<p>This may be a bit too early to tell but I just wanted to get an idea to see what I can work towards. I am rising junior at the moment and my career GPA is a 4.3. My sophomore PSAT score was a 1650 but I am hoping that it will go up after a prep course and more academic experience. By the time I graduate, I will have done at least 3 AP courses and at least 12 honors courses. I do a range of after school activities: french and german club, chamber choir at night, student run a cappella group, and I am joining model UN and mock trial team as well as hopefully SADD (students against drunk driving). I also will have danced for 8 years. I help out with a middle school a cappella group and also babysit. I have done an internship at my state house (hopefully I will have another internship at a lawyer's office next summer). I am planning on majoring in political science and/or history. Thank you!</p>
<p>Lucy,</p>
<p>It is never too early, in fact you have great timing. </p>
<p>Hold onto the GPA. Your 3rd year of HS will not be easy for many reasons, classes, family, friends. It will be easy to slip only because you could start searching for meaningless things. In other words your very youg, your parents are your best resource and will always be there for you, use them. Go to your teachers and talk to them all the time, never let up it is amazing what they will for you when you show tham how much you care about education. Most important don’t follow your friends to what could be a poor decision just walk away. If your really jammed up think of an excuse that will make them stop. Example: My DS told me that he was once offered beer during a party, he told his friends that he was allergic to some of the things thay make with beer. They never bothered him again. HS is not easy for a kid but think out of the box when the pressure is on!! </p>
<p>The 1650 is very low for UCONN, this is by no means a safety school anymore. Out child HS put out the average SAT posted by a UCONN student last year, it was an 1847. </p>
<p>Don’t let anybody tell you otherwise…take the ACT as well. My DS took his SAT once and got an 1830 - Math -660 Writing - 630 Reading - 540. He took the ACT once and got: Comp 29, Math - 32, English - 31, Reading 29, Science - 28 and Writing -26. The only real low score is the writing which is equal to a 600 on SAT. The math is = to a 740 on the SAT and the English is = to a 710. In short according to the SAT / ACT compare chart my DS ACT score is equalt to around a 2050 to 2090 depending what chart your looking at. </p>
<p>I wish he would take them again and might but right now it’s a no time to get it done issue.</p>
<p>My DS will be using UCONN as a safety school, his GPA unweighted is a 3.85. He also has 2 sports, will have lettered 8 times, has 200+ hours of school and community service, Captain of two teams, band, a sports club, NHS, hoever many honors classes, doubled up on the mandatory science classes, 3 AP’s, and a few other assets but too much to post. He also got a 4 on his AP exam, the other two will be taken in his senior year, cal & physics, very strong in both. He likes UCONN but it will not be his No.1.</p>
<p>If your able to get your SAT to a +1900 or ACT Comp to 29 / 30, and keep your GPA, UCONN should end up being a safety school for you as well. In fact push the SAT & ACT a little further they may offer some scholarship money. All this being said there are truly no real safety schools. Go to college board ( [College</a> Admissions - SAT - University & College Search Tool](<a href=“http://www.collegeboard.org%5DCollege”>http://www.collegeboard.org)) , plug in UCONN to the college search and see what they consider important when applying.</p>
<p>Good luck, your on track and doing the right things. Our other child just finished his first year at UCONN. As parents we are quite please with the school. As a student he did very well even as he was getting into a frat. He is going back early this year to help the incoming class. Funny, before he got into UCONN he said he would never get involved with the school sprit thing, now he gets really involved with the school and frat and loves it.</p>
<p>If you get the chance to visit find out where the ice cream bar is…you will love me for telling you. Ice cream cookie sandwiches the size of your head. So good, do not miss out! I would say it run neck and neck with the ice cream bar at Penn St.</p>
<p>My son will be starting at UCONN in Aug for Mech Eng. He is OOS, about a 3.3-3.4 GPA, 1980 SAT, no sports, Eagle Scout (therefore lots of community service hours), part time job. He did attend a summer program for high schoolers interested in Engineering last summer at UCONN. UCONN became his nbr 1 choice after attending that program. Maybe it helped, who knows?</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>Thank you both very much for your thoughtful responses. I just took an ACT practice exam and got a composite score of 30. Do you think that makes a big difference?</p>
