...Out of my league?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Caucasian female, undecided major, Public HS</p>

<p>SAT: **
**CR: **730 **M: **710 **W: 790 (2230 combined)
SATII USHistory: 680 Literature: 720
GPA: 3.95 weighted
Rank: top 10%
APs:
US History
Calc AB
Calc BC
Chemistry</p>

<h2>Language and Composition</h2>

<h2>(School does not offer honors courses)</h2>

<p>Attended 5 week "Governer's School for International Studies" on a full scholarship - 9 hours of class per day 6 days a week</p>

<p>3-time letter winner for varsity softball team (2nd in state)</p>

<p>Captain of the Forensics Team</p>

<p>Class Vice-President</p>

<p>Graduate of Westinghouse Science Honors Institute (a series of 10 lectures)</p>

<p>Member of Youth Conservation Corps (8 week paid job, 8 hr/day, 5 days a week, working to conserve state parks and forests)</p>

<p>National Honors Society Vice President</p>

<p>12 Years of Piano Lessons, regularly performing and competing locally</p>

<p>Organized a Student Art Show in Spring 2007</p>

<p>Currently organizing a global awareness club</p>

<hr>

<p>Here are the schools that I plan to apply to:
UPenn (legacy)
UChicago
Georgetown (legacy)
WashU St. Louis
Columbia
Brown
Pitt
Swarthmore
Allegheny College
NYU
Dartmouth</p>

<p>My top choices are the University of Chicago and Washington University in St. Louis.
Do you think it is likely that I would be accepted to any of these schools? Which ones?
Should I apply to more safety schools?
What can I do to improve my resume and transcript?
Finally, are there any other similar schools that you'd suggest I should apply to?</p>

<p>I'm open to and grateful for any and all input!</p>

2

<p>You have a below average rank and SATs for ivies and way low for the unhooked. I dont see C,B or D. Penn with legacy, applying ED, is your shot at an ivy IMO unless you’re a softball recruit.</p>

3

<p>you can’t get in if you don’t apply…and you definitly have the scores to apply, a 2230 isnt below average AT ANY COLLEGE. You have a shot upenn ed, and i suggest you go for it</p>

4

<p>You look like a really strong applicant for Wash U, especially if you’re interested in the school. Chicago is a toss-up, I think, and will largely depend on how you approach your essays and how you show your intellectual self. You’re also in the range at the ivies, but again, admissions is entirely unpredictable, especially at those schools. Pitt and Allegheny look like really sweet safeties for you, and I would call NYU a match.</p>

<p>Look more carefully into both WashU and Chicago-- the schools are quite different from each other. If you’ve explored all of your options and still like WashU the most, apply ED, and your chances of admittance are good. Chicago only has early action and it does not give any boost to EA applicants.</p>

5

<p>UPenn ED is your best shot. I don’t really know about the rest though. Write good essays and maybe you’ll get in.</p>

6

<p>But would you really recommend Penn ED if that’s not the OP’s first choice school? There’s more to a school than just getting in.</p>

7

<p>thanks to everybody for all of the help! I am new to this forum, and I am a little bit confused as to what some of the terms that you used mean. Collegekid (or anybody else who could answer) What do you mean by C, B, or D? and what is “unhooked” ?
Thanks a lot for everything, I’m still totally open to any advice!</p>

8

<p>If UPenn becomes your first choice and you apply legacy and ED, then now instead of having a 10-20% chance, you have a 50+%</p>

9

<p>Unfortunately, I do not think that I will be ready to make a binding decision to Penn by November. Those percentages make it really tempting, though… </p>

<p>As for UChicago, I was planning on applying early action just so that I could get a jump on some applications and make certain that I do not procrastinate the admissions process. However, now I am thinking that it may be wiser to wait until a few quarters of school have passed, as it will probably improve my GPA silghtly. Does anybody have advice in this area?</p>

10

<p>what’s your UW GPA?</p>

11

<p>Our unweighted GPA is not calculated or distributed by the school, and since we figure out our gpas based upon quarterly grades, a final grade “A” could be worth less than a 4.0. Basically, I could not tell you, off the cuff, what my unweighted GPA is - I’d have to go dig through my records at school. This is something that I plan to do pretty soon.</p>

12

<p>your uw gpa is a bit more important; admission reps usually look at it first, then check your weighted gpa and see what courses you have taken.</p>

13

<p>Penn makes it clear that for the legacy advantage you need to apply ED. You need to really consider this as your chances at an ivy without the legacy hook is unlikely.</p>

