***uc santa barbara class of 2023 decision thread (stats only)***

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - Santa Barbara
21

Decision: Waitlisted

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1410 (750 Reading, 660 Math, 8/7/8 Essay)
ACT (breakdown): n/a
SAT II: n/a
Capped Weighted UC GPA: 4.1
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Neither rank nor percentile is given at my school (but I am ELC)
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Environmental Sci (3), AP US History (3), AP Lit (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
Senior Year Course Load: AP Gov, AP Lang, Honors Physics, Economics, ASB, Photography, self-studying AP Psych
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Nationally ranked LD debater

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Debate (Captain), Gay-Straight Alliance (Vice President), Promoting Awareness & Victim Empowerment (Co-Founder), Cross Country (Varsity)
Job/Work Experience: part-time job as a cashier throughout senior year
Volunteer/Community service: Volunteered at various soup kitchens
Essays (rating 1-10, details): I felt pretty good (about an 8 or 9); I wrote an essay about coming out & facing discrimination in a VERY conservative school, another about moving right before junior year, my goals in politics (specifically through social justice; I connected it with my coming out essay), & a weaker one about empathizing in my workplace
Supplemental Review or LOR submission: nope

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: Cultural Anthropology
State (if domestic applicant): California
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Charter
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: Low-Middle Class
ELC Eligibility: Yes
First Generation: No, although neither of my biological parents received a degree from college

Reflection

Strengths: Personal Statements (I felt like I really told a story with 3 of them, although my essay on empathy could’ve been improved)
Weaknesses: Lack of volunteer hours/community service, plus my grades dipped junior year as a result of my move (which I explained in one of my personal statements), my UC GPA could’ve been better as well, although the cap on weighted credits really screwed me seeing as how my overall weighted GPA is almost .4 higher
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Honestly, I was very shocked to be waitlisted, but I think a lot of it came down to my lack of volunteer hours & community service
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Fordham (accepted), awaiting UCLA, UCSD, UCI, Berkeley, & NYU

General Comments: I’ll definitely be putting in a letter of interest, considering UCSB was my third choice (after UCLA/Berkeley), although at this point a guy can only hope : /

22

@Jason101200 that’s insane. i cannot believe that with that application you got rejected. You’re such a strong candidate and getting a few Bs shouldn’t matter. Your SAT is excellent. I think essays matter so much because it allows for your personality to be shown. honestly, maybe the officer who read your essay didn’t see what others could’ve seen in your essay. that’s a bummer, but, you never know. maybe something great could turn up this friday!

23

Decision: Rejected

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 720 english, 800 math (1520 total), 5-5-6 essay
ACT (breakdown): 36 overall, 35 on writing or something, 9 essay
SAT II: 790 physics, 780 chemistry, 800 math 2, 800 japanese
Capped Weighted UC GPA: 3.89
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): who knows
AP (place score in parenthesis): Chemistry (5), Japanese (5), Calculus BC & AB subscore (5), Physics 1 (5), Physics 2 (4), English Language (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: (Fall semester) AP Physics C Mech & EM, AP Biology, AP Macroecon, AP US Gov’t, (Spring semester) AP English Literature, AP Comp Sci A, Weight Training (required PE), Advanced Topics in Math
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): NMSQT commended student (not semi-finalist or finalist), I think that’s it

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Competitive swimming (until 10th grade), Japanese language school, independent lab chemistry (12th grade only), Japanese club VP (11th), Treasurer (12th)
Job/Work Experience: Internship at UCSD organic chem lab (not research, not through a program, pretty informal) over 11th-12th summer
Volunteer/Community service: Volunteering through Japanese club 1 hour weekly
Essays (rating 1-10, details): who knows about ratings, decent but not great… personally i’d say a mid-B range
Supplemental Review or LOR submission: N/A

Applied for Financial Aid?: through FAFSA
Intended Major: Chem Eng, pre-chemistry alternate
State (if domestic applicant): CA (in-state)
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Gender: M
Income Bracket: not poor
ELC Eligibility: probably not
First Generation: no

Reflection

My GPA is probably too low, to be honest. Test scores are good, and my EC’s aren’t numerous, but are at least focused on my major. More would have helped.

