UVa Class of 2019 EA Results Thread

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Virginia
41

Decision: Rejected

Objective: Arts and Sciences

SAT I (breakdown): Composite: 1980 CR: 660 Math: 620 Writing: 640
ACT: 23
SAT II: Did not take
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.3
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 100/406
AP (place score in parenthesis): Biology (2/ Did not report), Psychology (4), European History (1/did not report), Government (taking this year), Literature and Composition (taking this year)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Lit, AP Gov, Math Analysis, Physics, Body Systems II, Medical Microbiology/Hereditary Medicine,
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): N/A
Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Boy Scouts (numerous leadership positions), Varsity Baseball, JV CC, Raiders (JROTC sport)
Job/Work Experience: 6 months at Autobell Car Wash
Volunteer/Community service: Over 360 hours during high school from numerous sources
Summer Activities: Hiking, camping, power lifting, etc
Essays: Thought I wrote thorough and well written essays.
Teacher Recommendation: Chose very prestigious teachers.
Counselor Rec: My counselor is not a very good one, but I hoped she would do alright.
Additional Rec: Company commander during JROTC. Now at VMI.
Interview: Did not have one and wasn’t aware we could have one. Did have an interview with Yale and he brought up UVA as a good school for prospective law students

Other

State (if domestic applicant): VA
School Type: Virginia Beach City Public School (Health Sciences Academy)
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Gender: M
Income Bracket: $70k/household
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Father did not attend college. Mother has B.S. in nursing. Eagle scout. 2 cousins attended UVA.

Reflection

Strengths: SATs and extracurriculars (Eagle Scout)
Weaknesses: GPA
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Grades and not of the same caliber of those who were accepted.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted: GMU, ODU, VCU Deferred: JMU Waiting on: Yale, Vandy

General Comments: Hoping to attend a 4 year and try to transfer to UVA after a year.

42

Decision: Accepted: College of Arts and Sciences

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): Didn’t send.
ACT: 34 (English-34, Math-34, Reading-35, Science-36, Writing-9)
SAT II: Math 1 700, US History 760
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.24
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): In the top 2 of 45
AP (place score in parenthesis): English Language (4), Euro (5), APUSH (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc AB, AP CoGo, AP English Literature, Honors Anatomy&Physiology, Theology (Required), Honors French 4
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): none

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): varsity field hockey (captain). Club squash (captain), varsity lacrosse, student council (class treasurer), newspaper (editor), mathletes (captain)
Job/Work Experience: various social media internships, field hockey referee, snack bar attendant during summer
Volunteer/Community service: 200+ hours, month long service trip to Dominica
Summer Activities: either worked or did service every summer
Essays: 8/10. Really liked them, but not sure if they were outstanding
Teacher Recommendation: 10/10. Close relationships with both teachers and had the highest average in both their classes.
Counselor Rec: 9/10. We have a good relationship, but she just started this fall, so not sure she knows all the ropes of writing a good rec letter.
Additional Rec: none
Interview: none

Other

State (if domestic applicant): PA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Private Catholic K-12
Ethnicity: white
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: 100,000-150,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none

Reflection

Strengths: Essays, Rec Letters, GPA, ACT
Weaknesses: No hooks
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: honestly i don’t know. I was expecting deferral because i was nothing special.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted to Notre Dame, Boston College, Tulane, and Fordham. Deferred from Georgetown.

General Comments:
UVA isn’t my definite first choice, but it’s in my top 3 for sure! I was so shocked and excited to find out i’d been accepted!

43

Decision: Accepted

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 2230 Superscored (800 CR, 700 Math, 730 Writing)
ACT: 34 (36 Eng, 36 Reading, 34 Science, 29 Math, 12 Essay (gee, thanks math -___-))
SAT II: 760 USH, 740 English Lit, 700 Math II (might not have sent math can’t remember)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): school has a 7 point scale, but my gpa is probably about 3.9 if you convert it
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): top 10-15%
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP USH- 5, AP Comp Gov- 4, AP US Gov- 5
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Econ (macro/micro), AP English Lit, AP Environmental Science, AP Calc AB, AP Spanish IV
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Spanish Exam Gold Lvls 1 and 3, Silver Lvl 2…won several school writing prizes but that’s not “major”, One of 13 Caterham Scholars from my class chosen to go to England for two weeks to study at the Caterham School

