know me well but probably said great things anyway
  • Additional Rec: none
  • Interview: none
  • Supplementary Material: I should note that I submitted a composition portfolio and voice audition video to the Bienen school, both of which I think are quite good

/list Other
*Applied for Financial Aid?: don’t remember

  • State (if domestic applicant): VA
    Country (if international applicant):
  • School Type: public
  • Ethnicity: white
  • Gender: female
  • Income Bracket(mention if FA candidate):
  • Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): no

/list Reflection

  • Strengths: grades, music stuff
  • Weaknesses: test scores weren’t amazing and my essays are unlikely to set me apart
  • Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I was kind of surprised to get in but I think overall I’m a strong candidate
  • Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: accepted to Bard, Indiana, and Lawrence University, rejected from UChicago, waiting on William & Mary, Wesleyan, and Oberlin.
11

Accepted
Bienen School of Music
Saxophone Performance and Music Ed

Objective:

SAT I: 1450 Comp, 6-5-6 Essay, 720 Reading/Writing, 730 Math
ACT: 32 Comp, 9 Essay, 35 English, 29 Math, 32 Reading, 30 Science
SAT II: Math 2-740, Lit-620 (I know this one wasn’t great, still chose to submit)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.99
Rank: 18/420
AP: Human Geo (3), APUSH (4), Bio (4), Music Theory (4), Language and Composition (5), Calc AB (5), Phys 1, Phys C: Mech, Gov, Calc BC, Stats, Gov, Macro (self study)
Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics, AP Gov, AP Stats, AP Calc BC, English 12, Economics, Symphonic Band
Major Awards: Academics varsity letters, National Merit Commendations, not too much in the realm of academic awards

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Marching Band (Section Leader and Student Director)
Theatrical Technical Crew (Master Carpenter and Light Board Operator. Basically I help the newbies learn to use power tools safely and effectively to execute set designs)
Various music groups in school
All State Symphonic Band (1 of 7 Alto Saxes in state)
All State Jazz Band (Only Bari Sax in state)
All National Concert Band (1 of 8 Alto Saxes in COUNTRY)
Various other honor bands in Minnesota

Job/Work Experience:
Pastamore- Booth at farmer’s market that sells pasta and balsamic vinegar. Lots of person to person interaction.
A Kopp Music- Private lesson studio started by my former sax teacher. I taught lessons to beginners as well as did general grunt work and customer service type stuff.

Volunteer/Community service: Various volunteering through my synagogue and other Jewish charity organizations

Why NU: Really strong, one of my best pieces of writing to date. Really painted a good picture of my career goals and how NU will help me get there. Talked about my passion for music and studying with the classical sax prof at NU.

Common App: Again, talked about music in here and how its taught me a lot about life and commitment. Also emphasized how big an aspect of my life it is.

Teacher Recommendations:
AP Calc teacher really liked me, but I found out after the fact he usually uses a general letter, so he could’ve given me a pretty basic letter 7/10.
AP Comp teacher and I worked really well together. I grew a lot as a writer in her class and did a lot of extra work outside of class. Also worked with her in theater so she knows how I am as a leader outside of classroom 9/10.
Band director probably wrote me the best rec he could, and might’ve been more influential than any others. He has told me before I may be the best musician to ever come through my high school, and I’ve held a lot of leadership positions in music groups throughout high school 10/10.

Counselor Rec: Knew me decently well. Use to be our school’s college counselor so he really knows what he’s doing in terms of letters of rec and especially those going to prestigious schools. He also told me he was going to make it as personalized as possible despite the fact he didn’t know me super well. 7.5/10

Other

State (if domestic applicant): Minnesota
School Type: Public, noncompetitive
Ethnicity: While
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: High, prefer not to specify

Why accepted?
While my academics are pretty strong, they’re definitely not NU strong. If I was applying for Engineering or something I think I would’ve been rejected. The deciding factor for me was my music audition and interview, during which the faculty all said they really liked me and I was in the running. During my sax audition, I told the prof NU was my top choice and that I really liked all the saxophone students I had met and that we got along really well. I think these students also relayed that info to him, which worked in my favor. I also got a one hour private lesson with the prof during which we both got a feel for how we worked together, and it was a great match. Music ed faculty really liked me, and said they could tell I was hardworking and passionate. My academics also helped distinguish myself from other music applicants with similar skills but lower stats, which I think pushed me over the edge. I’m so happy I was accepted, and hope I can attend in the fall! Go Wildcats!

