Relative chancing!!!

<p>Alright, on Naviance it says that I have a pretty good shot at Northwestern. Where I'm at, there are 5 people who got accepted and a waitlist +/- .5 GPA from where I'm at. </p>

<p>My stats are a 4.27 Weighted GPA (The one shown on Naviance)
3.66 UW (Yikes!)
How bad would this be? I had a bad Sophmore year, and it took alot to get my Weighted GPA to where it is now</p>

<p>32 ACT </p>

<p>The colleges that I'm thinking are UVA and UChicago, relativily if I have a good chance at Northwestern, what are my chances with them?</p>

<p>Whatever happens, I would love to know, because I have roughly the same stats, with .5 higher weighted and .5 lower unweighted (Also because of a bad sophomore year =P )</p>

<p>oops, I mean .05 range</p>

<p>Your gpa/scores are within range of any Ivy League or elite peer school, but as is the case at the other Top 12 schools in this country, Northwestern University and U Chicago utilize a holistic approach to puzzle together the class of accomplished freshman admits (NU receives 30000+ aps a year). </p>

<p>You stats are a iittle on the low side for NU or U Chicago, meaning you may need to shine brighter on the “fit and contribution” side of the adcom evaluation (EC’s, essays).</p>

<p>You probably should not get too caught up in the numbers game though - at this level, you will need to offer a lot more information about your SAT II’s, AP’s, course load, rigor of you high school, writing ability, letters of rec, etc. and especially your EC’s (showing effective, constructive use of almost all of your HS freetime) in order to possibly chance you for one of these schools.</p>

<p>Took 1 AP Class last year, got a 4 in Amerh His
750 SATII for Amer His
Taking 5 AP this year, and plan to take 5-6 next year.
Rigor is pretty high, I’m in the top 10%
EC: </p>

<p>150 hours of research at a hospital
50+ Hours of volunteering at a information desk at the same one
XC, non-captain
Chess club</p>

<p>Your academics seem solid. Not sure if this is just an incomplete listing, but if your EC’s consist of research (perhaps this can be flushed out better through essays), cross country and a member of the chess club (and the typical volunteer hours) , then I would say your EC’s are relatively underwhelming and not typical of the appliants that receive positive admission outcomes at Northwestern or U Chicago. </p>

<p>I would rate both NU and UChicago as reaches, but I would definitely apply.</p>

<p>I think your chances at UVA are better.</p>

<p>What ECs are these colleges looking for?</p>

<p>For Top 12 schools like NU or U Chicago, EC’s and essays are key to being able to standout against the 1000’s of applicants that will be valedictorians, perfect 2400 SAT scores, 4.0 UW GPA’s, etc. </p>

<p>As a general rule you will need to first show constructive, productive, use of your free time throughout high school including your summers (one spring sport or a club with a 1-2 hour a week commitment will not be near enough). </p>

<p>These adcoms at a minimum will look for well rounded student that is active in multiple areas of interest from musical instruments, to sports, several clubs, dance, honor societies, etc - and even better that has a passion in a few of these interestst that is easily identified by time commitments and achievement. </p>

<p>Leadership is also key, they want to see that you have not just shown up but that your are looked to by other students as a leader. </p>

<p>The very first post at the top of this forum may be helpful in answering this question for you… <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/210497-those-ecs-weak-so-whats-good.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/210497-those-ecs-weak-so-whats-good.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;