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): School paper (4 years), Soccer (4 years, 2 varsity- team finished #2 in the state D3), Track (2 years varsity), Business Club (4 years)
Job/Work Experience: Reffing soccer…not much
Volunteer/Community service: Week long community service trip to Tennessee for the last five years
Summer Activities: Brown Pre-College Writing, Boston University Collegiate Soccer Academy,
Essays: 9/10? been a while since I wrote them, I thought they were decent, and I like to write
Teacher Recommendation: 10/10 three great teachers who I have great relationships with
Counselor Rec: 10/10 my school’s counselor’s are able to really get to know the students and write great recs
Additional Rec: 9-10/10 my two soccer coaches wrote it together…I was the starting keeper on a 15-2 team so I’m sure they were good
Interview: No interview

Other

State (if domestic applicant): OH
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Private, Competitive, Boarding
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: Low enough that I’ll need lots of financial aid
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Both parents got their PhDs from UVA

Reflection

Strengths: Test scores, Essays
Weaknesses: ECs
Why you think you were accepted: Good test scores, demonstrated tons of interest, double legacy, rigorous course load with a solid GPA at a top 50 boarding school
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: rather not say

General Comments: A lack of significant EC’s and leadership can be crippling in the college process for everyone reading this. At the same time though, don’t just go around “resume padding.” Find something you like to do, and be exemplary at it. For me it was writing, but I still lacked leadership. It just depends on the person. I did what I felt happy and comfortable doing, but in hindsight it would be great to have my EC’s be a boost for my grades and test scores, instead of being somewhat underwhelming.

44

Accepted!!

SAT I (breakdown): 700 CR 720 W 620 M
ACT: 34 composite (34 math, 35 science, 36 reading, 34 english)
SAT II: 760 US history
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0):3.9
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): school does not rank
AP (place score in parenthesis): 10 total: AP BIO (4) APEuro AP(5) Eng Lang(5) APUSH(5) AP Calc AB(4) AP Spanish(5)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Stat, Organic Chem (college level) /AP Lit /AP US GOV/ AP Latin/ Economics and Religion
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Girl Scout Gold Award; St. Zita highest community service hours award
Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Spanish Club President; Varsity Soccer (4 years) Varsity Cross Country (4 years, Captain this year) President of Liturgical Choir; Teach Classical Languages to younger kids after school once a week (Greek and Latin) Girl Scout etc, etc, etc.
Job/Work Experience: Worked full time each summer since age 15 at: Girl Scout camp as kitchen aide; one summer at a day care/ one summer as a nanny for four children.
Volunteer/Community service: Gold Award built library for children without access to books; Annual Mission trip to Appalachia to build houses; Started Classics club to teach Greek and Latin to younger students at a free club once per week after school. and some other less time intensive volunteer work.
Summer Activities: work and mission trip
Essays: I thought they were strong but who knows
Teacher Recommendation: no idea, we don’t see these
Counselor Rec: ditto
Additional Rec:
Interview:

Other

State (if domestic applicant): Georgia
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: private Catholic
Ethnicity: W
Gender: F
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): ?

Reflection

Strengths:
Weaknesses:
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:

General Comments: Also accepted EA at Boston College, Providence College , UGA and University of Alabama. Applied RD to Dartmouth and Princeton.

45

Decision: Accepted School of Engineering

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown):1950 (M 660, W 660, CR 630)
ACT: C: 32 (Superscore 33); M: 35, E: 34, R: 33, S: 30
SAT II: Math 2: 770, Physics: 700
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.97
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 3/41
AP (place score in parenthesis): English Lang (3), Spanish Lang (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP’S: Physics, Calc, English Lit, USH, Macro and Micro.
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):Student Council (Pres), Local TEDx (Speaker Coordinator), Debate team (Pres) NHS (Sec) Science NHS (Sec) Mu Alpha Theta, etc.
Job/Work Experience: Intern at Central American Bank for Economic Integration. Hotel Reception manager.
Volunteer/Community service:846 hrs. Founded Non-profit ecological org. founded pro-life club at school/ volunteer leader in many
Summer Activities: Vanderbilt Summer Academy, Wake Forest summer program
Essays: Strong, Common App was really appealing, supplements showed a lot about me.
Teacher Recommendation: Both Great
Counselor Rec: Great
Additional Rec: Two other amazing recs.
Interview: None

Other

State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant): Nicaragua
School Type: Private
Ethnicity: Hispanic
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: ~80k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Third world country,

Reflection

Strengths: EC’s, Rec’s, Essays, GPA, ACT & SAT II
Weaknesses: SAT I
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Overall strong, especially compared to previous applicants from my country, they usually have lousy test scores.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted: Georgia Tech, Tulane, Saint Louis U., Loyola Chicago. Still waiting on 11 more!

