<ul>
<li>Male (Rising Senior)</li>
<li>New York </li>
<li>African American (URM)</li>
<li>First Generation</li>
<li>Low Income </li>
<li>GPA: 3.8 (unweighted)</li>
<li>ACT: 20 (June 11th score; retaking)</li>
<li>SAT: 1420 (May 7th score; retaking) </li>
<li>Class Rank: Top 10%</li>
<li>AP/Honors: (my school only offers AP Bio and I'm taking it this year) </li>
</ul>
<p>Activities:
- internship in pre-college office at school (90 hours)
- co-founder/organizer of the music club
- senior representative of the student government
- played guitar for 3 years
- played soccer for 2 years
- College Now @ Baruch College - "Introduction to Business" (worth 3 credits)
- Junior Scholars Program (a neighborhood honors program; applied last week)
- after-school volunteering (8 hours; plan to complete more)
- community service (10 hours; plan to complete more) </p>
<p>Additional Info:
- I want to major in entrepreneurship and/or graphic design.
- I may tryout for track in the winter.
- I'm currently nominated for the Posse Foundation.</p>
<p>Colleges/Universities of Interest:
- SUNY Plattsburgh (entrepreneurship and graphic design; match)
- University of Virginia (entrepreneurship and graphic design)
- Oberlin College (entrepreneurship and graphic design related course)
- Bowdoin College (economics and graphic design; ACT/SAT optional)
- Bates College (economics; ACT/SAT optional)
- Middlebury (economics and a graphic design course; ACT/SAT optional)
- Duke University (entrepreneurship and graphic design)
- University of Miami (entrepreneurship and graphic design)
- Cornell University (entrepreneurship and graphic design; top choice!!!)
- Syracuse University (entrepreneurship and graphic design)
- Brown University (entrepreneurship; not getting my hopes up at all)
- Emory University (may consider)
- Brandeis University (may consider; Posse)
- Babson College (may consider; Posse)</p>
<p>In addition to my hooks listed above, I'm wondering what scores (ACT or SAT) could get me into these schools. I know that I wouldn't necessarily need the scores within the middle 50% range, but very close at least. I'm taking the ACT next week on the 10th for at least a 25 and was considering to re-take it in October for a 28. I would also would like to give the SAT another try and was planning on taking two subject tests (math I or II and biology) and the actual exam in December for an 1800+. I'm mainly trying to find universities that offer my majors and demonstrate 100% full need, because the other schools I had in mind such as Penn State, MSU, Purdue and UMich will most likely be too expensive to afford without outside scholarships (Gates, etc).I also plan to volunteer more as I mentioned before, hopefully establish another club in my school and resurrect our newspaper as representative in the student government. I was wondering if I could boost my GPA to a 3.9 during my my first semester of my senior year. I need all of the advice I can get as soon as possible so I will know what to focus on in terms of the application process. As far as writing great essays and obtaining recommendations, those are my least worries. Any tips? Suggestions? Thoughts?</p>
<p>Many of your schools are very selective (Bowdoin, Bates, Middlebury, Duke, Cornell, Brown, and Emory). These schools will all require an ACT within 30-36 or SAT of 2100+. Despite your ‘hooks’ there are many others out there like you with high stats that may have an edge over you. The other schools you have on your list will require a minimum 26-27 ACT or 1850ish SAT. Remember with bigger schools, they will use your test scores/GPA very heavily to weed out the massive amount of applicants. Good luck and all the best</p>
<ul>
<li>the 25-75% SAT range begins at 1970 (but they are, as you noted, test optional)</li>
<li>GPA and rank are “very important,” and 83% of freshman are, like you, top 10%</li>
<li>they don’t consider volunteer or work experience</li>
<li>they also don’t consider demonstration of interest, so no need to worry about making a visit or taking alternate action to show interest in their school</li>
<li>your essay and teacher recommendations are “very important”</li>
<li>your first gen status seems more interesting to them than your race</li>
</ul>
<p>You get the idea. You can make yourself crazy nit-picking each piece of the puzzle. You are wise to realize hooks alone won’t carry you. You have a lot of great things going for you that are the result of your hard work in the context of those background factors you can’t control, and that’s what colleges like to see. Yes, you need to get those test scores up as best you can. Beyond that–you are very articulate, which suggests your essays will be one of your strongest pieces. That’s good, because an essay that knocks their socks off can be the tipping point, plus an essay is something that is totally within your control vs. a standardized test. So dedicate enough time and creative energy to preparing your “personal best” prose…the longer your college list, the more essays, short answers and personal statements you will write! Hopefully, you have a good editor in mind to read what you write and help you refine it. </p>
<p>Did you investigate Questbridge? (I realize you are going for Posse–fingers crossed!–but if they aren’t mutually exclusive, or Q could be a back-up, you should check it out.)</p>
<p>Even with your hooks, your scores are (probably) way too low. You definitely need to retake. I would suggest at least a 25-26 on your ACT, even with Posse. I’m not sure what the equivalent SAT score is. You should also spend more time on ECs this year. Good luck!</p>
<p>@scsience, thanks for the feedback. I completely understand where you’re coming from in terms of the scores and I’m totally embarrassed by mines. I’m trying to figure out whether or not I should take both exams again or just focus on one of them.</p>
