<p>I have given SAT thrice, below are my scores
CR- 550 Writing- 550 Maths- 630
CR- 620 Writing- 620 Maths-680
CR- 570 Writing- 700 Maths-700
I talked to many people (telling them about my EC's). Many said that my EC's will cover up for my 30-40 point diff in CR section as my writing and maths are totally upto the mark.
I have given SAT 3 times so I dont wanna give it again just to play with my CR score.
On top of that, I have 4 GPA and I am in top 10% of my class. I also have national level sports certificates.
please suggest.
P.S. I aim for IVY leagues or stanford (preferably with scholarship)</p>
<p>Your odds at any top25 university or LAC, needing financial aid, are very very low with these scores.
If you need a scholarship and get into Harvard, Yale, etc, you will get one, since they’re need-blind. However your EC’s would have to be exceptional to give you a fighting chance at these universities.
(I’m not sure you realize it, but Top 10%, 4.0GPA, and national level sports are “average” applicants for these universities.)</p>
<p>What sports do you play and what do you mean “national level certificate”? If you are a nationally ranked U18 soccer player, it may help. If you play cricket, Harvard, MIT, Northeastern, WPI, The Claremonts (ie. Pomona, HarveyMudd…), Wooster, GWU, NCSU, Northwestern, BU, have it (as well as lots of other schools, I’m sure).
The Ivy League requires at least 1900 for its athletes (and much more for its non athletes) though.
Instead of retaking and retaking, work with number2.com. It’s a free website and it targets your problem questions.
Roughly speaking, for the selectivity you’re aiming at, you should have 740+ in math and 600-650 in CR and W.
If that doesn’t seem reachable, then look at universities/LACs ranked 25-60 plus regional universities ranked 1-5 and universities that compete at top level in div 3 or div 1.</p>
<p>@MYOS1634 - I guess I do meet the credentials you just said , I got 700 in WR , 720 in Maths and 630 in CR !
On top of that, I have played Badminton for 5 years and certificates in all of them.
I also have 3 international level certificates (rank 2 in all of them) in a space settlement design competition.
My CV deep in these retrospects and I DO have alot of hours in social work too</p>
<p>Well, you’re slightly below what they want to see and they don’t recruit for badminton.
Right now, your odds would be lower than most, so in the 1:25- 1:30 range. Not absolutely impossible but not likely. This is not against you but these schools, at best, reject 19 out of 20 <em>qualified</em> applicants, where your credentials would seem pretty typical even though objectively they’re not. Compared to the mass of high school applicants, you’d be tops. Compared to the mass of Top 10 LAC/University applicants, you’re just average.
You need back up plans where your credentials will stand out and where your odds of admission are higher.
What are your matches and your safeties?
Typically, you should have 2 safeties (schools you like, are 100% sure you can get into, and can afford), 3-5 matches (schools with selectivity 40% or more, where you’re reasonably sure you can get into, that you like and can afford). Then only you add all the dream schools, reaches, and wild cards/crapshoots that you want (that automatically includes Ivies, top 10 LACs, Stanford, etc.)</p>
<p>However, if you don’t want to take the SAT again (I understand), you can try for the ACT. In any case you will need to take the SAT Subjects (suggested: Math2 plus 1 science and 1 non-science.)</p>
<p>@MYOS1634 If I play cricket for fun, can I put it down? I live in the US and there aren’t any opportunities for me to play cricket. I would love to play cricket in college, but should I tell them about my interest?</p>
<p>Also I agree with everything that Myos says about safeties and matches. Good luck in your application process. :)>- </p>
<p>Agreed with everything MYOS said.</p>
<p>Chance back: <a href=“**Chance me for good and rising Northeast schools ** - Chance Me / Match Me! - College Confidential Forums”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1612160-chance-me-for-good-and-rising-northeast-schools-p1.html</a></p>
<p>@hawkace: email the cricket club at each of these colleges, as well as the admissions office, indicating you’d like to play cricket in college and would like to know the conditions at their college. I don’t know them all by heart but google is your friend and the list I gave should get you started.</p>
<p>@MYOS1634 Is that actually possible? When I email them, am I asking to get recruited or is it for just my sake?
Do you have any experience with this?
Next post for you will be the great 4,000. =D> </p>
<p>You’re not really being recruited for a club, unless you’re very very good and they’re current winners, and even that doesn’t make you a recruit, just “more interesting” to them. So, when you contact them, you place yourself on their radar, that’s it. But it can help when they read your file. :)</p>
<p>@MYOS1634 - Please suggest should I take SAT for the fourth time to increase my CR score ? I’d go with whateer you suggest</p>
<p>If i were you i would give it another go. You have been improving every time you took it for your Math and Writing scores. Id take it once more
chance back
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1614885-goal-is-nurse-anesthesiologist-what-are-my-chances-to-get-into-this-prestigious-nursing-schools.html#latest”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1614885-goal-is-nurse-anesthesiologist-what-are-my-chances-to-get-into-this-prestigious-nursing-schools.html#latest</a></p>
<p>Have you taken subject tests yet? If not, start with that. You’ll need 2 excellent scores for the schools you’re aiming at (many Indian students score 750-800) so you need to prepare for 3, hoping to score high on 2. You could take the tests in May and/or June.
Once you have those results, you should try the ACT. Parts are similar to the SAT (writing, and math) but CR includes texts from various subjects, English is more grammar-focused and less vocab-focused than the SAT, and there’s a science section. Many students aiming for top schools try both. The ACT can be taken in September. After that, you still have October and November to retake the SAT if needed, or, if your SAT Subject scores aren’t up to part, to recalibrate your plans.
