Congrats mgcollegetalk! Curious, did you get in to BC? Decisions came in last night. It was my son’s dream school and both his dad and I went to undergrad and grad school there…back in the 90’s when BC beat ND in a memorable football game…haha. My son’s dreams were crushed last night when he was waitlisted…perpetuating the agony of the unknown! But to my surprise, his strong faith had made him realize that maybe his path is not what he thought he always wanted. He is looking at his second “favorite” school this weekend for his final decision. I see how hard some of you students work, you’re all amazing smart kids, and these schools look for perfection, but remember, that when you experience a roadblock, sometimes it just a path that will lead you exactly where you’re meant to be. For those on this thread that don’t get the decision they hoped for, have faith that things usually work out for the best and you will love wherever you decide to go! Good luck all!
Decision: Accepted
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1580 (790 Reading, 790 Math)
ACT (breakdown): N/A
SAT II: 800 Biology E, 780 Math II, 780 Chemistry, 790 Chinese w/ Listening
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.93 (Weighted 4.6)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): school does not rank; likely top 1-2% out of 900 students
AP (place score in parenthesis): Biology, Human Geography, Psychology, Calculus AB, Calculus BC, US History, Chemistry, English Language (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: French 3, AP US Gov, AP Statistics, AP English Literature, AP Physics C
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): USABO semifinalist (2), National Merit Finalist, National AP Scholar, 2 Grand Concours medals, and some other minor regional awards
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): USABO Club (president/founder), JV Cross Country, Quiz Bowl, Speech and Debate, Orchestra outside of school, Green Team (environmental club), Red Cross Club
Job/Work Experience: Intern at a molecular biology lab
Volunteer/Community service: Junior volunteer program at local hospital, service club at school (president + secretary of the SoCal high school alliance), volunteering at a clinic, red cross club
Summer Activities: Interning at a lab and shadowing a physician
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common App (8/10): Made an interesting connection between some of my hobbies/character traits but could have been better. Supplements (9/10): pretty personal and felt like they showcased my values/character pretty well. Also emphasized the importance of ethics in science in my “Why Notre Dame” essay.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 10/10 I didn’t see it but it was from a Chemistry teacher that I am quite close with. I spent a lot of time in her classroom during lunch in my sophomore year and visited often after that.
Teacher Rec #2: 10/10 Very long and detailed rec from my APUSH teacher. I struggled a lot in his class but asked for help and improved, so he knew me pretty well.
Counselor Rec: 9/10 She interviewed me in junior year for a summer program so she knew me better than most students. Quite long and detailed interviews.
Additional Rec: 9/10 From the PI of my lab
Interview: None
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Neuroscience and Behavior
State (if domestic applicant): CA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: large public school (4000 students total)
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: ~150K
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none
Reflection
Strengths: good stats, ECs, essays showcased my character pretty well
Weaknesses: not catholic, quite well-rounded? (nothing really stands out too much)
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Not sure, but I’m really excited!
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted at UCLA, UCSD, UCI, Northeastern; Waitlisted at Williams, Amherst; Rejected from Northwestern, JHU, WashU in St. Louis
General Comments: Congrats to all who got in and good luck to those that didn’t 
I’m waiting on some of my other schools but Notre Dame is the top pick out of the schools I have so far.
Can’t even say how many of these I looked at…hope this helps somebody else too.