Strengths: Spoke a second language, good test scores, focused EC’s
Weaknesses: Low GPA (compared to average for UCSB), low amount of EC’s
Why you think you were rejected: As above, low GPA, maybe mediocre essays too (not sure how to judge essays, and I don’t have a college counselor or anything like that), not that many typical EC’s
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted: Cal Poly SLO (A), Cal Poly Pomona (A), CO School of Mines (A), UC Davis (W), SDSU (W)

General Comments: Oh well. UCSB was near the top of my list, but at least I still have a couple good places to go to. I’ve lost hope for SD (mostly), LA, and Berkeley, but maybe I can get into Davis. I liked Davis when I visited.

24

Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): Didn’t take it
ACT (breakdown): 34 (36 R, 36 E, 33 M, 29 S)
SAT II: World History (750), US History (770), Literature. (750)
Capped Weighted UC GPA: 4.08
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 6%
AP (place score in parenthesis): World History (5), US History (5), English Lang (5), Spanish (5)
Senior Year Course Load: AP Env. Science, AP Calc BC, AP Lit, AP Gov, AP Econ
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): These aren’t really major, but I’m a National Merit Commended Scholar, AP Scholar with Honor, and won two Scholastic Art and Writing Awards in Journalism.

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Editor-in-Chief and News Editor of my school newspaper
President of the UNICEF club on campus
Vice President of a local community service club
Arts director of a multicultural club

Job/Work Experience:
Internship at an online magazine, summer camp counselor

Volunteer/Community service:
I volunteer at local events through NHS, as well as my city’s library

Summer Activities:
I attended a summer program at UCLA the summer after junior year. I’m a summer camp counselor, and I took community college classes over summer.

Essays (rating 1-10, details): For my essays, I wrote about journalism, the summer program I attended at UCLA, my interest in political science, and UNICEF. I think they were straightforward and well-written but also kind of cliche. Maybe a 7.5 or 8 out of 10.
Supplemental Review or LOR submission: No

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Political Science
State (if domestic applicant): CA
School Type: Large public high school
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: Upper middle class
ELC Eligibility: Yes
First Generation: NO

Reflection

Strengths: Probably my test scores, extracurriculars/leadership roles, and essays.
Weaknesses: My UC GPA, which was on the low end of SB’s average. Also I didn’t get to spend as much time on my application as I would have liked.
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I showed consistency with my activities/leadership roles, had high test scores, and didn’t apply to a super competitive major. The application readers probably thought I would be a good fit at SB!
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted: CSULB, SDSU, Cal Poly SLO. Waitlisted: UC Davis. Rejections: none yet so far!!

General Comments: I’m so happy! I was really nervous about being waitlisted at Davis but this just goes to show that you shouldn’t stress too much about it, and being waitlisted/rejected at one school doesn’t mean you won’t get in anywhere else. I was able to achieve my goal of getting into a UC which I am super stoked about! UCSB is one of my top choices so there’s a pretty high chance I’ll be there in the fall. :slight_smile:

25

@babushki I know, it seems pretty shocking. Do you think it has to do with the fact that I go to a very good pubic high school? My school is ranked #5 in the state or something like that. There are lots of students with better grades than me. Maybe it also has to do with the fact that I didn’t have any big leadership positions?

26

Decision: Accepted
w/ Regents and Honors

Major applied to: Psychological and Brain Sciences

Academic stats:

UC Unweighted GPA: 3.95
UC Capped Weighted GPA: 4.32
UC Fully Weighted GPA: 4.45
Eligibility in Local Context?: Yes

Rank: 15/500
Comments about course load: 6 AP classes total, 3 other UC approved honors
SAT: 1520 (760 R/W / 760 M)
SAT Subject Tests: 780 Math II, 760 Biology
AP exams (scores in parentheses): APUSH (5), AP Lang (5), Bio (5)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars: 4 years cross country + track (captain senior year), 4 years French Club member and board positions (events coordinator 11, VP 12)
Volunteer/Community service: Assistant youth track coach, American Red Cross member

Essay topics: Reconciling being gay in a highly religious family, giving back to the running community via youth coaching, designing a racing flat with a major running company, & how my love for biology grew as a young child

Demographics:

State: California
High school type: Public

Gender: Male
Race/ethnicity: Caucasian

Applied for need-based financial aid?: Yes
Pell grant eligible?: Yes
Maximum Pell grant (FAFSA EFC = $0)?: Yes

Highest level of parent education: Some high school (both parents)
Living with both, one, or no parents?: Both
Relation to alumni of college: N/A

Reflection:

Strengths: GPA, SAT, essay
Weaknesses: Prestige of ECs, average course load
Other acceptances: Cal Poly Pomona, SLO, UCI (Honors), UCD
Why: Ultimately, my stats were enough to get me in mostly by themselves, but strong essays solidified that decision.

