Official Grinnell Class of 2020 Admissions Decision Thread!!

Colleges and Universities A-Z Grinnell College
1

Hey guys, thought I’d start one for Grinnell.

Here is the usual template:

Decision:
Accepted
Decision:
Waitlisted
Decision:
Rejected
[ b]College and Program:[ /b]
Objective:[ list]
[* ] SAT I (breakdown):
[* ] ACT:
[* ] SAT II:
[* ] 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:**
Extracurriculars (place leadership in
parenthesis):
Job/Work Experience:
Volunteer/Community service:
Summer Activities:
Essays:
Teacher Recommendation:
Counselor Rec:
Additional Rec:
Interview:
Supplementary Material(if any):
[ /list][ b]Other**
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant):
School Type:
Ethnicity:
Gender:
Income Bracket(specify if applied for
FA):
Hooks (URM, first generation college,
etc.):
[ /list][ b]Reflection**
Strengths:
Weaknesses:
Why you think you were accepted/
waitlisted/rejected:
Where else were you accepted/
waitlisted/rejected:
[ /list][ b]General Comments:**
Remember, DELETE THE SPACES.

Post away!

2

Decision:
Accepted with Founder’s Scholarship!
Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I (breakdown): N/A
[] ACT: Regular: 34 Superscore, 33C, 35E, 31M, 35R, 32S, 36W
[] SAT II:
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.06
[] Rank (percentile if rank is
unavailable): N/A
[] APs: Human Geography, French, US History, English Lang, English Lit, European History, Calc AB
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics, AP Stats, AP Macroeconomics, AP Microeconomics, AP US Government, Modern Philosophy, Journalism, Hybrid Health, Sports Marketing, Psych through Lit
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): JAUM Company of the Year, ICE NYSE Best Financial Performance Award, AP Scholar with Distinction
[/ul]Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in
parenthesis):

  • JA Company (9, 11, 12), VP & CEO
  • Youth Impact (10, 11, 12), Board Member
  • Film Club (Co-Founder)
  • Tae Kwon Do (Black Belt)
  • Catapult Startup Incubator
  • Student Council
  • Shakespeare
  • Diversity Council
    Job/Work Experience: 3 years at a local pizza shop
    Essays (May be a bit cocky, but I think mine were pretty damn good):
    Common App: 9.5/10
    Why Grinnell: 9/10
    Teacher Recommendation: Rec 1(9/10) known her through ECs, Rec 2(10/10) had her 2 years straight and she was my favorite teacher
    Counselor Rec: 8/10
    Additional Rec: 8/10 From employer, he really liked me.
    Interview: Interview went super duper well!
    State (if domestic applicant): MN
    School Type: Public, Top 10 in State
    Ethnicity: Asian
    Gender: M
    Hooks (URM, first generation college,
    etc.): N/A
    [/list]Reflection
    Strengths: ACT, ECs, Essays, Recs
    Weaknesses: GPA
    Why you think you were accepted/
    waitlisted/rejected: Honestly, I think it was because of my ECs. Something I was truly passionate about was Entrepreneurship, and I really showed that. My current startup is valued at 100k. Go for what you’re really passionate about and roll with it.
    Where else were you accepted/
    waitlisted/rejected: Accept: U of Minnesota, UMD, Iowa, U of Iowa, Defer: UChicago, UMich, Rejected: Northwestern
    [/list]General Comments: Pretty psyched to do this, I’ve been waiting a year to do so. GPA & ACT mean nothing without a passion. Think of applications like an investment. They’re looking what you can give back to the college in the future: a nobel prize? money? etc…
3

^ Congrats! Is this EDII? How much is the Founder’s Scholarship?

4

Founder’s is $10,000 per year, but for some reason mine was $12,000!

5

**Decision: Rejected **

Objective:[ul]

[]SAT I and/or ACT (breakdown): 2260 (800 CR, 760 M, 700 W)
[]SAT II (place score in parentheses): 2400 (chem, math 2, bio e)
[]Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): NA
[]Rank/Percentile: NA
[]AP (place score in parentheses): NA
[]IB (place score in parentheses): NA
[]Senior Year Course Load: NA
[]Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): NA

[/ul]Subjective:[ul]

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses):
[]Job/Work Experience: Summer internship with doctor
[]Volunteer/Community Service: a couple of hundred hours (hospital volunteer + rotary)
[]Summer Activities: 150+ hours shadowing a doc (he even gave me a rec)
[]Essays: Common app was good 8/10, Didnt do supplement
[]Teacher Recommendations: average to good prolly 7/10
[]Counselor Rec: didn’t know her, so probably very generic
[]Additional Rec: Doctor wrote a really good rec 8.5/10
[]Interview: NA

[/ul]Other:[ul]
[]Applied for Financial Aid? Nope
[]Projected Concentration: I don’t know!
[]State/Country: International
[]School Type: Private
[]Ethnicity: B
[]Gender: M
[]Income Bracket: NA
[]Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none

