Where should I apply?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hi everyone. I've already applied to two in-state schools. Texas A&M (Automatic Admission) and the University of Texas at Austin. I'm currently working on the common application but I'm wondering what are some other good reach / match schools?</p>

<p>About Me:</p>

<p>U.S. Citizen
Gender: Male
Race: White
State: Texas
Desired Major: Computer Science
I taught myself programming in the 7th grade and I have always loved computers. Over the years I have expanded my knowledge both at home and at school. I still absolutely love computer science and know that I would be happy with a CS oriented career.</p>

<p>Rank: 213 / 988 (I attend one of the most competitive high schools in the Houston area)
UW GPA: 3.4545
W GPA: 4.3182
Decile: 3</p>

<p>AP Scores:
I am an "AP Scholar with Distinction"</p>

<p>Sophomore:
AP World History - 4</p>

<p>Junior:
AP Art History - 4
AP Computer Science A - 4 (I know... :[ )
AP English Language and Composition - 5
AP Human Geography - 5
AP United States History - 4</p>

<p>Senior:
AP Macroeconomics
AP Government
AP English Literature and Composition
AP Biology
AP Statistics</p>

<p>SAT:
March 2014 SAT: 2070 (720R 640M 710W)
October 2014 SAT: 1980 (620R 720M 640W) :[
Superscore: 2150</p>

<p>ACT:
April 2014 ACT: 30 (35E 26M 34R 24S)
October 2014 ACT: ? (Don't know yet, not expecting it to be very good; felt sick/bad :[ )</p>

<p>EC Activities:
Marching + Concert Band - Freshman year only. I played trombone. The time commitment was huge, I ended up quitting because I decided I just really did not enjoy music.</p>

<p>Interact - Volunteer organization - participated sophomore, junior and senior years. Received a "letter" for letter jacket indicating I volunteered over 40 hours.</p>

<p>UIL Computer Science Team - participated junior and senior years. Last year I was just a member only attending a few competitions. I have taken a leadership role this year and am working closely with my teacher to ensure we will do better this year. We have a great relationship and he said he will write me a good letter of recommendation.</p>

<p>Work:
I've held a job working as an attendant at a laundromat from freshman year to present. I only work 5 - 10 hour weekends during the school year but work 40+ hour weeks during the summer. </p>

<p>Tuition:
Cost is not a factor.</p>

<p>Ideal School Qualities:
I would love to go out of state. As nice as Texas is I was actually not born here and never quite felt like I fit in (socially and politically). I would love to go to school in or near an urban area, I definitely do not want to be in the middle of nowhere. I especially love the west coast and would love to go to school somewhere in California or Washington.
Edit: Another thing, I am not intimidated by a large school at all. I have attended fairly large schools for most of my life and have no qualms. I would also prefer to not attend religious schools.</p>

<p>If I missed any information please let me know and I will update accordingly. Thanks so much.</p>

2

<p>How about UC San Diego? Probably a reach if they consider intended major but worth looking into. </p>

<p><a href=“http://ucsdnews.ucsd.edu/pressrelease/computer_science_at_uc_san_diego_jumps_in_global_rankings_reading_between_t”>http://ucsdnews.ucsd.edu/pressrelease/computer_science_at_uc_san_diego_jumps_in_global_rankings_reading_between_t&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p><a href=“UC San Diego: Acceptance Rate, SAT/ACT Scores, GPA”>http://collegeapps.about.com/od/GPA-SAT-ACT-Graphs/ss/uc-san-diego-admission-gpa-sat-act.htm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

3

<p>@keesh17‌ I was thinking of applying to some of the UC schools. Do you think UCSD would be a reach or match for me?</p>

4

<p>I amended my answer to “reach”. Definitely check out some of the other UC’s. San Diego is the best for CS I believe. My kid did CS at USC (not a Cal Sate school) but I think your SAT is on the low side.</p>

<p><a href=“USC: Acceptance Rate, SAT/ACT Scores, GPA”>http://collegeapps.about.com/od/GPA-SAT-ACT-Graphs/ss/usc-university-of-southern-california-admission-gpa-sat-act.htm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

