too many reaches?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Hey, everyone. I'm halfway done with my apps and I'm having second thoughts about pretty much all of them... :\ Would anybody like to humor me and tell me my chances, maybe suggest some other schools? thanks~</p>

<p>Asian American (Taiwanese) Female from NJ
GPA: about 3.75/4.00 uw (4.51/4.76 w)
Rank: 6/235
- all of my academic courses have been honors and AP
- currently taking AP [Eng, Spanish, Calculus, Statistics, Physics], Computer Graphics, and Painting
SAT (highest): 790M, 730CR, 740W
SAT IIs: Math 2C - 750; Chem - 750; Physics - 740; Spanish w/ Listening - 730
AP exams: US Hist, Physics B, and Chem - all 4s</p>

<p>ECs: AcDec, Sign Language Club (secretary), LitMag (editor), Math Team, Asian American Club, Spanish NHS (I help teach adult English classes), Spanish Club, BRITE, and volunteering at the library (2-4 hrs/week).</p>

<p>Awards, etc.: Rensselaer Medal Award, Nat'l Merit Commended Student, AP Scholar, Who's Who, 3rd place for the Nat'l Spanish Exam (Levels 3 and 4), 104 on AMC --> 1 on AIME (haha, oops).</p>

<p>applying to: MIT, UPenn?, Princeton??, Duke?, Cornell, Carnegie Mellon, TCNJ (safety)</p>

2

<p>they're not reaches for u. with luck, i bet u can get in.</p>

<p>i can see u getting in upenn</p>

3

<p>I know kids with lower stats who were accepted at Duke, UPenn, and TCNJ (which as you've already pointed out is your safety). Good luck :) Those ivies are a real crapshoot</p>

4

<p>MIT - reach, but you are a girl so that should help
UPenn - slight reach
Duke - reach/slight reach
Princeton - reach
Cornell - slight reach/match
Carnegie Mellon - match
TCNJ - safety</p>

5

<p>"with luck, i bet u can get in."
heh, everything depends on some degree of luck. :S</p>

<p>Thanks for the input, guys! I know I should take things with a grain of salt, but it's quite a relief to see that UPenn isn't as much of a reach as I thought.</p>

<p>edit: I have a semi-related question -- if you were me, would you apply to RPI and at least keep open the possibility of using the $15k/year aid guaranteed by the medal award, given the fact that I already have a safety?</p>

6

<p>bump. would anyone like to answer my other question?</p>

7

<p>Regarding your college list, it seems like a fair assessment of yourself, but I'm sure you could extend it to some upper echelon schools outside of the Ivy League. Maybe some smaller colleges like Middlebury, Williams, and Amherst. I also found Dartmouth to be fantastic, though it is another Ivy. </p>

<p>If that's too small, possibly UVA or UNC would fit you better. With your stats you have an excellent chance of receiving some merit scholarship money. Wake Forest University as well, absolutely beautiful.</p>

8

<p>I think your stats are really good. It MIGHT count against you though that you're Asian. No offence! Most of my Asian friends keep telling me that they need to stand out somehow because Asians are stereotypically "smart math geniuses." I think it helps that you have a Sign Language Club and you help teach adult English classes because they're different so I think your school list is pretty decent. Just make sure you try to put emphasis on those things that make you stand out in your essays if you can. I'd still add another safety, though. My guidance counsellor said it's good to have to or three of them.</p>

9

<p>
[quote]
It MIGHT count against you though that you're Asian. No offence!

[/quote]
lol, none taken. I wouldn't be surprised if it counted against me... nearly everyone in the two high schools in my district thinks that all Asians should be super geniuses in everything, be involved in everything, etc. and some '06ers fit that stereotype to a T. I'm hoping that the admissions officers are a little open-minded about comparing kids from the same region. :&lt;/p>

<p>I've decided not to apply to Princeton and Duke, and I'm going to hold off on applying to a sixth school (depends on how lenient my parents'll be about another $50+ application fee). My GC didn't seem too concerned about me having one safety, but I think I'll look at a couple more places.</p>

10

<p>ur ECs are not outstanding.. pretty normal for these ivies.. and ur grades are normal too.. RD will be especially hard for u bc ur asian. but try to stand out.. bc i kno a lot of ppl with AMAZIN stats that didnt get into these schools ED.. bc they were asian.. and from NJ.. so Good luck!</p>

11

<p>shoot, im asian (but asian indian). however, im not a math/science person whatsoever (majorly into arts, english, and history) . will being asian still work to my disadvantage?</p>

12

<p>just dont show that you are the " typical" asian type. and stand out.. then it'll be good. upenn's really biased this year...and the fact that u dont do much outside school ecs might be to ur disadvantage. but other than that.. u never know until u try.. bc u never know what these schools want</p>