General Comments: Put an effort in the essays, don’t just answer the question, but make it about you. Don’t think what they want to hear, think what you want to tell them about yourself.

46

Decision: Deferred

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): Did not submit
ACT: 33, 34 super scored
SAT II: 780 Math II, 740 Chem
Unweighted GPA (out of 100): 94.81 (98.41 weighted)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Not available
AP (place score in parenthesis): 4 AP’s Junior Year (3’s and 4’s)
IB (place score in parenthesis): None
Senior Year Course Load: 5 AP’s, 3 Dual Enrollment
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): None

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Decent, a few clubs, president of one, band, three honors societies, etc.
Job/Work Experience: Summer Camp
Volunteer/Community service: 30 hours + per year
Summer Activities: Summer Camp
Essays: Common App (7/10), UVa Essay 1 (8/10), UVa Essay 2 (9/10)
Teacher Recommendation: Teacher 1 (8/10), Teacher 2 (7/10) (didn’t read, just assuming)
Counselor Rec: 8/10 (didn’t read, just assuming)
Additional Rec: None
Interview: None

Other

State (if domestic applicant): OOS - New York
School Type: Public, sends a bunch of kids to top schools each year
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: 250,000+
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None

Reflection

Strengths: ACT, course load
Weaknesses: ECs
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:

General Comments: Thank you everyone for posting on this site. Win or lose, we’ll all end up where we want to go. Congrats to everyone who got in!

47

To hnef27 - sorry to hear you didn’t get the result you hoped for. I think UNC might well be realistic, as I think admissions are easier there than at UVA. Unfortunately, you are correct that Penn is unlikely. Given that you are from NY and come from an upscale family (based on the income you cite), UVA really expects more. If your high school participates in Naviance, you can see what sort of scores/grades kids in your school need to be competitive at Penn.
In our suburban NJ community, unless you are a recruited athlete, you’re not going to get into Penn with less than a 2300 SAT or some other hook. The lack of APs doesn’t hurt you if your school doesn’t offer them, but getting a 3 in an AP class doesn’t help. As for the letter from the COO, it would depend on what it said and whether the reader believes the COO knew you personally or was just “doing you a favor.” While you are qualified for UVA, so are most applicants, and there aren’t enough spots. To borrow a saying from my son’s soccer coach: “You fit in but you don’t stand out.” If you don’t stand out (above your environment in HS), then you are unlikely to get in early. My daughter (now a sophomore elsewhere) had marginally better credentials and was deferred EA and ultimately waitlisted. She is happy elsewhere and I’m sure you will find a place that you are happy at. Best of luck to you.

48

To mhs0047 - I’m sorry you didn’t get the result you hoped for. Please don’t take a rejection of your application as a rejection of you as a student or a person. I am sure you will find a school where you will enjoy a successful college career. By my math, there are twice as many applicants for half as many OOS spots, so UVA is extremely competitive for OOS applicants. As per my reply to hnef27, your stats show that you would fit in but not stand out. While it is difficult emotionally, schools are trending towards rejecting more students early. At many schools, they know they are only accepting 15 or 20% of students (or less) but still defer 80% or more. So take heart that most deferred students end up getting rejected or at best waitlisted. (I do alumni interviews for a well-known school and have never had a deferred EA candidate be accepted.) I think your real question is what you should have done differently. My advice to all students is to do what they enjoy without regard to college admissions. If you pursue your interests, you will be fulfilled, regardless of the judgment or acceptance of others. Being rewarded for doing things that you don’t really enjoy is a slippery slope that does not lead to fulfillment. Being sidetracked by lack of recognition for doing what you enjoy is also counterproductive. Enjoy who you are. You will find a school that fits you, that likes you, and that you like. Another question people ask is “Why didn’t xyz activity or recommendation count more?” In some cases, it is just a matter of not being unique enough. They don’t need 500 students who can all sing, dance, kick a football, or play tuba. People tend to overestimate the uniqueness of their activities. My kids played violin for 10+ years and it was barely a blip on their college apps. People tend to vastly overestimate the importance of sports on a college application. Sports count for almost nothing if you are not recruited by the coach. This is unfortunate, but true. The same is largely true of music and art, insofar as they don’t count for much unless you submit a portfolio, have won a competition, or intend to continue pursuing it during college. Unfortunately, the most common (wrong) topic for essays is “How I struggled, persevered, and benefited through sports.” I tell you this not to criticize you but to help people understand that they need to do their research and get feedback on, say, essay topic selection from people who really know. Again, please understand I am just trying to help you get the closure you seek. You will get many more chances in college and life. This is just a bump in the road, which will soon be in your rear view mirror. Best of luck to you.