14

<p>I just had a legacy interview at Penn, they said that being a legacy still carries weight (albeit, less) for early decision. </p>

<p>Penn is not my first choice, and the ivy league is not the end-all to my college search. In fact, my top 2 (UChicago and WUStL) are not ivy league schools (although they will still be extremely difficult to gain entrance to). I am interested in learning as much as I can while I’m at college, not walking away with an impressive name, so I’m not sure that I really want to commit to Penn because it may not be the best school for my interests. </p>

<p>Thanks for all the help and input, though. Is this a wise choice?</p>

15

<p>If you can figure out your major, we can help you more.</p>

<p>You CAN go undecided, but for some people, it makes things more stressful.</p>

16

<p>My personal ambtion was to go to the most selective school I could for the sake of peer group. Given that you would have to consider your top 2 choices reaches, you need to decide whether risking Penn’s ED advantage is worth it. You’re not at all a shoo in as a legacy with your stats, and it’s a year for strategy.</p>

17

<p>I’d say apply, and take the chance.</p>

18

<p>I like how you guys immediately think the OP should go to Penn.</p>

<p>Full disclosure: I’m a Penn double-legacy who had the grades, scores, and money from my family to more or less secure an ED acceptance. Penn thoroughly turned me off, though. It seemed like the kinds of kids who went there were the same kinds of people who liked to steal money from shrimpy kids in the lunch room-- the school did not seem to have an ideal environment for me, though I’m sure I would have found it given some time.</p>

<p>I sometimes question whose personal goals are motivated by external factors like prestige. If going to a brand-name school will completely put you at ease, go for it. I’ll take WashU over Penn any day of the week.</p>

19

<p>So here goes:
I am a white female in WA and i reallllly want to go somewhere besides UW hopefull out of state california if i can and i need help understanding my REALISTIC chances!
PLEASE read on,</p>

<p>I have a 4.0 uw GPA and I take 4 IB classes (above AP) so i’m not sure how it will be weighted.
I didn’t do well at ALL on my first SATs, i got like 600 on math, 560 reading and 590 writing =( but im retaking with actual studying so i should do much better. please dont make fun haha were not all perfect.</p>

<p>I was captain of volleyball my junior year and will be tennis captain my senior year.
-President of Amnesty International
-Secretary of Key Club
-First team all league volleyball
-Most valuable player volleyabll
-Most improved tennis
-Most inspirational tennis
-Academic letter/achievement for each year
-Honor roll
-National Honor Society position and probably an officer
-Spanish Honor Society
-Outstanding Junior Award
-Spanish Club
-more clubs senior year!
-not too much community service, pretty regular but only about 100 hours (trying to work on that)
-I want to go into medical field, possibly major in cell biology or soemthing of the like.
-Taking honors classes for ones that arent IB</p>

<ul>
<li>i think that’s pretty much all…</li>
</ul>

<p>-want to go to a cali school but dont know if i could actually get in..=(</p>

<p>-IS there ANY possibility of a school like:</p>

<p>(HONESTLY)</p>

<p>USC
UCLA
UCSB
San Diego
Stanford is my want but i know i probably wont get in because im not some prodigy lol. =(
Other good ones, suggested from cali?!</p>

<p>and are there any other ones you would recommend for out of state that would be good all around and have an ok rep for med or soemthin else in case i want to change my major? i want something fun though i do like to kick it=)</p>

<p>Thank you so much , all help is wonderful!!! =)</p>

<p><33</p>

20

<p>I just cannot see the advantage to apply ED to Penn.</p>

<p>If I DO get accepted, I will not have the chance to ever see if I could gain admittance to my top 2 schools - and while I know that those are reach schools, I don’t think that they are impossibilities.
If I don’t get in, I’m relieved and in the same position that I would be in if I did not apply.</p>

<p>I know that my chances will be a lot better for Penn if I go ED, but I think… that I just don’t really want to go to Penn enough that I am willing to give up my chances everywhere else. My goal is not to find a way into an ivy league school, I’m trying to find a way into the a school that can best help me become an intelligent, functional human being (and if that school is ivy league, so be it.) .</p>

<p>lorogirl, i think you will have more luck getting responses if you start your own thread.</p>

<p>as for majors, I’m interested in history and art history - but hesitant to declare, as lately I change my prospective major more often than I get haircuts</p>

<p>thanks for all the responses!</p>