What are my chances of getting into GT Civil Engineering?

Hi I’m an out of state student wondering what my chances are of getting into GT Civil Engineering.

My weakest part of my resume is my SAT which is a 1290 with 690 in math and 600 in English.

I have a 4.0 GPA with all honors and AP.

I have taken/will take by end of high school:
AP World
AP US
AP Gov
AP Lang
AP Italian
AP BC Calc
AP Chemistry

I have done a lot of community service and I am a member of two clubs (Key Club and Patriot’s Club) both which help the community.

I also have a job with a test prep company as an assistant.

I would say I’m in the top 10% of my class, but my school doesn’t rank.

I have taken physics also and a few college level electives including 3 engineering classes which were college level.

Please let me know what you think my chances are of getting in!!

Hmmm, I don’t see any college level physics? That could be pretty hurtful. Engineering uses chemistry as well, but it is much more related to physics when it comes to the practical stuff. Not having a class like Physics C could hurt you, but if your school doesnt offer college level physics then u should be fine.

Is there anything else other than the physics that will really hold me back?

None of your extracurricular activities relate to your major. If I were to read your extracurriculars, there is no way I could conclude that you wanted to pursue something in the STEM field. With that being said, there are students who get accepted without any extracurriculars in relation to their majors, but as the applicant pools get more and more selective they want people who truly want to pursue what they have previously done outside of school prior to attending college. Also, whats ur gender/ ethnicity? That also factors in.

My school doesn’t offer any engineering clubs but they do offers engineering classes which I have taken all of.

And I’m a white male and my ethnicity is Eastern European.

^^ @pleaseacceptmeGT

As an OOS white male with a 1290 SAT, your chances of getting into GT are very poor. Don’t want to be mean about it, but it’s the truth. There was a post yesterday by a guy with flawless stats who was deferred by GT. Like you, he is an OOS white male.

For out of state it’s not going to happen. Even instate I don’t see it happening. Please let me know if you get accepted. You are compared to kids in your school but the math score is to low. Getting an “A” in bc Calc will help though.

I have to disagree. You have as good a chance as anyone. Read Rick Clark’s (GT Admission Director) blog about how they evaluate test scores. My DD was accepted with test scores similar to yours a few years ago. I have met other students at GT who had similar test scores. GT’s motto is “Progress and Service” so the underlying admission question is how would you fit in at GT and what is your potential. I feel that this interview by Rick Clark expresses the holistic nature of GT’s admission process very well. http://collegeadmissionbook.com/blog/rick-clark-director-admission-georgia-institute-technology GT will evaluate you in the context of your school so that fact that you have no STEM EC’s will not be as big a factor as for another high school that offers many. Now I am not saying that you are for sure going to get accepted and in fact I hate chance threads and rarely comment on them. I didn’t want you to be as discouraged based on your test scores as other posts have expressed. Test scores are just one factor.

@itsv thanks for that… I really appreciate your input and it’s good that there’s hope. I have also taken all the Engineering classes that my school offers which is another added thing.

Please take no offense. Just giving a realistic picture. I have read like all Rick’s blogs and recommend them. I think it’s one of the best and realistic ones out there. Females are a priority at GT. Yes he gets evaluated against the kids of his school. Being OOS it is just really tough getting into GT. Not having any physics as stated is a big turn off for a lot of engineering schools. At most schools it’s terribly hard so having a basic foundation is key. But anything can be taught and learned. Being an assistant at a test prep company but having a lower score for engineering doesn’t add up. But not everyone tests well. Many have to take the tests a few times to get the speed down etc. Yes you are evaluated holistically. Doing engineering classes is a huge plus. Hopefully your essay was just as awesome! Good luck.

@Knowsstuff i have taken physics just not AP because at my school it’s 2 periods a day and I wanted to make more room for Engineering electives.

@cooldude234. Good. That’s a plus. Taking the engineering classes is a huge plus.

What other schools are you waiting on or got accepted to?

@Knowsstuff I’m only a junior, I will be applying next year.

@cooldude234… Retake the Sat or Act!

@Knowsstuff I’m retaking the Sat once or twice more.

Admissions is tougher this year more so than previous years. Kids with higher stats and Great EC’s have been rejected or deffered early action for in state students this season. Your chance of getting in is no greater than the acceptance rates of out of state students. Could you? Yes. But no one knows. However, no one can count on it even in state.

@Cooldude234. Dude, that changed things.
Too bad you didn’t do this program this year but colleges love this program and it’s very civil https://www.acementor.org/

Use your skills at the test prep and retake the Sat and give the Act a shot. Many engineering tend to do better on the Act.

Take multivariate Calc or linear algebra (depending on what your school does) and take AP physics C. Keep your grades up, write a great interesting essay then… You will improve your chances.

@Knowsstuff my school uses a program called Project Lead the Way or PLTW for Engineering.

@cooldude234 Project Lead the Way is a great program and GT is very familiar with it. Since you are a junior, a coupld of pieces of advice:

  1. Make sure you have taken calculus. The admission rep told us it was really mandatory because about 98% of students GT accepts have taken calculus. They have never mentioned physics as mandatory.
  2. Try to visit GT if possible and meet with your regional admissions rep. If you can't visit GT, then try to attend a GT admission event in your area and get to know your regional rep. If there is no event, then email you regional rep, introduce yourself and ask some relevant questions. I know many on the admission staff and they are all very nice.
  3. Think about your essays and do them over the summer so you can apply EA. Rick Clark has some good advice in that interview link I shared with your earlier. He asks "what will your school miss about you when you are gone?" I always talk to my students about this point since it makes them think of the role they played at their high school or community. This doesn't mean you have to have won all the awards, but if teachers and fellow students were going to reflect on what they would remember about you, what would it be? Express those kinds of thought in your essay. Don't write the "typical" essay.
  4. Make sure you apply to a varied list of colleges with as many as EA as possible. Have safeties that you really like, both financial and admission-wise.

Good luck.