Right now, you should buy or borrow a Fiske Guide, Insider’s Guide, or The Princeton Review’s Best Colleges, and find safeties and matches.</p>
<p>@MYOS1634
I have found the safeties and matches for my present score already.
The thing is, I was planning to join some summer school program in a US university. Now I am planning to drop it and give SAT and APs in MAY and then the Subject tests in June.
I know I can clear the Subject Tests in one go itself.
I am not so sure with the AP pattern and stuff so I want to stick with SAT only
The only thing bugging me is that I will be giving the SAT 4th time</p>
<p>Join the summer school program at the US university. It will be more beneficial to you than spending that time prepping for tests. Don’t retake the SAT Reasoning yet. Focus on the subject tests. Take them in May if you can, then go to that summer program. AP scores aren’t necessary. If your school curriculum doesn’t include AP’s but is known to be rigorous, the international admission representative will know that. In addition, your counselor will write a detailed school profile that will present the curriculum, which I assume is equivalent to AP for junior and senior year; if you took IGCSE’s and are preparing ALevels, even better since those are very well-respected in the US and provide even better credits than APs. However you do need SAT Subject scores, they’re required at the schools you want to apply to. The ACT isn’t like APs, it’s just another test similar to the SAT but administered by another company. An advantage of the ACT is that it has a September session. Wait till you have your SAT subjects before you take the SAT reasoning again. Don’t plan to take it a 4th time until October or November.
What are your matches and safeties? Will you be full pay?</p>
<p>Some take the sat once some take it 5 times, or more. There is no limit, it is just a nuisance though. There is no penalty. But myos is correct, those top schools get only the top candidates and to stand out you need to be high in your scores. Badminton will probably not help much, and when you say you have a lot of hours in social service, is this above say 200 hours? Most applicants have in the 100 to 200 range, but certainly some have much more. You want to stand out there and be above many of the others. Your best advice has been posted by Myos1634. </p>
<p>@MYOS1634- My safties are Georgia, UC Berkeley and University of Michigan
However, I am only 30 points short in CR for Dartmouth, Brown and UPenn
Ill apply in them in early action and hope for the best</p>
<p>@vanshmurad
I think you have some misunderstanding on safety schools. UC Berkeley and U of Michigan are definitely not safeties for you (and hardly for anybody). They are indeed low reach at best for you as international (or out of state) student. Even with superscore, your SAT is below the 25% for UMich (mid 50 SAT 2030-2250 for 2013) while they don’t superscore.
It seems you are not reading the admission statistics correctly. Also, applying EA/ED may not help your chance if your credential is not at least near admission average. With your current scores, you need to aim a bit lower. Sorry to disappoint you.</p>
<p>UC Berkeley and UMichigan are absolutely not safety schools - not for anyone. They’re low reaches for you - your odds are higher you won’t get in than you will. A match is a school where your odds are roughly 50-50 because you’re near the top 25%. A safety school is a school where you’re well above the top 25% with a selectivity rate above 40% (if the school is public, you need to look at the OOS rates since it’s often easier for in-state students to get in.)
In short, it means that for UMichigan to be a safety, you’d need 2250-2300 on the SAT and top 3-5 in your class (or top 1-3%) and as an OOS applicant even that wouldn’t make it a total safety for you due to the selectivity rate.</p>
<p>A safety for you would be a school with 1750-1800 average SAT that admits 50% applicants.</p>
<p>Safeties for you would include the following - I made a pretty exhaustive list with most regions included and ranging from large universities to LACs, because you may have trouble understanding the level of competitivity for admissions entrance and what a “safety” is. Look into these universities and plan to apply to at least 2 of them:
ASU, St Mary’s of California, UC Riverside, UC Santa Cruz, Redlands, Whittier, UDenver, Quinnipiac, USF, Flagler, UNF, Georgia College, Butler, Indiana Bloomington, Valparaison, Coe, Wartburg, UKentucky, St Mary’s College of Maryland, Stonehill, Albion, Michigan State, UMN Morris, Montana State, Montana Tech, Carroll of Montana, Drew, Ramapo, Rowan, SUNY New Paltz, SUNY Oneonta, Adelphi, Hartwick, Wells, East Carolina, Appalachian State, Bowling Green, OhioUniversity, UCincinnati, Southern Oregon U, Penn State Erie, Susquehanna, West Chester, Bryant, Texas Tech, UT-Tyler, St Michael’s, Randolph, UVA-Wise, VCU, Pacific Lutheran, Seattle University, Western Washington.</p>
<p>Matches include mostly very selective universities - again, a pretty exhaustive list, including large universities and LACs from the entire country:
Auburn, Chapman, Loyola marymount, UC Davis, UC Irvine, UC Santa Barbara, Trinity College (CT), New College of FL, Rollins, UGA, Eureka, UIUC, Purdue, Babson, Kalamazoo, Michigan Tech, St Olaf, UMN-Twin Cities, Rutgers NB, Fordham, Ithaca, RIT, Syracuse, SUNY Stony Brook, Elon, Ohio State, Wooster, Willamette, Dickinson, Juniata, Drexel, Clemson, Sewanee, Austin College, UVermont, Virginia Tech, UWA, Marquette.</p>
<p>Other schools are reaches.</p>
<p>You need to have at least 2 safeties (for an international student, since no college is a true “safety”, picking 4-5 would be safer) and at least 3-5 matches. Use the lists above.
Once you’re done with that, you can apply to as many “dream” schools as you wish, including the Ivy League, Stanford, Pomona, Williams, MIT, HarveyMudd, etc, etc. </p>
<p>I think your scores are not high enough for Ivy Leagues but it is probably best to not retake the SAT the 4th time. Try taking the ACT and get 34+. Join the summer program like MYO said. It is best if the program is also free or if you get financial aid/scholarship for joining.</p>