What should I expect?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Colby College
1

I initially applied to Colby mostly because it was free and a good school, but now after researching it it has become one of my top schools. However, I’m doubtful I’ll get in and I don’t really want to get my hopes up for nothing.

GPA: W 4.25, school doesn’t give UW
Class rank: top 10%, class around 800 students
Class rigor: Most rigorous courses offered
-5 AP classes (Calc BC, US History, US Gov, Lit, Psychology), many other similarly weighted Advanced and High Honors classes, easiest classes were all weighted honors

  • Also took two semesters of biology with a UMASS school junior year, as well as a dual enrollment class with a community college
    -I have gotten one C junior year in Honors latin, the second semester I brought it up to a higher B; other than that I’ve gotten mostly As, with the occasional B
    Recommendations: One from AP Lit teacher whom I’ve had for two years, read it and was very good
    Letter from AP Calc teacher was nice but kind of generic, I didn’t read the letter from my guidance counselor but we had a good relationship, probably generic still
    SAT: 1320 super scored (670 CR, 650 Math), 20/24 Essay Superscored
    Essays: My common app essay was a 9/10 in my opinion, talked about the impact and what I took away from lifeguarding in an inner city
    Extracurricular activities: I put 10 activities; most important include
    Captain of Varsity Swim team, 4 year member, over 20 hours per week for ~3 months per year
    Over 200 volunteer hours for a local organization that gives Christmas presents to children in my city, volunteered for over 7 years
    Worked as a lifeguard and swim instructor during the summer, 36 hours per week for the whole summer (included management certifications and other important certifications I received)
    Volunteered on a congressional debate committee senior year
    Other less significant activities (yearbook committee, other clubs, babysitting, etc)
    Honors: National Honors Society (11th and 12th grade), Posse Finalist, was accepted and was a member of an accelerated program freshman year in which I took more advanced classes than many of my peers
    Applied for Financial Aid? Yes
2

Bump

3

Your chances are very good. Stay hopeful.

4

@preppedparent thanks!!

5

Have you had any opportunities to demonstrate your interest in the school, like visiting the campus or having an interview with a rep in your area?

6

@colfac92 no, I didn’t do either. I probably could’ve visited considering I live like 3 hours away but it would probably be too late now I’m assuming?

7

Don’t know if it is “too late,” but you could always check Colby’s schedule for admissions open houses and tours, and see if there is an offering that you could squeeze in. I know they send reps out to various high schools throughout the country to offer info sessions and have conversations with interested students, but those may be in the fall before the application deadline. You could ask your guidance counselor whether Colby has ever sent a rep to your school, or maybe the GC might have a suggestion on how to let Colby know of your interest. I am bringing this up only because some colleges do take the applicant’s level of expressed interest into account in their admissions decisions, and Colby might be one of those.

ETA – it’s not the death knell if you are not able to visit or meet a rep, I’m pretty sure the admit a lot of students with stats similar to yours who haven’t.

8

@colfac92 thank you! I’ll look into how much Colby values demonstrated interest, because I know there won’t be more admissions reps until next fall