<p>Decision: Accepted</p>
<p>I received an application acknowledgment on January 20th, and I received my acceptance on February 8th.
Objective:[ul]
[<em>] SAT I (breakdown): composite 1820: Critical Reading 590, Mathematics 610, Writing 620
[</em>] ACT: composite 27
[<em>] SAT II: Spanish with Listening 450, Literature 580, US History 640
[</em>] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.42
[<em>] UC GPA: 3.65
[</em>] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): top 10-11%
[<em>] ELC?: hell no
[</em>] AP (place score in parenthesis): European History (3), US History (2), Statistics (2), Psychology (4). Yeah, I’m stupid. My grades in AP classes (usually Bs… too good lol) don’t reflect my knowledge on the subject. I cram and procrastinate too much as well. Oh, and I also took an English UC approved honors class, so prior to senior year I only took 5 (10 sem) weighted classes.
[<em>] IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
[</em>] Senior Year Course Load: AP English Literature, Pre-Calculus Honors (UC approved), AP Computer Science, Film Studies (my A-G art class), AP U.S. Government, AP Macroeconomics… may seem like a lot but senior year was not as bad as junior year LOL
[<em>] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): no way. I did receive some community service awards, 2 art awards, and academic awards that everyone, with a 3.0+ gpa, receives.
[/ul]Subjective:[ul]
[</em>] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): film club (top officer), badminton club (officer), class of 2011 (officer), human relations club (officer), ASB/Student Government (student council rep), traveler’s club (top officer), debate club (top officer), National Honor Society, California Scholarship Federation, and other stuff
[<em>] Job/Work Experience: babysat my cousin? lol
[</em>] Volunteer/Community service: 600+ hours of service, leader of 3 drives (canned food, toy, penny) at school, helped organize a fair to raise money for scholarships for disadvantaged students, and other stuff
[<em>] Personal Statement: I think they suck. Yes, they’re very personal, but I spent a really short time on them… less than a week for one, a day for the other. Mmmm… (Both are about disability–mental and physical–of members in my family and its effect on me). I respect those who don’t write about “sob stories”. Everyone has a sad life, and it affects them greatly: it’s our decision to talk about it. Nonetheless, I understand those who did (as I did, myself).
[/ul]Other[ul]
[</em>] Applied for Financial Aid?: hell yes
[<em>] Intended Major: Psychology <3
[</em>] State (if domestic applicant): California looooove…
[<em>] Country (if international applicant): N/A
[</em>] School Type: public, suburban, around 2300 students, 550+ in senior class, almost 60% of student body receive free/reduced lunch, API <800
[<em>] Ethnicity: Vietnamese, race is Asian, nationality is American
[</em>] Gender: female
[<em>] Income Bracket: <$10k
[</em>] Hooks (URM, first generation college, research, etc.): first generation college student
[/ul]Reflection[ul]
[<em>] Strengths: nothing
[</em>] Weaknesses: everything
[li] Why you think you were accepted: I think my ECs helped me a lot. My “sob stories” (I hate to see them that way as the topics mean a lot to me) might’ve as well. Then again, I didn’t spend too long on them. So, who knows? Everything about me, especially my test scores and GPA, were below average. I don’t even know why I took Spanish WITH Listening. Why did I even take the Spanish test!?
(Spanish is fun to learn, not gonna lie. Also, I did a lot better on the Listening section compared to the grammar part LOL). Yeah, so if you have better “stats” than me, and you’re wondering how the hell I got in and you didn’t… don’t be so bitter! Life goes on, babe! <– that’s just me being a sadistic person. I’m kidding. I understand, but you shouldn’t feel that way. Colleges choose people who are fit for the school, not because they’re smarter, cooler, more popular, more active, etc.
You’ll thrive at whatever school you choose![/li][/ul]General Comments: Good luck to everyone! I hope my stats encourage you to apply. Don’t hesitate to try. Even if you are rejected, it may be miserable but just know that YOU GOT THIS! A college doesn’t define who you are as a person. Regardless of a decision, you’re going to make it far. Chins up! </p>
<p>Suggestions to those who are applying in the future: start on your FAFSA early, prepare for your personal statements–like, actually DO them, not like me and skip school to finish…or start–and get people to proofread them, know what schools you’re going to apply to beforehand (I applied to Davis and Irvine on a whim on December 1st, 12 AM and 12:03 AM respectively. not ****ing you. I “added the campuses” to my application as I submitted my application around 10 AM on the 30th. if you do this, you won’t get a portal until weeks later everyone else does), keep a document with all the portals–username, ID numbers, passwords, and all (you’ll thank me later ;)), don’t check your portals obsessively but activate it/check so you know that your application is A-OK!!!, and relax!</p>
<p>ALSO, if you failed a class, DON’T LISTEN to your family or friends that, “YOU’RE NOT GOING TO MAKE IT INTO ANY COLLEGE, LET ALONE A UC.” I failed Trigonometry (yes, trigonometry loool). I did retake it, but not the point… A GPA doesn’t determine one’s self worth! Just look at all those dull people with great GPAs! JUST KIDDING
(but seriously, what’s in a number?)</p>
<p>GOOD LUCK TO EVERYONE! CONGRATULATIONS TO ACCEPTEES! let’s have a bomb senior year!</p>