<p>Just kidding! :) What do you think my chances of admission are at USC MARSHALL?</p>
<p>SAT CR: 660
SAT Math: 680
SAT Writing: 710
SAT Total: 2050 (will be taking once more. predicting a composite of 2100)
SAT II: 800 KOREAN, 700 Biology E, 690 US History
ACT: --
AP taking/taken/scores: Euro. History 3, US History 4, Biology 4, English Lang. 4 (currently taking 7 more AP's: Calc AB, Enviro Sci, Comparative Gov. Human Geo., Am. Gov., Macroeconomics, English Lit). Total 11 AP's by graduation. Took 8 classes sophomore and junior year, and every class senior year is an AP class.
GPA weighted: 4.45
GPA unweighted: 3.75
Rank or % estimate: School does not rank.</p>
<p>Subjective: I don't think I have top grade academics but I think I am pretty well-rounded in terms of extracurricular achievements and leadership.
Essays: Good
Teacher Recs: Good
Counselor Rec: Good</p>
<p>Location/Person: Southern California
State or Country: CA
School Type: Public (top 100)
Ethnicity: Korean
Gender: Male
Legacy Yes/No: No
Recruited Yes/No: Sorta. Named as a candidate of scholarship at University of Rochester (yes i know, nothing big)
Important ECs:
1) Co-founded club in sophomore year to raise awareness and funds for North Korean human rights crisis and North Korean refugees. Held major community events and hosted North Korean refugees to speak at my school. Was awarded recognition by my school for this and have been named as a candidate for the Frederick Douglas/Susan B. Anthony Humanities Scholarship at University of Rochester.
2) Serving as Lieutenant Governor over service clubs at 7 different schools. I represent these schools when the District (which consists of 10 divisions throughout Calif., Nev., and Hawaii. My constituency consists of several hundred students in my region.
3) Have started my own business and collaborated with others on business ventures. Business is my intended major and have taken a handful of community college courses in areas of small business entrepreneurship, business law, and international business
4) Served as a lobbyist for my school district on a trip to Sacramento to lobby legislators to allow for increased flexibility in categorical spending and other measures. Was interviewed and handpicked for the position.</p>
<p>General Comments/Congratulations/etc:
Member of National Honors Society, California Scholarship Federation, and Model United Nations. 600+ hours of community service, church praise band leader, and recipient of AP Scholar award.</p>
<p>I am just a parent, but it sounds like you have worked hard and should be very proud of yourself. I think you have a very good chance of acceptance. However, I would ask your guidance counselor how your stats fit in with your school. Since you are in California, at a top high school, I assume a fair number of classmates will apply and I honestly don't know if USC limits the number of students from each California high school. My only suggestion to you is to elaborate more about the fact that you started your own business-what kind of business, what did you learn from it, role models, etc.
You clearly give/volunteer a lot of your time to help your community, which is something very successful business people do. The other thing I suggest you think about is that you wrote you are a "church praise band leader". Do you plan an instrument in a band for your church? My guess is USC keeps its eyes open for great musicians to play in its marching band--is this something of interest to you and do you think you have the talent for it? I would NOT mention anything about getting a scholarship to U. of Rochester in the USC application. Hope this helps.</p>
<p>thanks for your insight!
i will take your suggestions and comments into consideration.</p>
<p>in regards to the u. of rochester comment, i would think that by showing that my accomplishments were legitimized and recognized by a reputable university would help to support my resume.</p>
<p>also, i felt that by name-dropping and hinting that i am receiving a scholarship offer, maybe usc would offer me a more sizable merit award. </p>
<p>I absolutely would NOT mention the U. of Rochester in your application, even though it is a legitimate and outstanding award. The time to possibly think about mentioning any other universities for negotiating aid is after you get all of your scholarships from various schools and compare who gives you the best offer. Another reason I would NOT, I mean NOT mention the U. of Rochester is that it shows you are NOT 100% interested in USC. You are telling USC that you are interested in other schools. I think the top colleges, USC included, wants to know that you really want to go there. I also sense on College Confidential, that there are kids who really, really want USC and I am sure they somehow convey that keen interest in USC in some way via application and/or interview.
For the Presidential scholarship at USC based upon being a National Merit Finalist, for example, you have to put down USC as your FIRST choice school. I also happen to think that USC is a better school than U. of Rochester, particularly in business. Truly, talk to your guidance counselor or if your high school has a college counselor, review your application and get the right advice about how to structure your numerous fine accomplishments in a way that will want USC to accept you. Finally, look at the various scholarships mentioned in the USC application brochure (or check on line) and see where you think you might qualify for a merit scholarship. There are numerous scholarships all with different criteria. Hope this helps.</p>
<p>My pleasure to be of help. If you are not satisfied with your guidance counselor's advice, then go to the head of guidance counseling at your high school. I think you have a lot of great things to put down in your application and that you should be proud of yourself. I just don't think putting down the U. of Rochester scholarship offer award will help. However, I am just a parent and it is really to your benefit to talk to an experienced professional at your high school who has been through this many times and knows how to best guide you. One other thing to think about--the USC alumni network is legendary.
