Stressed High School Junior

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

This Covid-19 is really stressing me out, especially since I have to apply to colleges next school year. I understand that top schools are hard to get into for anyone, but I would appreciate some advice and maybe to know where I would stand amidst the other applicants. I don’t have stellar achievements compared to other people and that concerns me. My school has Naviance but would still appreciate some comments from other people.

So first of all, I’m still doing research, but these are some schools that I’m currently looking at (I’m looking to make the list smaller, I know it’s a reach heavy list):
Barnard College
Binghampton
Boston College
Brown
Carnegie Mellon
Columbia
Drexel
Fordham
Johns Hopkins
NYU
University of Rochester

I’m looking to do something with physics and economics (double major? major and minor? not too sure yet) and economics is a new interest that I formed this year. I’m also going to be a first generation college student.

Race: Asian
Gender: Female
School: ~800 students in Northeast. Definitely at least top 10% but school doesn’t rank.
GPA: 4.01 UW 5.17 W (School weighs out of 6 apparently)
SAT: 1530 (Math 800 English 730)
No ACT
No Subject Test
APs: Gov (5) Lit (3). Currently taking Calc BC, Microecon, and USH. Looking to take Macro, Stats, Lang, Physics: Mechanics next year.
NHS member

Currently flute section leader in school band. Has played flute for 8 years and piano for 5 years. I was going to compete in All States scholarship competition for piano this year but got sick day of. I’m also part of an after school advanced ensemble. I transferred from a small school with no resources to a bigger school sophomore year and found a love for Physics.

I joined XC to kind of be a part of the school more but this year, found myself preferring the after school ensemble. I still enjoy sports though (non competitively) and was going to do track but the season got cancelled.

I worked on chamber music in the fall with a professor that teaches at local college and Williams College. He invited me to work with him again this spring but I couldn’t find time.

Worked as a counselor at a piano summer camp. Great experience + fun to work with the talented musicians.

Worked on a physics project with my physics teacher through a program and the program funded me and my physics teacher to go to Hawaii to present at American Astronomical Society convention.

I worked at Starbucks (still an employee, but not currently working due to virus).

I tutor students who need help, especially at this time.

I applied to be a freshmen mentor, which assists freshmen into high school and also leads advisory for the freshmen.

Economics is a newfound interest this year and I’m scared that my extracurriculars don’t reflect my interest, which is what everyone is telling me is super important. Please just give me some advice? Thanks.

2

You didn’t mention financial need. This will be important, especially after COVID19. Even need blind ivy league schools are scaling back. There are also lots of colleges on your list which are need aware. Make sure you know the difference between these. Add some pure safeties which are affordable to your list.

If Econ and Physics are of interest, don’t forget to look at UChicago. They also like first gen students. Based on Naviance, how many students from your HS have gotten into these colleges? It is a pretty good indicator for how you will fare.

3

Ok, I’ll be sure to look at more safeties and take financial aid into account. My family’s middle class, but I think we will still need aid.

4

Run the NPC for the schools listed and you’ll start to get an idea of costs vs what you can afford. That said, I’d run them again in the fall after schools figure out their enrollment and what they can offer.

It’s easy to find reach schools but you have to look at safety schools. Realistically, your in-state schools are typically your best, low cost option.

5

Ok, I will. I’m not looking at in-state schools because they’re not what I’m looking for but I’ll be sure to look at more safety schools.

However, does my overview make me a good candidate for those reach schools or should I take them out of my list and remake one?

6

Most are reach-for-everyone schools! Drexel, Fordham and Rochester are more of a possibility for admittance but I know from this board that Rochester has gotten more expensive and less generous with financial aid lately. NYU is famously expensive.

Every year in March/April we get threads from shocked top students who applied to fifteen or twenty top schools and got in nowhere because they thought that certain high reach schools were matches. Or got into one super safety they didn’t expect to go to because they didn’t research true financial/academic matches and “high safeties” where they’d be happier. Don’t be one of these students!

You can google “common data set” and the name of any school to find the gpa and test score ranges of admitted students and other info. Look at section C of the data set for incoming freshman info. You should apply to a few schools (that you can afford) where your stats are above the 75 percentile mark AND don’t have minuscule acceptance rates. These are the schools that will want you and possibly award merit aid. Highly selective schools don’t tend to give merit aid (only need-based or athletic scholarships, etc).

You’re a fantastic student…but it’s really tough out there! With roughly 35,000 high schools in the US, each with its top students, there really aren’t spots for all of them at the elite schools. You have a shot, but look into the strengths of other schools before you reject them by prestige only.

7

If you like Rochester, look at Case Western as well. Similar vibes and Case would likely give you merit money.

As noted above, run the NPCs for all the schools and see if they are affordable. Some of the reach schools on your list are great with for need based aid but give none for merit. If your family can’t afford some of the schools on your list, scrap them now and save yourself the work and heartache later.

If you need merit aid to make school affordable, reconsider your instate options.

8

Also, for the lower-ranked match-to-safety schools on your list, show a lot of interest. Look for things that you DO like about each school (maybe the research of certain professors? Maybe certain clubs or activities? Maybe an honors college?)…and make a point to contact people involved and reflect that enthusiasm in your application. Schools do not like to be used as safety schools…that’s the catch-22 for top students…and some students are rejected from their safeties for that reason. So indicate some true interest in your application and have a track record of attending virtual sessions, etc for all schools that you apply to…