SMU President's Scholarship Chances

Colleges and Universities A-Z Southern Methodist University
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1

Hi! I was curious if anyone could provide insight on criteria to be considered for the President’s Scholarship/if I have a chance. I read online per the SMU website that one should have:

" * Exceptional achievement on the SAT or ACT*

  • A minimum of 20 high school academic units in a challenging curriculum, including AP/IB and honors courses, two years of a single foreign language, and advanced coursework in math and science
  • A high school rank in the top 10 percent of the graduating class
  • A demonstrated commitment to engagement in school and/or community activities"

They also say the median scholarship invitee had a 1500 SAT. That’s the median though, not the average. I only have a 1460 at the moment.

My profile:

White, Female

Rank (still not finalized) - top 10 in terms of individuals, top 2%.

UW GPA- 3.97ish I believe (1 B+ in honors chem 1st semester sophomore year…school doesn’t do UW), 4.48 W (mid year will be 4.53)

SAT: 1460 (740 RW, 720 Math), taking November and December administrations to raise Math

AP Classes : 5 total (School only offers 8. Counselor is saying max rigor for me) - APUSH (4), AP Lit (4), 12th: AP Lang, AP Calc AB, AP Psych

Dual Enrollment (all As): 3 credits college spanish, 9 credits in business/entrepreneurship completed, IN PROGRESS: 3 credits college spanish, 3 credits business (management)

Not taking a science class this year so I’ve only done 3 years of honors science: possibly one of my biggest pitfalls.

Extracurriculars (i’m going to be vague for privacy):

  1. FBLA (9-12): State President (12), National Council Position (vague) — 12th, Chapter President (12), Chapter VP (10-11), State Officer (11th, again vague)
  2. Paid Social Media Intern (11-12): ~12 hours a week, spearheaded 1st social media platform strategy; drove 1.1 million+ audience
  3. Founder and Owner of an LLC (10-12): manage social media marketing & advertising on Instagram & Pinterest, posting 4x weekly; create clothing designs; fulfill orders; developed website
  4. Student Government (10-12): Secretary (11), Class President (12)

could not run for class president until 12th because only 12th has a council

  1. Varsity XC (11), JV(10); Varsity Track (9-10): huge time commitment including time in the summer. Semi-State team qualifier for XC
  2. Key Club (9-12): usual key club stuff, just a member
  3. Gymnastics Team Manager (10-12): attend 12-14 meets & some practices; move floor mats; sort score cards; play floor music; time beam routines; facilitate gymnast stats keeping
  4. Local Entrepreneurial Leadership Program (11-12): was a mentee in 11th, but now serve as student mentor, created a community project to teach younger students coding and received funding
  5. HS Fellow, Yale Entrepreneurial Society (11-12): learned the principles of creating startups; developing venture focused on (vague)…this was in the summer and ended but my group is still doing stuff and we meet so it’s current
  6. Yearbook (9-10): Designed pages and photographed/reported on school events; worked with staff of 15 other students. Was turned into an elective class after my sophomore year…couldn’t take if I wanted to be competitive.

Awards:

  1. 4x FBLA State Champion (State/Regional)
  2. 1x FBLA National Runner-Up; 2x State Runner-Up (International, National, State)
  3. 14x Academic Distinction (School)
  4. Community Project 2x Grant Recipient (State/Regional)
  5. National Honor Society (School)

Recs:

  1. Guidance Counselor: thinks I have a stellar resume and knows my teachers like me (I have a long story why LOL that had to do with me not wanting to take my apush exam because I thought I was going to fail)
  2. APUSH/AP Psych teacher: she’s a good letter writer and I was one of the few people who got a 4 on the exam under her (she normally has 5s but last year was rough with COVID haha) but one time in psych we were talking about social loathers and she straight up was like “I know (my name) would not be a social loather…she’s the one who would be getting everything done.” I feel like she really likes me and she wrote my rec in just a week! She gave me a distinction award.
  3. Honors Lit teacher (sophomore year): gave me academic distinction and wrote me a rec for a major scholarship…accidentally sent it to me instead of the foundation so naturally I read it. I think it is decent. Emphasizes my love of learning.
2

You have a shot. Write excellent essays to solidify your chances. I know a student who was a finalist with less impressive ECs (higher SAT/ACT), but her essays were excellent.

3

Interesting, I wonder how much the stats play a role. I worked hard on my essays and I think they touch on some aspects barely anyone knows about concerning SMU (don’t want to say here but I can PM you and explain…) so if that works in my favor I think I could have a chance. (And what I talked about wasn’t SUPER random, I tied it back to me and my identity. It’s hard to explain without going into too much detail). I really just need to somehow raise my test scores I feel like. I’ll have to come back here and update though! I think they communicate in February with the interview invites?

4

Stats play a big role but so does interest in SMU and leadership, or ability to be a strong influence at SMU. Very solid academics. Then the FBLA (?) high level leadership and class president stands out. Also, I like the social media intern and influencer work for entrepreneurship. FYI, they want a well rounded class of Presidential and Hunt Scholars in terms of majors, background, etc. I think you’ve got a very good shot at an interview.

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