What are my chances?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Georgetown University
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<p>Hi, I'm currently a junior in high school and I was wondering what you thought my chances were of getting into Georgetown.
I'm taking 3 AP's, I was going to take 4 but I dropped AP Music Theory because the teacher was really hard to follow. I'm taking AP US History, AP English (Lang&Comp), and AP Calc AB.
I'm planning on taking 4 or 5 next year, depending on how my schedule works. I will be taking AP US Gopo, AP Stats, AP Spanish, and AP Lit. I will probably be taking AP Environment too, but I might not be able to because its a double lab period and I don't have enough room in my schedule. So I might take Advanced Topics in Mathematics, which is a course for all of the kids in my school who, a bit ahead of the curve, have taken calc in 11th grade and don't have any math classes to take in 12th.
I took the SATs for the first time in December with no prep and got a 1980 - 640 in CR, 670 in Math and 670 in Writing. I got a 208 on my PSATs so I'm planning on getting my SAT scores at least up to that level.
I fence, and have been a varsity fencer (first string) for the past three years and will be a captain and leading member next year. I also play the violin. I've been in the Honors chamber orchestra for the past 3 years and I am currently the concertmistress (and will be next year). I also participate in 2 youth orchestras outside of school, one of which I will be the concertmistress of next year. I'm also in region orchestra and play in the school's orchestra pit.
I don't really do any clubs because unfortunately I don't have the time between violin and fencing (I also club fence in the off-season). However this summer I am planning on spending a month in China for volunteering/immersion because my dream is to major/work in Chinese and International business or economics. My sister is from China, which is what sparked my interest in China and influenced me to do so. </p>

<p>What are my chances? Sorry this is so long, Thanks!</p>

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<p>Oh I forgot to talk about my GPA. It’s not amazing, unfortunately, because I mostly got high B’s my freshman year. But I’ve improved a LOT since then. I am averaging an A in both AP English and Honors Chem, an A- in AP US, a B+/A- in Calc, an A- in Honors Spanish, etc. And last year I mostly got mid-low A’s. It’s probably a 3.8 or so but I’m hoping admissions will notice my improvement.</p>

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<p>Your transcript is competitive, and your ECs are very interesting.
At the moment, however, your SAT scores could really hurt you, so you need to work on improving them at your next sitting, as well as getting great scores on the Subject Tests and AP exams.
Good luck.</p>

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<p>Alexxis, a couple of thoughts…</p>

<p>First, the SAT scores. Georgetown doesn’t take the writing portion, so only the CR and Math are relevant. The middle 50% range for last year was CR: 640-740 and Math: 650-750, so you are at the moment at the low end. Not to worry - my son did the same as you - took the SAT’s for the first time as a junior and did about where you did (and his PSAT was a bit lower than yours), and by his third (and final) try with a little practice behind him ended up at 1510 for the two sections. So, keep it up. (Oh, he got accepted EA last month.) But don’t just start studying and practicing ten days before the tests - the point is that SAT scores are of comparable importance to your grades, so - if you figure you’ll spend close to 1500 - 2000 hours* on studying and homework during your high school days, isn’t it worth putting in at least 40 on the SAT?</p>

<p>Second, everyone is busy but, like it or not, your competitors are still finding times to do leadership type EC’s. Clubs alone aren’t weighed that highly, unless you can find a club where you organize something and/or have a titled leadership role. The problem is that other kids in your school are also posturing for college apps, so you can’t just waltz in now and expect to be named president of the club come next fall, in most cases. But, there’s always room for worker bees, so if you have a passion for a particular type of event and can get three or four other members of the group to follow your lead, maybe you can make something of it. For example, anyone can join the school’s Red Cross Club, but maybe you can be the one to be named Blood Drive coordinator and get a donation event or two scheduled at your school, then report on your college apps that you’re responsible for 400 pints of blood being donated, or whatever. Just make sure it’s something you can generate a passion about. </p>

<p>Maybe your concertmistress role will help - perhaps you can lead a drive to help play concerts at senior citizens centers or teach kids in poorer areas. But, be careful, you don’t want to be perceived as someone who only does music and fencing related activities.</p>

<p>The colleges’ concern is not just that you’re willing to put in hours on clubs - instead, the focus is whether or not you’re the sort of person who can lead and motivate others to put in hours to improve your school and community. It’s tough for shy people, but top colleges want kids who add something to the fabric of their student body. </p>

<hr>

<ul>
<li>The “1500 to 2000 hours” figure, is, admittedly, pulled out of my … posterior. But you get the point.</li>
</ul>

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<p>Do clubs matter? In all of the articles I’ve read, I feel like most colleges stressed the importance of talents and passions over clubs and volunteering.
I’m worried. I hope my role as a concertmistress will be enough “leadership wise.” Although if I do go to China this summer, I will be organizing the trip. I’m trying to find as many people as I can to come with me, so I can plan out the whole trip myself. Most of those teen organizations that allow kids to volunteer abroad are usually extremely expensive and usually allot half of the time abroad for sightseeing. I don’t want to sightsee.
As for the SATs, I’m obviously going to work to improve my score and try to make sure I get a higher one. I think part of my low scores might’ve been that I had forgotten to pack my calculator at the last minute (which caused me to skip one or two problems and have slightly inaccurate answers on others) and I also didn’t get much sleep the night before, so I started to get really nauseous by the end of the test.
What kind of scores are they looking for on the SAT subject tests? I know they require three, which is a lot more than most other schools…</p>