Decision: Accepted
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1550 (750 English 800 Math)
ACT (breakdown): 35C, 35M, 34S, 35E,35R
SAT II: 780 US History, 770 Math II, 740 Chemistry, 680 Literature (did not send this one)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): ~105/100
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/145
AP (place score in parenthesis): World (5), Physics 1 (4), US History (5), Language and Comp (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc AB, AP Chem, AP Lit, AP Micro, Honors Religion 4, Jazz Improv (my only easy class, my school didn’t have any additional honors/AP classes)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Finalist, AP Scholar, All County and Area All State Ensembles all years of high school, nothing overly impressive
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Youth Orchestra (Principal), more regional youth Orchestra (Assistant principal), Jazz band (part of small jazz combo too), Percussion Ensemble, Science Olympiad (Founding Member), Men’s Choir (Accompanist), French Horn since 5th grade, Classical Piano since kindergarten
Job/Work Experience: Accompanist for several Church choirs, Food Prep worker at local restaurant (given raise-20 hours a week)
Volunteer/Community service: Local Rural Food Pantry ~50hours/year
Summer Activities: 2 different summer music camps, regional one my junior year, international one my senior year, work
Essays (rating 1-10, details):~7 Have been incredibly stressed this year, probably not my absolute best. Talked about my love for music.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 9/10:Geometry Honors, Survey Calc, and AP Calc tecaher-didn’t read, but she really likes me and has known me the longest of any teacher at my school, wrote my NHS rec letter too
Teacher Rec #2: 9/10 AP Comp teacher: didn’t read, but he was a great guy and knows how to write well
Counselor Rec: 8/10 Super stressed, but took the time to know me, didn’t read either
Additional Rec: Nope
Interview: Nope
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Math, with a side of music
State (if domestic applicant): Upstate NY
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Mid-Size, Mid-tier Catholic
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: 150k-200k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none
Reflection
Strengths: course load, GPA, SAT and ACT scores
Weaknesses: No “leadership” in the traditional sense of the word. But I was involved all four years in a plethora of music commitments, and I think that showed. Essays
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Genuine love for school, don’t really know why else
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Accepted: University of Rochester (merit aid), Miami University Ohio (merit aid), SUNY Binghamton
Waitlisted: Northwestern, Case Western
Rejected: Probably the ones I am still waiting on- Yale, Duke, Carnegie Mellon, U Mich
General Comments: It has been a wild ride. It truly seems like the college admissions process can be random; don’t get discouraged if you don’t get into your dream school. Cliche, but I could have saved myself a lot of worry. Didn’t go to my first choice high school, but would have made the worst mistake of my life going there.
Decision: Accepted
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): n/a
ACT (breakdown): 31 (35 reading, 33 english, 29 math, 28 science)
SAT II: n/a
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.3
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 44/741
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Physics I (2), APUSH (3), AP Lang (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics II, AP Calc AB, AP Lit, Gym, Guitar, French IV
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Illinois State Scholar, Academic Awards for all 4 years of my sport (golf), MVP (golf)
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Golf (Co-Captain my Senior year), National Honors Society, Film Club (President/Founder)
Job/Work Experience: Chipotle Mexican Grill
Volunteer/Community service: 70+ Hours
Summer Activities: Volunteered at a summer school where I taught Kindergarteners how to read and worked at Chipotle, otherwise all I really did during the summer was go on trips in and out of the U.S.
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common App (8/10)- I talked about an impactful moment in my life that saved me from my depression in middle school and drives me today. It was pretty good but could’ve been better in some ways.
Why Notre Dame (6/10)- Not bad but pretty generic, I didn’t work too hard on this one.
Holy Cross/Pillar (9/10)- I kind of approached this one as a research essay and looked up info on the Mind Pillar. I used the definition of it to argue against it which was I guess pretty risky. Then I started talking about the meaning of life and all that, it’s hard to explain. It was well articulated and intelligent.
Who am I responsible for (8/10)- Like the CA, it was a pretty heartfelt essay but could be improved
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: (10/10) This was my Architecture teacher, who I’ve known since I started high school. He is the reason I plan on pursuing architecture, so we have a pretty close relationship
Teacher Rec #2: (7/10) This was my APUSH teacher. I haven’t known him for very long, but I’ve certainly made an impression on him from various things I’ve done with him while I was in his class, like refusing to leave a study session when having an allergic reaction to ice cream or designing his dream home for an architecture project.
Counselor Rec: (6/10)- She was a new counselor so we weren’t very close but I got to know her more and more by visiting her often.
Additional Rec: n/a
Interview: n/a
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major:Architecture
State (if domestic applicant): Illinois
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Black/African American
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: Lower middle class
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): I’m a 1st generation Cameroonian- American (if that’s a hook?) and perhaps my experience with mental Illness that I described in my Common App essay but I honestly have no clue
Reflection
Strengths: My essays maybe? Teacher recs
Weaknesses: My ACT scores, my GPA, my AP Scores
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I honestly have no clue how I got in lol
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Rejected: MIT, Stanford
Waitlisted: Cal Poly SLO, UVA (I got off since I don’t think I’ll attend)
Accepted: U of I Urbana- Champaign, Notre Dame
Waiting for the Ivies (Princeton, Yale, UPenn)
General Comments: I am definitely a student with lower stats lol. I was extremely surprised when I got in. Almost all of the schools I applied to were reaches because of a moment of high confidence first semester (which is 100% gone now) so this was definitely a blessing. However, I did get invited to the Reilly Visit program, so maybe they really want me? I don’t know. I can be extremely critical of myself,so my achievements may have more worth then I make them seem. Regardless, I hope that people planning to apply to Notre Dame have more hope knowing someone with my stats got in. It is possible!