27

@Jason101200 i know the feeling of going to a competitive school. I live in a very affluent area and I have a 4.5 GPA and a 1400 SAT, but kids in my grade have way higher SATs than I do. Everyone is so competitive and always trying to tackle each other. sometimes I feel like my hard work went down the drain seeing other people’s stats. I think attending a good public high school means that you come from a good area with lots of available resources to improve your chances in this college admissions process. People who come from lower-income areas and noncompetitive schools are seen as not having access to the resources/opportunities we have. And i don’t know how much extracurriculars matters. I think it would play a role because they want to see your personality and your interests because before that, all they see are your scores. Esp since UCSB is a very social school, maybe they would’ve wanted to see THE PERFECT leadership position, even tho none exists. sadly, this process is a crapshoot and you, along with many other kids, are having to go through this. Just know that this school lost a very strong candidate and YOU deserve better. this seriously sucks, and i might be in the same position as you this friday, but we’re all in this together. just know YOU will thrive anywhere and that you define you, not the college.

28

@babushki Yea that’s true. It’s impossible to predict honestly. I’m just hoping for UCI or UCSD at this point. And I also don’t think my extracurriculars were bad. I had acting and piano. The only thing is that they maybe could have been better. Congrats on getting in though. I’m sure do great if you decide to go.

29

@Jason101200 thanks! and hope that you get the decision you want. good luck!! :slight_smile:

30

Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I: 1500 (800 Math WR 700) Essays 6-6-6
ACT : did not take
SAT II: Math level 2 (800) Chemistry (790)
Capped Weighted UC GPA: 4.43
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 11 out of ~ 500 kids
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Chem 5 ,AP Cal AB 5, AP Calculus BC 5 , Physics 1 5,
US History 5, AP world 4
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP statistics, Macro/Micro Econ, APUSH
Major Awards: Soaring Eagle Award, AP Scholar of Distinction

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Track and Field 4 years (team captain x 1 yr)
XC 4 years (team captain x 1 year) State qualifier XC in Sophomore year
Job/Work Experience: summer internship at Dept of Water
Volunteer/Community service: First Lego Competition, Organizing many Track and Field Meets
Summer Activities: Had to do Summer School to make room in my schedule for the Engineering academy all 4 years of highschool
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Pretty good I’d say 8/10, 1st essay was about my love for track and field and pushing my limits, 2nd essay was about finding an unusual mentor in my summer internship, 3rd essay was about my love for math, how I tutor and can see myself in this field, 4th essay was my personal experience doing the right things and standing up to someone
Supplemental Review or LOR submission: N/A

Applied for Financial Aid?: NO
Intended Major: Mechanical Engineering
State (if domestic applicant): CA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: $225,000
ELC Eligibility: yes
First Generation: no

Reflection

Strengths: Rigor of classes, SAT II, AP scores were strong, great EC’s
Weaknesses: SAT essays
Why you think you were accepted: Clearly demonstrated my focus in Engineering and Math in all 4 yrs of HS. Maintained a good GPA while participating in athletics year round, and I believe my UC essays show my true passion.

Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted Cal Poly SLO - will attend
UC Davis - waitlisted

Still waiting to hear from: UCLA, UC Berkeley, UCSD, UCI

General Comments:

31

Decision: Accepted
Major: Pre-Biology

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1290 Composite - 680 (Math), 610 (English)
SAT II: NONE
Capped Weighted UC GPA: 4.09
Uncapped Weighted UC GPA: 4.43
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 2%
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Spanish Language (4), AP US History (3), AP Calculus (current)
Senior Year Course Load: English 12, Government, Economics, AP Calculus AB, Principles of Biology (dual enrollment), Composition and Reading (dual enrollment)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Yearbook (Co-Editor In Chief), SIA (Board Member), Student Gov’t (Treasurer)
Job/Work Experience: Cancer Center Intern, Youth Squad Leader
Volunteer/Community service: Homeless Shelter and Summer School Volunteer (100 hours)
Summer Activities: Internship at hospital and work
Essays (rating 1-10, details): 8-9 very good essays, got help for essay help for FREE through a scholarship program. Wrote about my passions for oncology/my experiences in my internship, I also wrote about my hard relationship with my father, while also writing about my leadership roles at school.