49

To srujant - You asked for feedback on why people think you got deferred. I wish you luck wherever you may end up. Your credentials are similar to my daughter (now a sophomore elsewhere), who was deferred and ultimately waitlisted. Based on what you’ve posted, I don’t see anything that really stands out. Many candidates have music, MUN, sports, community service, etc. on their applications. I’d turn the question around to you…other than the “race and state residency” factors you cited–and I agree that residency makes a difference but don’t think race does, frankly–why do you think you were deferred? Or, put another way, why do you think you deserved to be admitted EA against a very, very competitive OOS pool? As per my earlier replies, I’m sure you would fit in and could handle the course load, but colleges are looking for students who can bring a unique talent, perspective, or attitude to their class. You seem like a good student and a good, well-rounded person, but I think your expectations of admission standards were just unrealistically low. If you HS uses Naviance, you can get a sense of how competitive admissions are from your HS. Again, I wish you luck in your application both to UVA in the RD round and to other schools.

50

This thread is for results. Comments can be made through PM.

51

Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2210- 720 CR, 770 M, 720 W
ACT (breakdown): Did not take
SAT II: Math II- 730, Physics- 690
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): School does not rank, but top 20% have GPA’s from 3.89-4.0
AP (place score in parenthesis): Calculus BC (5), APUSH (5)
Senior Year Course Load: AP English Lit, AP Comp Gov, AP Chemistry, Number Theory (Dual Credit), Choir, International Studies, and Religion
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): NMSF, Ignatian Scholar, NHS, School Science Award

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Choir (Section Leader), Leader on School Retreats, School Ambassador, JV Lacrosse (Most-Improved Player Award), School Play (Ensemble Member), NHS
Job/Work Experience: Babysitter
Volunteer/Community service: 120 hours at Boys & Girls Club, 50 hours working for School Food Drive
Summer Activities: Summer Calculus Class
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common App Essay- One admissions officer from a different college wrote me a note that she really liked my essay about failure. I talked about overcoming one of my fears.
Supplemental Essays- My counselor told me these were the best supplemental essays for UVA that she had ever read. I wrote about a book about math, and my role in the Cavalier hive.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): I didn’t read my English teacher’s or my counselor’s recommendation, but I am close with both of them and so I’m assuming they were good.

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Mathematics
State (if domestic applicant): Oregon
School Type: Catholic
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): First Generation

Reflection

Strengths: My GPA and essays
Weaknesses: Being OOS, and not having a TON of leadership positions.
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Only 1 person from my school in the past 5 years has been accepted to UVA early action, and he was the salutatorian, so I’m assuming my GPA was what really made the difference, while my SAT and my involvement in my school sealed the deal.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted to Notre Dame and University of Oregon, still waiting to hear from USC.

General Comments:

I was so happy to see my acceptance letter online yesterday! I visited UVA last spring, and I fell in love with the school. In the end, I think it will come down to deciding between UVA and Notre Dame, so we’ll see what happens!

