Prospective Junior, Am I On The Right Track?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
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Hi all!

I’m currently a Junior in High School, and sign ups for Senior classes are coming up soon. Cal Poly SLO is my dream school, and although my chances are slim, I just wanted to see what I can do to potentially boost my chances. This is not a “Chance Me”, this post is just to see what I should do for my Senior year (although I won’t mind it if you guys tell me my chances!)

Want to Major In: Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or Aerospace Engineering

GPA

Unweighted (9-11): 3.97
Weighted (9-11): 4.00
CSU GPA (I have a little trouble calculating this, we don’t count calculate PE courses?): 4.10
Class Rank: 63/636

-I talked to admissions yesterday about my CSU GPA. However, they told me they don’t use the CSU GPA? I’m guessing that they calculate it themselves, and the closest thing we can use to calculate Poly’s GPA is the CSU GPA…

Transcript (Just shows Course Rigor, you can skip this)

Freshman
English 9 CP: A/A+
Geometry: A/A
World History H: A/A
Biology H: A/A+
French 1: A/A
Band Wind: A/A
Band PE: A (Band PE is only one semester)

Freshman Summer
Health: A

Sophomore
English 10 CP: A/A
Algebra 2 H: B/A
Chemistry H: A+/A+
French 2: A/A+
Art Fundamental: A+/A+
Band Wind: A/A
Band PE: A

Junior
English 11 CP: A
Trig/ Pre-Cal H: A
CP US History: A-
French 3 H: A+
Band Wind: A
AP Psychology: A-
Band PE: A

EC
I know Cal Poly barely considers EC’s so I’ll keep it short. Key Club, Mathletes, Asian Club, Engineering Club, CSF, Marching Band, Astronomy Club, etc. I also usher at my local church.

  • indicates a leadership position

-I have not taken the SAT/ ACT yet. It’s soon, wish me luck!

So, this is basically it! My GPA is a little below average, but what I’m most concerned about is my Class Rigor, and soon my SAT/ ACT. My course load as been very light, because I have always been afraid of getting a “B” (which I did my Sophomore year). As for standardized tests, I’ve been practicing hard this past month, but I don’t think it’s going any higher (<1200), and my SAT is next week. I’ll be practicing for my SAT again in May, and my ACT in April. I’m also taking the Math 2 subject test in June.

So, a couple of questions.

If I take my SAT and ACT again in October (I’ll be studying hard this summer), there’s a chance my scores will not be put into ED, correct?

And my other questions pertain to what classes I should take next year. I know Cal Poly has these extra “bonus points”, and I want to maximize my chances. Does Cal Poly still counts Senior Classes for the bonus points?

Senior
I will be taking these classes:
Band Wind
AP Calculus AB
US Gov CP/ Econ CP (both 1 semester)
Physics 1 AP
English 12 CP vs. English 12 ERWC? I don’t know what to choose.

However, I do not know what should be my last class. Help?
Stats AP?
French 4 AP?
Anatomy H?

I was told that Trig H is considered an Advanced Math (Even though it’s not an AP?), so I’ll have 4 semesters of Advanced Math if I take Calc next year. So probably not Stats, because that would grant me 6 semesters when I could fill that with something else (like lab science).

I have 4 semesters of Lab Science (One mistake I made signing up last year, didn’t take a science). So I could double up my sciences to get the bonus points for that? Anatomy H and Physics 1? And it doesn’t need to be an AP/IB class to qualify for a these bonus points right?

And since I already have 6 semesters of language, maybe I should just choose French 4, but I know that Advanced Math and Science are worth more (in terms of bonus points), so probably not this option.

So overall:
I could either choose 4 semesters of Adv. Math and 8 semesters of Lab Sci, OR 6 semesters of Adv. Math and 6 semesters of Lab Sci. Which would be more advantageous for me, considering I am going into engineering? Keep in note that AP Stats is AP, and Anatomy is Honors, so course rigor is less if I choose to double up on science.

How much does Course Rigor account for when applying for Cal Poly? Did choosing easier classes my Sophomore and Junior year ruin my chances? I’m a little nervous…

Thank you for reading my absurdly long post (I’m sorry! I just wanted you guys to have enough information. If you guys know of any other appropriate colleges for me, let me know! I think UCB and UCLA are out of the question, and only colleges in California please! But if you can help me out in any way, I would definitely appreciate it. I’ve been a long time lurker at CC and I’ve seen how kind and considerate you guys are!

Oh, and please don’t “baby” anything either, I appreciate any kind of criticism! If you have any questions, feel free to ask!
Thank you!

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Use the UC/CSU calculator but add in your a-g 9th grade courses with no extra honors points and you have your SLO GPA: http://rogerhub.com/gpa-calculator-uc/
Course rigor will hurt your GPA since you will not get the maximum 8 semester Honors points. Your grades are very competitive and it looks like the courses you are taking will help with the bonus points. Go for the science and math bonus points if possible.

SAT/ACT will definitely need to be competitive 2000+/31+. Until you get your test scores, it is hard to recommend any schools other than your local Cal State as a Safety. Your GPA if you maintain till the end of the year, should make you competitive for some of the UC’s, but which ones will depend upon your final UC/CSU GPA and SAT/ACT scores. Keep up the good work.

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The rigor points max out at 750 even though there are 950 up for grabs. You should have all of them. Take the final class that interests you most.

Standard tests are games, not tests of knowledge per se. They require practice. Specifically, do lots of times practice sections and spend as much or more time correcting them. Go over every question, wrong and right to make sure you understand how the answer was arrived at. You will begin to see patterns. Rinse, repeat.

ECs don’t count much, but there will be less than one MCA point that separates the last person who got in from the first person who didn’t. You have leadership. You can get some easy points by getting a job, even if it’s just an hour or two a week, that’s major related. There’s nothing to say that you have to be compensated. You could establish an after school internship in a computer lab. It just has to be regular and work.

Good luck.

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Thank you guys so much, I really appreciate it! I’ll make sure to study hard and excel in all my courses. Thank you!

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Everything definitely on track. Your grades are pretty good, but you are going to suffer a bit because you didn’t take many AP classes in Science and Math. If you can get above a 2150 on SAT or a 32 on the ACT I definitely think you stand a great chance for Cal Poly! Good luck, study hard, and I am sure you will get in. Cal Poly was my dream school and I was in your shoes! Now that I am a freshman I can’t explain how much I love it and how much I’m glad my hard work in High School paid off.