Supplemental Review or LOR submission: NONE

Applied for Financial Aid?: YES
Intended Major: Biological Sciences
State (if domestic applicant):CA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Charter School
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: Middle Class (80,000)
ELC Eligibility: Yes (Top 9%)
First Generation: Yes

Reflection

Strengths: Overall, my essays WERE very strong and my class RANK! Unweighted GPA
Weaknesses: My SAT score, MY UC GPA
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I think my essays were really helpful in determining whether I as admitted or NOT
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:

 Accepted: SDSU, UC Davis, Long Beach, Cal Poly SLO, San Jose State, St. Mary's 

 Waiting to hear from: UCLA, UC Berkeley, UC Irvine, UC San Diego, and USC
32

Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1500 (710 R 790 M)
ACT (breakdown): N/A
SAT II: N/A
Capped Weighted UC GPA: Unknown, Unweighted=3.98
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 51 out of 750
AP (place score in parenthesis): Chemistry (5) English Language & Composition (5) Calculus AB (5) Calculus BC (5) Spanish Language & Culture (4) Psychology (N/A) Statistics (N/A)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Statistics, AP Psychology, English IV Regular, Cheer, Teacher’s Aid, Wellness Center Internship
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): N/A

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): JV Cheer (Captain), Peer Counseling (Fundraising Chairperson), Key Club (Treasurer, Inter-Club Coordinator, President), Children’s Ministry, G.S.A. (Vice President)
Job/Work Experience: N/A
Volunteer/Community service: Key Club (300+ hours)
Summer Activities: Summer School 2 years (1 World History, 1 Civics/Econ)
Essays (rating 1-10, details): 7, Leadership in Key Club, Facing Challenges as an Asian American, Making my Community a Better Place in Terms of Mental Health, Finding my Voice in Cheer and Helping Others Achieve Theirs
Supplemental Review or LOR submission:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Psychology
State (if domestic applicant): California
Country (if international applicant): N/A
School Type: Public
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: Middle Class
ELC Eligibility: Yes
First Generation: No

Reflection

Strengths: Strong focus on extracurricular activities related to major (mental health, community outreach, etc.), consistent involvement in community service, decent workload and performance on AP/SAT exams
Weaknesses: Relaxed senior year schedule, cheer involvement for only 1 year
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Generally well-rounded
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted (Davis w/ Regents, Riverside w/ Chancellor’s, Cal State Fullerton) Waiting for (Irvine, LA, Berkeley, San Diego, Irvine, Boston U, & Harvard)

General Comments: None of my extracurricular activities or academics ever had the intent to do it solely for college. I pushed myself where needed and even as seen in my senior year, I took a well-deserved break. I made sure to enjoy the activities I participated in not only to get the most out of it, but have a genuine experience to promote afterwards and showcase in my college essays. Colleges want holistic students yes, but make sure your child has a holistic experience that lets them explore their academics, interests, and hobbies as much as possible.

33

Decision: REJECTED

SAT I (breakdown): 1440, (750 M ,690 R)
ACT (breakdown): 25 didn’t submit obviously
SAT II: N/A
Capped Weighted UC GPA: 4.13
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): school doesn’t rank
AP (place score in parenthesis): 3 AP CALC AB 3 APUSH
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP MIcro ,AP GOV ,AP LIT AP Calc BC, AP BIO
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
N/A
Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): lots of clubs nothing extraordinary
Job/Work Experience: Tutor
Volunteer/Community service: good amount of community service
Summer Activities: N/A
Essays (rating 1-10, details):6 ,UCSB did not have my major so my essays really didn’t support the major I chose
Supplemental Review or LOR submission:

Applied for Financial Aid?:
Intended Major: Mathematics
State (if domestic applicant): CA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type:Large Public
Gender: M
Income Bracket: ~100k
ELC Eligibility:
First Generation:

Reflection

Strengths: Test scores maybe?
Weaknesses: Essays didn’t support major choice at all, GPA might be a little low
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I don’t think my essay really conveyed a lot of interest in my choice of major.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
UC Davis- Accepted
Pomona College ( lol)- Rejected

General Comments: Kinda bummed out about UCSB. I loved the campus but maybe it was for the best they didn’t have my major so it wasn’t really a good match. Congrats to everyone else who got in you deserve it!

