Hi I am a rising senior in high school and wish to study engineering, but I’m not sure of my chances for Pratt.
Duke is my number one choice, so I’m debating whether I should apply to Trinity instead.
GPA: 4.0 uw
AP: World History (4), Psychology (4), Human Geography (5), Govt. (5). Calc AB (5), Bio (5), US History (5)
I am taking AP Physics C and Calc BC next year online since my school doesn’t offer them.
IB- full IB schedule junior and senior years
EC:
Tennis- work at country club, varsity 4 years (captain), USTA Tournaments, tennis academy for 2 years, give tennis lessons, All-Regional, All-Conference, Conference Player of the Year, MVP
Pokemon- achieved number one world ranking on a global server
Model UN- 11,12
Mock Trial- 11,12 Co-Captain
Quiz Bowl- top scorer at national qualifying event, 12 state finals, NAQT Nationals, Captain
Interact Club- 11, 12
March Madness Club: founder and president
Ping Pong Club: founder and president
Engineering Club: founder and president
I build and sell solar powered phone chargers, profits go to Sierra Club
Sierra Club Member
Started a recycling program at athletic events at my school since we had no recycling for some reason
Mountain Biking: no competitions
Guitar- 4 years
Basketball- JV 10th grade lol
Acolyte at my church
- the tennis academy prevented me from doing clubs my first 2 years
Volunteering:
founded and operate a food bank at my school for kids who don’t get enough on the weekends, my city is one of the hungriest in America
Breakfast Buddies: 4 years
Biology Tutor: 4 years
Special Olympics: tennis
Communities in Schools
Sports Camp Counselor over the summer
Service Learning Diploma- 1200+ hours overall
Testing:
SAT- 770 M, 730 CR, 730 W (1500, 2230)
ACT- superstore is a 35 but highest is a 32 haha so I probably won’t send
I plan on taking the Math II and Bio Subject Tests in the fall.
White Male
Rural NC
Public High School that sends one kid to a school like Duke every couple years
I won’t be applying for financial aid
Thanks for reading and I would greatly appreciate advice!
I think you’ve got a pretty good shot. What is your highest USTA ranking? Did you contact the Duke coach?
^Duke is really really good at tennis. I would assume the OP would have given more information if they were actively being recruited. You need to be top 50/100 in the nation, be doing well at the Zoo, participating in the Easter Bowl, etc. I was on the club tennis team and we had some quality players – one of whom actually did walk on the varsity for a bit, another transferred to play at Cornell, another to UCSD. Duke won the USTA Tennis On Campus National Championship (best club team in the nation) in 2009, beating Wisconsin, Michigan, Texas, and Texas A&M (all huge state schools). If you’re interested in continuing to play tennis, I’d highly recommend the club team (which also has tryouts). Practice happens usually once or twice a week and there are travel matches vs various teams within driving distance 5-6 times a semester.
I think your chances look pretty good. The “objective stats” are there, just need to shine in the essays. Rural NC probably helps a bit. If you want to study engineering, you should apply to Pratt. I don’t think your application looks any “stronger” for Trinity. Just need to get an 800 (or close to it) on the Math II, which is much easier to get than the SAT Math because you can get several questions wrong and still get a perfect score. Good luck.
Thanks for responding. I was around 400 in the nation my sophomore year, but I quit to focus on school. I doubt I could even walk on at Duke, but I would play club. The only school I’m interested in playing at is MIT, but that would be if I somehow got in.
Wouldn’t hurt to contact the Tennis coach. Doubt it would generate any interest but why not?
I agree with @bluedog make sure your application emphasizes rural NC. Good luck
There is absolutely no point to contact the tennis coach from somebody who was formerly ranked about 400 and no longer plays competitive tennis. It would be just a waste of time and would show your unawareness of the quality of the Duke program. Not trying to put you down, just saying the team is really good and recruits elite players. This is responding to the above comment, not saying the OP suggested otherwise.
Sounds like you are on the same page anyways having given it up to focus on school and wanting to join the club team. I was in the 300ish range in the USTA national rankings too, played club at Duke as a Pratt student.
I don’t think it’s a waste of time. For each team the coach has to balance athletic and academic targets. Sometimes they will take one academic superstar to balance out the rest of the team.
I don’t know what targets are set for Duke Tennis as this varies from team to team. This is why it’s best to talk to the coach directly.