52

[aB][asize=4][acolor=#008000]Decision: Accepted to Arts and Sciences[/color][/size]**

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 2010
SAT II: Bio: 730 Lit: 650
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.93
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 2%
AP: English Lang (4)
Senior Year Course Load: Spanish 2, AP Lit, AP Biology, AP Stats, AP Government, AP Micro

Extracurriculars: Improvisation Team founder and president, sophomore class president, junior class vice president, senior class council, ginormous participant in theatre, founder of a teen anxiety group for my county
Job/Work Experience: ice cream shop worker for a year
Volunteer/Community service: over 600 hours at the public library, 100 hours at the local hospital, summer intern at a gifted children’s camp
Essays: Phenomenal.
Teacher Recommendation: One of them must’ve been great while the other was probably nothing too special
Counselor Rec: absolutely generic
Additional Rec: N/A
Interview: N/A

Other

State (if domestic applicant): VA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: >40,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None!

Reflection

Strengths: My essays were definitely a huge point as well as my accomplishments (especially compared to my county)
Weaknesses: My SAT score
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: they liked me :slight_smile:
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: haven’t heard back yet, but have had interviews for yale, upenn, and georgetown so far

General Comments:
Don’t judge yourself based off of these profiles, okay? Good luck.

53

Decision: Accepted to SEAS

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): Didn’t Send
ACT: 34 (M:36 R:35 E:34 S:32 Essay:10)
SAT II: Math II-800 Chem-790 USH-740
Unweighted GPA (out of 100): U/W-92 W-96
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Not Sure
AP (place score in parenthesis): Chemistry (5), Eng. Lang. (5), Stats (4), US History (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc BC, AP Lit, AP Physics C, AP Bio, AP Gov, Basic Piano
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Scholar with Honor, NHS, School Science Award

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Varsity Ice Hockey, Club Ice Hockey, Chemagination, MUN
Job/Work Experience: Refereed ice hockey since 7th grade
Volunteer/Community service: Volunteered at a children’s hospital and tutored for NHS
Summer Activities: Vacation
Essays: UVA-8/10 (Wrote about my favorite word and connected it to one of my recommenders) Engineering-9/10 (Really out-of-the-box idea that connected to my interest in hockey)
Teacher Recommendation: Didn’t read, but I’m sure they were good
Counselor Rec: Didn’t read, but I’m sure it was good
Additional Rec: None
Interview: None

Other

State (if domestic applicant): NJ
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public, medium sized
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: M
Income Bracket: Prefer not to say
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Legacy

Reflection

Strengths: Test Scores, Course Load, Legacy
Weaknesses: GPA, ECs
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Honestly think my test scores and legacy status for out of state really helped me a lot
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted to Rutgers, Deferred from Princeton, Waiting for others in RD

General Comments: I can’t believe I got in! Still shocked and excited about all of it. UVA has been one of my top schools for a while, and being accepted and having the same graduation/reunion cycle with my mom was just so special to me. One of my best friends also got in, which was also awesome. After being deferred from Princeton, this really boosted my confidence in the college admissions process, and it goes to show that deferral/rejection is not the end of the road because UVA or some other great school will definitely come along and say, “Hey you! We want you at our school!” Although I’m waiting to hear back from other schools, I truly feel that UVA is where I will ultimately end up, and can’t wait to meet some of you future Wahoos!

54

Decision: Accepted (Arts & Sciences)

Omitting some stuff bc of privacy but mostly bc it’s a lot to fill out lol. If you wanna know anything extra, just message me. :slight_smile:

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 1950 (660M, 650CR, 640W)
ACT: Let’s not talk about that LOL
SAT II: Can’t remember exact numbers - low 600s
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): only know weighted - 101.4
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 7/765
AP (place score in parenthesis): none - just 3 DE classes
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load:
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): QB Finalist
Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): student council, varsity track, key club, honor society, PJAS, french honor society, executive council
Job/Work Experience: n/a
Volunteer/Community service: A LOT of church hours
Summer Activities: n/a
Essays: common app: I’m not the best writer, but I tried my best to tell my “story” and how it makes me a strong person. Supplemental essays: halfway decent lol
Teacher Recommendation: Amazing! Didn’t read, but I’m very close to those who wrote them. They’ve really been rooting for me.
Counselor Rec: Same^^
Additional Rec: n/a
Interview: n/a

Other

State (if domestic applicant): PA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Hispanic
Gender: Female
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM, QuestBridge Finalist (didn’t get matched), first gen

Reflection

Strengths: common app essay, letters of rec, rank, QB Finalist status
Weaknesses: scores! Plus being OOS
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: my strengths lol
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I applied to 20 schools… Ik i’m nuts

General Comments: Still in shock!!! My top choice so far! GO HOOS!