<p>Get that on the normal test and keep your GPA and your looking at a poss. full scholarship. The 30 in in the top range of what they look for. Your GPA is just wow! I know a kid that had less of a GPA 3.9 and the same comp 30, he was offered a full 4 year scholarship. He was also No.1 in his class, not sure where you are but with a 4.3 you cant be far from the top so your still in great company.</p>
<p>The ACT & SAT are set up differently in that one is more of what you retained from school over the years and the other is more of an IQ. Each are as important, many guidance offices are telling kids not to worry just take one or the other. Don’t sell yourself short. The practice ACT 30 it a telling sign to me that the ACT might be your type of test. That being said you should still take both. </p>
<p>Keep it up practice, practice, practice and that ACT & SAT score could very well go up, up, up… This could save you and your parents money, money, money. Get the ACT prep book, look on the SAT/ACT portion of this site. </p>
<p>I can’t say it enough stay on top of that GPA, forget your friends they come and go. I haven’t seen or been with my high school friend since HS…1982. I still have my family and have made plenty of other friends. </p>
<p>Friends come and go, family is always there… Keep your grades and stay focused. You will be an impressive applicant and they will want you for their school. </p>
<p>College is a bus. your a customer, you also come with some very serious assets that make that or most schools attractive and they want and need that. UCONN is pressing to increase their incoming class to 6300 (fact) they just got another 1B in grant money. This is a school that is no longer a safety and is really pressing to be on top. They want top students. Your current numbers are of a top student. Don’t let all your hard work slip, Jr. year is no joke.</p>
<p>I’m not just a parent I have experience in seeing what these kids go through in HS. It is a pressure cooker for all. Talk to your parents, talk to your teachers, tell them all, trust them they will be there to support and help you. </p>
<p>As I said above: “It is never too early, in fact you have great timing.” It becomes too late when you allow it to slip. You need your parents and teachers to help not allow it to slip. </p>
<p>Be proud of yourself but have no pride it only creates arrogance. I know that may sound strange but pride is a delicate point of direction. Use is correctly your golden people will love you, use it in a selfish manner nobody want to deal with you. </p>
<p>Good stuff keep working!!</p>
<p>The scholarship eluded to above only covers tuition and only for in state students if you’re ranked first or second in your class. I’m guessing the GPA is on a 5 point scale, and since you’re only taking 3 APs it will be difficult to place high in your class because AP classes are given more weight in determining rank.</p>
<p>I still think the SAT is generally more valued than the ACT. Everyone (including the admissions officers) have taken the SAT, and it’s infamous in US schools. No one really knows what to think of the ACT yet. Personally I would stick with the SAT because of its traditional value.</p>
<p>Anyways more to the point, class rank matters, GPA doesn’t. I would try for at least 1900 on the SAT just to be safe for general admission. I would consider adding one or two more APs to your last two years to lock in the rigor of your schedule. For some of the more competitive majors it could make the difference in proving your interest in learning tether than sustaining your GPA. Other than that consider spending more time with your extracurriculars. Don’t just join more or go for a meaningless leadership position. The point of extracurriculars is to get a recommendation and prove your character. So if you can’t talk about them passionately, admissions officers will see right through it.</p>
<p>TaciturnType…i have to disagree with about the ACT. Many colleges are actually moving away from the SAT and standardized tests in general. I am the fourth person in my family applying to college and my mom works at a university and all my siblings did way better on ACT than SAT and received really good merit scholarships from 3 different major universities based on ACT score. Not one of them even sent SAT scores. In my opinion ACT tests knowledge SAT tests how well you take a test.</p>
<p>yankees3311, this is exactly what I just read about recently, nice! My 2nd child is also going through the testing and the ACT has done him quit well. </p>
<p>Yes, yes, yes, can’t agree with you more!! " In my opinion ACT tests knowledge SAT tests how well you take a test." As I noted one is based on what you can recall and retain from what you learned in school (ACT) the other is an IQ (SAT). Depending on how you test one may be better for you then the other. As noted my DS scored a 1830 on the SAT and a Comp 29 on the ACT. He did way better on the ACT just like you and Lucy24. </p>
<p>I have no idea what these admission boards do but you being a 4th to apply and your mother being at a University adds value to the comment. Good stuff.</p>
