<p>Extracurriculars
I was Class Secretary my sophomore year.
Student Council 9-11
Varsity Club 11
Student Leadership 11
Mu Alpha Theta 11
Civil Air Patrol 2 years
Working a job 3 days a week since my 16th b-day
Flying lessons 3 days a week
I volunteer at my mom’s school (she’s a teacher)</p>
<p>I am taking the ACT again in March (school makes us), and I’m shooting for a 29. What do you think my chances are for getting into the Summer Seminar?</p>
<p>Well, see, that's where I'm going to get screwed. Should I not send my PSAT scores? I only scored 157 on the PSAT, and that is no where close to my ACT score. I'm not sure what to do...</p>
<p>I don't recall ever sending scores. I just entered them online I think. I also think that they only look at the best scores and dont count off for bad scores. Don't quote me on that though, that was just the impression that I got.</p>
<p>Sorry, I wouldn't know where to begin in evaluating your stats since I'm a newbie to this myself :), but with respect to the college board test scores, don't flip out if you didn't do too hot on them the first time around. I didn't even take the SAT until the end of my junior year and didn't have ANY scores to show USAFA until after summer seminar was over. I realized that was very bad when March rolled around, but I spoke with someone who coordinates SS, and she said that they would evaluate me based on the strength of the rest of my resume, and I got in. In short, I just wasn't prepared with the scores and that is not good, but there's still hope. :) Summer seminar rocks, by the way!</p>
<p>The scores are self-reported on your SS app and don't have to be sent from an official source (although, misreporting would be a major mistake!). Basically they will judge you based on the information on the app. My son was told he could send in recommendations and supplementary info, but he was admitted to SS before the other stuff got there. Your PSAT scores are low, but ACT shows improvement. Prepare for your SAT/ACT just as diligently as possible. Too many applicants spend hours each week preparing for their CFA (less than 10% of their app) and hardly any time at all preparing for their SAT/ACT (more than 30% of their app). Prioritizing your application preparation is good foundation for your life at the academy. Wish you the best!</p>
<p>Son's PSAT was a 206. His SAT math was a 780 and his verbal was a 670. It should be noted, though, that his first math score was a 680 and he raised it by a 100 points just two months later. It helped that his mother is a professional SAT/ACT tutor. Anyone can raise their scores considerably, especially in math, if they buy some good materials and do the practice. An applicant with scores in the 500's may not be competitive, but just getting them up into the 600's makes a world of difference. I feel like my son's scores are what earned him his LOA and also really helped confirm his grades from a tiny little private school. His EC's were fine, but he had to get them mostly from his community rather than from his school. These are some of the reasons why you'll notice that I'm a cheerleader for SAT prep on this forum!</p>
<p>While we are on the topic of Summer Seminar I have a question about what I should do. Session A is at the same time as my last week of school and I will most likely miss finals for all of my classes if I go. Session B is during the same week as my physics, us history, and english regents. Do you think I should even apply or should I just miss summer seminar and take my tests?</p>
<p>June 11-13: last three days of school, 14+15: start of regents week, 18-22: full regents week.</p>
<p>Usually finals are taken those last three days of school and when you take finals is not dependent upon what grade you are in, but what classes you have taken. I might be able to take finals earlier than the rest of my specific class, but I highly doubt it. The regents are taken on specific days and I know that I cannot take those tests any other days. I am planning on calling my ALO, but I also just wanted to get your opinion on this situation.</p>
<p>GO TO SUMMER SEMINAR!!! Definitely! If I were you, I would talk with your teachers and just try to take your finals early, if at all possible. But whatever you have to do to work it out, I can't stress enough how important seminar is. I mean, it doesn't have any bearing (that I know of) on your status when it comes time to actually apply and I'm told that it's not completely accurate at depicting the life of a cadet, but believe me, you will come away from there soooooo enthusiastic about USAFA (yes, even more than you are now) and that helps TONS in interviews. I don't know how to describe it any other way than just pure enthusiasm! :) Plus, your ALO and your MOC's nomination panel are both going to want to know that you understand the full import of your decision to attend USAFA, and if you've had a small taste of cadet life, it will help to convey your dedication. Oh, it also helps to personally know cadets, too, because it shows that you're staying in touch with the reality of everyday cadet life. Did I mention that it's also really fun and you'll meet amazing people? :) Alright, I'll stop ranting now, but I really want to encourage you (and anyone else who reads this) to go to SS because it was absolutely invaluable to me.</p>
<p>Redhead89 is giving really good advice. Whether you go the SS or not, definitely try to make a visit to the academy before you have your ALO and congressional interviews. They will be very curious as to whether or not you are interested enough in the academy to actually go check it out. In the past the very first ALO question was "Have you visited the academy?" I don't think they do that anymore, but they do still want to know. Not having visited the academy shows a lesser degree of understanding and commitment.</p>
<p>I really hope I get into SS. Would it be better to just send gpa without my test scores, which wern't to good, but I'm retaking in Feb and as many times as I can after that.</p>
<p>My GPA was only 3.45, my ACT was 29 and I was accepted for Summer Seminar...I think that your GPA should easily make up for the scores, and the admissions people probably look at a lot more than just the numbers. I would send in as much information as possible.</p>
<p>Well the thing is, it was FAR from a 29. I got a 23 on it. How, I dont know. I got a 29 in reading so I'm not sure what happened. But I know I can do A LOT better on it in Feb and I don't think everyone that would be attending would have taken the ACT/SAT by then. Based on that information, would you still think it would be wise to send in a 23?</p>
<p>They will ask for your PSAT score if you took it. It is doubtful they will accept you to SS without some national test score. If you haven't taken the SAT, sign up for it, too. You might be one of those people who do significantly better on one or the other of the tests. USAFA will only look at your highest scores. Judging by your reading score on the ACT, it might well be that you are an SAT type of person rather than an ACT. But there's only one way to find out for sure. Remember that whatever facts you include in you SS app, they can be updated as things change.</p>
<p>Do SAT scores supersede PSAT scores? I took the PSAT once way back in my sophomore year (or at least it feels like it :)) and have only taken the SAT since.</p>