34

Decision: Accepted

(got accepted undeclared into the college of L&S)

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 800 Math ; 670 R/W
ACT (breakdown): n/a
SAT II: 720 Math II ; 690 Bio M
Unweighted GPA: 4.0
Weighted GPA: 4.45
Capped Weighted UC GPA: 4.4
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 32/786
AP (place score in parenthesis): Chinese(5); Language and Culture(3); US History(3); Bio(4)
IB (place score in parenthesis):n/a
Senior Year Course Load: AP Gov, AP Econ, AP CompSci, AP Physics C, AP Calc, Prep English, AP Spanish Lang
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
Superintendent’s Honor Roll (straight A’s all three previous years of HS)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): NHS, CSF, Red Cross, Get Cultures(Prez), Robotics Club(VP), SNHS(secretary), Math Club, Leader of Book Club
Job/Work Experience:n/a
Volunteer/Community service: Volunteered with the clubs listed above and at the library ~200 hours
Summer Activities: n/a
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
9 about bullying and how I stood up to defend a victim
7 my passion for art
9 struggle with teamwork (risky essay)
8 choosing between pragmatism and passion
Supplemental Review or LOR submission: n/a

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: computer science
State (if domestic applicant): California
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: public
Gender: F
Income Bracket: Middle
ELC Eligibility: yes
First Generation: no

Reflection

Strengths: GPA and extracurriculars??
Weaknesses: not really any awards
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I really spoke my mind in my essays so they were a bit risky (wrote about not being good in teamwork) but they were brutally honest ;(. IDK if that’s what stood out. I also am in a lot of clubs.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Rejected: MIT, UT Austin
Accepted: SDSU, SJSU, CPP

General Comments:
Don’t stress about college that much because you can prob see that these decisions are pretty unpredictable. My advice is to definitely try your best but know that you will thrive no matter which college you attend because you are just that good. Really be passionate about the things you do in high school and if your purpose to doing some things is just to put it on a college app then you’re wasting your time. Fighting!

35

[aB][asize=4][acolor=#FF0000]Decision: Rejected[/color][/size]**

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1520 (730 R&W, 790 M)
ACT (breakdown): X
SAT II: Math 770, Physics. 740
Capped Weighted UC GPA: 3.91
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):
AP (place score in parenthesis): Computer Science (5), Chinese Language (4), Physics (4) [All from junior year. I wish I had started taking AP classes from the get-go]
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Economics, AP Calculus, Chinese 5, American Government, AP Literature
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Engineering Adv Projects, Broadcast journalism, Jazz Band, Math Club
Job/Work Experience: Math tutor
Volunteer/Community service: Cambodian charity organisations (involved in for over 10 years), Chinese school (teaching assistant), fundraising organisation for my district
Summer Activities: volunteer service in cambodia, various coding projects
Essays (rating 1-10, details): 7 - I’m not a spectacular writer, but the subjects I wrote about were unique to me. I wrote about my leadership in Cambodia, my passion for computer science, my political activism (for community service essay) and an academic subject that someone reading my application wouldn’t expect me to enjoy.
Supplemental Review or LOR submission:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Computer science (either my choice of major or my low number of APs was likely why I was rejected, as the engineering department at UCSB is notoriously competitive)
State (if domestic applicant): CA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: 70k - 90k
ELC Eligibility:
First Generation: No

Reflection

Strengths: STEM grades and activities, volunteer experience, international experience
Weaknesses: low number of AP scores, freshman and sophomore year were not challenging
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Impacted major. Maybe if I had applied to an unpopular major in the arts&sciences college I would’ve been accepted, but I don’t know that. My essays wouldn’t have made sense if I didn’t apply to an engineering major anyway.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted to UC Merced, Stevens Institute of Technology, Seton Hall University. Waitlisted at Georgia Tech. Denied from UT Austin.

General Comments: A little disheartened, because I was optimistic about my chances for an acceptance. To those who were accepted, congratulations! You have been admitted to an incredible school. To the rest of the denial club, remember that the school you end up at is the school you were meant to be at, for one reason or another.

