okay so i’m hispanic, a junior right now, and i live in maryland. also my grades have been trending upward since freshman year. here’s my schedule for all 4 years
freshman:
ap us history - B
ap us history seminar - A
algebra 1A- D
algebra 1- A
english 9 H- A
physics earth space science H - A
(it’s not many classes bc i end up retaking the same class for better grades. for reference my grades were terrible this year because of family stuff)
sophomore:
pe/ health online- A
ceramics - A
foundations of tech online - A
ap us gov- A
biology H- B
chemistry H - B
geometry H- A
algebra 2 H- A
english 10 H- A
money and finance + econ online- A
junior:
ap human geo- A
anatomy + physiology - A
chemistry 101- B
psychology 101- A
next sem (aiming for all As):
ap world history
english 101
biology 150
precalculus H
spanish 1
summer 2021
spanish 2
senior year:
english 102
calculus 1 (dual enrollment)
ap environmental science
media literacy
psychology 202
psychology 206
nutrition 102
nutrition 200
to sum it all up i should have 5 ap classes, 10 dual enrollments, and 8 honors classes. also my only good ap score so far was ap government which was a 4.
right now i am studying for the act and i believe that i am fully capable of scoring in the 32-34 range.
at the end of this school year i think i should have around a 3.7 or a higher 3.6 (un weighted) which isn’t amazing considering the schools i’m looking at… anyways here are my ecs/ clubs
president/founder of fashion club 1 year
sga for 3 years
sga executive committee 1 year
freshman executive club
sophomore executive club
junior executive club
mun 1 year
ceramics club 2 years (while we were still in person learning haha)
naacp 2 years
national honors society
rho kappa alpha national honors society
pjs with a purpose (my committee has helped set up food drives)
high school swim team 2 years
high school field hockey team 1 year
club swim team 2 years
i should have around 100 volunteer hrs by the end of this year.
i know it isn’t much and i’m lowkey depending on affirmative action but here’s my college list- keep in mind i want to study nutritional science
cornell
boston university
new york university
university of maryland
university of massachusetts amherst
i’m v well aware how difficult these schools are to get into but honestly they seem like they could be the best match for me… pls be honest with me and if i don’t have a chance at any of these schools could you please recommend a school in the northeast that has a good nutrition science program and is realistic for my stats.
thanks!!
I think you will get into College Park for Nutrition. I don’t think that you would get into any of the other schools you’ve mentioned, aside from UMass Amherst (possibly, but with no merit aid to match in-state tuition). If Nutrition were offered at any U Md campus other than College Park, that would be a good safety for you, but I don’t know if it is. U Md is an excellent school, and probably your cheapest option, plus it’s close to home for you. And if your ACT is 31 or higher, and your grades continue on the trajectory you’ve outlined, I think you’ll get in. I’m not sure whether being an URM could vault you into the level needed for the other schools you mentioned, but I don’t think it would. Other than the ones you’ve mentioned, you might look at Rutgers, SUNY schools, and U New Hampshire, but really, your best bet is probably U Md College Park.
Best advice we got for preparing for the ACT was to use old exams. Read the top review (by Vince Kotchian) on Amazon for The Official ACT Prep Guide 2020-2021. He tells it like it is.
For math, kid used The Best ACT Math Books Ever 1 and 2. For the rest, he didn’t need a book - doing the practice tests was enough. The old exams are LEGALLY in the public domain (because ACT releases some tests every year). They can be found LEGALLY with some googling. You’re in good shape, because you have plenty of time to prepare. Try to do an entire test a week, if you can find the time, and you should do just fine.
Imo, you’d benefit from something besides next year’s nutrition classes that shows you’re ready for that field. It’s science based and your lower grades are in that area.
The competitive colleges on your list would like to see more rigor in terms of AP Classes so those may be a stretch. I applied to BU this year with 4 APs already taken (1 sophomore 3 junior) and 3 in progress and I am waiting to hear back. The best thing you can do right now besides keeping good grades and ECs is really put ass to grass when it comes to studying for your ACT. Aim for 34-36. One of my best tips would be to focus on taking practice exams, past years tests, and practicing everything you get wrong. The best way to do well on the test is to take it as often as you can so you know what to expect. I took the SAT twice with okay scores but I wanted to be above 1450. I started Kahn Academy summer going into my senior year and I saw my scores sky rocket. If they have Kahn Academy ACT prep I HIGHLY recommend you do it. I never got to retake the SAT but I believe I would have hit my goal.
