I am a junior high school right now, and I am starting to get anxious about college admissions right now…Everyday at school, I hear people talking about different things they are doing to make them look “original” on applications and I’m just really stressing out. I’m not the type of person to post things but I’m just looking for a little bit of reassurance.
Currently I have a weighted GPA of 4.7 and unweighted of 3.89. I took AP Euro last year got a 4 and I’m taking AP Physics 1, APUSH, and AP English this year. Right now, I have straight A’s.
For ECs, I’m drum major of our marching band, and a bunch of other stuff.
I took the ACT in June and I got a 30 w/o any prep.
I’m from IL and I’m looking at schools like Michigan, Pitt, Loyola at Chicago, Miami of Ohio, Notre Dame, University of Cincinnati, and Boston College.
Am I doing the right stuff? I never got nervous about this stuff until literally this week and haven’t put much thought into it. I’m just looking for a little reassurance. My cousins all went to college for performing arts and I’m kind of like the first one going through the whole application process and just a bit nervous. And if you have any tips about junior year that’d be great.
Your friends are on a fool’s errand. You can’t “look original” – you either are or you aren’t. Let them flail away. They’re buying into all the myths and tropes that they think get them noticed by colleges. They seem full of it.
You’re doing the right things – cranking on your grades, taking a vigorous courseload and do things you truly want to do. Since what you’re doing is actually meaningful (drum major) rather than sitting on the couch watching youtubers or doing nothing, you’re on the right path.
You should plan on an ACT re-take. The difference between a 30 and a 33, for instance, can be extreme in terms of admits and possible merit money. Possibly take the SAT too.
Have the “money talk” with your parents. See what they can afford. Know how much you’re eligible for loans (it’s not much). Run the “net price calculators” for your target schools (each school’s fin aid webpage will have them) and see what they tell you the cost might be.
If there are college fairs or visits to your school, attend some. See what the colleges say and how they’re recruiting.
Ignore your classmates. Read posts on this site but beware of the puffery (OMIGOD! I’m screwed because I got one B+). You get lots of neurotic HS kids on this site too. Don’t buy into that either. Post questions and see what comes your way.
You are doing a great job! The previous poster is correct…your peers are well, your peers. Remember they are also “just kids” navigating the new and unknown. I know its hard but try not to measure yourself by them or compare yourself to what they are dong. You have obviously worked hard are a good kid. Please know that your college future is great and there are so many options for a good student like you. Try to enjoy the search and find your match. Keep in the back of your mind that the schools that are supposed to be right just might not be. The perfect school might be one you haven’t even considered yet.
As @T26E4 said, you should take the ACT again. Please register for the ACT or the SAT today, do not wait. Given how few test dates are available before applications are due, I would register for both the ACT and the SAT. Who knows, you might do better on the SAT. Your standardized test score is the only thing holding you back from potentially getting admitted to some of the more selective schools in the country.
With a 30, you pretty much have no shot at Notre Dame and you are in the 25th percentile for Boston College.
Oops, sorry about the previous post. I had a brain fart and I now realize that you are a Junior. Plenty of time to take ACT’s etc. I just encourage you to try to improve the ACT score if you are serious about Notre Dame.
Thank you everyone for your comments! You all made me feel much more relieved about the whole process! For the ACT @GraceDad , I will be taking it again in February and I’ve been prepping for it, and I’m taking the PSAT soon and I’ll get an idea of how much prep I need to do for that. Once again, I wanted to say thank you again. You all gave me much-needed relief!
