<p>Like every other Asian, I wanted the HYPMS schools, but because of the low grades in my sophomore year, it's probably out of my league now (right?)</p>
<p>Currently, I'm hoping for Duke, UCLA, Berkeley, UW, Yale, UChicago, or Northwestern.</p>
<p>AP's in Sophomore:
AP Biology
AP Eng Lang
AP World History</p>
<p>AP's in Junior:
AP US History
AP Eng Lit
AP Calculus AB
AP Chemistry
AP Spanish
AP Stats (self study)
AP Environmental Science (self study)</p>
<p>Unweighted: 3.60-3.73
Weighted: 4.3
SATI: 2250, 2380 (will retake to attempt at 2400)
SATII's: Biology - 800, Chemistry 780, MathIIC - 800, Korean - 800</p>
<p>Golf - qualified for districts and state, junior year.
AllState Orchestra - Freshman/Sophomore
AllRegion Orchestra - Junior/(probably senior year)
Student Counsel Rep
Volunteer at local hospital
450 volunteer hours</p>
<p>Stop overachieving.
Go out and party - without alcohol or drugs, that is.
You're as qualified as it gets. Now go out and watch a movie. I hear "Click" is pretty good. Bring a friend or eight. Have fun. It's summer vacation, and judging by your junior course load, I'd say that you have a tough year ahead of you. Go live it up for a while.
Don't retake that SAT unless you really enjoyed sitting there for four hours.
If you want to, go ahead and join some other clubs. Find something you really love, be it chess or graphic design, and just go for it.</p>
<p>I am not a californian resident, unfortunately.</p>
<p>honestly, doarkface, i don't think i have that much luxury that you suggest. (thanks though, already doing that. :] ) Compared to other students in my school, I'm not really "ahead of the game" (top 50 public hs) I have a passion I love already but I'm looking for some internships and camps next year. (although I guess it fits into the "typical asian" category)</p>
<p>I guess the point of this is to see if I have a chance at those colleges with a relatively lower GPA. I heard that U of Chicago doesn't give as much credit for a high GPA compared to other top tier schools. Is it true? By the way, the 3.60-3.73 UW GPA is to predict by the end of my jr. year if I get a 4.0 next year.</p>
<p>I don't see why you wouldn't have a chance at colleges with higher GPAs. If you're in a top 50 high school, they'll take into account that the grading system is harsher.</p>
<p>I'm not, however, saying that you'll be guaranteed admittance. The more prestigious colleges are extremely hard to get into, amazing standardized test scores, extracurriculars and GPA...those are just the beginning.</p>
<p>UW? Washington or Wisconsin? Each would be relatively safe.</p>
<p>All of your other colleges are realistic options. Not slam dunk matches, but not extreme reaches either. You have challenged yourself with the availability of the academic rigor available to you, just judging by the number of AP courses you've taken. Adcoms will eat this up. Your EC's are excellent -- focused and dedicated efforts with standout achievement that shows your talent in two distinct areas (golf/music). </p>
<p>Your upward trend in GPA from sophomore to junior years will be noted, but on the other hand, your weighted GPA is very high regardless. If I'm reading correctly, you scored 2380 on your SAT I? Do NOT retake... lest you risk making yourself look obsessive compulsive to the Adcoms and give them a reason to reject you due to your anxiety disorder. 2380 is just fine. With the combined UC Berkeley/UCLA application, you have 6 applications now. Evaluate some other selective/match schools and throw in one more safety school other than UW. Visit some schools to identify which environment you like best. Talk to students. Evaluate specific programs at each school. These are the things you should be doing now, not fretting about your chances.</p>
<p>michael, First, DO NOT retake the SATI, that's obsessive! Second, consider some of the smaller liberal arts colleges where Asians are still desireable URMs. Check their diversity figures to find out which these are. </p>
<p>Take a look at Grinnell, Macalester, Carlton, Hamilton, Williams, Amherst, Trinity, Kenyon. These are all excellent colleges that would look favorably on a combination of brains + Asian + golf + orchestra. </p>
<p>I don't know much about golf but if you're good enough for the golf teams that would be an additional hook at Williams or Hamilton, maybe others.</p>
<p>I'd also suggest that you apply early to a school with rolling admissions like University of Michigan. If you are accepted you'll find out early then that could be your safety.</p>
<p>dear momrath,
thank you for your advice. i am actually interested in williams (and in golfing there too). Would an aunt who attended U of Michigan for graduate school be considered a legacy?</p>
<p>michael, I don't know if aunts count as legacies. A couple of other LAC ideas -- Bowdoin and Middlebury. The general idea is to stay away from LACs that have an excess of Asians. The one's in the more remote areas have difficulty recruiting and matriculating Asians which gives you a plus.</p>
<p>Williams is a wonderful school, but then I'm a bit prejudiced as my son is a student. Beautiful golf course, especially if you like golfing in the snow. :) Great orchestra as well.</p>
<p>how much would AP scores affect admission? Would I be able to retake the Biology to replace the grade from last year? Or is it too late? It didn't turn out as well as I thought it would..</p>
<p>
[quote]
how much would AP scores affect admission? Would I be able to retake the Biology to replace the grade from last year? Or is it too late? It didn't turn out as well as I thought it would..
[/quote]
</p>
<p>I'm do not believe that you can re-take an AP Test, but I haven't confirmed this. At any rate, don't be concerned about AP scores -- for the most part, the scores are only important for the purpose of getting college credit (usually for a 4 or 5 on most AP exams) and/or getting course placement at a given college. Check with each college to determine their individual policy on acceptable test scores. The individual scores will not weigh that heavily in the balance of the admissions decision, unlike the grades you receive for the AP classes themselves.</p>
<p>Ok, please do not retake the SAT. The chance you will get three 800s is tiny - regardless of your intelligence, it's just a statistical fact. Besides, a 20 point difference is unlikely to have significant benefits. Would you differentiate strongly between a 2020 and a 2040 if somebody told you those scores? I myself am suffering abuse from retaking a 2250, and I'm only doing that because my scores were lopsided, and I think I could do significantly better on math.</p>
<p>"The general idea is to stay away from LACs that have an excess of Asians. "</p>
<p>momrath- you mean all top 25 lac's. i believe top lac's like amherst, williams, swarthmore, wellesley, pomona and harvey mudd all have 10%+ asian students. are you suggesting 2nd tier schools?</p>
<p>collegeprep, Swarthmore, Wellsesley, Pomona, Mudd and all of the urban campuses attract a large percentage of Asian applicants. </p>
<p>The schools that I would consider to be "hungry" for Asians as part of their drive to diversity are the more remotely located schools like Williams, Hamilton, Kenyon, Grinnell, Carleton (I'm sure there are others). Williams ends up with a reasonable percentage of Asians but needs to accept more than, say, Swarthmore because they choose not to matriculate. Same is true for other minorities as well but Asians (both east and south) are in a different category because they are not URMs at many top colleges.</p>
<p>I think your low GPA would hurt you a lot...Does anyone else think so? By the way, does the first semester go into the cum. GPA if one applies through RD?</p>