Probabilitize me for Ivies and other colleges

Chance Me / Match Me!
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<p>New fake word invented by me to avoid using the word 'chance'</p>

<p>Asian Male, CA, public high school</p>

<p>Intended Math major</p>

<p>GPA: 4.8xx
Class Rank: 1 of 500~</p>

<p>SAT1: Math 800, Writing 690, CR 650
ACT: 33</p>

<p>SATII's
Chemistry: 800
Math level 2: 790
Physics: 750</p>

<p>AP scores:
Calculus BC: 5
Calculus AB subscore: 5
Physics B: 5
Physics C Mechanics: 4
Physics C Electricity and Magnetism: 5
Chemistry: 5
English Lang: 5
US History: 5
Environmental Science: 4 =/
European History: 4</p>

<p>Have also taken Linear Algebra, Calculus 1, Intro to Chemistry, Speech and Mandarin at local community college, planning to take Multivariate Calculus and Differential Equations and Statistics next semester.</p>

<p>Senior Schedule:
AP Bio
AP Stats
AP Gov/Econ
AP Physics C Mech/E+M
AP English
Multivariate Calculus
Differential Equations</p>

<p>National AP Scholar as a Junior.
Science Bowl captain/ president of science club (1 yr)
Spanish Honors Society (3 yrs)
Peer tutor in math/science/spanish (3 yrs)
Volunteer at church and senior care home (several years 6-7 ish)
Youth ministry president (1 yr)
In church orchestra, violinist (4 yrs)
Helped introduce AMC to school, missed AIME by one question
UCSF research internship (9 weeks), anticipate in joining a conference after submitting abstract, maybe try to publish in a journal
Getting Associate's Degree in Mathematics with high honors from community college by this December (before I get my high school diploma)
Second highest score in AMATYC (math contest held at junior colleges)
Varsity Badminton</p>

<p>Recs: should be good, asking Linear Algebra professor</p>

<p>Applying to these schools:</p>

<p>Berkeley
UCLA
Stanford
Harvard
Princeton
MIT
Cal Tech
Cambridge</p>

2

<p>How do these happen?</p>

<p>GPA: 4.8xx
Class Rank: 1 of 500~
SAT1: Math 800, Writing 690, CR 650
English Lang: 5</p>

<p>Retake the SAT! Given your grades, rank, and AP scores, you can’t tell me that you can’t get the W and CR up to 720 (at least) each.</p>

<p>Assuming an increase in W and CR…</p>

<p>Berkeley - Match
UCLA - Match
Stanford - Match (but it’s always a guess…)
Harvard - Match (but it’s always a guess…)
Princeton - Match (but it’s always a guess…)
MIT - Match (but it’s always a guess…)
Cal Tech - Match (but it’s always a guess…)
Cambridge - Unknown</p>

<p>Varsity Badminton - Seriously? You’re my hero. LOL</p>

<p>You’ve got great stats and based your ECs you seem like a great person. I don’t know if you can get into ANY college, but any college would be lucky to have you.</p>

<p>Chance me back! <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/757286-chance-me-please-not-sure-where-i-fit.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/757286-chance-me-please-not-sure-where-i-fit.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>Ok. What if I don’t increase? My ACT scores should stand right?</p>

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<p>The 33 won’t help at the privates. I think you have an excellent shot at the UCs but would need to bring the CR well into the 700s to have any real shot at the others.</p>

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<p>So should I bother retaking the ACT and aim for a 34-35 as well as retaking the SAT?</p>

<p>Since the September registration deadline is this Friday-- I don’t want to end up getting a 31 or 32, but yet is 33 good enough?</p>

<p>Also, besides just scores/GPA, how are my extracurriculars/activities?</p>

<p>Sorry about being so test score oriented…</p>

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<p>The schools are test oriented. You are in an extremely competitive pool–Asian from CA–your scores need to be high. Since there’s now score choice and most won’t see scores you don’t want them to, focus on either the SATI or the ACT.</p>

<p>Your ECs are probably not HYPSMC level to be honest. If you don’t really love Cal and UCLA, I would add a couple of schools between them and HYPSM. I’d also add a third UC as an absolute safety.</p>

<p>Keep in mind that at these schools the vast majority of vals are rejected. So are the majority of those scoring 2400. The acceptance rate for the unhooked is well under 5% at all of the privates listed here. </p>

<p>You need higher scores and a brilliant essay for any shot.</p>

<p>For others I’ll add that the mistake here was not taking your obvious math/science skillls to national level competitions.</p>

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<p>So I should retake the ACT then this September and aim for a 34-35?</p>

<p>What about superscoring for ACT or SAT?</p>

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<p>Not sure about superscoring for ACT, but try doing that for the SAT. Retake it, and boost up CR and Writing. Everything else is very impressive, but UC’s usually use SAT as cutoffs (from what I’ve read on CC), whereas privates use SAT scores, but not as stringently.</p>

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<p>At CalTech ACT 33 is bottom quartile, at the other privates it hovers around the 50th%-tile. Does the breakdown of your ACT raise a similar “verbal” question as your SAT CR and Writing numbers do? </p>

<p>Your In-State California status makes UCB and UCLA likely, though I’d recommend adding UCSD as a safety. As for HSPM, I suspect you’ll be considered, at best, an average candidate; given they are some of the toughest schools to get into, that makes them a roll of the dice. I know very little specific about CalTech, but that 25th%-tile makes it a long shot. I know nothing at all about Cambridge.</p>

<p>As far as retaking the ACT/SAT, can you reasonably expect to dramatically improve your English/CR/W numbers without sacrificing your math? 650/690 may or may not sink your apps to the super-elites, then again it certainly does give them an excuse to reject you.</p>

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<p>ACT was:</p>

<p>math 35
english 33
reading 34/35 if superscored
science 31</p>

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<p>Any other advice?</p>

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<p>Hmm… PM me your location in cali, and I might be able to offer some SAT/ACT prep.</p>

<p>You’ll definitely want high standardized testing scores, 35/2300 range for the Ivies.
Otherwise, it looks as if your school has some serious grade inflation. 4.8xx for all of high school? If it’s junior year GPA only, then that’s highly possible, but I have trouble believing 4.8 projected across 4 years.</p>

<p>Your degree can’t hurt you if you’re planning on majoring in math, but there are plenty of asian males from California with similar GPAs and multiple USAMO qualifications who get rejected from Ivies. </p>

<p>UCs are definitely on target, and may even be safety if you consider Davis, SB, and SC</p>

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<p>Will I be able to get into Berkeley and UCLA with these current scores/stats?</p>

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<p>Possibly. I’m concerned about your 4.8 though. It throws up the red flag of grade inflation.</p>

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<p>That is academic weighted GPA. So that does not count PE and the non academic classes.</p>

<p>Sorry should have clarified. Otherwise its like a 4.4 if you count PE and those classes.</p>

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<p>Ah… that makes much more sense. You have a really good shot then.</p>

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<p>^ Thanks. Much more reassuring.</p>

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<p>I would also recommend that you retake the SAT. If you are able to increase your SAT score, then I would say you have a very good chance at gaining acceptance to some of those colleges. Best of luck!</p>

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<p>I’d focus on the ACT given the breakdown. The science should be easy to raise with practice.</p>

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<p>try to get those CR/W scores up. Other than that you are well rounded and have a chance at these schools.</p>