What are my chances for Swarthmore?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>I am looking at Swarthmore as my first choice/planning to apply ED. I currently have an OK rank/unweighted GPA due to doing poorly one semester (I had a 3.6 that semester) though since then I have improved and my other three semester I had a 3.89 or higher. Also my weighted GPA keeps increasing, I only took three honors classes freshman year (which is why it is low), though sophomore year I took five and will be taking four next year (there were not five offered that I qualified for). Also I currently attend a magnet school for creative and preforming arts where I major in visual arts. Here are my stats... Thanks in advance as well! Also I am not sure if this helps, but these are my classes</p>

<p>Freshman Year:
Honors Biology
Algebra 1
Honors English 1
Honors Civics
Spanish 1
Hebrew 2 (taken outside of school for credit, technically not an honors class, though in difficulty it is is)</p>

<p>Sophomore Year:
Honors Chemistry
Honors Algebra 2
Honors English 2
Honors World History
Honors Spanish 2
Hebrew 3 (taken outside of school for credit, technically not an honors class, though in difficulty it is is)</p>

<p>Junior Year:
Honors Physics
Honors Pre-Calc
Honors/AP English 3
Honors/AP US History
Yearbook (It is sort of hard to explain, but basically you have to apply/it is taken seriously/not a club. I am the only junior to be accepted for next year which also means I am much more likely to become editor)
Hebrew 4 (taken outside of school for credit, technically not an honors class, though in difficulty it is is)</p>

<p>Also I have not officially picked my senior year classes, though my counselor has already started planning and it looks like I will be taking Honors/AP Calc, Honors/AP Biology, Anatomy (not offered in honors), Honors/AP English 4, Yearbook, Hebrew 5 and some other class.</p>

<p>Location: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
College Class Year: 2018
High School: Public
High School Type: sends some grads to top schools
Will apply for financial aid: Yes</p>

<p>Academics:</p>

<p>GPA - Unweighted: 3.85
GPA - Weighted: 4.27
Class Rank: top 15%
Class Size: 135</p>

<p>Scores:
Currently none, had a 156 of my sophomore year PSAT, though scores have improved since then on practice tests I have taken at home. My scores are getting close to 1900, which is my goal for my junior year PSAT and I am trying to reach a 2000 for the real test. Also I will be taking a prep test and hiring a tutor to help me prepare for math (my worst subject).</p>

<p>Extracurriculars:</p>

<p>Significant Extracurriculars:
- National Art Honor Society (membership chair, also it looks like I will be president senior year)
- Model UN (co-president)
- J-SITE (a program were I take Hebrew for language credits)
- Glass blowing/flame working</p>

<p>Leadership positions:
- Diller Teen Fellow
Diller is a 16 month long program that focusses on leadership, community, service and Jewish identity and culminates in a three week trip to Israel. As part of the program I have planned programs for community events. Currently I am working on a project were I knit over 100 hats as well as work with local sisterhoods/youth groups to knit more as well as raise awareness for the organization. The hats will be sent to an orphanage in Israel
- Carnegie Library Oakland Teen Advocacy/Advisory Group
I have helped plan various programs that have raised awareness for various issues involving the library, as well as co-cordinated a summer program that taught teens to use Photoshop.
- The Junior Advisory Board (The First Tee of Pittsburgh)
- Samuel M. Goldston Teen Philanthropy Group
- Samuel M. Goldston Teen Philanthropy Alumni Group</p>

<p>Volunteer/Service Work:
- Coach at the First Tee of Pittsburgh (since 2007)
- Volunteer at the Friendship Circle of Pittsburgh (since 2009)</p>

<p>Honors and Awards:
- Ida Wagner Fellowship Award
- Scholastic Art & Writing Gold Key
- Honorable Mention (General Assembly - Third Committee) at Model United Nations competition at Westminster
- High Honor Roll</p>

<p>Colleges of Interest:</p>

<p>College:
Swarthmore College, Choice #: 1, ED/EA: Yes, Athlete: No, Legacy: No, Status: Will Apply</p>

<p>I have visited twice (once to simply walk around when I was in the city) and then I went on a formal tour/attended an information session this summer. I basically fell in love with the school and have since made it my first choice.</p>

<p>Desired College Characteristics:</p>

<p>Location type: Urban, Small City
Size: Small (Under 2,500)</p>

<p>Area: East Coast
Importance of cost: Very important</p>

2

<p>No one can really chance you without scores. Come back when you have taken either the SAT or the ACT.</p>

3

<p>2000? For swarthmore you should be aiming really for 2200+.</p>

4

<p>You want a 2100+ for swarthmore. Also a higher class rank, top 5-10% at least. It’s very selective. Good news: you have time, do these things and you’ll have a chance.</p>

5

<p>you’ve got time. things will change between now and next summer, so you should just work hard and see how your scores are, and then reevaluate. </p>

<p>i also come from a visual/performing arts school and am an art major, and i’m a rising senior. from the admissions people i’ve talked to so far (at schools like brown and vassar and wesleyan, etc), arts supplements will help you stand out. so be sure to prep a really strong portfolio to submit additionally, even if you don’t plan in majoring in art. a lot of schools will show the portfolio to their fine arts faculty and if it gets good reviews, that’s a bonus on your application.</p>