Other Schools:
University of Minnesota Twin Cities- Accepted for Sax Performance and Music Ed
St. Olaf College- Accepted for Sax Performance and Music Ed
Eastman School of Music- Accepted for Sax Performance
University of Michigan Ann Arbor- REJECTED for Sax Performance and Music Ed, Deferred EA for general admission

12

Decision: Waitlisted

Objective:
SAT I (Comp, Essay, CR, M, CW): 1530 Comp, 6-6-6 essay, 730 Reading/Writing, 800 Math
ACT (Comp, Essay, Eng, Math, Read, Sci): none
SAT II (Type, Score): Math II: 780, Math I: 700, Biology E: 730
Weighted GPA (out of ??): 5.0741/6.00
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 6/288
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Human Geography (5), AP Calculus AB (5), AP Environmental Science (5), AP World History (4), AP Biology (4), AP English Language and Composition (4), AP Physics 1 (3)
IB (place score in parenthesis): none
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calculus BC, AP Statistics, AP Psychology, AP English Literature and Composition, AP Microeconomics, Honors Anatomy and Physiology, Dual Enrollment National Government, Dual Enrollment Health and Wellness
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Calculus AB, Spanish III Honors, and AP Human Geography Student of the Year, Florida STEM scholar at my school, AP Scholar with Distinction

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Varsity Soccer 4 years (captain 2 years), Varsity Flag Football 2 years (captain 1 year), School Orchestra (Concertmaster), All-County Orchestra (3 years), All-State Orchestra, Community Youth Orchestra (4 years) Mu Alpha Theta (President), National Honor Society, Young Democrats Club (Vice President)
Job/Work Experience: family business as travel organizer and brand representative at Abercrombie & Fitch starting senior year
Volunteer/Community service: community service hours through orchestra, volunteer every Friday at a local hospital since junior year
Summer Activities: took care of mother with cancer and grandfather with Alzheimer’s, Northwestern summer camp, soccer camps, University of Miami summer camp
Essays: strong… about how I discovered my passion for math along flag football
Northwestern Essay: Above average
Teacher Recommendations: Very strong from calculus teacher I have had for three years and physics teacher who I became very close with
Counselor Rec: very basic

Other
State (if domestic applicant): Florida
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: upper middle class
Extenuating Circumstances: none
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): aunt and uncle are alumni, attended medical summer camp at Northwestern

Why you think you were accepted/not accepted and general comments:
I guess nothing really set me apart from everyone else. I might have been too focused on being well-rounded and maybe should have tried to set myself apart in one certain area. Oh well.

13

[ size=6][ color=green][ b]Decision: Accepted**[/color][/size]

made an editing mistake on the first one oops

Objective:

SAT I (Comp, Essay, CR, M, CW): 1570, 21 essay, 800 M, 770 R
ACT (Comp, Essay, Eng, Math, Read, Sci): N/A
SAT II (Type, Score): Math II - 800, Chemistry - 790, US His-800
Weighted GPA (out of ??): 4.5 out of 5
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.95
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):

AP (place score in parenthesis): Human Geo (5), Calc BC (5), Chemistry (5), World History (5), Psychology (5), Seminar (4), English Lang (5), Chinese (5), Physics 1(5), US History (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Econ, AP English Lit, Choir, AP Physics C (both courses), Linear Algebra independent study
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Finalist, AIME Qualifier, Lots of Piano and Voice Comps (see below)

Subjective:

Note: I lived in Texas from 9th to 10th grade and in Illinois from 11th-12th.

9th-10th grade ECs (Texas)
Piano: Placed at many state-wide competitions and won an International Competition + $1500
Voice: All-State Men’s Choir member (9th grade), All-State Mixed Choir Member (1st Chair, 10th grade), got 2nd Place at a state voice competition
Choir Section Leader
Varsity Swim Team member
Founder of Math Club
VP of Free Thinkers Club
Taught piano from home

11th-12th grade ECs (Illinois)
Piano: Placed at many national competitions and represented USA at one of the biggest international competitions in the world…prepped 1.5 hrs of music for it r i p
Voice: Finalist in the Schmidt National Voice Competition, Illinois All-State Choir Member x2 (1st Chair), won a state competition in Illinois
Math: Placed at ICTM State Math Competition, AIME Qualifier, State top 2 finisher in Purple Comet Competition
MUN Participant
Taught piano for free
Picked up bodybuilding as a hobby

Volunteer/Community service:
Over 200 hours in church teaching kids, leading worship, etc.
Taught kindergarteners science at local elementary school’s science club

Essays:
NU Essay: Talked about my current piano teacher (who is a professor at NU) and talked about why I love their economics program (9/10).
Common App Essay: talked about how I changed my attitude towards music after one of my piano competitions(9/10).

Teacher Recommendations:
11th grade English teacher: I ate lunch in her room every day last year and during that time we really connected on many different levels. She knows me very well as a person and not just a student (10/10)
11th grade Physics 1 teacher: He is also one of my favorite teachers. Always called me a cool nickname in class and ummmm yeah hes a pretty chill dood (9.5/10)

Counselor Rec:
Probably generic but she knows about my moving struggles but idk if she put them in my letter r i p (7/10)

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yeeeeeeeeeeeee
Intended Major: Econ + Piano!
State (if domestic applicant): IL
School Type: public
Ethnicity: Chinese (R I PPPPPPPPPPPP)
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: ~100k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Nope

14

@pianoswim What’s your name? I’m also a pianist accepted to NU, I might know you haha!

