Please Help Me With My College Situation

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Buffalo - SUNY
1

Hello all,
Thank you for taking the time to read this. My dream school is the University at Buffalo. UB is my top choice and I’ve worked extraordinarily hard this past year to ensure my chances.
As a sophomore, I suffered from some severe mental health issues which left me out of school with poorer grades my last semester. But this past year as a junior I took advanced classes and earned all A’s and a couple of B’s and worked hard to prove that I was much more than a small bump in the road since last year’s incident.
My first concern is about SAT scores. My SAT score is a 1030 overall, which I know is a little low for UB. Unfortunately I’m unavailable the other testing days before applications, as I plan to apply early. I just wanted to check in to see if this would hurt my chances because of this score and if I should completely rule out UB altogether because of this?
My last comment and concern is writing. I plan to enter UB (hopefully) as a film studies major in hopes to become a screenwriter one day. My ultimate goal is to write scripts for horror movies and I clearly envision UB helping me achieve and pave this path to success. Do you think that if I sent in a couple of my short stories and creative writing pieces and essays as part of a portfolio, admissions or a department head could look it over? If so, would this influence my chance of admission to UB? I adore UB’s program and love the craft and time they put into their students passion.
I apologize for bombarding with you all of this information about myself but I do know when I see my future, I see UB.
I have also seen kids from my high school’s stats on Naviance and they have like high 80 GPAs and 1000 SATs. I’m not sure though if that is legit or not.

   thank you all so much!!!
2

UB’s Common Data Set ranks standardized test scores as “Very Important”, right up there with course rigor and GPA. Your SAT scores are in the bottom 25%. If you are unable to retake the SAT due to scheduling conflicts, how about giving the ACT a try? A 24+ would put you in match standing. Good luck!

3

Low 1000s will be a stretch for UB. From experience (as a UB graduate and my son being recently admitted), your stats need to be slightly higher. This year was very competitive and I saw some candidates were offered admission after being deferred a semester. That being said, you can try reaching out to the film studies department to demonstrate to them your interest in their program. Also discuss your situation with them and see if they can provide you with any recommendations or suggested actions you may need to take. Good luck!

4

Your current SAT puts you below the bottom quartile for UB and will hurt your chance of admission. https://admissions.buffalo.edu/apply/admissioncriteria.php
If you feel you can study and improve on this score (or do better on the ACT) then you would be better off retaking your standardized testing. Y

Applying early is great if your application is as strong as it can be at that early deadline. If you think you can improve a key part of your application in the fall then you should so.

5

Why would you apply early if your test score is low for the college you want? Study and retake the SAT, or try the ACT, then apply.