@boolaHi did your daughter have any hooks? That is great to get into those schools with a 31.
Yup…several—URM (AA and Native) Female interested in STEM, and also a state ranked athlete—she was #2 in her class of 425.
@boolaHI, thank you.
I think what I should say, is that she also has two older sisters, that were admitted, in past years, at these same schools (they actually had a tad higher test scores-33) and I think that could have possibly helped her out (e.g. the same HS counselors).
Well we have been to visit some colleges and my D doesn’t seem to like the ones that are too big. This rules out a lot of great schools. We need to find some medium-sized schools now!
Ah yes, the elusive medium size schools – not always that easy to find. U of Rochester, Case Western Reserve University, Emory, Ithaca College, seems like there are a bunch of Catholic/Jesuit colleges that are medium sized – Marquette, Fordham, etc.
Lehigh is a medium-sized school where a 30 or 31 might work.
Yes @momofzag - they are elusvie! Lehigh is on the list, as is Emory for a reach. We don’t want a Catholic/Jesuit school so those are out. She’s like baby bear…one is too big…one is too small…very hard to find those ones that are “just right” and also intellectually challenging (another one of her requirements, whatever that actually means!)
My D graduated from a top private HS with a 3.8 uw GPA and 30 ACT. She is a talented musician and auditioned at two schools and sent recordings (arts supplement) to all others. She was accepted to Northwestern (for music via audition), UVa OOS, Davidson, Richmond and Oberlin (not the conservatory). She was wait-listed at Vassar, William & Mary, & WashU Stl.
@ReadytoRoll - have you looked at the University of Rochester? My son (DH and I) really liked it. Seems like a great size for yoru D (I think about 5,000 undergrad) with a very attractive campus. We really liked the vibe of the students – seemed fairly diverse, down to earth, serious about their studies, very involved in activities, etc. The weather will be cold (but we are in Cleveland so that doesn’t bother S).
You have to check Naviance (or ask gc) about U of Rochester. From our high school they never admit kids with less than 32.
Interesting about U of R - goes to show each HS is different. We have lots of kids apply every year and about 50% of those are accepted. The average ACT accepted is 31 but I checked the scattergram and there are plenty of acceptance between 28 - 32 (and above and below that range as well).
@thegrant - How does one get $25 merit award at Carnegie Mellon when they say they do need - based aid and not merit aid?
Average ACT from our school to U of R is a 31 - so some above and some below. But my D isn’t even interested in looking at it because she has heard that it’s not a “rah rah” school. Meanwhile, she doesn’t want a big school either so finding medium-sized “rah rah” schools is getting tedious!!
@collegedadoftwo presidential merit scholarship
I had a 30 ACT
Admitted:
UCLA
UCSB
NYU
Penn State (University Park)
University of Miami
Northeastern
Rejected:
Berkeley
UPenn
D had the equivalent of 30/31 ACT but submitted her SAT 2070 instead. She was admitted to Simmons Honors, UMassAmherst Honors and BioTap, UScranton Honors, Ithaca Honors, St. Michaels Honors, Clark University, Smith STRIDE as an early-write, MoHo, Dickinson and Skidmore (where she has accepted a spot). She was waitlisted at MIddlebury, Wellesley, Bates and Barnard. Rejected at Vanderbilt, Vassar, Colby, and Amherst. I think, its all pretty jumbled up in my head now lol.
I do believe that all depends on the high school, the relation that it has with certain colleges, the location etc. Our highschool is an average public so as a rule of thumb a lot of colleges do not trust the education level so they want to see that cut off in ACT or SAT to validate the gpa. U of R is one of them. However, through the years some colleges did “trust” our students and developed a relation and you clearly see that in naviance. Also, it looks like some colleges do not even “bother” to look at our high school as they never accept anyone does not matter the stats. I think it is getting better though as every year I see more variety. Although I am not very fond of the AP model I think we are one school that actually benefited by offering lots of APs so we can prove we can do the work.
D had a 30 ACT and 1980 SAT, submitted the 30 & had a strong GPA, 4.3 weighted, all honors and AP. She was accepted to UGA, Purdue, SMU, URI, U of Miami and Miami U (Ohio), with several merit scholarships. Waitlisted at UNC. She is attending SMU and it’s been a great fit for her. Lots more academic opportunities & research in her field, geophysics. Would have been harder to be noticed at the big state U’s.
I have to admit that i liked your post, but unliked it after I saw your child goes to yale.