Will having a letter of rec from a board member help

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Notre Dame
1

If I have a strong letter of rec from a member of the board of trustees at ND will that sway the decision.

Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.0

Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): School doesn’t rank

Senior Year Course Load: Only junior as of writing this.

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):Future Business leaders of America 10,11,12. Latin culture society(Treasurer 10,11,12), Varsity Volleyball (11,12), Bagpipe band, Student council (11,12), Lacrosse (9,10) Leadership series seminar (11,12)

Job/Work Experience: Started own web design company, grossing over 5000$ in sales. Also work 20 hour per week job at toy store.

Volunteer/Community service: Will have around 100 hours of service at time of graduating with over half of it being at a c enter helping disabled people of all ages.

Summer Activities: Working at toy store in addition to running own web design company.

Essays: Yet to write, still a junior.

Teacher Recommendation: One from Latin teacher who taught me for my 3 years of high school , graduate of Yale and knows how I’ve progressed as not only a student but also as a person, as well as one from school president who is an ND graduate and knows the difficulties I’ve surpassed throughout high school.

Counselor Rec: Pretty close to counselor who worked in ND admissions for 35 years so probably will be very good.

State (if domestic applicant): NJ
School Type: Catholic/Private
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): First generation to go to college, raised by single parent, letter of rec from member of board of trustees, started own company at age 15.

2

forgot to add I’ve been a member of nj notre dame club for past 2 years, don’t know if that would be an EC or a hook

3

Can’t hurt lol I had a letter of recommendation from a significant donor to the university and was denied for freshman year. Don’t bank on that getting you in, but it’s certainly an asset. Work on upward trending on your GPA and testing strong on your SAT and ACT

4

When I asked my admissions rep about having letters of rec from important Notre Dame figures he said that for additional letters of recommendation, they look more at the content of the letter than the author. I would encourage you to work incredibly hard your next year to get your gpa and test scores to a level where they don’t immediately disqualify you. Being from a private catholic school in NJ, you’re in one of the most competitive regions for applying to Notre Dame, so just that letter doesn’t guarantee anything. Shoot for a UW 3.7 GPA or higher this year, getting around a 33-34 ACT to compensate for grades, and continue to work your connections. You have some good hooks with your business and first generation college, but you’re in a the dangerous zone where your gpa is so low that they might be worried you won’t be able to deal with the rigors of classes at ND.

5

I am one of your high school classmates (can tell where you go based upon your statements about counselor and President) and if you look at our school statistics your grades are going to hurt you

6

  1. Are you sure the board member will write a strong letter on your behalf? Depending on your relationship, sometimes board members will ask to see that your stats are competitive before they will write such a letter.

  2. Until you get standardized tests back, it is even harder to give an opinion.

  3. A letter can help push you over the top if you are otherwise qualified, but as of now your GPA appears to be low for ND. 75% of accepted students are in the top 5% of their class – where do you stand? A letter will not typically get a non-qualified student in.

  4. Feel free to give ND a shot and see what happens, but I’d focus more of your time and energy on seeking out schools you are academic match for. There are so many amazing schools out there that it is a mistake for anyone to focus on one hyper-competitive school.

http://admissions.nd.edu/apply/admission-statistics/

7

I’m in the same situation you are; I’m having a trustee emeritus and close family friend write me a letter to ND and probably make a phone call. He’s also donated a huge amount of money/has a building named after him. I have a 4.4 weighted GPA and 2150 SAT and 1420/1600. Do you guys think that a letter from him will help me a lot? As of right now, its pretty questionable as to whether I’d be accepted without him, but I hope with his connections I’ll be sort of “pushed” through the admission process. Thoughts?

8

I think your GPA and SAT put you in the running. Work on your essays; they will tell more about you than a donor. Using your connection won’t hurt, IMO, but won’t get you in unless you are qualified. I spoke with Fr. Hesburgh a few years ago and he said that even he couldn’t help with admissions!

9

@lospresagios @steveo87 Have to agree with what you said. I was at an informational meeting on campus, and the man presenting said that an applicant got a recommendation letter from the Pope, but they still denied him. Ultimately, anyone can write anything about anyone. Most rec letters are good, so it takes more than rec letters to be admitted. GPA is good, SAT is a tad below average (which sucks, because your score is good. I’m at a 1440, so I know how you feel). If this person is related to you, then I think it would matter. Otherwise, you’ll probably have to prove to ND why you should be there.