U of Chicago with a Legacy?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Hi everybody. My intended major is Political Science. When answering my thread could you please put what school of the University I should apply to for that? Here is my information so far (I'm finishing up Junior year):</p>

<p>3.5 GPA (barring a huge increase/decrease in my 4th marking period).
1930 SATs (690-CR, 570-Math, 670-Writing)
31 ACTs (definitely retaking them, I hope to score more of a 34 or 35-ish grade this time, of course you can't predict those things)(35-English, 23-Math, 36-Reading, 28-Science)
High grades in English and History classes, decent grades in Science classes, and low grades in Math.</p>

<p>My older brother went to U of Chicago and graduated about seven years ago. Would this be considered a legacy? And if so, how much would it improve my chances of getting in by? </p>

<p>My current schedule is:
AP US History
Regents Algebra 2/Trigonometry
AP European History
Regents Chemistry
French 3R
AP English Language
And last semester I took Turbulent '60s (history of the 1960s).</p>

<p>Next year's schedule:
AP US Government
AP Macroeconomics
AP Psychology
AP English Literature
Advanced Human Anatomy
Health
Regents Pre-Calculus
Genocide and Human Rights
Finance
Media Literacy</p>

<p>I also have a wide range of extracurricular activities and have been a long term member of all clubs listed:
Political Forum
Literary Digest
Newspaper (National news editor)
Science Club
Bioethics Forum
Film Making Club
Model UN
Film Appreciation Club (president and co-founder)
Young Democrats (vice president and co-founder)
GOYA member (Greek Orthodox Youth of America)
I intend to begin helping at my church's soup kitchen.</p>

<p>I have written scholarship papers for:
The Profiles in Courage Contest (didn't win)
The Foreign Service Essay Contest (no word on that one yet)
The St. John Chrysostom Oratorical Contest (won my local contest)
I also won the US Army Reserve Junior Award.</p>

<p>I am certain that I will be able to get glowing letters of recommendation (not to sound arrogant).
I consider myself politically active (I want to major in Political Science) and my work with the Young Democrats will put a lot of events such as voter registration and rallies on my resume. I am currently working as the Youth Coordinator for a campaign for the NYS Assembly.</p>

<p>I am very good in certain subjects and I think I will have good final exams (including APs). Chicago is obviously not the only school I'm thinking about, but I think I should at least apply. </p>

<p>Also: If it is a reach, would you say it is a high reach or a lower reach?</p>

2

<p>It is a mid to high reach, unfortunately.
Your scores and GPA are below average. Your EC’s are really wide spread, not much focus.</p>

<p>Having said this, if UChicago is your first choice, don’t ED anywhere else. You just may want to consider if you can handle the rigor of that University.</p>

3

<p>almost no chance, brother is only half a legacy or something, and your gpa and sat are extremely low and your EC’s aren’t that great. </p>

4

<p>I second what anaconda said. Your stats are low for a school of UChicago’s level. Your brother really doesn’t count as a legacy and even with a legacy it would not have helped you much do to your stats being out of threshold needed by applicants. Look into less selective schools.</p>

5

<p>How about a school in Washington, D.C.? </p>

6

<p>Schools like UChicago only consider someone as legacy when a) they are your parents and b) they have donated a lot of time or money (or both) to the university. Otherwise, it basically doesn’t matter. As of right now, your stats are not on the same level as your competition. Besides, looking at your stats, you wouldn’t really be a great fit at UChicago, since the academic rigor is very, very strong. </p>

7

<p>Uchicago is a high reach. But you shouldn’t not apply. There is always a chance that you might get in. You should try making your extra curriculars more focused. Also, you need a lot of legacy to get in to schools like that.
Your grades are low and so are your scores.
I would say apply, but don’t expect a yes.
I’m applying as an International Relations transfer major and these are the schools I picked: George Washington, Georgetown, American University, Emory. </p>

<p>Please chance me: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1659294-transfer-student-to-american-university.html?new=1”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1659294-transfer-student-to-american-university.html?new=1&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;