Some Swat questions!

Colleges and Universities A-Z Swarthmore College
1

<p>Hey, I've been a lurker on the Swarthmore forum for awhile now and have a couple of questions I would like some input on:</p>

<p>Would I be at a disadvantage if I didn't submit SAT-II scores and just sent my ACT (33 comp, 34 Eng., 36 Rgd, 30 Math, 33 Sci.)?</p>

<p>Do I have a decent shot at Swat with a 33 ACT (no SAT), 97% GPA UW, top 5ish%, and good ECs (Stu. Co. president, lots of leadership)? BTW I'm a white male from NY (not the city at least)... so thats not good.</p>

<p>When should I visit? Would it be absolutely terrible to visit over summer?</p>

<p>And could anybody comment on the sense of community at Swarthmore, its one of the things that really appeals to me about the school!</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

2

<p>I though of another question... sorry!</p>

<p>How is peace and conflict studies? I'm really into IR and wonder if its more like a liberal-artsy approach to world politics. My other academic interest is anthropology. In the sociology/anthropology major do you concentrate on one of them?</p>

<p>Thanks again!</p>

3

<p>Hey,
I think that the admissions office would assume that if someone from MYC doesn't submit SATIIs its because they did really badly, so if that is not the case, I would submit them.</p>

<p>I don't really know about visiting over the summer - you wont get a sense of what the community is like, but you will see the campus...</p>

<p>Soc./ Anth. majors are not required to specialize in one or the other, and there is no formal separation of which course in the department is soc and which is anth. It is a fantastic major, btw. Peace and conflict studies is an interdisciplinary major, meaning you would end up taking courses probably from political science, history, religions etc. I'm not exactly sure what 'more liberal artsy' means... good luck!</p>

4

<p>I am pretty sure that SAT IIs are required, so not submitting them will put you at disadvantage.</p>

<p>Do search for the sense of community in Swat forum -- you'll find more info then you can possibly want.</p>

<p>Visiting in the summer is better then never, but you will miss the most important (IMHO) part, which is sitting on classes and talking to students.</p>

5

<p>If you submit an ACT w/ the Writing portion I think you can forgo the SATIIs, but otherwise you need to submit them. It looks a little odd for a kid from NY to submit an ACT instead of an SAT with SATIIs, though.</p>

<p>Anyone with median grades/activities/etc for Swat - like you - stands a chance, you just have to separate yourself from the pack somehow. What is unique about you that you could contribute to Swarthmore? Write a great Why Swat, and it'll help you out. Applying ED would help too.</p>

<p>Visiting during the summer isn't bad, but only if you plan an overnight or at least a visit in the fall too. You won't get to see real campus life - students, classes, food, etc - unless you're there during the schoolyear.</p>

<p>As for that campus life, as the poster above me said, you can find plenty of posts about community all over this forum. I know I felt the sense of community all the times that I visited, and I've felt it since being accepted in December...so many of us from the class of 2011 already know each other, forming a community before we're even on campus. It's pretty amazing, just how well Swatties get along with each other.</p>

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<p>
[quote]
Would I be at a disadvantage if I didn't submit SAT-II scores and just sent my ACT (33 comp, 34 Eng., 36 Rgd, 30 Math, 33 Sci.)?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>I am not an admissions officer so don't take my word for it (I'd hate to be wrong!), but reading the Swat admissions page, it looks like the ACT tests will suffice, as long as they include the writing component. They do recommend the SAT II math for potential engineering majors.</p>

<p>Median ACT scores for last fall's enrolled first year class were 31s across the board (Comp, English, Math). 75th percentile was 34s across the board. See page 12 of the Common Data Set:</p>

<p><a href="http://www.swarthmore.edu/Admin/institutional_research/cds2006.pdf%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.swarthmore.edu/Admin/institutional_research/cds2006.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>BTW, there are a lot of Swarthmore students around during the summer. Working in the library, the science labs, the admissions office and so on a so forth. Of course, it's not the same as when school as in session, but you can find students to strike up conversations with. If you do an interview or the info session, odds are it will be with a rising Swarthmore senior.</p>

<p>IMO, the sense of community and respect (students to and from faculty to and from administration to and from alumni and to and from the traditions of the school) is probably Swarthmore's most defining quality, often in ways that students probably don't even fully appreciate.</p>

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<p>Thanks All!</p>

<p>I <em>am</em> scheduled to take the Lit. and US Hist. SAT-IIs this weekend. My Lit. test practices are looking OK but my US Hist. test is looking kinda iffy (I'm using Barron's though...) Soooo, I'm not having my scores sent anywhere just in case I do poorly. </p>

