WHAT ARE MY CHANCES? (final list: gtown, uva, harv.....)

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>I'm pretty sure I have figured out all the colleges I want to apply to and I would like to know my chances for getting in. Thanks to anyone who replies.</p>

<p>I am a white male from New Jersey applying to:</p>

<p>Georgetown (EA)
Harvard (mother, uncle, grandmother, and grandfather attended)
University of Pennsylvania
Cornell (grandfather attended and was on faculty)
University of Virginia
Emory
Syracuse
Boston University</p>

<p>I am looking to study history and government.</p>

<p>Transcript:</p>

<p>Ninth Grade:
Honors English A
Honors Biology A
World History A
Honors Algebra II A-
French II B
Gym/Heath A/B+
Band A-</p>

<p>Tenth Grade:
Honors US History A
Honors English A-
Honors Pre-Calc A-
French III A-
Honors Chemistry B+
Gym/Driver Ed A/A-
Band A-</p>

<p>Eleventh Grade:
AP Calc AB A+
AP US History A+
AP English Language A+
Physics A+
French IV A-
Gym/Health A-/A
Band A+</p>

<p>Senior Year Schedule:
AP Psychology
AP Calc BC
AP US Government
AP English Literature
Justice & Society
Gym/Health
Band</p>

<p>All of these courses are the hardest possible at each level except in sophomore and junior year I chose not to take honors french (honors french was not offered freshman year, neither was history) and in junior year I could not take AP physics because it would not fit my schedule.</p>

<p>Weighted GPA: My school has a very strange GPA weighting system. Half a point is added for an AP or Honors class on any level, but only for the sophomore, junior, and senior years. In this system my GPA is 4.04. the highest in the class is probably about 4.50.</p>

<p>Class Rank: The school does not release any type of rank or percentile, but does release a series of GPA groupings, of which I am in the top section but obviously at the low end. Basically if percent was calculated I would just make the top quarter. I have an extremely competitive grade.</p>

<p>SAT I: 770 Math, 730 reading, 700 Writing (one test date)</p>

<p>SAT IIs: 800 Math II (retook after a 690 sophomore year), 790 US History, 700 Biology (took freshman year)</p>

<p>APs: 5 English Language, 5 US History, 5 Calculus AB</p>

<p>ECs:
Track/XC: varsity team captain, individually competitive in division, i am injured right now due to a unavoidable condition but i plan to recover as best as possible and continue during senior year
Religious School: attended weekly for as long as ive been in public school, appointed to board of trustees' religious school committee to develop curriculum for all grades, assist in annual food drive that services about 60 local families
Band: played trumpet since 4th garde, participate in band, wind ensemble, and pep band
Basketball: played since freshman year, JV captain during junior year but also played varisty, recieved varsity letter
Model UN: active participant in conferences since sophomore year
Drama: acted in student-led comedic performances during freshman and junior years
Community Service: one of the top fundraisers for a National Multiple Sclerosis Society biking event help down at the shore, participate in one of teh top fundraising teams, my family was asked by the NMSS to appear on Today in New York on NBC to promote the event, i also frequently volunteer through my school's honor society, i will be leading a survey of businesses around town to evaluate handicapped accesibility and suggest solutions
Summer: attended camp through summer after 9th grade, went on organized youth travel program in teh summer after 10th</p>

<p>Work:
- worked a full time job for two months during the summer after junior year in the accounts payable department of a multimillion dollar corporation
- also breifly worked as a administrative and teaching assistant during my freshman year</p>

<p>Awards:
honor roll freshman and sophomore years
high honor roll junior year
national honor society
national merit semifinalist
AP scholar
highest tier fundraiser for the nmss event i mentioned before
2005 Spring Track Coaches' Award (only award besides mvp, one given out of a team of over 30, almost always given to a senior but i recieved it as a sophomore)
various religious school honors</p>

<p>any comments? please let me know what you think my chances are, and any advice would be greatly appreciated. thanks.</p>

2

<p>One B+ and all As in Gym puts you at that lower end of 25%?</p>

<p>God bless you!</p>

3

<p>wait, what? I have no idea what you're trying to say.</p>

4

<p>If you really want to go to Harvard, you should apply AE. Being a legacy will certainly help if you apply RD, but it will help even more if you apply early. Applying AE with the extra brownie points for being a legacy plus your strong GPA and SAT scores will probably get you in. Also, you can, I believe, apply to more than one school AE. So you could, if you want, apply to both Georgetown and Harvard AE, and, if you're accepted at both, have the luxory of choosing between them.</p>

<p>The other schools on your list:</p>

<p>Georgetown (EA) - Very Likely
University of Pennsylvania - Waitlisted.
Cornell - Probably
University of Virginia - Very likely
Emory - Very likely
Syracuse - Safety
Boston University - Safety</p>

