What Are My Chances? (Princeton Legacy)

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

Hello everybody,

I was all set on applying ED to Vanderbilt, but my mom (who attended Princeton) has convinced me to apply REA to Princeton (and ED2 to Vandy if I’m rejected).

Stats:
SAT - 1570 (780 RW, 790 Math)
SAT II - Biology M: 800, Math II: 800, USH: 700
AP - AP Lang: 5, APUSH: 5, AP Calc AB: 5, AP Bio: 5

Weighted GPA: 3.94 (4.0 scale according to school but an A+ in honors/AP is a 5.0, and every grade lower is 0.33 points less, so I guess it’s a 5.0 scale)
My Junior Year GPA was a 4.47 (straight As in all APs except a B+ in APUSH, and an A+ in Advanced Videography), but my Sophomore Year was a 3.75 and my Freshman GPA was a 3.6.

Now, while I know my cumulative GPA is quite low for Princeton, my trajectory is very positive, and I’ve always taken the most rigorous courses offered by my school (7 honors, 9 AP).

I’ve received numerous national/state videography awards (for a documentary on the Syrian Refugee Crisis, a PSA on Teen Safe Driving, etc.), an activity that serves as my primary extracurricular. I’ve played soccer throughout high school as well, but have not received any prestigious recognition for that, nor will I be playing varsity soccer in college. I have a few other ECs, as well, but nothing too special.

I know it’s still a long shot, of course, but Princeton’s admit rate for legacy applicants has been reported to be 30-40% and that it even has the same advantage as an extra 160 SAT points (sureeee) would have on one’s application.

Please let me know what you guys think.

2

The test scores are good. Not sure how to evaluate the grades, but they don’t seem good. What is the class rank? Is this a private school or magnate? The ECs don’t look that good. I wouldn’t put too much weight into legacy without money or connections. It is probably OK to try for Princeton, but it seems like more Vanderbilt level.

3

You’ve a good shot

4

I doubt its 30-40% but I’m sure its sizable, but solid nonetheless

5

What’s your class rank? GPA changes from school to school so that’s how they really evaluate academic performance.

Your ECs are a little thin but because it’s ED with legacy I’d say you have a decent shot.

6

You have good chances relative to most who apply to Princeton

7

Thanks for the reply. In terms of my Freshman and Sophomore Year grades, the reason my GPA is on the lower side is because of a few B-s in my Honors courses early on (B- in Honors English 9th and 10th grade, and B- in honors history 10th grade and a B+ in standard French Freshman Year, etc…). I’m applying as a Biology major, and my math and science grades have always been pretty stellar. I’m hoping that since I got an A in AP Lang and a 5 on the AP Exam (and since I did really well in all of my other classes Jr. Year), they’ll at least partially overlook those earlier poorer grades, etc… In spite of that, my cumulative GPA is still well below that commonly accepted by schools like Princeton. Trust me, if I didn’t have legacy, there’s no way in hell I’d even waste my time. Better get started on that ED2 app for Vandy haha

8

I got in lol