Honestly, your ECs and grades trend towards more proficiency in English/History. I really don’t think any schools except for UMD are possible. I would look at Grove City College in PA. Great academics.
Is it possible that you would only have taken one year of foreign language? Spanish 1 in spring of junior year, and Spanish 2 in summer before senior year? How did your high school let you do this? You had better plan on continuing Spanish in your senior year, for the entire year, so that you at least would meet the bare minimum of two years of foreign language for U Md. I would take a close look at the application requirements - 4 yrs math, 4 yrs English, 3 yrs history/social science, 3 yrs science, and 2 yrs foreign language - and make sure you are meeting the minimum requirements. Freshman Applicant Requirements | UMD Undergraduate Admissions
U Md has a good nutrition program, it’s a good school, it’s a known flagship state U, and you get in-state tuition rate. It’s probably your best option.
i mean i took spanish 1 and 2 in freshman year (my school only requires 2 language credits) but due to family stuff and being out of school i didn’t get good grades at all. so i’m retaking span 1 and 2 online and i might go for span 3 and 4 in addition to everything else next year.
what should i take instead?? i’ve been thinking about going chem 102 and organic chem 1 but i don’t wanna exhaust myself. i haven’t officially chosen what i want to take next year but this whole thread has made me realize i’m kinda screwed so i might as well just torture myself next year haha.
should i just go to community college for a semester and then reevaluate because it seems like i’m screwed. should i even go with nutritional science? i’ve been hesitant with what i want to do and i’ve been stuck between psych, comm, and nutritional science. i kinda decided on nutritional science because it has elements of everything in it. i guess now after rethinking and seeing how screwed i am i will try to take harder classes (as well as more language classes) next year as well as maintain my ecs and try to get a job.
I’m pretty sure there are multiple colleges that would still accept you just focus on getting your grades up and also make sure you have a strong essay when applying
and harder classes really dont matter if youre not doing well in it, I only took like 1 ap class and 3 dual credit class and i got accepted into my top school, also your transcript has to show your progressing too its not just the classes you took colleges look at, if they see an improvement as the years go by they might as well consider you
Practice with Khan academy right now, see how you do. Your confidence you’re among the 1-2% top scorers in the US tells me you haven’t really started working on it. Spend 1 hour on it every day during your Break.
The issue with Nutrition is that it’s not offered everywhere, thus limiting your choices. If you can add Psych (as a possibility where nutrition is not offered) you keep more options.
Your curriculum rigor doesn’t add up - I dont see the coherence in your choices, the progression. Its nor just about numbers, although that matters - your choices need to make sense and “tell us” you have a sense of what you want if you deviate from expectations. Your choices seem a bit all over the place - strong rigor and odd choices.
You would optimally have English and history/social science all 4 years, Math through precalculus or calculus, Foreign Language through Level 3 or 4, Bio/chem/physics + 1 AP, electives.
UMD CP has become extremely competitive so your odds will depend on where you attend school- if Montgometry, it6s a reach, but Towson is likely.
Have you calculated your EFC (the minimum amount your parents will be expected to pay)? Can your parents afford their EFC? (Most cannot ) Have you discussed college costs with them?
I’ll try to build a model curriculum for the upcoming semesters so you have an idea of how to get back on track since you’re close. It sounds like you’re on block scheduling with 4 classes per block and optional summer session, is that right?
Are you a Heritage speaker (parents and/or grandparents speak Spanish at home)?
If so, does the college you’d dual enroll at offer Spanish for Heritage Speakers?
Are you done with this semester, or do you have finals coming up? If you don’t, I’d suggest that you kick it into high gear on prepping for the SAT or ACT now, during break. If you have finals coming up, best to focus on that, to improve your grades.
) Have you discussed college costs with them?