<p>@TXArtemis, I really appreciate your kind words and informing me about the common data set, it has really made things a bit easier in terms of chancing myself. I have investigated Questbridge, but the application is due on the 30th and my scores are way to low to stand a chance.</p>
<p>@chaosakita, thanks for the reply. Is there a particular score I should aim for aside from the Posse schools? I have about two months to study for the next ACT and 3 months for the SAT in December. What other ECs do you consider that I get involved in? My school currently has only 4 clubs and no other programs available, that’s why I have to accomplish a lot this year in student government. As for Posse, I do intend to boost my scores, but the nominees had an interview with a senior at my school who won and he told us that scores matter much less to most partner schools than regular admission. I don’t want to seem like I’m depending on my hooks, but instead I would like to use them to my advantage.</p>
<p>Would you possibly be interested in applying to some school that do not consider standardiszed test scores? It might make you a really attractive candidate for a lot of excellent schools.</p>
<p>I believe that there is a list of schools not requiring tests here on CC but I cannot remember the link.</p>
<p>@boysx3, I listed 3 test optional schools above, Bowdoin, Bates and Middlebury. I’ve also seen the list with the others, but those 3 demonstrate full and would be my top choices in terms of test optional LACs.</p>
<p>Many people tell me to consider test optional schools, but they never recommend what I should do in terms of testing.I think that I may just focus on the SAT, because the timing on the ACT is too stressful.</p>
<p>Your scores are seriously low, and for the schools on your list, I think your best shot would be to look at the ‘optional reporting’ schools and don’t report. </p>
<p>More important, do you know why your scores are this low? Obviously, they are inconsistent with your academic performance. However, if the scores are an accurate assessment of your skills, you should seriously think whether you can succeed at a Bowdoin, Middlebury or Bates. This is something to discuss with your Guidance Counselor.</p>
<p>@T26E4, I have considered Questbridge, but my scores are way too low to possibly stand a chance. I made an account and have checked out the essays, but my scores won’t cut it. Many people have told me to consider, but I doubt that I will get selected. As far as the tardiness, please ignore that, I didn’t include it for any particular reason. </p>
<p>@zephyr15, I really appreciate your feedback. As far as my test scores go, they are probably extremely low, because I barely prepped before I took them. I was enrolled in an SAT course last fall which utilized the Kaplan materials, but I didn’t do as much studying on my own time as I should have. I personally feel that there’s room for a major score improvement especially if I study hard for the next couple of months. I may just drop the October ACT all together and just focus on the SAT; I find the ACT difficult mainly, because of the timing. I can’t stand the fact that they are the complete opposite of my academic performance and it kills me to know that, because everyone has such great scores on here. I often find myself lacking the drive to study, because I lack faith that I will boost my score; I get very discouraged. I’m willing to do whatever it takes to boost my scores as of right now, because I really would like to get accepted to some of the non-act optional schools on my list. Could I get into any of them with an 1800 - 1900? (except Plattsburgh and test-optional) That’s my main question in this thread. I personally don’t think that my poor performance on the standardized tests will affect my academic abilities at Bowdoin, Bates, Middlebury or any other school I listed. I work very hard in school and just about all of my teachers tell me that I’m a highly motivated student; this is why I’m not worried about recommendations.</p>
<p>Given your ‘hooks’ 1800-1900 on the SAT could make you a plausible candidate at a number of these schools. As was suggested, you should either check the Common Data Sets or get one of the college guides.</p>
<p>MindonMars- please talk to Kaplan here in NYC- you need to get one-on-one tutoring for the SAT, to bring your score up. They do offer scholarships to well qualified students In need. You must not lose faith. This is something you can do. African Americans have historically scored lower on standardized tests- regardless of socioeconomic background.it is thought due to subtle biases in the tests -AND psychological factors that greatly affect African Americans (that they subconsciously fear they can’t and won’t do as well as others). You must try to overcome this. You sound like an amazing young man-reach out to those around you. GET A TUTOR. Be open to studying for the test in a different way. Focus purely on success. When studying for a standardized test remember: you need to know how to attack & master the test. Call Kaplan on Tuesday. Let them know you are disadvantaged and ask about scholarships. Email/call 100 Hundred black men - ask them how you can access help.</p>
<p>I think going to Kaplan sounds like a bad idea. I didn’t know that they gave scholarships, so if you get (a good) one, you should go for it. However, otherwise they are simply not worth the money. If you have to pay Kaplan or anywhere else at a price that’s a burden to your family, it’s much better to go into your public library and check out a couple of books instead.</p>
<p>To be honest, I thought that LottieM was a shill for Kaplan at first.</p>
<p>Please, after Harvard/Berkeley/UCSD med school I make some extra pennies advertising for Kaplan? You are a funny one. I have a friend who is senior management at Kaplan. They do have scholarships. Maybe other review programs do to. Why don’t you find that out and report back to us. I think MindonMars would benefit from a highly structured study format with one-on-one tutoring- hey, like all the other better off kids get!</p>