This is something to think about when it comes time to look for jobs particularly in this down economy. Do you really want to live in cold upstate New York? It is far down the road, but think about where you want to end up and try to apply to schools in an area where you want to end up.</p>
<p>I have heard SC expects over 36,000 applicants for the fall 2009 class. You might think about really preparing for another try on the SATs to raise that score.<br>
Another suggestion......Do you have another SAT II test you might select? Since you are Korean and taking a SAT II in Korean is not as impressive as scoring high in some other subject. That is just my opinion.</p>
<p>Thanks for the suggestion.
I am considering taking the Lit SAT2 on Nov 1 (havent registered but will go DAY of) and will be retaking the SAT once again in December.</p>
<p>I expected applicants to private schools to drop this year, what with this economic mess and all. :( I guess not!</p>
<p>USC is known to be generous with people who really NEED financial aid and gives a lot of merit aid too. Therefore, application numbers could be UP. Have you considered taking the ACT? If you get a super score on the ACT, send it in. If you don't like your score, you don't have to send it in. I suggest you do a lot of practice tests at home before re-taking the SAT or, if there is time, to take a test prep course. Anyways, I suggest you apply and see what happens.</p>
<p>mdcissp's advice about not revealing a scholarship award offer is way off base and naive. USC has got to know that you will be applying elsewhere, and in this economy, competition for all forms of aid is going to be fierce. Also, the comments about Rochester are just so biased to be laughable: better school for business, cold upstate New York, you don't want to end up there, do you? All that cold snowy weather will take away your entrepeneurial sprit and talent, right? Better to stay in Ca. where it's warm, and the air is clean, and the money flows like honey...</p>
<p>brainsprain, just as you - as a Rochester parent - are a cheerleader for Rochester, mdcissp (and myself) - as USC parents - are big cheerleaders for USC. Of course we are biased in favor of this wonderful university. Particularly here on the USC forum.</p>
<p>I agree with mdcissp that the scholarship offer should not be revealed while applying. USC - like many universities - is interested in admitting students they feel are very likely to choose USC. Competing scholarship offers should be brought up in April, after acceptance and before committing to attend, while negotiating financial aid. (Which is exactly what mdcissp suggested.)</p>
<p>Best wishes to you and your Rochester student, brainsprain. It is so great when our kids find the perfect place for their college years, and it is amazing how each student’s “perfect place” can be so different. I hope AdvancdPlacement finds the perfect place as well - and who knows which coast it will be on!</p>
<p>Well, not to be argumentative here, but my comments were not based solely on my daughter's experience with UR. She recieved a similar type of award from GWU for academic promise, recognized it as a recruiting tool, and included that information on every application she submitted. I think Advanced Placement should be proud of the fact that he was recognized by UR. It could strengthen his application to USC.</p>
<p>USC is actually a popular place for students from our area (Md. suburbs of DC) to apply and attend. And, why not? USC is a great school. Some of these students have lived in So. Ca. before and their families have moved here for govt. jobs, etc. As you can imagine, ours a very transient community every four or eight years, depending. (On quiet nights, we can hear the Republicans polishing their resumes, pulling out their suitcases and contacting realtors...) </p>
<p>And none of these students that we know would fail to mention every possible factor that might distinguish them from other applicants, including potential scholarship awards from another universities, regardless of whether or not they intend to apply to those other schools. Do you honestly believe that USC would deny admission to an otherwise qualified candidate because they will recieve a scholarship if they attend another school? I don't think so.</p>
<p>Advanced Placement said he wants to apply to business school at USC. I checked the U. of Rochester website. Rochester has the Simon school of Business for graduate students. If a prospective student wants an undergraduate degree in business, I am not sure how Rochester meets that requirement. Also, I suggested that Advanced Placement seek guidance from a professional at his high school how to proceed with getting an award from Rochester vs. telling USC about this honor.</p>
<p>i choose to think mdcissp is correct.
i should not mention something that will make usc doubt my committment to their school.
it is in fact, my number 1 school and i should let that show.</p>
<p>thanks everyone for the spirited conversation. very insightful! :D</p>
<p>Advanced Placement,
Despite changes in the economy there will always be Trojan parents who will make every effort to provide for their son/daughter if admittance is offered. Keep in mind SC has a strong presence in Asia. There are alumni clubs in Beijing, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Shinchu, Pearl River Delta, Indonesia, Horoshima, Kansai, Nagoya, Tokyo, Malaysia, Singapore, Seoul, Taipei, Thailand and the Philippines.<br>
For numerous Asians SC is a dream college and is affordable to many according to their standards.<br>
SC is in a highly populated area. An eastern university may not be an option this fall due to transportation costs. For some living at home and commuting to SC might be
a less expensive choice of college. I checked the UCLA website. Their estimated cost for a freshman student, excluding transportation, was $25,300. That did include books and health fees.</p>