Hey guys,
My GPA has been on an upward trend since an overly bad freshman year; if I apply somewhere early decision (Northeastern), will applying early decision actually be worse than regular, because they can’t see my senior 1st semester? At the time of ED, I’ll have 3.5UW and 3.8W. At the end of senior I’ll have 3.6UW and 4.0W. Do I still have a shot at Northeastern ED?
THanks
I am by no means qualified to advise on whether you’d get in (I’m a hs senior myself), but I wanted to let you know that Northeastern has a EDII option, meaning it’s a binding decision, but your app isn’t due until Jan 1 ish. I think this would be a good option for you if you know you want to go to Northeastern because it will increase your chances both because it’s ED and because your 1st semester grades will be available to send. Hope this helps!
My S is a first year CS major at Northeastern. His first semester in high school was a challenge for him, his grades were all over the place an A and a D were in the mix. The rest of high school was much better mostly A’s but a few B’s. He applied EA with 3.7 W GPA his ACT was 35 .
I am a first-year here at Northeastern University, and I can tell you I was in the same position. I didn’t do very well early on in hs but greatly improved my GPA. I believe I had ended with a 3.7uw and 3.9w. I applied EDII for the last-minute application and was accepted. In my opinion, as long as your GPA is satisfactory and you have a good sat/act score(mine was 1540), EDII will greatly increase your chances.
Fwiw, my kid was in a similar position (had a dicey Soph year, but similar numbers 3.55UW/3.68W end of Jr. Had all A/A- end of first semester Sr. year with 3 APs.) and applied ED. It was helpful that their school puts out 1st semester grades before ED deadline. But I also know some GCs or teachers writing recs can speak to an upward trend in grades in rec letters. You can also note it in your common app, I think.
But I don’t totally understand the question. If you are a 2020 grad, it’s too late for ED anything. If you are a 21 grad, how do you know your Sr. grades? Or are you on an unusual semester system?
Regardless, my anecdotal experience at this point makes me think that grade differentiation, while helpful, is not likely to be material if the rest of your application makes a strong case for why you are a good candidate for NEU’s relatively unique system. A very strong ACT/SAT seems to balance off “just ok” GPAs, if you have shown a lot of self-motivation in your education and life. Schools can (and sometimes do) ask for grades if they want confirmation of a student’s rising GPA.
My guess (and it’s just a guess) is that if NEU is really your 1st choice, it’s better to apply ED1 and let them know your grades are improving, but I really don’t know the answer.