Spare a Moment of Your Time! GPA vs ECs!!

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

I’m trying to get into William and Mary, UVA, American, Georgetown, George Washington, Dartmouth, Yale, Princeton, or Harvard. What do you think are my chances for each school?
GPA: 4.0 UW 4.5 W

SAT: 1460 (new SAT)

ACT: 35C

SAT Subjects: US History 800 Literature 770

AP Exams: US History (5), English Language and Composition (5), Psychology (5), Environmental Science (4)

Senior Schedule: AP Literature, AP Calculus AB, AP Chemistry, AP Macroeconomics, AP US Government and Politics, AP Spanish, Constitutional Law Honors, International Relations Honors, European History Honors

Academic Honors: Furman Scholar, High Point Scholar, National Merit Commended Scholar

Honor Societies: President and Founder, History Honor Society; Vice President, English Honor Society; Treasurer, Science Honor Society; Mathematics Honor Society, Spanish Honor Society, National Honro Society

Clubs: President and Founder, School Robotics Club, President, School Model United Nations, President, School Political Science Club, Key Club

Extracurriculars: Youth Mentorship (5 years), Political Staffer for Local Judge, Poll Clerk, Tutor, Self-Published Author, AIDS Refugee Worker

What do you say?

2

I say you have ok chances. Your scores and academics are excellent, but your ECs are a little lacking in the fact that it seems like you may be doing a lot of this for college and not for enjoyment. While you do a lot, nothing is very unique (being a self-published author can mean a lot of things, but if it’s for a novel, that will carry some weight). Also, if you have no hooks, you have to expect your chances of getting in as the same as the acceptance rate - whether it is 5% or 30%.

3

It was a novel. My hook was going to be growing up in a single-parent home and being like a dad to my younger brother. For my EC’s, I legitimately liked doing all of them. I did all of them because I liked them, not because I thought they would look good. How could I show that?

4

Your ECs don’t seem to extend much beyond your school. That will put you at a disadvantage for the very top schools. You will be competing with applicants with statewide and national achievements. What you describe is not a hook, either.

I’d say you will get in at American and GW. Assuming you are in-state, also Wm & Mary. UVA is probably a low reach, GTown & Dartmouth are “regular reaches”. HYP are high reaches.

Do you have a non-custodial parent? It would affect your aid at many of these schools.

5

Will the judge be writing you a letter of recommendation describing what you do for him/her? Have you taken the most rigorous courseload your school offers (it looks good to me)? How does your GPA compare to other top students at your school? What do you want to study in college? (looks like political science or international relations, maybe?) American and GW should be matches/safeties for you, assuming your application is solid. If you are in-state, I think you have a decent shot at UVA and William & Mary. From OOS, UVA is a low reach. You are a strong student, but your essays, recommendations, ECs, etc will be important to distinguish you at the higher level schools. I agree with inparent above: Georgetown & Dartmouth are regular reaches. Harvard, Yale, Princeton are all high reaches - but they are for everyone, so that is no insult.

Start looking at the essay questions for each college online now, so you can be thinking about what you might talk about for each. Scrutinize the Common App website in August, when it becomes available, so you know exactly what you need to do for each college. Verify Georgetown’s requirements for SAT subject tests. I remember hearing that they may require three. Good luck!