Will a low SAT score truely close doors?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>I took the SAT in October and received a fairly lackluster score.</p>

<p>Critical Reading 690<br>
Math 590<br>
Writing 650 "12 essay"</p>

<p>Because I have to take my SAT subject tests in Dec I don’t have the opportunity to retest my SAT score.</p>

<pre><code> I would like to know if I should even bother applying to some of the schools that I would like to attend. Overall I'm a very strong student at a very competitive high school in Texas. I'm also a senior. I've pushed myself fairly hard academically by taking on a rigorous course load.
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<p>GPA - 3.8 "non weighted"
Rank - 33/560ish</p>

<p>Pre/AP & AP Bio
Pre/AP & AP Chem
Pre/AP Physics
AP U.S. History
Pre/AP World History
Honors Anatomy & Physiology
Honors Debate "2 years"
AP English 3&4
Pre/AP Geometry, Alg 2, Pre-Calc</p>

<pre><code>I don’t have very strong ECs. I've been in debate for two years now. It's pretty much the only thing I have done although its incredibly time consuming. One tournament takes up a Friday night and usually an entire Saturday. Writing cases and prepping for your events can take up anywhere from 5-20 hours per a topic depending on how dedicated you are, and considering I've done about 6-8 topics with a little to much dedication the amount of time I've put into it is fairly substantial.

Other then debate I've been on the UIL speech team for 2 years and the Science club for a year and a half. I also have about 40 hours of volunteer work at my local hospital. It will proably be up to about 50 by the time my apps are sent.
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<p>AP tests
U.S. History - 5
English 3 - 4</p>

<pre><code> I've yet to take my SAT subject tests. I don’t really know what to expect for my scores considering I did so poorly on the SAT but quite well on AP style testing.

Initially I planned on applying to Duke, Washu, and U of Chi as my extreme reach schools. Now I cant decide if doing so would even be worth the effort. Is it next to impossible to get in having such a low SAT score while not having anything extraordinary to counter balance it? If there is a chance I would gladly drop the money for admissions but having a limited budget I don’t want to waste my precious $$$ on a lost cause.
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<p>I currently plan on applying to the following schools</p>

<p>Brandeis
Bucknell
U of Rochester
New York University
Johns Hopkins
Leigh University</p>

<p>Texas A&M and UT Austin, being top 10% of my class I have guaranteed admission to these schools so they are my safeties. </p>

<p>I’m sure there are a lot of good students out there that did poorly on the SAT and are trying to consider the best course of action.</p>

<p>So…. Should I still aim high and apply to the schools that I feel would serve me the best, or should I lower my standards and be more realistic? Any advice or input concerning my chances would be appreciated.</p>

2

<p>going to one of your state schools won't ruin your life. I'm probably going to Ohio State, because the difference between it and other schools I'm applying to (Michigan, Lehigh) is about $160,000. Take the deal, you little roflcopter.</p>

3

<p>Capitalism, I'm also a Texas resident with guaranteed admissionn to Texas A&M and UT Austin, which are EXCELLENT schools by all means.</p>

<p>BUT if you really have a dream school or have somewhere else in mind, you should still pursue them.</p>

<p>Your SAT score is a little low for a few of those schools, but it wouldn't hurt trying to apply to just a couple (because you said the app fee was important) of the schools you really would want to go to.</p>

4

<p>UT Austin and A&M are good schools.</p>

<p>But I have a few problems with the campuses and their atmospheres.</p>

<p>UT is overcrowded. The 10% rule has a huge amount of students pouring into the school, like 38k now. Housing is iffy. </p>

<p>Some of UT Austins students dont belong there. The 10% rule itself brings in the top 10 from sub par and mediocre schools that have vastly underqualified students. </p>

<p>Grade inflation is pretty brutal. Welcome to a state school imho and especially a Texas one, its the football :(</p>

<p>UT, from what I've heard from friends who went there, has a big party mentality and the schools atmosphere is lacking intellectually.</p>

<p>A&M suffers from a lot of the problems that UT does but they are less pronounced. What it does have though is a weird kind of cult vibe. They have a lot of weird customs and traditions that I dont really find attractive.</p>

5

<p>The problems you mentioned exist at most state schools, but as a general rule, college is what you make of it. If you are willing to pay $$$$$$ for a more "intellectual atmosphere", then go for it. Otherwise, look into honors programs at state schools. Good luck!</p>

6

<p>just drop money on ur dream schools. You will regret it later on not knowing if you did have that chance of getting in or not. If you get accepted great, if you get rejected hey its closure.</p>