<p>UPenn really likes kids who are either #1 or #2 their class or at least in the top 5%. If you're outside that top 5%, you're chances of getting accepted are suprisingly low. However, you've got a good GPA and good SAT scores, so Penn probably won't reject you outright.</p>

5

<p>Of course I would love to go to Harvard, but they only have a single choice early action program and i'd much rather apply to georgetown early because I have a better shot there. I'd rather not waste my early slot on a school taht will probably reject me anyway.</p>

<p>Your reaction seems overwhelmingly positive, which is great but I am somewhat skeptical. Am I really verly likely to get in to georgetown? They only accept 5% of kids who are not in the top 10% of their class and even though I dont have official rankings, I feel like the competitiveness of my grade will probably hurt me. In addition, someone who has a considerably better GPA is also applying early action to gtown. I go to a very small school so I'm thinking that the competition is really going to hurt me. Any thoughts?</p>

6

<p>Youch! I wish I could give you an answer to that one. Truthfully, I have no idea. All I can say is apply anyway. It may not make any difference. For example, at my school, we had 5 kids who applied and got into UPenn. Also, you've got a good chance of getting into nearly all the schools on your list. If you're sure each of the schools has what you want, and that you'd be happy at any one of them, why worry?</p>

7

<p>Of course I would love to go to Harvard, but they only have a single choice early action program and i'd much rather apply to georgetown early because I have a better shot there. I'd rather not waste my early slot on a school taht will probably reject me anyway.</p>

<p>-That's ridiculous. Applying early means you want to go to that school, and you feel early on that you belong there. Applying early to a school that you don't love as much is a very foolish idea. Of course, Georgetown is easier to get into that Harvard, but you will kick yourself in the butt later because you had a chance at getting into Harvard, but you just were too afraid to try. Everyone applies to Harvard knowing that they may not (and probably will not, judging by percentages) get in, but they do so anyway, because they want to go there. You want to go there. So, apply there. early.</p>

8

<p>stupak:</p>

<p>You're misinterpreting the situation. Though I would love to go to Harvard, I connect with Georgetown much more and am very enthusiastic about applying early. I am not going to "kick myself in the butt" if I get rejected because there are other schools I am equally excited about, if not more so. In addition, I made the choice not to apply to Harvard early because I was told specifically by an admissions officer that legacy does not have more weight if you apply early. Am I going to give Harvard my best shot when Regular Decision comes around? Of course. But right now Georgetown is the school I most connect with and am most focused on.</p>

9

<p>so if you're in the top 25% i'm going to have to say I don't think you're chances are as good as many people are saying.</p>

<p>definately in at BU and Syracuse.</p>

<p>the rest of the schools i wouldn't put in the likely category - although i'm sure you'll get into at least one or two of them - probably emory - maybe gtown with early and going to a catholic school - at least i guess ur going to a catholic school.</p>

<p>unfortunately your class rank - regardless of your gpa - puts you well below the average at all the schools. you're SATs are very good - but unfortunately at the schools you're applying to those scores put you pretty much at the 75%ile for all of them...so they arn't going to really help put you over the top. </p>

<p>good luck though - i hope i'm wrong.</p>

10

<p>jags861:</p>

<p>i do not go to a catholic school. i'm jewish and go to a small public school.</p>

<p>i agree with you that my class rank will hurt, but keep in mind that my school does not release specific percent. my school only releases groupings based on gpa, so i believe i will be in the highest category (3.9-top) but obviously i will appear to be at the lower end and the grouping could include about 25 students in a grade of 115.</p>

11

<p>Oh, I'm very sorry; I really did misinterpret what's going on. If you feel that Georgetown is that one that connects, by all means do it. However, legacy does come into effect in EA (though minimally), not so much at all in RD.</p>

12

<p>anyone else have an idea about how the competitiveness of my grade will effect me?</p>

<p>any other advice or evalutation about anything would be greatly apprecisted</p>

13

<p>Oh, btw before. I meant to say that I was shocked that all you had was a B in Gym and that you had all As and that put you in the lower end of the first quartile.</p>

14

<p>yea it is pretty shocking how competitive my grade is. the fact that i got mostly A-/A but so many other get A+'s is pretty frustrating.</p>

<p>some would arguet that the school has grade inflation, but this really isnt the case. everyone in that top quarter has good SAT and AP scores, so its not like anyone getting good grades doesnt deserve it.</p>

15

<p>I've thought a bit about your situation regarding Gtown. One thing I discovered when I was applying is that how you present yourself on your app can have a big impact on whether you get accepted. So, I have a suggestion. Pick up copies of The Truth About Getting In and Rock Hard Apps by Katherine Cohen. Both books give you good info about how to organize your accomplishments and how to present them on your apps (among other things). You might find the info very useful.</p>

16

<p>thanks i'll look in to that</p>

17

<p>bump...........</p>

18

<p>bump. please i'd like to hear what other poepl have to say</p>