36

Decision: Accepted (Computer Engineering Major)

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1510 (730 Reading 780 Math)
ACT (breakdown): n/a
SAT II: 800 Math2, 800 Physics
Capped Weighted UC GPA: 4.19
Uncapped Weighted UC GPA: 4.58
Unweighted UC GPA: 3.97
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): n/a
AP (place score in parenthesis): CalcBC (5), Physics 1 (5), Physics 2 (4), Physics C (4), APUSH (4), EngLit (3), Music Theory (3)
IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
Senior Year Course Load: AP Stats, AP Gov/AP Macroecon, AP EngLang, Wind Symphony, Jazz Band, Marching Band
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Commended

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Band (Section Leader and Music Mentor), Science Olympiad, Academic League, NHS, CSF
Job/Work Experience: none
Volunteer/Community service: Music Mentor, NHS
Summer Activities: community college classes for 3 summers
Essays (rating 1-10, details): 9/10
Supplemental Review or LOR submission: No

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Computer Engineering
State (if domestic applicant): California
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: $100,000-150,000
ELC Eligibility: Yes
First Generation: No

Reflection

Strengths: stats, essays, EC’s with leadership
Weaknesses: only took 2 years of foreign language
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: competitive stats, essays and some EC’s with leadership
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: So far…Accepted at SDSU, CPP, Cal Poly SLO, UCD; Rejected by Harvey Mudd, MIT

General Comments:

37

Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown):1260 composite, Math:670 English 590
ACT (breakdown): n/a
SAT II: n/a
Capped Weighted UC GPA: 4.08
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 10/98 (Our school does not officially rank students)
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Calculus AB(2) AP Chemistry(1) AP English Literature(2) AP Computer Science Principles (3) AP Calculus BC(not taken yet), AP English Language (not taken yet), AP Computer Science A(not taken yet)
IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calculus BC, AP English Language, AP Computer Science A, Government, Economics, Korean 1(College Class), Korean 2(College Class), Geometry, World History
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Metro Shark Tank 1st place award, Tennis and academic decathlon related awards, leadership club awards.

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Music Club( mentor, mc, stage manager)
Leadership Club (member)
Tennis (Extended Varsity => varsity)
LEAD by fulfillment fund (member)
Academic Decathlon (competing member)

Job/Work Experience:
LACMTA/LA Metro Assistant of the Executive Officer at the Office of Management and Budget
Volunteer/Community service:
Peer Counseling
Tutor
Translator
Caretaker
Elementary School Concert Host assistant
Summer Activities:
Metro Internship
Essays (rating 1-10, details): 8-9/10
I started writing my UC essays at the beginning of my Junior year so I had them revised by my AP English teacher multiple college counselors, many of my peers and my college mentor. I focused on my family experiences and struggles as well as my passion for economics and how my extracurricular activities tied everything together. I tried to use all of the parts of the application as a way to build an image of my persona and I think I was able to accomplish it thanks to all of my peers and ESPECIALLY my Counselor from Fulfillment fund.
Supplemental Review or LOR submission: no

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: Pre-economics
State (if domestic applicant): California
School Type: Small sized pilot school
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: ~30k
ELC Eligibility: yes
First Generation: yes

Reflection

Strengths: Extracurriculars and PIQ’s
Weaknesses: SAT score and completely rewritten PIQ the day of the submission date
Why you think you were accepted: I think that I was able to depict everything that UCSB was looking for by using my PIQ’s as a way to connect all of the dots together throughout my application. My extracurriculars, as well as my school context (average sat:800, average GPA: ~3.0), in my opinion, played a huge role as well.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Cal State University Long Beach, Cal State University Northridge, Cal State University Fullerton(Honors). Currently waiting on UCLA UC Berkeley, UC Irvine, Columbia University and Emory University.

38

Decision: Accepted

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 1440 (750M/690E)
ACT (breakdown): 35 (35E/33M/36R/35S)
SAT II: none
Capped Weighted UC GPA: 3.75
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Calc AB (5), AP Japanese (5), AP Stats (4), AP Lang (4)
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc BC, AP Chem, AP Psych, AP US Gov, AP Lit, chamber orchestra, AP Calc AB tutor
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Scholar w/ Honor

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Science Olympiad (co-founded and VP), math club, supplemental JP school every Sat, viola private lessons, aikido training, traditional Japanese calligraphy
Job/Work Experience: none
Volunteer/Community service: very little
Essays (rating 1-10, details): 9-10 /10. I spent several months on all of my essays and got a bunch of people to help me with them, so they’re very strong. I believe they’re what saved my butt from taking an L
Supplemental Review or LOR submission: no

