What Are My Changes?!?!

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

Hi!
I am waiting to hear back from my top school which is Bentley University, but I am extremely nervous. A part of me feels that I won’t get in due to the fact that I got an 1170 on my SAT’s (I am a bad test taker), and Bentley’s ranges are around 1230 and up. On the other hand, I have some hope seeing that my GPA is higher than their averages (3.7 vs 3.6), and I’ve maintained pretty much all A’s throughout high school, with an occasional B+.
Since I am extremely nervous, I’d love to hear some feedback!

Bio
-Female
-From Mass
-First in family to attend college
-Mixed: African American w/ White
-Raised by a single mother with no financial support from my father, so I have ALOT of financial need

Essay Topic
I wrote about how I was raised by a single mother, and how I developed all the traits my mom showed throughout the year, and how it has allowed me to be more responsible and prepared for the real world/reality: it is hard to explain but it was pretty good.
(a lot of schools I have gotten into loved my essay, and have sent notes commenting on it)

Academic

  • 3.7 weighted GPA
    -1170 SAT (620 Reading, 550 Math) I am a really bad test taker but I have maintained an A+ in math throughout senior year, which is where I struggled on the SAT’s
    -Rank: 11/180
  • 4 AP classes (2 junior yr/ 2 senior year. We can only start taking them junior year).
  • 9 honors classes.

EC’s
-Played field hockey for two years
-in NHS both my junior and senior year.
-A school Ambassador (we give tours to new students and important visitors of the schoo/represent school at events) Also it is a select group where administrators, guidance counselors and former students in club pick us.
-Co-leader of a club called Project Purple
-Many volunteer hours, and in school I work with elementary kids during gym class, and I also work with special needs students in multiple classes.
-Mentored 8th grade students in my junior year (my high school has 8th graders)
-I’ve had a consistent job for 3 years
-A couple of school related awards

Thank You!!!

2

I think you still have a strong chance of getting into Bentley. From what I can tell, you are a strong student, have good Ec’s, a great essay, and you have some pretty decent hooks, which you expressed in that essay.

Yes, you have a weak SAT, but it is not that far off from the 1230 – if you explained to them why it was low (bad test taker usually doesn’t cut it) I’m sure they would understand. That said, it really does not undermine your app, and even if you didn’t have a great reason for the low score, I’m sure the other aspects of your app greatly outweigh this.

I have a question about your GPA, though. You say that your weighted GPA is a 3.7, but you are also the top 11 in your class of 180; is your school incredibly difficult, or do people generally not perform that well? Nonetheless, I think your class rank really helps you stand out from your peers, which is, I believe, typically just as important as how you compare to the applicant pool.

Don’t worry! You say that you have been accepted to other schools, so look through those and determine which one would be the best fit. Then, when you get your decision from Bentley (which I honestly believe will be positive), you can make up your mind then. Good luck!

3

@cc8912 Thank you for your input!!!
Overall, my grade is filled with people who do not try. The top 30 is very competitive, and then students who are ranked from about 30-80 are average students, but the rest of the students just do not try. Either they do not show up to school, or they don’t do any work. It’s unfortunate because they are pretty good students and have a lot of potential, but they don’t apply themselves and are too consumed with bad influences.