15

Decision: Accepted

Accepted to Weinberg College of Arts and Science

Objective:

SAT I (Comp, Essay, CR, M, CW): Did Not Submit
ACT (Comp, Essay, Eng, Math, Read, Sci): 34 (35 Eng, 31 Math, 35 Reading, 34 Science, 8 Writing)
SAT II (Type, Score): 620 Literature, 720 Math I and US History
Weighted GPA (out of ??): School doesn’t calculate
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.7
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A
AP (place score in parenthesis): 4 English Language, did not submit AP Physics I
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Biology, AP Stats, AP Gov, AP CompPoli, AP English Literature, Economics, World Religions, Speech and Debate
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Commended Student, President’s Volunteer Service Award

Subjective (Just putting stuff that was on Common App):

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Student Council (3 years; Student Body President, 9th Grade Vice President), Honor Council Representative (2 years), Track and Field (4 years; Team Captain), Speech and Debate (3 years; Speech Captain), Student Alumni Leadership Team (4 years), Student Admissions Team (2 years), National Honor Society (3 years), Francophone Club (3 years; Club President)

Job/Work Experience:
Camp Counselor at School Summer Camp, Started a small clothing company in 11th grade
Volunteer/Community service: Majority of volunteer work was being a Camp Counselor at Children’s Museum, volunteered at various other places, had a total of 245 documented hours

Summer Activities:
Attended medicine (10th Grade) and sports management (11th) institutes at Georgetown, did summer track, volunteered and worked

Essays:
NU Essay: 8/10; talked about how the mix of Northwestern’s curriculum and its location would be great for my ultimate goal of working in the Sports Management Field
Common App Essay: 9/10; talked about my experiences with racial discrimination as a black man in Mississippi

Teacher Recommendations:
10th and 11th Grade English Teacher: 9 or 10/10; she was my teacher for two years and oversaw my growth from an unorganized and lazy student to a motivated and determined one
11th Grade History Teacher: 7 or 8/10: We got along pretty well, but we didn’t really have a super deep connection

Counselor Rec: 9/10; I’ve met with him about once every couple of months since 9th grade, really connected with each other

Other:

State (if domestic applicant): Mississippi
School Type: Private
Ethnicity: African American
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: High
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None that I can think of

Why you think you were accepted/not accepted and general comments:
I think that it had a lot to do with my very strong EC’s and my ACT. My GPA could have been higher but I guess that didn’t matter so much to them since I was very strong in every other aspect of my application. Advice for future applicants would be to make sure to stand out in your EC’s with strong leadership positions, as it goes a long way. I also had a good upward progression with my grades, so don’t let your Freshman grades overwhelm you if you didn’t do well, just make sure that you are going up each year and you’ll be fine. I still can’t believe that I was accepted I am in such disbelief!

Other Schools:
Accepted: Vandy, Emory, WashU, SMU
Still Waiting: Harvard, Georgetown, Duke, NYU, USC

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Accepted (my daughter)

Objective: Psychology major

ACT 33

Weighted GPA (out of ??): 4.3
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.9
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): School does not rank
AP: AP Spanish, AP Psych, APUSH (school does not offer many AP’s, so my daughter took Honors classes)
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc, AP Gov, AP Geo, AP Lit, Advanced Drama
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Many major national, state, and international awards (prefer not to state for privacy reasons)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Editor of Newspaper, Founder and CEO of a non-profit, invented something that people use in the US and 7 other countries, lead roles in school productions
Job/Work Experience: Paid intern for a large US company, paid speaking engagements
Volunteer/Community service: Many hours of working with underprivileged kids
Summer Activities: 2 summers at 2 highly selective, prestigious academic programs
Essays: She wrote about her non-profit
Teacher Recommendations: we can only guess that they were good
Counselor Rec: she said she wrote the most glowing letter she has ever written in 20 years.

Other

State (if domestic applicant): out of state
School Type: private
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Gender: female
Income Bracket: not qualifying for financial aid

Why you think you were accepted/not accepted and general comments: Her EC’s were truly outstanding and recognized by some major awards.

Other schools: accepted to UCSC, UCSD, UC Davis, Colorado - Boulder (honors college and scholarship), UCSB.
Waiting to hear from Ivies and Stanford

17

Guys, If you are accepted and not planning to enroll, can you inform NU so that they can open spots for waitlisted candidates.

18

@tnev62 my son had his 3rd concussion his freshman year also. Rejected. Engineering. GPA 4.0 ACT 35

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@ambkeegan concussions are the worst! I got my 1st in the middle of 1st semester junior year and had 2 teachers tell me without concussions I would’ve gotten A’s in their classes. I think it definitely effected my admissions at some schools. I hope your son lives the rest of his life without another concussion!

20

@tnev62 Good luck to you. The first 2 were 6 weeks apart 2 years earlier. The 3rd one was 2nd semester freshman year. He was able to keep his grades up but limited his after school activities had to do work slower and take breaks due to headaches into sophmore year.