6

<p>Thank you so much ephemeros, I was not aware that I should submit an art supplement if I was not planning to be an art major (I plan on going pre-med).</p>

7

<p>No. If you are not going to be an art major, NO art supplement. I think the poster misunderstood. Even though you don’t have your scores yet, you can do some more college research. Another LAC you might look into is Carleton College in Minnesota. SUPERB for sciences and has high grad/med school placements.</p>

8

<p>Not being in top 10% is going to hurt you, and you’re going to need much higher test scores for Swarthmore. However, you have an entire year to improve your GPA and take the ACT and SAT (see which one you do better on). Your ECs aren’t incredible, but they’re decent. Try to get straight A’s junior year. If I were you, I would not count on getting into Swarthmore (a few years back, the ED acceptance rate was around 33%) and start looking for more schools to apply to. </p>

<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1356903-chance-me-lacs-few-universities-will-chance-back.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1356903-chance-me-lacs-few-universities-will-chance-back.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

9

<p>The Jewish bit leads me to assume you’re white… You’ll need at least a 2200 SAT to have a solid shot.</p>

10

<p>Yes I am white (though I do know Jews who are not), will my race effect the SAT score I need?</p>

11

<p>I know Jews who aren’t white as well, but a very small number of them, so that’s why I assumed you were white. =P</p>

<p>Anyway, yes… Due to affirmative action, blacks, hispanics, and Native Americans can all get into selective colleges with significantly lower SAT/ACT scores than caucasian/Asian applicants. If you were black, I’d say a 2100 would get you in the door (meaning they wouldn’t toss your application in the trash pile), as long as your section scores were fairly balanced… But being that your white, and have a very low GPA for Swarthmore, I’d say you need at least a 2200 to achieve this… A 2000 is likely to land your application in the trash pile. =(</p>

12

<p>I think people are being harsh. The only problem I see is class rank. A 2000 as a rising junior is good. A 2150, if the class rank is improved, should be fine at Swarth. We had a person get in this year with like a 2130 or so, but class rank was high.</p>

13

<p>I don’t think they’ll just toss your application aside once they glance at your test scores, but higher scores will definitely increase your chances.</p>

14

<p>swingtime: that isn’t true. supplements are meant to illustrate another side to you. i have talked with both brown and oberlin admissions officers about this, and they expect you to continue interest and probably take some classes, but in no way do you have to be majoring in art. </p>

<p>check with the schools you’re interested in to make sure this is the case for them though, for sure! i checked swarthmore’s website and they accept art supplements!</p>

15

<p>One more question (sorry but I am sort of clueless about some things), in terms of improving my extracurriculars, any suggestions? I didn’t list everything, but I listed my big things (for example I don’t consider minor board positions in my youth group worth listing).</p>

16

<p>yeah, so you’ve got quite a few ecs, but colleges are going to want serious depth into the extracurriculars you pursue. find something you love and devote yourself to it. if you want to go premed, i recommend looking for ways to shadow doctors or internships are clinics. email some people, create positions that don’t exist. show initiative, and you’ll really stand out.</p>

<p>be sure to use this summer and the next in meaningful ways. don’t just laze around, find a job or a volunteering gig. most importantly though, you need to love what you’re doing. don’t just do it for the hours, do it because you want to, because it’s important to you.</p>

17

<p>I was wondering if anybody could give me input on my list of reaches, matches and safeties (I always feel so confident when I chance others, but not confident with myself). Also I plan to get my list down to nine (three in each category, I know it means a lot of safeties but I need a lot of financial aid), I will cut down this list by visiting colleges throughout the school year. Not sure if it helps but I have my schedule/know my teachers and it looks like I will be maintaining my GPA of around 3.9.</p>

<p>Reach
Amherst (undecided if I want to apply)
Bowdoin
Haverford (not sure if it should be a reach or match)
Swarthmore (ED)</p>

<p>Matches
Colgate
Gettysburg
Kenyon
Oberlin
Vassar</p>

<p>Safeties
Bryn Mawr
Denison
Dickinson
Lafayette</p>

18

<p>I think that you can get in, just focus on getting good grades in Junior yr and I believe that you can get in.</p>

<p>But MOST IMPORTANTLY, I think you should stop freaking yourself out so early and only return to this site once you’re done with Junior yr. Don’t become so obsessed with a goal that may not happen and then feel like you wasted a year!!</p>

<p>Enjoy the rest of the summer!!!</p>

19

<p>Like the rest said: the scores need to be 2100+. I think this is a realistic goal. Keep improving that GPA and you’ll be good. Glassblowing is pretty special! If it’s a passion of yours or there’s a story behind why you do/like it maybe you can put emphasis on that through your essays and art supplement.</p>

<p>Good luck! ＼(＾U＾*) Hope this helps and thank you for the reply to my chance thread~~</p>

20

<p>Like the others have said, they will not be able to give an accurate prediction without your actual scores, but if you do work hard this year and study your butt off for the SAT. I think you will get int.
Good Luck!</p>