5

<p>@keesh17‌ Great, thanks. Any other schools you recommend?</p>

6

<p>How about Cal Poly San Luis Obispo? Great national reputation and within your GPA SAT range although more selective than SD.</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.calpoly.edu/”>http://www.calpoly.edu/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p><a href=“Cal Poly San Luis Obispo: Acceptance Rate, SAT/ACT Scores, GPA”>http://collegeapps.about.com/od/GPA-SAT-ACT-Graphs/ss/cal-poly-san-luis-obispo-admission-gpa-sat-act.htm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Easier to get in to - Cal Poly Pomona - but still an excellent school.</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.calpoly.edu/”>http://www.calpoly.edu/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p><a href=“Cal Poly Pomona: Acceptance Rate, SAT/ACT Scores, GPA”>http://collegeapps.about.com/od/GPA-SAT-ACT-Graphs/ss/cal-poly-pomona-admission-gpa-sat-act.htm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>In between the two - UC Santa Barbara - on the beach! Very good reputation.</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.ucsb.edu/”>http://www.ucsb.edu/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p><a href=“UCSB: Acceptance Rate, SAT/ACT Scores, GPA”>http://collegeapps.about.com/od/GPA-SAT-ACT-Graphs/ss/uc-santa-barbara-admission-gpa-sat-act.htm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

7

<p>Well, Berkeley is the best for CS. But you will have trouble at the UCs due to your UW GPA.</p>

<p>UCI has great CS among the mid and lower tier UCs. </p>

<p>Calculate your UC GPA and compare it to the averages for each UC. Remember that UC does not care about any non-AP honors classes you took. They aren’t weighted.</p>

<p>You can find freshman profile info here for most campuses: <a href=“http://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/freshman/profiles/”>http://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/freshman/profiles/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Some schools have more detailed profiles on their websites…</p>

<p>Berkeley has a more detailed profile here:
<a href=“Student Profile - Office of Undergraduate Admissions”>http://admissions.berkeley.edu/studentprofile&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>You can see average UW GPA for admitted OOS students is 3.92</p>

<p>Other campus data:
<a href=“http://www.admissions.ucla.edu/prospect/adm_fr/Frosh_Prof14.htm”>http://www.admissions.ucla.edu/prospect/adm_fr/Frosh_Prof14.htm&lt;/a&gt;
<a href=“http://admissions.ucdavis.edu/profile/”>http://admissions.ucdavis.edu/profile/&lt;/a&gt;
<a href=“Undergraduate Statistics”>Undergraduate Statistics;

8

I decided to update this thread with my results.

Accepted:
California Polytechnic State University
California Polytechnic State University, Ponoma
San Jose State University
Texas A&M University
UC Davis
UC Irvine
UC Santa Cruz
University of Colorado Boulder

Waitlisted:
Colorado School of Mines
New York University
UC San Diego
University of Chicago
University of Michigan
University of Washington

Rejected:
Georgia Institue of Technology
Stanford University
UC Berkeley
UC Los Angeles
UC Santa Barbara

For UT Austin I was accepted into the CAP program meaning I could go to another UT campus for 1 year and then transfer to UT Austin.

I hope this information is useful/helpful. If anyone has any questions please let me know.

9

Well done to you. How did your second ACT go if you don’t mind telling me? Which college are you going to choose?
Also, could I ask you for help? http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1757516-advice-for-an-international-student.html#latest
Thank you :slight_smile:

10

@madlaspadla‌ Thank you! I ended up getting a 28 on my second ACT which was definitely disappointing. For the schools that let me, I only sent in my SAT scores. For the schools that required all scores I had to send it. This process was certainly unique and I learned a lot. I am planning on flying to California soon and visiting Cal Poly SLO, UC Davis and UC Irvine. Based on how I like the campuses I will decide. I am also hopeful that I might be admitted into NYU from the waitlist.

11

@kinglime‌ have you decided on where you will be going ?

12

@Machovich‌ Not yet! I’m pretty sure it is between Cal Poly SLO, UC Davis and UC Irvine for me. I am going to visit the campuses and make my decision. I will be sure to post back here when I have decided!

13

Good luck with choosing…

14

@madlaspadla‌ Thank you. :smile:

15

@kinglime‌ You are welcome :slight_smile:

16

@keesh17 Thank you for letting me know about Cal Poly. I have officially decided to attend in the fall :smiley: