What are my chances of getting in??

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

I was wondering if you guys could give me some insight on my chances for Colgate

Current Grade: junior

GPA (WEIGHTED) : 3.0

ACT: 34 (I’m retaking it in a month, hopefully getting it up to a 35)

AP CLASSES TAKEN: 8

EXTRA CURRICULAR:
-President of 3 different school organizations
-Sunday school teacher
-Sales Associate at a local business
-countless volunteering hours done through church (homeless shelter, elderly homes, etc)

  • DECA (business organization/competition)
    -stage manager for musical theater
    -youth soccer coach at local recreational center

AWARDS: DECA District Champion and DECA State Finalist

LOW GPA EXPLANATION (which I will also include on my Common App): All through out my freshman and sophomore years of high school I struggled with severe depression and an eating disorder. Consequentially, it affected my school work, I was almost incapable of going to school in the morning, let alone do my homework and study for tests. However, halfway through my junior year I was able to pull myself out of it and I got my grades in check. I currently have a 4.0 semester gpa, and plan to continue this trend for the rest of high school.

*I’m hoping that with an explanation of why I did so poorly the first two years, along with my [hopefully] flawless junior and senior year grades and my high ACT score, will show the admissions officers that I am more than capable and was able to overcome my past struggles.

Assuming I write good essays, and with all of this information included…what do you think my chances are:)
Let me know! Every piece of advice helps!!!

2

Maybe your guidance counselor can explain your low GPA? Otherwise I would say it would be a huge reach. A lot of kids deal with issues in high school. Write an amazing essay and show interest in Colgate, and you could have a chance since your ACT is very high. Good luck.

3

Honestly it seems like every school now has 4.0 GPAs. They aren’t that special it’s expected, but I can tell you from personal experience that if you can show improvement in your GPA that would really be the icing on the cake for current transcript. If you can show a great deal of improvement that will be well respected by the admissions office. Make your essays real, and it seems like you have a very strong story now. But write the paper truthfully and not what they want to hear. I would recommend not to center your paper around ‘this is the reason for my lacking GPA.’ You have a justified reason for it and you have obviously taken the steps to show colleges that it was very temporary. You don’t want to bring extra attention to it, or make it seem like you are dwelling on it, or feel the need to prove yourself. I recommend writing all of your essays during the summer before senior year. I wish you the best of luck on the process!