Hey everyone I got in, and I’ll share some stats because I think they’re kinda wonky. I don’t have a stellar SAT or GPA, so for that kid who’s lurking this thread, feeling intimidated by everyone’s stats.
Accepted with Regents invite, Yes I did get a LOR request. Letters and Science for Sociology. In-state
SAT I (breakdown): 1370 Math 690 English 680
ACT: Didn’t take
SAT II: 660 Math II, US History 780
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.83, Weighted, 4.23
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): No rank
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Calc AB (5) APUSH (5) AP Lang (4)
Senior Class rigor: AP Stats, AP Macroecon/AP Gov, AP Lit
Yes, URM, Yes low income (like below the poverty line).
EC: Trevor Project Youth Ambassador Council (basically like an internship for a national LGBT non profit. It’s not meant for highschool students to fluff their application, its mostly a bunch of college students)
I got into Trevor because I run a Youtube channel that has almost 100k subs on LGBT history and representation. Heavily edited and researched. Over 4 million views.
Musical Theatre Stuff - leads in school musicals, and I was a stage manager for one
Tenor Section Leader in school’s auditioned Vocal Ensemble, Secretary of Choir
Volunteer work at Democratic Party of Orange County. Some freelance work in videos, did some work with graduate students. Was a copywriter for my mom’s friend flyer distribution company.
Awards: Questbridge College Prep Scholar and Finalist. Gates Semifinalist (this wasn’t on my app), PTSA District Winner for film, International Thespian Society, MACY Awards (Orange county high school theater awards not the store), California Scholarship Federation
Essays: I don’t want to be a doofus, but I’m pretty damn good at writing, and I’m proud of it (conversely I suck at dancing). My teachers said they were some of the best essays they’ve ever read and this college counselor I have for low income students said they were pretty fantastic. I wrote a lot about being LGBT+, low income, race, my family. They weren’t sob stories. They were reflections, and some of them were funny. I wrote one on Taco Bell and how that fueled my love for sociology and race issues (I’m Mexican), another essay on how my mom steals toilet paper. It was all “risky” but it came out alright in the end. The essays are important. Anyone can get a good SAT but you really need to show you’re not just another robot.
Advice you’ll hear all the time but actually listen to it: Don’t do stuff just to buffer your application. NHS doesn’t really look all that great. Building something you love does. I could’ve done NHS, or I could’ve done activism for the LGBT community through my videos and through the Trevor Project. Work your way around the system, not in it.
I wonder what that means for someone with a 3.78 GPA, 32 ACT (33 superscore), 12 APs, NHS, and CSF.