Please chance me for Amherst?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Amherst College
1

<p>So, I’ve posted other chances threads on this site but haven’t really gotten a clear answer for Amherst, and I figure that the people here would be a bit more knowledgeable. </p>

<p>Demographics:
White M
Middle-Class
Small public school</p>

<p>TESTS:</p>

<p>SATI - 550m, 680w, 800cr - 2030
SATII - 800Lit, 710 US history
ACT - 29 (34 reading, 29 english/science, 23 math, 9essay)</p>

<p>GPA - 3.2unweighted, 3.4 weighted</p>

<p>Senior Schedule (grade so far):</p>

<p>Anatomy and Physiology (90)
Latin IV Honors (100)
AP/UConn ECE English IV - (82)
European History - (88?)
Precalculus (79)
Contemporary Issues (85)
Business communications (next semester)</p>

<p>N.B. - 4 AP’s available this year, just 2 last year and 1 before that.</p>

<p>Major: Classics - not a strong program at my school (we have 1 teacher for four years), and thus not many opportunities to distinguish myself besides several NLE and state Latin Day awards. My grade has consistently been higher than a 97-98 since Latin II though.</p>

<p>Awards:
Cum Laude NLE past two years
Maxima Cum Laude award on Authors and Literature competition at State Latin Day</p>

<p>EC’s:
Editor of literary magazine (12)
Drama (9 and 12)
JV Lacrosse (9 and 10)
“Peer Advocates” (11 12) - couldn’t tell you what the point of this group is but it looks nice on a resume I guess.
ER volunteer (12, program suspended for h1n1 though)</p>

<p>Common app essay is pretty good, still working on the supplement one but I think I have a unique idea.</p>

<p>Recommendations from my English and Latin teachers, both excellent. Especially Latin.</p>

<p>All in all I feel its likely a reach but who knows. Thanks in advance, and don’t be afraid to be brutally honest.</p>

2

<p>Pro: Demonstrated passion/skill in Classics. Definitely helpful for a field that doesn’t get much love from the applicant pool as a whole
Con: Scores/grades are a bit below the usual range.</p>

<p>Your chances depend on how the admissions office weighs those two, which in turn depends on how many other classics buffs there are in the applicant pool and what their grades/scores are. We have no way of knowing that, and it’s obviously a bit late to do much about scores/grades at this point, so your best option is to make sure that your application makes clear the extent of your passion/skill for Classics (and drama/lit/whatever other interests you might have) and hope for the best.</p>

3

<p>Thanks for the advice. My supplemental essay does definitely point out my leadership role in drama, my interest in classics, as well as other talents that didn’t make it in to the application, and elsewhere I discussed my editor status and my volunteering.</p>

<p>Anyone else have any input for me, or any ideas on how to strengthen my application?</p>

4

<p>I think it is difficult to predict chances at Amherst or schools with similar selectivity. There are so many qualified applicants applying. Moreover, Amherst tends to look at the whole applicant, not just numbers. They want to select interesting students who will contribute to campus life. In your case, I think you will be compared with other candidates who have a strong interest in classics, and the strength of that group, may well determine whether you are accepted. It is hard to compare your application with someone who is a diver even though your stats may be similar.</p>

<p>My son scored 2300 on SATs, was a national AP scholar with 12 APs (all 4s and 5s), captain of two varsity teams, and legacy, and unfortunately was rejected RD. Both he (and I) were disappointed but there are a lot of smart athletic suburban kids who are not recruited athletes that apply to places like Amherst. I can only surmise that somehow his application did not stand out enough.</p>

5

<p>Pmyen, I think your son was rejected because he was too outstanding. I know of a similar case with a brilliant girl at my school, who was accepted into Princeton, Oxford, blah blah but not Swarthmore. I read somewhere that the adcom sometimes reject applicants they think would be accepted into ‘better’ schools, and choose the ‘better’ ones instead of their school.</p>

<p>Oh, and Classickid? I think you’ve got a good chance :D</p>

<p>Well, good luck everyone :)</p>

6

<p>I agree with mintch0c.</p>

<p>Adcoms won’t admit people when they think that the odds of them enrolling are slim. It’s all a means of increasing their yield rate, which invariably helps them in other aspects (makes them look more selective and for purposes of credit ratings). And Pmyen, your son’s stats were incredibly outstanding.</p>

7

<p>Thanks everyone.</p>

<p>Pmyen your son must have gotten into some pretty good schools with those stats regardless!</p>