[/ul]Reflection:[list]
[]Strengths: Def SAT scores, transcripts and ECs
[]Weaknesses: Didn’t demonstrate interest, or write the optional supplement. My mid terms were really bad and they were sent (2Cs) and my ECs were not that unique compared to some other applicants.
[]Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: idk
[]Where else you are applying or have already applied: Some ivies and random colleges. Already got into Tulane (32k/y merit, UCSD
Rejected: Northwestern, Johns Hopkins

6

For my DD

ACCEPTED + $20K Founders Scholarship

• SAT I (breakdown): didn’t take
• ACT: 34C, 36M, 35E, 35R, 30S 8W
• SAT II: 720M2, 770 BioM, 770 WH
• Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): only weighted 4.7
• AP (place score in parenthesis): WH 5, Calc AB 5, EuroH 5, USH 5, Eng LA 4, Bio 4

• Senior Year Course Load: AP Stats, APES, AP Eng Lit, Drawing, Art, Comp Science Econ H, Gov H
• Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Nat’l Merit Commended, AP Scholar with Distinction, Scholastic Art awards (regional), some state level art awards. Nothing earth shattering

Subjective:
• Extracurricular (place leadership in parenthesis): Science team (captain), Varsity scholastic bowl, orchestra, art lessons (a lot of art lessons)
• Job/Work Experience: none
• Volunteer/Community service: little
• Summer Activities: just art, reading, some science camps
• Essays: ok. Did the supplement
• Teacher Recommendation: don’t know
• Counselor Rec: don’t know
• Additional Rec: art teacher who loves me
• Interview: none
• Supplementary Material(if any): art portfolio

Other
• State (if domestic applicant): oos
• School Type: Public, 2k
• Ethnicity: W
• Gender: F
• Income Bracket(specify if applied for FA): did not apply for aid
• Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none

7

Accepted

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I (breakdown): 2170 (750 M 730 W 690 CR)
[] SAT II: Math 2 - 760, Physics - 750
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): top 10%
[] Senior Year Course Load: CBSE
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Nothing Major
[/ul]
Subjective:

  • []Extracurriculars (place leadership in
    parenthesis): School e-Mag Editor in Chief, Student Government, Senior Editor at an eSports website, Film Making, Basketball
    []Job/Work Experience: eSports website for about 10 months
    [    ]Volunteer/Community service: Worked at a local drug de-addiction center and started a program to teach computer stuff to school employees
    []Summer Activities: Drug de-addiction, Film making
    [    ]Essays: 9/10
    []Teacher Recommendation: 7/10
    [    ]Counselor Rec: 9/10
    []Additional Rec: Didn’t provide
    [    ]Interview: Didn’t request
    []Supplementary Material(if any): Sent a case study about the computer thingy, a few writing samples from the website and a film that I made couple of years ago

Other

  • []State (if domestic applicant): –
    []Country (if international applicant): India
    [    ]School Type: Private
    []Ethnicity: Asia
    [    ]Gender: M
    []Income Bracket(specify if applied for FA): Applied for about $30k financial aid
    [    ]Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): First generation college student

Reflection

  • []Strengths: Essays and ECs
    [    ]Weaknesses: Test and school scores
    []Why you think you were accepted: Essays and ECs definitely
    [    ]Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Waitlisted at UChi; Accepted at UW Madison, UMinn, UMD, Bard; Rejected at Macalester

General Comments: l really like Grinnell and definitely my top choice; very legit Physics department and great course offerings for a LAC

8

Decision:
Accepted

[* ] SAT I (breakdown): CR 650 Math 800 WR: 730
[* ] ACT:
[* ] SAT II: Math 2: 800 physics: 790
[* ] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.90
[* ] Rank (percentile if rank is
unavailable): 6/1065
[* ] AP (place score in parenthesis): AP statistics (junior year) AP macroeconomics, AP psychology AP calculus AB(senior year)
[* ] IB (place score in parenthesis):
[* ] Senior Year Course Load: AP music theory, AP calculus AB, AP psychology, advanced composition, Honor chemistry, AP macroeconomics+government
[* ] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): none
[ /list][ b]Subjective:**
Extracurriculars (place leadership in
parenthesis):
student government (vice president) JA student company (CFO) Orchestra(violinist) Economic club, ROTC, Church band.
Job/Work Experience: I don’t work…
Volunteer/Community service: numerous activities… I was in ROTC before and I volunteered a lot.
Summer Activities: none
Essays: 6/10
Teacher Recommendation: 9/10 one is from my health teacher because she is so greattttt. Her letter even made me want to cry.
Counselor Rec: 8/10 I am not friend with the counselor so I am not sure.
Additional Rec:
Interview: no
Supplementary Material(if any):
[ /list][ b]Other**
State (if domestic applicant): California
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: public
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: male
Income Bracket(specify if applied for
FA): not receive any…
Hooks (URM, first generation college,
etc.):
[ /list][ b]Reflection**
Strengths: I am not even sure…activities and PS?? I wrote about how I became a social activist through a series of activities. I really do enjoy being a social activist and I show that clearly in my essay. I am a strong liberal-leaning person.
Weaknesses: I had no interview, SAT score is not good… Not a lot of AP classes. And I am an Asian! Definitely felt shocked when I was accepted. I did not expect that at all.
Why you think you were accepted: Like I said… I am a social activist. I show that clearly through my resume and essay. This is one of the main reasons why I applied to Grinnell.
Where else were you accepted/
waitlisted/rejected:
[ /list][ b]General Comments:** I wrote this during midnight… I really love Grinnell because the student body is really active in terms of social issues and politics. I love all these kinds of things. My biggest weakness is my academic. I dont have lots of APs, nor do I have a high SAT score. As an Asian… I am really not that hard-working and smart. The only thing that I feel proud of is my activities. I showed my leadership, my society-oriented spirit, and my passions in politics. That is all! Thank you ! I am going to sleep now!