<p>Lucy24, Your PSAT was a 1650, your ACT prep was a Comp 30. The 30 is an average of English, Math, Reading, Science & Writing. Do the math, you would have scored quite well in all areas to get the comp 30. This is why I suggest taking both. If you submit a real SAT score of 1650 at UCONN, even with your nice GPA it’s not going to be easy.</p>
<p>If you submit an ACT comp of 30 with your GPA you are high profile with the chance of a scholarship even if your from out of state. The merit scholarship have been give to OOS kids unless that changed this year. Look at UCONN’s scholarship information. </p>
<p>Look at it this way: !!EXAMPLE!!</p>
<p>There are two slots left at UCONN all other kids have been picked. The admissions board has two applications in front of them and the “holistic” of each student is equal in every way accept the following:</p>
<p>Student A: SAT - 1650
Student B: ACT - 30 (Depending on the chart you use 30 is = to 2100 SAT)</p>
<p>If your on the admissions board which student would you like for you incoming class?</p>
<p>Lucy24, you have a few good comments, bounce these thoughts off your parents, teachers and read up on these things using the Princeton Review. You can as I said also use the SAT / ACT section of this site.</p>
<p>It will cost your peeps a few bucks for you to take both the SAT & ACT but please take both. In the end your not at a loss. You don’t know what you don’t know. In other words if you only take one you sell yourself short and you will never know the “what if” of the other.</p>
<p>3unitsIlove…I am hoping to attend UConn and double major in journalism and anthropology. I have a 4.3 GPA and 32 ACT plenty of leadership positions, varsity sport, EC’s, community service hours,work part-time. Obviously with so many siblings in college I need some merit aid to attend UConn. What do you think my chances are? I am OOS and I am taking the ACT again in Sept hoping to get a 34.</p>
<p>thanks</p>
<p>3UnitsILove, you have been so helpful thank you very much!</p>
<p>yankees3311, I replied to you PM…ha, I get mixed up you already have the ACT figured out. You will see what I saying in my reply. </p>
<p>Regarding UCONN and what your posting…yea I would say you are in, to add you should see some kind of scholarship offer. I would venture to say they could offer you the honors program as well. If they offer honors take it, I can’t begin to tell you haw good that looks on a resume. I really think you should get a big ride for money in merit, I would be very surprised if they didn’t make an offer. Write a stellar essay and get your application in as early as possible. </p>
<p>Lucy24, glad to be able to help. I wish all you kids the very best. </p>
<p>Most important thing and I’ll keep saying it: Keep your parents involved, talk to your teachers and use college board, Princeton review, and this site as a resource. Not answers just resource. Dig, dig, dig for information, most of all enjoy college and spend your parents money!!</p>
<p>If possible take more AP classes</p>
<p>Do you seriously think he ACT tests knowledge of college level material? The math is just algebra like the SAT. The “science” portion relies more on your ability to read the given data than actually utilize what you’ve learned in class. I don’t exactly recall the English portion, but any multiple choice based reading response will always be subjective to the point where you just have to know how to take the test. And as I recall, the essay is virtually identical.</p>
<p>AP and IB exams are meant to test your knowledge at a college level. Standardized tests are simply meant to gauge your academic acumen on a national scale, although in a less specific manner. And if you really want to prove your knowledge, you turn to the SAT IIs.</p>
<p>Respectfully, no I do not “seriously think the ACT tests knowledge of college level material.” I never said that. </p>
<p>What I did say is the ACT is based on what you retain from what you learned & the SAT is based on IQ. If this assessment is inaccurate okay, I can be wrong. This is why I said use your resources and not just base a decision off a few thoughts of insight. In other words there are two opportunities here, use them but find other facts. </p>
<p>I love being wrong it has made me quite successful, my failures have caused my greatest accomplishments. No pride I say.</p>
<p>Never discussed SAT II either just stayed on topic of pointing out that it would be good to take both test but resource, resource, resource. I can not talk about the SAT II, I don’t know much about it and the schools I have seen my kids apply to don’t use it or the ACT was good enough that they did not need it. </p>
<p>Staying on the original topic:
The bottom line and main point is for kids to take both. They really sell themselves short if they don’t. </p>
<p>Thank you for your post there is helpful information in there other than just taking the two test. I’m certain some kids will find it very useful. </p>
<p>Good stuff!!</p>
<p>Cheers!!</p>