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Pre-Mathematics
State (if domestic applicant): Washington
School Type: decent public
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: Upper middle class
ELC Eligibility: No
First Generation: No

Reflection

Strengths: test score, essays, my experiences
Weaknesses: GPA lol
Why you think you were accepted: I must have gotten in because of my essays and my character. My ECs are all different from each other, and I was very involved in my second culture, including going to Japanese school every Saturday for my whole life. I wrote the essays on leading my Science Olympiad team, translating for the first time in person in Japan, the circumstance behind my GPA, and calligraphy.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Accepted - UW Seattle, CU Boulder, UMD (all engineering)
Rejected - Northeastern, Purdue
Waiting on - UCLA, UCSD, UCI, UMich, NYU, BU

General Comments:
DON’T let a low GPA stop you!!! The reason for my GPA being so low wasn’t a crazy circumstance (ie. rough living conditions, illness, etc), but rather the difficulty of the shift from easy classes to AP classes. I still got accepted, even without that convincing of a reason to my low grades, haha. It’s not the stats that matter the most; it’s what they see in you and how you present yourself. I can say that that’s true for my other schools, too (for example I got direct admit to engineering at UW even with a 3.6 unweighted). If you’re reading this and you’re in the process of applying to colleges, make sure those essays are bomb, and trust colleges to look beyond your stats. Good luck! Congratulations to those who were accepted. And no matter where you go, you will all do great things:)

39

Daughter:

[asize=4][acolor=#008000]Decision: Accepted[/color][/size]
[aB][asize=4][acolor=#FFA500]Decision: Waitlisted[/color][/size]**
[aB][asize=4][acolor=#FF0000]Decision: Rejected[/color][/size]**

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1460 (R/W 670, M 790, E 8/8)
ACT (breakdown):35 (M 36, S 34, STEM 35, E 35, R 33, W 10, ELA 32)
SAT II: Math 760, Spanish 670
Capped Weighted UC GPA: 4.45
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): top 5%
AP (place score in parenthesis): Ap Lang (5), AP Physics (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Gov/Econ, AP Calc, AP Physics
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Student of the Month, Outstanding Junior (Band), Scholar Athlete

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Jazz Band, Drama/Stagecraft, Varsity Volleyball
Job/Work Experience: City of Santa Rosa, Camp CIT 3 Years
Volunteer/Community service: over 500 hours, (CIT, School Musical, Band Events, etc)
Summer Activities: JC Classes, Camp CIT
Essays (rating 1-10, details): ?
Supplemental Review or LOR submission:

Applied for Financial Aid?: YES
Intended Major: Physics
State (if domestic applicant): CA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type:
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: Middle Class
ELC Eligibility: Yes
First Generation: No

Reflection

Strengths:
Weaknesses:
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted: CSU Fullerton, SDSU Weber Honors College, Harvey Mudd, UCI CHP and UCSB Chancellor Invite.
Waiting for: UCSD, UCLA, USC and Stanford

General Comments:

40

Decision: Rejected( Mechanical Engineering Major)

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): N/A
ACT (breakdown): 34 Composite (33 math, 35 science, 34 stem, 35 english, 34 reading)
SAT II: 730 Math2, 700 Chemistry
Capped Weighted UC GPA: 4.19
Uncapped Weighted UC GPA: 4.3
Unweighted UC GPA: 3.83
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): n/a
AP (place score in parenthesis): CalcAB (4), APUSH (5), AP Chemistry (3)
IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
Senior Year Course Load: AP Gov, AP Computer Science, AP Physics, AP Lit
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Robotics (Team/Club Leader, multiple competitions), martial arts 13 years
Job/Work Experience: 15+ hours/week
Volunteer/Community service: 30 hours/year
Summer Activities: Robotics Camp Leader for underprivileged youth
Essays (rating 1-10, details): ?
Supplemental Review or LOR submission:

Applied for Financial Aid?: no
Intended Major: Computer Engineering
State (if domestic applicant): California
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Catholic
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: upper middle
ELC Eligibility: Statewide path
First Generation: fathers side (mother MA)

Reflection

Strengths:
Weaknesses:
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: don’t know
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted: CU Boulder Presidential and engineering scholarship, Texas A&M scholarship, Virginia Tech, UofMaryland scholarship, UNR scholarship, Oregon State scholarship
Denied: Ut Austin, UCSB, UCD

General Comments: