3.4 uw gpa (horrible frosh year but strong final years)
3.6 w gpa
100 community service hrs
visited campus junior year
32 ACT
out of state
great essay
amazing recommendations
if not here where do you think ill fit in
If you are in-state, I think you have a moderate chance. Out of state, it would be a stretch. Admissions for non-WA students is extremely selective (I was rejected as an Idaho student with a 4.3 W GPA / 33 ACT / 2040 SAT; I had to appeal to get in). They also do not accept recommendations, so even if they are great, they won’t be part of your app. Visiting campus doesn’t necessarily give you an advantage, either. I would say you really need to sell yourself on the essay and have strong awards/ECs to be competitive for out-of-state if you are passionate about attending UW. WSU, WWU, and other smaller Seattle universities are still really good schools. I would also recommend looking at other larger state universities (ones with better financial aid maybe; UW is super spendy lols).
My grades and ACT weren’t anything spectacular and I got into UW out of state. It’s definitely harder but not impossible with your grades.
UW is holistic and isn’t just going to look at your GPA. You have a lot of other strong factors, so I wouldn’t call it too much of a stretch. Especially if you have a good story to tell with your essay and your upward trend.
A strong GPA doesn’t guarantee you a spot into UW unlike many other selective public universities. I’ve heard many stories of extremely high-achieving students grade-wise that didn’t have much of a story to tell with their extracurriculars and essay and got rejected. I’ve heard of students with only slightly above average grades that had wonderful essays and did a ton with themselves outside of the classroom that were accepted.
Try not to make the extracurricular section look egotistical. I’ve heard through the grapevine that it’s a major turnoff for admissions.
Keep your head up and make sure you do the best you possibly can with your senior year to get that GPA up a little higher. You’ve got a shot, it’s just that in a system as wild and unpredictable as UW’s, you have no idea what the result is going to be.
Hi! I’m a senior in highschool and recently got accepted to UW Seattle along with some of my friends. We all have different records so it really is case by case. For example, my gpa (not including 2nd semester senior year) is 3.85 (I’ve taken at least one ap class each year and I’ve never had a C), 1840 on sat, decent amount of extra curriculars (clubs, volunteering, piano, tennis), and a decent personal statement. On the other hand, my friend has a 3.4, made up of As Bs and Cs, a 1320 SAT, consistent leadership roles in school council every year, and her essay was decent. As you can see, we were definitely different students but both of us got in. By the way, UW doesn’t take letters of recommendations! In my opinion, 100 hours of service doesn’t seem like much but do you have extra curriculars? I think you have a fairly good chance depending on the rigor of your classes and ECS.
I know a guy who was waitlisted with a 34 ACT, 3.9 GPA (unweight).
Conversely, I know a guy who was accepted with a 19 ACT, 3.0 GPA, but he attended a CC for two years and they were forced to admit him due to government laws.
It depends on essays
@Furoni what government laws you were talking about?
And what do you mean about “depends on essays”? Can you be more specific?
Thank you.
@thaipq UW is required to accept a certain amount of kids who attend CC for two years. Essays are mostly what matters. What is your major going to be? You probably won’t get into a competitive major directly
@Furoni I see your point here. There is still one thing I’d to ask: is it impossible for a CC student to transfer into a competitive major such as CSE?
@thaipq basically yup
Oh… that’s sux -_-
@thaipq but you can transfer in and then apply to CS
@Furoni I am a CC transfer, so I don’t think I can transfer in like a freshman.
Btw, are you applying to CSE too?
@thaipq I was direct admit for CS
Oh I see. That’s awesome.