9

@DannySwardon when did a 1450 SAT with a perfect math school become “not good”? I think you are judging yourself on a different scale. You seem to have very strong academics.

Congrats on your acceptance.

10

@lexluthor5 took the words right out of my mouth, @DannySwardon . It’s a crazy world when people think a score like that’s “not good.” Not perfect maybe, but schools aren’t looking for perfection – they’re just looking for signs of life. Congrats!

Also, people who choose to post – don’t forget to remove the spaces from the formatting brackets so it’s legible (and formatted).

11

Decision:
Rejected
College and Program:
Objective:[ul]
[] ACT: 35 composite (36M 35E 34R 36S 11W)
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): I honestly have no clue bcs our school is on a 5 point scale and finding your unweighted GPA is near impossible. I’ll just say I had an upward trend of Bs to As/Bs, in AP/Honors classes
[] AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Euro (4), AP Chem (3), AP Lang (5), APUSH (5), AP Sem (4)
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP French, Physics Honors, AP Gov, AP Macro, AP Calc AB, AP Research
[li] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Commended, AP Scholar w/Distinction, im p sure im forgetting one but whatever[/li][/ul]Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in
parenthesis): Violin (solo performance, student leader of chamber ensemble that tours worldwide, concertmistress of youth symphony)
Piano Performance
Theatre (Student Business Director for my senior year)
Model UN (won a research/writing award for a committee at a significant conference)
Essays: 8/10 talked about living in a mostly conservative and ignorant town and how I grew to become a social activist. I didn’t like it that much but the woman who edited it for me said she loved it.
Supplement was a 10/10 I was specific about what attracted me to Grinnell
Teacher Recommendation: Teacher #1 10/10, it’s from the department chairs of Social Studies and Science, both who love me like one of their own children and who see wild success in my future (even tho i don’t even believe in myself that much lol)
Teacher #2 10/10 probably the most positive human being on earth, she was my AP Lang teacher and I really went above and beyond in that class, entering a writing contest outside of school that required her to sponsor me, and I did a kickass job on the final exam project
Teacher #3 8/10 my AP Calc teacher. He had me in Precalc H as well. I get 100s on the test no sweat and show real interest in the subject. He just doesn’t know me as well as a person as the other two letters would.
Counselor Rec: 7/10 Nothing really special my counselor barely knows me tbh but I met with her a few times and she says hi to me in the halls so I can’t imagine she wrote anything bad
Additional Rec: n/a
Interview: 9/10 I came out feeling really good, she seemed really interested in my research thesis and my extra curriculars.
Supplementary Material(if any): Sent a music supplement, met with the piano prof and he was really eager for me to study with him.
[/list]Other
State (if domestic applicant): IL
Country (if international applicant):USA
School Type: public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: F
Income Bracket(specify if applied for
FA): I applied for FinAid. I’m like the 70th percentile economically, so higher than avg
Hooks (URM, first generation college,
etc.): nah
[/list]Reflection
Strengths: Test scores, Recs, course log
Weaknesses: Grades?
Why you think you were accepted/
waitlisted/rejected: My mom is still confused as to why I was rejected. I think maybe it was grades or they just thought I was overqualified because of my test score and that they wouldn’t get any yield out of me.
Where else were you accepted/
waitlisted/rejected: Accepted to Denison, Kenyon, Mount Holyoke, Wellesley. Rejected at Wesleyan
[/list]General Comments: College admissions makes no sense

12

@phoria - That stings. Regional preference might have been working against you. We live in CA and my son did much better in the midwest and east than he did with similar stat west coast schools. It’s a dice roll at the end of the day. Glad you got into the schools you did though. Some great options there!

13

@Otterma I mean, it was bad at first because my mom really loved Grinnell and we needed their large endowment/financial aid, but ultimately I’ll be ok. Grinnell and I weren’t meant to be. Good luck to your son, wherever he chooses to go!