<p>I am a high school sophomore in North Carolina and I wanted to apply for NC Governor's School next year so I was just wondering what does it take to get in? Do you just have to have a good GPA or do they want something extra? What test scores do they ask for? How much do ec's count? How much do the essays count? Is it harder to get into the Natural Science category than the English or vice versa or? Ahhhhh so many questions! Any stats of former NCGS students would be appreciated and I would be more than happy to give you mine.</p>
<p>Hey there Californiagirl,</p>
<p>I got into NC Governor’s School East for Mathematics for this upcoming summer, and I was genuinely surprised (I didn’t think I would get in – I actually applied for Summer Ventures and a few other things at the same time for that reason). Here are my stats at the time I applied:</p>
<p>Male
Asian
In State (obviously lol)</p>
<p>Weighted GPA: somewhere around a 4.5 – my school weights honors courses up to 5 points for a grade of 96 or higher
Unweighted: 4.0
Rank: 4/180 (if I recall correctly)</p>
<p>SAT (embarrassing): 1920
PSAT: somewhere between 190 and 200
No ACT at the time and I totally misplaced my PLAN results so I didn’t include those.</p>
<p>School and Community Activities during the past three years:
Three math competitions (didn’t place anything)
Some volunteer work
President of school math club - elected this year
Member of National Beta Club - 2 years
Member of National Honors Society - 3 years
Member of Drama Club (technical helper) - 2 years
Maybe one or two things I forgot (no sports though)</p>
<p>Awards and Honors during the past three years:
Geometry Award
English I Honorable Mention
School Recognition Program-thing
School Representative for HOBY (Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership) Conference 2012
Few other things that I forgot</p>
<p>You have to elaborate on why any of the two awards or activities that you listed are important to you, and I wrote about 5-7 sentences each on this place I volunteered at (a coffee shop ministry) and my HOBY experience and how both impacted me on a personal level.</p>
<p>Course Track: Nothing too special, just honors classes… no APs yet, though I could’ve taken one or two approved for sophomores. Good grades in all of them. I actually had taken 3 business-related courses by then, too. I’m taking more honors courses and two APs right now (US Gov and Calc AB), but I’m not sure if these junior year classes showed up anywhere on the application (counselor did that part).</p>
<p>Counselor Recommendation: Average, I suppose
Teacher Rec 1: Math teacher, she really likes me so I assume it was good
Teacher Rec 2: Science teacher, also likes me</p>
<p>Two Essays: The school committee read them and they said they were both good, especially for a mathematics nominee. (I thought they were good, too.)</p>
<p>~~~</p>
<p>I was originally going to apply for Social Sciences, but then I realized that both of my social studies teachers had left so I couldn’t get a recommendation. Then I changed it to mathematics, which probably would’ve been better anyway because of how most of my school activities are related to math. I’m almost certain the reason I was accepted was because of my essays. I wrote them late at night (my best writing time) and they were my genuine, heartfelt words. I also didn’t polish it too much aside from the usual editing and teacher proofreading. I would say just make sure your essays tell them a little something about you, show them how you could benefit from the Governor’s School experience, and be genuine.</p>
<p>I was looking at your stats from your other UNC thread and I think you have a great chance for Governor’s School! (You look more qualified than I, at least lol.) Our courses are almost frighteningly similar, although I did double up on math my sophomore year (Algebra II and Pre-Calc). That AP World History you have this year is a nice addition, as well – just make sure you do well in the class. Keep in mind that I’m new here at CC so please take my advice and commendations with a grain of salt, lol.</p>
<p>Also, I’m not sure about which subject would be easiest to get into, but for the one you do choose there is an accompanying essay (and you can see all the essay prompts), so you could maybe choose the one you’re most comfortable about…? I’m really not sure, sorry!</p>
<p>Again, I honestly didn’t think I would get in… I mean, let’s be honest here – I’m not very well-rounded overall, I don’t play any sports, and I had a job for like 9 months only, and I haven’t really found a passion yet. I just applied for the heck of it, but I am so grateful that I was accepted! You should definitely, definitely apply! As they say, you have a zero chance of getting into anything if you don’t apply 
</p>
<p>Keep up the good work!</p>
<p>Andrew</p>
<p>Thank you so much Andrew, that helped a lot really. I’m gonna apply next year!</p>