Future applicants: DON’T SELL YOURSELF SHORT! I was devastated when I wasn’t matched through QB, but I’m so happy to have been offered admission during round two. ALSO I’m a perfect example of how colleges don’t only look at your scores, so if you’re sub 2000, don’t get discouraged!

55

Decision: Accepted OOS

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 670 Math, 730 Reading, 740 Writing (2140)
ACT: n/a
SAT II: 730 lit, 730 ush
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 5.19 - don’t unweight
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Don’t rank - Inducted into Cum Laude which is top 10%
AP (place score in parenthesis): USH (5), Eng Lang (5), US Govt (4), Latin (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics 1, AP English Lang, AP Human Geography, AP Euro, AP Calculus AB
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit commended, AP Scholar with distinction, book award, scholastic writing award, MUN award, various national latin awards, in all major honor societies at school

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Honor Council (VP), Academic club to raise awareness of city and its issues (Co-VP), Global Issues club (leader), Junior Classical League (last year president), 4 year varsity track (co-captain), Varsity Soccer 1 year, Varsity XC one year
Job/Work Experience: internship over summer with national publication
Volunteer/Community service: BBBS, Mentoring project - around120 hours total
Summer Activities: Governor’s School for International Studies, 4 week public policy program in Washington, D.C., competitive volunteering program
Essays: great
Teacher Recommendation: great
Counselor Rec: great
Additional Rec: n/a
Interview: n/a

Other

State (if domestic applicant): TN
School Type: private
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: 150,000+
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none

Reflection

Strengths: essays
Weaknesses: scores
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: funny essays, good ec
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Heard back from 4 others and accepted to all - LSU honors college, UTK Honors college, Rhodes, Tulane

56

Decision: Accepted College of Arts and Sciences OOS

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown):N/A
ACT: 35
SAT II: 760 Math II; 760 German
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.8
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A
AP (place score in parenthesis): 5’s in: Gov’t and Politics, Spanish Lang, AB Calc, English Lang, Environmental Science. 4’s in: Spanish Lit, Music Theory
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: MV/BC Calculus, AP Psych, Chorus, AP Econ, Tech, AP English Lit
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit commended, AP Scholar with distinction
Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Theatre/music (Stage manager, vocal captain, student rep, assistant tech director), chorus (vocal captain), soccer, guitar, drama club (vice pres), young democrats club (president, founder)
Job/Work Experience: Executive Tutor at Aristotle Circle, several internships
Volunteer/Community service: Mission trips, Habitat for Humanity, work at churches, etc (160 hrs)
Summer Activities: Internships, volunteer work, mission trips, travel
Essays: Common app pretty strong IMO, UVA supplement not my best, but decent
Teacher Recommendation: I assume it was strong from both, especially from Calc teacher
Counselor Rec: Probably very strong, good relationship with him
Additional Rec: None
Interview: None

Other

State (if domestic applicant): MD
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: public
Ethnicity: caucasian
Gender: female
Income Bracket: upper
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None really. Maybe female in STEM related field? Idk

Reflection

Strengths: ACT, common app essay, leadership exp, work exp.
Weaknesses: GPA, OOS
Why you think you were accepted: honestly I’m not sure. I’m still shocked! I’m sure my ACT really helped out and my common app essay probably did too. Really happy!
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted: U of Minnesota, Northeastern, Boston College, University College London (England), U of Surrey (England), U of York (England).
Deferred: UChicago; Rejected: Oxford (England lol)

General Comments: Really happy. Hoping UVA comes through with financial aid. Still pricey OOS and also waiting for a few other decisions before I decide. Congrats to everyone who got in, good luck to all of you who got deferred, and don’t worry those of you who were rejected. Rejection hurts but it just means it’s not meant to be. We’ll all find our places and it’ll all work out! WAHOO!

