I know it’s pretty tough to really judge without knowing me/all of the systems, but if you guys could give me your rough estimates on at least one of the schools it’d be awesome. I have a 30 on the ACT, a 3.5 GPA, and I’m taking 4 AP classes for my upcoming senior year. Countless hours of community service and even a President for one of my clubs. I know there’s a lot more I could give, but I don’t see the real benefit of going into that much of deeper detail. If you guys could give me a random estimate for getting into these business schools it’d me much appreciated. Thanks in advance for your help!!
@Nrnjersey124 Your gpa and ACT are way too low for UNC-Chapel Hill. As for the other 3 undergrad business schools you mention, i’d say in order of difficulty of getting admitted, its Maryland more difficult, then Penn State and then UDel in that order. It is difficult to give an opinion without knowing a few things: does your school rank? If so, what percentile rank is your gpa within your class? You must be in the top quarter to have a decent chance at each of these 3 business schools, unless you are an under-represented minority (URM). Remember, the business schools are more competitive admissions-wise than liberal arts, so your stats need to be in the upper quarter of all applicants to have a decent chance for admittance. 30 ACT score is competitive and puts you in the ballgame, but if your gpa is not in the top 25% of your class (with several honors and/or AP courses) your chances are much slimmer. In evaluating your gpa, did you take mostly all honors courses, or were at least half your courses honors (assuming your school offers them)? And did you take any AP courses before senior year? If you answered “no” to both of these questions, i dont think you will get in to Maryland’s Smith or Penn State’s Schreyer business schools, at least not direct admit. But i think you still have a decent shot at Delaware. The schools will see your first semester grades in your AP courses, so make sure you obtain excellent grades first semester of senior year. And if you write an excellent essay and supplementals and have great reccomendations, that may tip the balance.
Thanks for the answer @trackmbe3. My school doesn’t rank, but if I was to give a rough estimate I would say I’m top 15-20% in my class which by the way is in New Jersey. Last year I took AP Chem and Honors English while the year before only AP Bio but I’m hoping the admission people see that as a great improvement each year. Also I’d like to correct my GPA in case that changes your opinion because it’s actually a 3.6 I just typed it in wrong. I wasn’t really even sure if I should apply to UNC I just thought I needed some sort of reach to apply to. I, however, still stand strong that I want to apply directly into the business schools right from the start so does what I told you change anything or is it relatively the same? Don’t be afraid to be honest. Thanks ahead of time!
Opinion does not change. I suggest also applying to UMass Isenberg, Ohio State Fisher and Binghamton School of Management. Each have very strong business programs and being OOS will help your chances at each. UMass and Ohio State will offer you merit aid based on your ACT score. Delaware, Maryland, Penn State and Binghamton will give less amount of merit, in that order. I think you should pick an affordable safety as backup, like Rutgers? I think each of these undergrad business schools are comparable, so if admitted, your choice should be based on cost, location and fit (i.e., how you felt at each school (the University overall and the business school in particular) and which school has the program you think is best suited to your interests).
Not quite sure what you were going for here, but Smeal is the business school. Schreyer is the honors college.
Thanks for all your help @trackmbe3 it was very much appreciated. @bodangles any thoughts?
Your GPA is within the normal range for PSU UP, and your ACT is obviously quite good. I’d get that app in ASAP to have the best chance possible. Solid match, at least.
Also, have you ever checked out a Common Data Set? You can Google each school’s and compare yourself to the stats presented in Section C.
@bodangles thanks for the correction. I meant Smeal, not Schreyer.
Penn State application opens September 1, so you should get it down ASAP. Also, since business schools are harder to get into, definitely apply undecided just incase. You can always transfer into the business school after doing a year or two getting your required courses done. I’m applying to college this year and I want to go to Indiana, but their business school is really hard to get into so I’m just applying undecided. My guidance counselor calls it “going through the back door” aka transferring into the business school after two years as opposed to “walking in through the front door” aka applying to the business school. My friend told me that her brother applied to a business school and they told him if he retook the SAT and got a certain score they would accept him and he did. You should also try Rutgers if you don’t want to pay OOS, they have a really good business program. Im from NJ and my dad wants me to go to Rutgers but I’m all about Indiana, so if you don’t want to stay in state I definitely understand. Good luck!!
@whatisstudying thanks so much for the comment! I wish you the best of luck for Indiana I hope you get right in!!