<p>I took your advice to heart and am planning a visit on Columbus Day weekend and going to do an interview, class visit, overnight, the whole she-bang. Ha, I can't wait and it's in October, lol (I love planning trips)!</p>

<p>Also here is my complete stats (sorry, I hate chances posts too...) what can I do to improve my chances:</p>

<p>STATS:</p>

<p>Gender: M
College Class Year: 2012
High School: Public
High School Type: rarely sends grads to top schools
Will apply for financial aid: Yes</p>

<p>Academics:</p>

<p>GPA - Unweighted: 96.30 (4.0 on a 4.0 scale)
GPA - Weighted: 98.60
Class Rank: 12/180 (7%, will try to get into 5%)</p>

<p>Scores:</p>

<p>ACT- 33 composite (might retake for a 34)
Will not take SAT: reasoning
Will take SATIIs this June</p>

<p>Extracurriculars:</p>

<p>Student Senate all 3yrs (Treas. Soph. ,VP Junior, I am the PRESIDENT-ELECT! Woohoo!)
MUN all 3yrs (have won minor awards at some conferences)
Peer Leadership all 3yrs
Band all 3yrs (all county band on french horn)
Musical Theater since the beginning of time (have had many lead roles)
President of Drama Club Junior yr.
Principal Advisory Council soph and junior
Building Planning team 11th (one of only two students selected to participate)
Interned at the county legislature
Was recently inducted into NHS
Have won a few essay and poetry contests
JV Soccer fresh. and soph.
Varsity indoor track junior (won a NYS scholar athlete award)
Worked at a camp summer between soph-junior yrs
Was a delegate to the National association of student councils fresh yr
Will be attending Boy's State!!! Yay!
Will also get another summer job this summer
Have been very active in my church (alter server, lector and eucheristic minister)
Have done <em>some</em> community service through the church youth group
Will do (a lot) more community service this summer</p>

<p>A few explanations:</p>

<p>Class Rank: Would be much higher but I've taken a lot of UW extra courses which severely lowered my GPA. Our Val takes like 5 courses in a 9per day, no extras. If only core academic classes figured in I would defiantly be in the top 5. </p>

<p>Course Load: Our school doesn't offer AP/IB. Instead, all of our upper level courses are dual enrollment through the local community college. I have or will have taken all available upper level courses except for Calculus (due to scheduling) and Spanish (because I take French). This means that when I graduate I will have about 8 or 9 college credits (if they transfer!). I have taken the most demanding course load possible. We have a nine period day and I have 8 credits a year plus a required gym (no sh or lunch period). I have taken all possible honors and lots of electives. </p>

<p>Essays: Should be great, I've already started working on a few, lol.</p>

<p>Recs: Also should be great, I've had my principal write me a rec. before and he writes a really good one!</p>

<p>Thanks for your help!</p>

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<p>Write good essays, and you'll have a reasonable chance to get in.</p>

9

<p>davnasca:</p>

<p>On the class rank and community college courses, the best approach is to make sure that your guidance counselor covers that in the recommendation letter that goes with your transcript.</p>

<p>Things to consider for your why Swat essay and your visit:</p>

<p>a) You should meet with the Theater department or go to a theater group rehearsal or an accappella group rehearsal when you visit. Get yourself acclimated to those things at Swarthmore and it might be useful in a Why Swat essay where the goal is to match up your "stuff" with specific things that Swatties do.</p>

<p>b) If possible, I'd go to the appropriate religious service/gathering on campus. I'm totally guessing, but I have a hunch Swarthmore would probably be happy to see more students actively involved in campus religious activities.</p>

<p>You look like you've got some solid ECs and that you are an active leader in your school. That will really help.</p>

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<p>Thanks interesteddad! I'll defiantly visit a some EC groups when I go, probably not music though, I'm trying to distance myself from that scene.. too draining! Should I try to retake my ACT for a 34+ and reach that magic 75th %tile?</p>

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<p>I don't think there is anything magical about the 75th percentile. As they stand right now, your scores would neither get you accepted nor keep you from being accepted. I don't think that would fundamentally change at the 75th percentile. </p>

<p>However, I don't know how many times you've taken the ACT so far and your scores may go up senior year....so I wouldn't want to say "don't bother".</p>

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<p>That was my first time and I had pneumonia.</p>

