Hi there,
I’m a junior at a New York high school and University of Miami is my dream school. My GPA at the end of this year will be a 3.3. I have a 29 ACT score. The reason my GPA is so low is because I had some personal issues at home in 9th grade that caused me to live with my father (parents are divorced) in New Jersey for 7 months of the year and drive to my school in New York every morning at 5 am. I plan to address this in a separate essay on my application. Also, my grades have only shot up. 9th grade I had a D in Geometry and a C+ in Earth Science, but I got an A in both English and History. 10th grade, I got mostly B’s and B+'s in all of my classes. This year, I have been getting straight A’s in all of my classes, with the exception of AP History, in which I’m getting a B. Also, my extra curriculars are fantastic. I’m looking to major in marketing/business. I have interned at 2 different financial firms (UBS and Stifel Nicholous), Steve Madden corporate headquarters, Google Maps section (my uncle works there and took me on), I’ve spoken on technology panels in Manhattan for a major financial firm, I’ve interned at an IT Department at a mortgage company, 100 hours of community service working with sick and abused animals over a course of a summer, as well as numerous other things. Also, another issue I am facing is the 2 years of foreign language requirement. I have a learning disability, so I have an IEP, and my school gave me a “foreign language waiver” that also had to do with my family issues at home in 9th grade. I plan to mention the foreign language aspect in that essay too. But I guess my main question is do I have a chance? I’ve visited UM numerous times, taken tours, met with the deans, made connections, etc. I know my GPA is on the low side. But I have a very high ACT score and some great extra curriculars as well as fantastic recommendation letters. What do you think?