I’m a Junior from Michigan,. Out of state is extremely competitive these days and I don’t know if i have what it takes. Please be honest.
ACT Composite: 31
Best Scores: Math:34 Reading:33 Science:32 English: 27 Writing: 23
*I’m getting an english tutor so hopefully I can raise those scores for the June ACT
GPA: 3.96 (unweighted)
Course load: Pretty hard. Honors advanced math. Honors Pre-calc this year, BC Calc next year
Heavy science course load; AP Chem, AP bio, Anatomy, physics, vertebrates. AP Government and AP micro Econ. 3 years of German. The rest are pretty standard stuff. (These classes include my senior year classes too)
I haven’t taken any AP tests yet but expect to do well
Extra curriculars:
Sports: Co-captain of JV lacrosse, summer lacrosse
Jobs: Various summer jobs every summer
National Chemistry olympiad
NHS
Volunteer weekly at a hospital (I had a very selective program)
Shadow surgeries and medical procedures
National suicide prevention volunteering
Teacher and councilor reps will be very good. I’ve talked to my councilor many times about UNC and she’s contacted UNC admissions directors. (UNC is my number 1 choice)
My essays will be pretty good, my brother committed suicide while I was in high school and it’s changed my view a lot on how I live and how I experience emotions.
I’m white male, I’m out of state. No real disabilities or anything like that. Thanks for reading!
How much can your family afford? With your current stat, there is no better chance and option than UMich. You should have around 50% chance to get in as you are around the in-state admission average and their in-state admission rate is around 50%.
Money is not an issue. I would like to go out of state, and I am extremely fortunate to be able to have te opportunity to do it, but first I have to get in (;
All of the OOS publics are really tough OOS, but you’re in the ballpark for them. As was mentioned above, your best chance is at Michigan, since you’re in-state. You’ve also got a reasonable shot at Wake Forest, but at schools with acceptance rates below 35%-ish, plenty of qualified applicants are rejected.
OP, if you are planning to study a pre-med curriculum, why do you feel the need to attend the schools you have mentioned? High GPA and MCAT scores are more important in medical school admissions than the name of the school you attend as an undergraduate. A good LAC with strong science education, such as Albion College or College of Wooster, would probably do you just as well. If you want warmer weather, look at Rhodes College in Memphis, TN or Furman University in Greenville, SC; you would have a very good chance of admission to either of those schools.
Regarding your original list, I am basing the following assessments on the Naviance scattergrams for our school:
UCLA: moderate chance
UNC-CH: low chance
UVA: low chance
Wake Forest: low to moderate chance
I am not able to estimate you chances for U of M as an in-state student.
@gandalf78 I’m applying to those schools because college isn’t just about acedemics. I want to go to a large, diverse college with good sports and rec activities.
^ Well, you have an excellent in-state option in U of M if you are seeking “a large, diverse college with good sports and rec activities.” (Actually, most of the Big 10 schools would probably have what you are looking for in that regard.) And, U of M is also academically excellent.
If you are looking for larger, more diverse colleges in the South, you might consider the following:
University of Miami (in Coral Gables, FL): high chance
University of South Carolina: high chance
University of Alabama: high chance
University of Georgia: high chance
University of Mississippi: high chance
University of Tennessee: high chance
The SEC schools listed above all have Honors colleges or programs, which you should be able to get into.
Duke and William & Mary would also appear to meet your criteria; however, the chances of admission there range from very low (Duke) to low (W&M).
A little closer to home is Miami University in Oxford, OH, which is one of the original “public Ivies”; it also is a university “with good sports and rec activities”; and I would rate your chances of admission there as good to high. (It also has an honors program.)
I’ve actually been accepted to both UNC and Wake Forest as of today (I’m transferring out of Wake, maybe to UNC) so maybe I can offer some insight. For Wake: Kill the essays. Your stats are fine but Wake cares a lot about the subjective criteria. Definitely interview because a good interview counts a lot for them. For UNC, try to improve that ACT score. I’ve heard a lot of people tell those who struggle with the SAT to try the ACT, but I’m not sure if the reverse is true. I would think it would be worth it to try your hand at both exams though.
@Sam998 Thanks for the advice. I took my first SAT on Tuesday, and I have a tutor for English ACT. I checked out Wake forests essays… they seem pretty difficult for me to show my personality and mind, but I’ll work on it. Were you out of state? if so do you mind telling me your “resume” just so I can compare
@UNC115 My high school GPA was a 1.96 as a freshman and sophomore and then about a 3.5 as a junior and senior. My first semester GPA at Wake was a 3.5. I am out of state (going to college in NC doesn’t make you in-state). I got a 2110 on the SAT (790 Reading, 620 Math, 700 Writing), when I applied to Wake it was only a 2000 though (720 reading, 580 math, 700 writing). I interviewed at Wake and I’m sure that’s what got me in. I also won the state championship in debate my senior year and my dad went to UNC for his phd so I’m a legacy there, both of those things helped me with UNC.
@c011e9e I sure did! Very proud of that accomplishment. @UNC115 I scheduled one! It’s a highly recommended part of their application process. You can, and should, schedule one far in advance (months). They fill up quickly because it’s well known that they’re such an integral part of the Wake admissions process.
OP: Here is something that a parent posted in another CC forum, which made me think of you:
“It is tough I think for very high stats kids from states with excellent schools. They are bombarded with stuff. My older kid in Virginia , although about 10 years ago, right before more of the financial aid reforms for less wealthy families, got so much info from some Ivy schools, places like Vanderbilt, Duke, and USC. But we got really no outreach at the time from UVa, his preferred instate option, although he had strong interest in attending. It can be tough for a 17 or 18 year old kid to realize that their instate option like Michigan may be the best when they think their peers, teachers, think they could be reaching higher. Many of them want the love.”
Wherever you apply, I highly recommend that you keep U of M as one of your options. Best of luck to you.
@gandalf78 Thank you. No doubt I will apply to U of M. I understand it’s a great school, maybe I’m just a little naive and want to explore options far from home.
Your chance at OOS public of UMich’s caliber is not really high and they are a lot more expensive. If you are willing to pick a lower tier school, then you would have a lot more options.