<p>Any other weaknesses?</p>

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<p>davnasca:</p>

<p>My daughter only took the SATs once....she got snowed out of two different test dates. It didn't keep her out of Swarthmore, but in retrospect, it could have been costly if she hadn't gotten into Swat ED. I think it might have hurt her chances at some merit aid money at other schools. The goal of merit aid is to increase the school's "stats", so it can be awarded based on some fairly rigid SAT thresholds -- that kick in right around Swat's 75th percentile.</p>

<p>Then again, Swat may have seen that she only took it once and said, "good for her!" Who knows?</p>

<p>I don't see any "weaknesses" in your stuff. However, it's not as much about "weaknesses" as it is giving a school a positive reason to accept you. You, along with all the other hopefuls, need to spend some time thinking about what you want to emphasize on your application. As a challenge, think about what you would want an admissions officer to write down about you if they were forced to distill it all into three bullet points on an index card to present to the committee. That exercise will force you to take a laundry list of ECs and start grouping them, focusing, etc.</p>

<p>Read "The Gatekeepers", a book about an admissions cycle at Wesleyan, to start thinking about applications like an admissions officer. This in turn helps put together an application that is easy for them to get their arms around.</p>

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<p>Is there any one side that I should "play-up"?</p>

<p>I mean, leadership is my strong suit, but I'm sure Swat sees its fair share of student leaders during the admissions season. </p>

<p>Should I build on religious involvement? Send creative writing samples? </p>

<p>Thanks again Interesteddad! You are a wealth of knowledge- both Swat specific and otherwise!</p>

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<p>Anyone... please?</p>

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<p>Try to do a great job on the written/essay portion of your application; get someone with some expertise in writing to look it over and offer criticism. Get some good letters of recommendation. Good letters of recommendation would be those from college professors or administrators from another institution or those from community leaders in your area. Your academic stats and extracurriculars are just fine, and are sufficient to keep you from getting rejected on their account; now the idea is to give yourself a boost by outperforming other applicants in the other areas of the application.</p>

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<p>Are you planning to play a sport at Swat? That could help separate you from the pack.
From my limited experience, you read like a Swattie to me: competitive course load for your school, leader, good writer, politically active.
Pick a couple of things that you want to focus on and sell yourself through those activities. Passion for something is a strong point.
As others have said, ED helps.</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

18

<p>Thanks for the help guys! </p>

<p>Just one more question, who should I get to do my letters of recommendation?</p>

<p>Here is the list of people I was thinking of for teacher recs. and pros/cons-</p>

<p>English teacher- pros- good writer, knows me well, I did really good in his class , I've won writing contests this year / cons- I don't plan on majoring in English, many people submit recs from Eng teachers probably</p>

<p>Anthropology Teacher- pros- did best out of the class in his class, knows me well, we joke a lot and have, of all things, random anthropology inside jokes, I plan on majoring in Anthro. / cons- I'm friends with his son so he is kinda a family friend</p>

<p>US Hist teacher- pros- did good in his class, he knows me well / cons- don't plan on majoring in USH</p>

<p>Chem teacher- did really good in his class, would present a different math/sci side of me, I really do like chem and we talk about it outside of class sometimes / cons- has never seen my writing, doesn't know me on such a personal level, I just skipped his class today... </p>

<p>And I would also like to submit a supplemental rec. (or two) from:</p>

<p>The building principal- pros- knows me super well, would be able to accentuate my leadership ability and leadership ECs, has written me a rec before and called me the "most outstanding young man he has had through in years" / cons- none (basically I'm def. gonna ask him)</p>

<p>My priest- pros- Has known me since I was 5ish, friend of the family, has seen me go from a little kid to an alter server to a lector and eucharistic minister, I am very active in my parish, would be able to bring out another facet of my person / cons- has had me in confession... lol, two supplementals might be overkill.</p>

<p>Thanks to anyone who read this and I would love input on who to ask for my two teacher recs. and weather the two sup. recs. would be beneficial or just **** off adcoms!</p>

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<p>Generally, it's a good idea to have teachers from different sorts of disciplines. If you're good all over the map, it's a good idea to have someone from the humanities/social sciences and one from math or science...but if two humanities teachers know you best and you plan on majoring in a particular subject, it can't hurt to have two. I included two humanities (Government and French) and I turned out okay, haha. Go with who will write the best recs for you, but if you don't think that you're representing yourself enough with those two, then pick ones from different disciplines. I'm really not sure if extra recs would help...with so many apps, I would imagine that more than one might be cutting it close to annoying. :]</p>

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<p>I would recommend to go with English, Anthro and both supplemental ones.</p>