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Decision: Accepted

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 2390 (800M 800CR 790W)
ACT: didn’t take
SAT II: 800 Bio M, 770 Lit
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.9
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 15/240
AP (place score in parenthesis): 5s and 4s
IB (place score in parenthesis): nope
Senior Year Course Load: APs, fulfilling core reqs
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): NM Semi Finalist
Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Debate (Captain, President), Band (Drum Major), NHS (Officer), other honor societies and fun clubs
Job/Work Experience: Tutoring
Volunteer/Community service: Lead several projects, not an impressive amount of hours but I did it for fun
Summer Activities: Research at Hopkins and Harvard Med
Essays: Common App and Supp were pretty good according to people who looked at them, 8-9/10
Teacher Recommendation: I think pretty good. Didn’t see them.
Counselor Rec: Good, have a good relationship with her
Additional Rec:
Interview:

Other

State (if domestic applicant): KS
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Indian
Gender: M
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none

Reflection

Strengths: scores, ec’s
Weaknesses: no major awards, nothing too special about me
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I think doing activities because you like them and you think they’re fun is important
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Ohio State (accepted) Harvard (deferred)

General Comments: Just adding mine on because I know a lot of juniors next winter will be checking all these out. Best of luck to everyone on their apps! And future seniors, remember - do stuff because you want to do it, your level of interest is very transparent at the admissions office from what I understand. Scores/grades should be a priority, and having a great time in high school doing productive things you love will make success inevitable. Good luck!

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Decision: Accepted

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 2150
ACT:
SAT II:
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): No GPA
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 5%
AP (place score in parenthesis):
IB (place score in parenthesis): 42/45
Senior Year Course Load: Math HL, Economics HL, Business HL, Biology SL, English SL
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Many
Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Job/Work Experience:
Volunteer/Community service:
Summer Activities:
Essays: 9.5/10
Teacher Recommendation: 10/10
Counselor Rec:10/10
Additional Rec:
Interview:

Other

State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant): India
School Type:
Ethnicity:
Gender: Male
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):

Reflection

Strengths: Essays, Scores
Weaknesses: SAT
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Because my application was well rounded
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted - Babson, Northeastern, Purdue Deferred: U-K

General Comments: Excited and Happy

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Decision: Accepted to SAS

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 1880 Total- Reading: 660 Math: 630 Writing: 590 Essay: 8
ACT: 31
SAT II: US History: 720 Biology: 650 Math I: 650
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): ~3.9
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): top 10% (16/476)
AP (place score in parenthesis): Psychology, US History (5); European History, English Lang (4); US Government, Calc BC (subscore 4) (3). Also took DE Chemistry and DE Biology.
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A in school
Senior Year Course Load: AP English Literature, AP Physics I, AP Studio Art, AP Spanish, AP Statistics, AP Human Geography, AP Comparative Government, Human Anatomy
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Lol none that I can think of. Anyone else got that AP Scholars w/ Distinction thing? I put that down.

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): National Spanish Honor Society 2 yrs (VP), English Honor Society this year, Psychology club 2 yrs, planned and taught a 5th grade class on basic psychology subjects with hands on activities, and conducted a 2 year research project on increasing the utilization rates of dental services offered to Medicaid and low income families in Virginia.
Job/Work Experience: I help my mother with the home daycare business during summers and after school
Volunteer/Community service: LAMP, which is like an elementary school mentor program for 2 yrs, various other services
Summer Activities: Stage Door Stars, which is an arts camp for children with special needs.
Essays: CommonApp 7/10. Felt like it would have been better if there wasn’t a cap on words. “What work challenged you” 10/10. “Quirks” 9/10.
Teacher Recommendation: From my Math Analysis and AP Stats teacher, who was with me for 2 total years. She was also my adviser for a research project in 10th grade and part of 11th (10/10)
Counselor Rec: Alright. 7/10.
Additional Rec: None
Interview: None

Other

State (if domestic applicant): VA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public for the most part? I’m also in the Commonwealth Governor’s School.
Ethnicity: Hispanic
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: 90k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None

Reflection

Strengths: Teacher Recommendation, UVA essays, coming from Governor’s School
Weaknesses: Common App essay, Lack of strong extracurriculars
Why you think you were accepted: I think coming from CGS is the main reason, since the school does have a well-founded reputation around Virginia universities, as well as my academic record.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Yet to hear from them :slight_smile:

General Comments: Really excited about being accepted! Good luck to all those deferred!

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I’m just really curious, msh0047, how did you read your teacher recommendations? I thought we had to waive our rights to read them on the CommonApp?