What are my chances?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Maryland - Baltimore County
1

So I applied for EA but got deferred to RD review. I know it’s quite competitive but UMBC is my top choice right now so I would like to prevent from getting rejected if possible.I’m planning to Major in either/or both Computer Science and Graphic Design by the way.

My status right now:
Unweighted GPA: 3.8-3.9 ( estimate )
Weighted GPA: 4.2
SAT: 1240
Writing/Reading: 600
Math: 640
No ACT
Class rank: Top 1-2%

9 AP classes and 1 Dual Enrollment ( including next semester)
Sophmore Year:
AP government- United States Politics
Junior Year:
AP Biology, AP World History, AP Language and Composition, Computer Science Principles ( not exactly AP but I took the exam for it )
Senior Year:
AP Computer Science, AP Art Studio, AP Language, and Literature, AP Calc AB – I’m taking a Dual Enrollment class for Computer Information System

Extracurriculars:
I’ve been part of the Art Club for 4 years and I’ve been the Historian for about 2-3 years now.
Been an original club member of the Anime/Manga Club ( did not include in my application b/c it was only disbanded after a year and might seem unappealing to colleges )
Occasionally helped with the Drama Club in my Freshman year ( did not include )
I’ve attended SkillsUSA (2017), which is some sort of program that teaches you Employing skills and I might be planning to compete in the SkillsUSA Web design/ Programming competition. ( did not include as well b/c this happened after I turned in my EA app )

No sports

Community Service Hours:
86 hours right now, I might plan to get more to make my transcript a bit more appealing if needed.

Awards/Recognition: ( for some reason I didn’t include many honors in my application but here’s a few to add )

Certificate of Recognition by the Board of Education that my artwork has been displayed at MD student Artwork Exhibition at the House of Delegates in Annapolis ( Did not mention it in my application because I received it this month )
Won first place award (2017) and Honorable Mention (2015 ) at Art Academy ( Museum/exhibition in our region )
AP Scholar Award
Honor Roll ( 9-11 Grade )

Special features:
I’m able to communicate in Vietnamese, Dutch, and English. I was born in the Neth. but moved here in 6th grade.

Work Experience:
I’ve worked at my parents’ business as a service provider/cashier for over a year now. Although I doubt that colleges would consider that as a ‘job’.

So as you can see, I didn’t participate in many Extracurricular Activities due to several reasons. My school doesn’t have many clubs aside from the basics. I could possibly apply for National Honor Society since I’ve been invited for a very long time to make my updated application better?

I truly believe that my strong points lay in my artworks in which I’ve won several awards for it has been displayed at several Exhibitions but I can’t say show them through paper application alone. I do plan to apply for the Linehan Scholarship so they can probably see it by then.

Does anyone know how I should contact the Admission department about adding information to the application?

Thank you

2

I am absolutely shocked that you didn’t get in with those credentials, which are very strong! Can I ask if you are in-state or out-of-state, and if you are in-state, what county are you from?

If UMBC is your first choice I would encourage you to reach out to your admissions counselor and have a conversation about how you intend to enroll if accepted. I would follow up that conversation with a letter in the mail.

Best of luck to you - UMBC would be lucky to have you!

3

I am in-state! Although, I believe that I’m attending a school that is very urban/unrecognized compared to the areas near UMBC’s. I know that several colleges tend to admit a certain amount of in-state applicants compared to out-of state so I’m not too surprised about this…I also applied to UMD for EA but I highly doubt I will even have a chance of getting in with the stats I have right now. I live in Caroline County by the way.

I actually reached out to an administrator from UMBC yesterday evening and they replied to me today that I was a competitive applicant. So that might be a sign of them saying that I have a high chance of getting in? Although, I am planning to give them the additional information that I wrote in my post up there.

My essay might’ve been a weak point for them since I occasionally have some verb tense problems, overall it should be a passing grade.

Sorry for rambling on, I just tend to type a lot but thank you very much :slight_smile: ! I would also be very lucky to attend UMBC.