<p>I am going to a state university my first year to save money, and I plan on transferring.</p>
<p>Here is what I have for high school:</p>
<p>-High School GPA: 3.5
-ACT (Taken 3 times. Every time I take it I raise my score incredibly. I'm just a bad test taker) : 24 (29 in English)
-A lot of extracurricular activities. Captain of Drama and Speech team. 3 time National Qualifier for the National Forensics League. State Championship title in Drama, and many more.</p>
<p>Now I know my academics aren't impressive, but as you can see I have a lot of talent on my belt. I won 1 of about 20 awards given at the biggest international youth film festival at age 18. I was competing against mostly college students. Many who attend NYU's Film Program currently. I have also won many other film festivals.</p>
<p>So my question is, do you think I have a chance? Will my talent outweigh my academics? While I attend my first year at a state university, I plan on proving I am capable of getting above a 3.5 GPA at the college level.</p>
<p>I’d say you have a decent chance. is that GPA a 3.5 out of 4? More than anything, everyone loves to see improvement. So, maybe your GPA was 3.0 freshman year, but a 3.9 senior year – perfect!
Keep taking the ACTs. Though a 24 isn’t horrible, I’d at least try and aim for above 30. If you still have no luck, try the SATs – I know people who were horrible at the SAT but got higher scores in the ACTs, so see if the opposite helps you!
Make sure you spend insane amounts of time on your essays, resume, & art submission in your portfolio section (the section that Tisch sees). The other, main application is only what the general NYU admission officers see, and they would certainly let you in with your stats. It’s the Tisch-specific application you should really worry about. Remember, you don’t have to submit a film. You can submit a short film, photography collection, screenplay, or other piece of art (check the Tisch website for more details).</p>
<p>Overall, my three main tips are
Stay involved and a leader in your ECs, keep your GPA at 3.5 or higher.
Try taking the SATs, and keep improving on ACTs/SATs until you get above or near 30 or 2000.
Spend as much time and effort as humanly possible on the Tisch specific essay/resume/art submission portfolio section of the application. </p>
<p>Extra tip: Currently, the Tisch portfolio can only be snail mailed, so make sure to track it. It’s worth the extra $2 to know it reached NYU and didn’t get lost and shipped off to Kalamazoo. </p>
<p>I, personally, had similar stats. 3.6 GPA, but because I came from such a small school I was #6 in ranking – top %10. I had just around a 2000 on my SATs. I was president of Theater Club and was a leader in 7 more clubs. I also had internships and work experience under my belt (though unrelated to film, it shows that you were really very very busy and active). I also had 2 lovely recommendations As you can see, at this point I had a 50/50 chance… I figured if I did get in I might just get into LSP. BUT, I worked for months at my CommonApp and, more importantly, my portfolio. I mean, I worked my freakin’ butt off. I also applied Early Decision, which GREATLY increased my chances… and somehow, by some miracle, I got in just fine :)</p>
<p>I just got into Tisch film as a transfer and will be starting this fall.</p>
<p>I had a similar problem with not doing well on standardized tests; I also took the ACT three times and couldn’t get above a 26. However, if you’ve completed one year of study at another college, you don’t have to submit either ACT or SAT scores, which I didn’t submit.</p>
<p>As far as college GPA, I would think it would depend on what type of state university you’re attending, since the quality of education and what it means to get above a 3.5 would differ drastically.</p>
<p>I have no idea what they look for in a portfolio, but if you look on their website, they have some pretty rigid guidelines for what they want to see in the film you submit, if you decide to submit a film. However, the films I submitted definitely didn’t follow their guidelines so who knows?</p>
<p>I also took the ACT 3 times and couldn’t get above a 25 with prep, but with the SATs, I did some practice tests, and got a 2000… So definitely try the Sat’s</p>
As you can see, at this point I had a 50/50 chance… I figured if I did get in I might just get into LSP. BUT, I worked for months at my CommonApp and, more importantly, my portfolio. I mean, I worked my freakin’ butt off. I also applied Early Decision, which GREATLY increased my chances… and somehow, by some miracle, I got in just fine :)</p>