Should I even bother applying? Low GPA, Good ACT/ECs.

Colleges and Universities A-Z Cornell University
1

<p>I attend an extremely rigorous high school in California. Low overall, big upward trend. Good Standardized Testing and great Extracurriculars.</p>

<p>Freshman: 2.7/3.0 (3 Honors)
Soph: 3.0 (3.2 W) /2.7 (2.8 W) - 1 weighted (1 AP)
Junior: 3.67/3.67 [4.2 Weighted] - 3 Weighted (3 AP)
Senior year: 3.67+ [4.3+ Weighted] - 4 Weighted (4 AP)</p>

<p>Took Intro to Comp Sci and Programming in C at a community college over the summer, got A's in both.</p>

<p><em>Computer Engineering/Science Major</em></p>

<p>UC Weighted (Soph + Junior Weighted GPA) GPA - 3.64
Overall Cumulative Unweighted: A dismal 3.128</p>

<p>ACT - (Took it twice, got 33 each f m l but 35 superscore):
September 2012: 33 Composite - 35 English 36 Math 32 Reading 30 Science
October 2012: 33 Composite - 29 English 34 Math 34 Reading 35 Science</p>

<h2>35 Superscore. Not sure W T H happened to English second time, possibly a bubbling error? Never gotten 29 in English while practicing, I was crying when I saw it lol.</h2>

<p>So best in 1 sitting was 33, which is about 2190/2200 on SAT Scale.</p>

<p>SAT II:
Math Level 2: 790
Bio M: 710</p>

<p>Extracurriculars:
- 150+ hours (2 years as teen tech volunteer at library)
- DECA - Won 3rd for math marketing in Nor Cal, and 4th for presentation, 8th overall for Advertising Campaign at states
**Last week, I found out I won the DECA Idea Challenge, my team placed #1/400+ other teams internationally for our innovation.
- YouTube: I use YouTube to express my passion for technology with people around the world. My helpful tech guides and reviews have received over 1.29 MILLION views by people around the world and my channel has over 2,900 subscribers.
- Blogged on website about mobile apps for 2 years</p>

<p>** The upward trend was caused when I visited India and realized I'm taking everything for granted. I realized I needed to make the most of my situation, and thus I started applying myself junior year.</p>

<p>** I will try to highlight my passion for technology in my application, via essays or whatever. I express my passion for technology via YouTube and help thousands of people on a daily basis. So far, I've got over 2,900 subscribers and 1.29 million views.</p>

<p>What do you guys think about my chances? Should I bother applying?</p>

2

<p>I sort of skimmed the post so I may have missed it, but does your school rank or send out a profile, and where would you fall relative to your peers?</p>

<p>I know that ~90% of accepted people are top 10% in their high school.</p>

<p>I think your gpa will hurt you the most.</p>

3

<p>I think you should give it a shot. What you want to come across is that you have the ability to succeed (shows on your test scores) and you DESIRE to succeed (your junior and senior grades). You need to have some awesome LORs from your teachers and great essays (personal statement). </p>

<p>I know of a student who had a lot of disciplinary problems freshman and sophomore years (expelled from few boarding schools), but really got himself together junior and senior years. He ended up at UPenn, graduated with honors and has a great job now. Adcoms like to see students who can turn themselves around. </p>

<p>Good luck.</p>

4

<p>Our school does not rank. I’m 100% sure I’m not in the top 10% of my school though. </p>

<p>So you oldfort - you recommend applying?
Does Cornell superscore ACT? I’ll have a 35 ACT (35 36 34 35) then: ~2340 SAT scale.</p>

5

<p>You have nothing to lose. If you were my kid I would encourage you to try, but I would also advise you to have other options. There are schools that do not use freshman grades. Keep up your senior grades.</p>

6

<p>Yep, I’m trying! I think I can pull off at least a 3.67 unweighted with 4 weighted courses. This is the hardest courseload I’ve ever taken :(</p>

<p>I’ll give it a shot then. Thanks :)</p>

7

<p>I think the other stuff definitely makes up for the GPA part! If you don’t get in, I have no chance</p>

8

<p>Wow guys, haha. Didn’t think my ACT + Extracurriculars were <em>that</em> good. </p>

<p>Anyone else have an opinion. It’s okay to be blunt - I’m not expecting to be admitted :(.</p>

9

<p>I applied to Cornell ED with a little better GPA (pretty close), but worse ACT scores than you (31). My rank is also top 18% (bad). You have no shot if you don’t apply. Go for it!</p>

10

<p>What your GPA and scores show is that you are a smart kid who was either lazy or had no motivation in school. Putting it this way, it’s better to have low grades in school and a high ACT/SAT score than have it the other way. You might come off as being intelligent enough to be bored by school work rather than go to a really easy school that gives out A+s freely.</p>

11

<p>I think it’s worth applying. Your chances certainly aren’t all that high. GPA does matter a lot. If your high school is as rigorous as you say it is, your chances may even be better than you think.</p>

12

<p>You should definitely apply. You are in the ballpark whether or not it goes your way. Your GPA is not as strong as it could be but what is important is that you have trended upwardly and taken a progressively challenging course load. Given that your school is a top school, it would be important that that be communicated, normally through a school profile sheet that your college counselor would submit. If you have a school full of superperformers, some are going to have lower grades because not all can get As. GPA is a measure of performance relative to your peers, not simply a reflection of effort/intellligence. It will be important that you point out what each area of your experience tells about you.</p>

13

<p>K guys. Looks like I’ll apply to Cornell as my reach school.</p>

<p>Does Cornell superscore ACT? If so, I’ll have a 35 ACT Superscore (35 E 36 M 34 R 35 S)</p>

14

<p>Dont sell yourself short. You should def be willing to reach to a couple of strong schools.</p>

15

<p>Yup, Stanford and Cornell are my reach. Thanks for all the support guys! It’ll be a miracle if I get in :P</p>