[aB][asize=4][acolor=#008000]Decision: Accepted[/color][/size]**
Objective:
ACT (breakdown): Reading - 36, Math - 28, Science - 32, English -32
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): Unavailable, 3.94 weighted
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A
AP (place score in parenthesis): US History (4), English Language (5), Macroeconomics (5), Microeconomics (5), Physics (4)
Senior Year Course Load: 5 AP’s (Comparative government, government, biology, calculus AB, literature)
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Varisty soccer 4 years, Conservation Club (treasurer), Kickboxing,
Job/Work Experience: Youth soccer coach
Volunteer/Community service: Tutor for adults getting GED, Big Brothers Big Sister Mentor
Summer Activities: Summer camp
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Pretty unique essay about getting over my fear of sharks via scuba diving and how that led to me being environmental activist. Individual essays for Notre Dame were really good and revealed a lot about me.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): Decent to good, I obviously didn’t get to read them
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: No
Intended Major: Business
State: Indiana
School Type: Private
Ethnicity: White
Gender: F
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Legacy
Reflection
Strengths: Variety of extra curriculars, essay, upward trend in grades, AP scores
Weaknesses: GPA (freshman year brought me down), ACT
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I think my coursework and essays helped, but it was probably being a legacy that made the difference.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted at Fordham, Furman, IU, Purdue, Loyola Chicago. Rejected at UNC Chapel Hill.
@firstof4mom I did get into Boston College. Good luck to your son…he will do great wherever he goes!
Decision: Rejected
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1540 (770 English, 770 Math)
ACT (breakdown): n/a
SAT II: 800 USH, 780 Math II, 690 Lit
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.98
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 4 / 350ish
AP (place score in parenthesis): APUSH (5), Calc BC (5), Lang (5), Comp Sci (3), Physics (didn’t take)
IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc BC, AP Euro, AP Lit, AP Econ, AP Stat, AP Art History, Forensics, Phys Ed
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Semifinalist, Eisenhower Leadership Award, AP Scholar with Honor, NHS
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Academic Team (co-president), TSA (secretary), Math Team, NHS, Science National Honor Society
Job/Work Experience: Camp counselor, YouTube content creator (monetized w/ 26K subscribers)
Volunteer/Community service: Red Cross (ran clothing drives, etc.), Assistant camp counselor
Summer Activities: see above
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
CommonApp - 9/10 (This one probably had more personality in it and I put more effort into proofreading it)
Supplement #1 - 8/10 (Wrote about Irish heritage and how it ties in with ND)
Supplement #2 - 9/10 (Discussed YT channel and its effect on my life)
Supplement #3 - 9/10 (Wrote about a redistricting scheme in my town for schools)
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): I couldn’t read any of them but…
Teacher Rec #1: APUSH Teacher - 10/10 (I was top of her class and she likes me so)
Teacher Rec #2: AP Calc Teacher - 7/10 (I was good at her class but she’s a little dry)
Counselor Rec: 5/10 (she’s out on maternity leave half the year and probably just used a generic format)
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Economics
State (if domestic applicant): NJ
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: > $100,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): nothing
Reflection
Strengths: Test scores, GPA, some of my rec letters
Weaknesses: ECs were alright, but not extraordinary. Some of my essays were kind of weak.
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Essays, EC
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted: Georgetown, University of Virginia, College of William & Mary, Colgate, Stevens, NJIT; Deferred: Dartmouth ED; Rejected: UChicago (Deferred EA, rejected RD)
General Comments:
Honestly, this was probably an issue of fit. Although some aspects of the school caught my eye, it was never a favorite; I’m happy with my current selection and ND probably saw that my interests did not overlap much with theirs. Congrats to everyone who got in: ND is a top notch school and its a great honor for those who are accepted!