Ok so Swarthmore is my dream school. I was super against it at first, while knowing
nothing about it, and then my mom made me do a tour and I fell in love. It was everything I had imagined college to be like. After that I
became committed to Swarthmore as my
number one school. I’ve done a tour and info session and applied to discover Swarthmore. I don’t know if I got in yet, but if I don’t I’m
definitely going to stay overnight at
Swarthmore and do an interview.
I got a 33 on my act, 35 English and reading, 31 math and science. My writing score is 12. I got a 760 on us SAT II, 730 literature, 720
world. I got 5 ap us, 4 for language and
composition, and 3 world.
I’m interested in doing double major in
political science (focus in international
relations) and history. I eventually want to be an international human rights lawyer for the
UN.
I have done piano lessons for 8 years.
Sophomore year I did Odyssey of the mind
and placed fourth regionals, junior statesman of America (jsa), and community service at a thrift store and as a tutor. junior year I
continued jsa and also did Model UN, became vp of the poetry club and a copy editor of my school newspaper, and did fencing. I’m
continuing all of that senior year and also I’m the copy editor of the school literary and
visual arts magazine (is an officer position),
and doing voice lessons. I also volunteer with the kids at my church( I’m an active
nondenominational Christian). I go to youth
group every week and have for 3 years. I also intered at a company as a legal intern as a
rising junior and senior. I have two college
credits from a law and advocacy program at American university for National Student
Leadership Conference. I have seven credits at Cornell university through Cornell Summer college (Foundations of American Law and
Freedom and justice courses) my gpa was 4.0.
I’m biracial, half black half white. Mom got
bachelor’s and is from Virgin islands. Dad
went to west point then got mba at Columbia.
I’m a very strong writer, have very good
essays and will have great college
recommendations, one from my professor at Cornell Law School. My gpa by the way is
3.84 unweighted, 4.11 weighted. I’m taking
ap bio, ab calc, literature and composition,
and government and politics senior year and plan to get all A’s my senior year.
I know this is a ton of information but I love
Swarthmore ( I’m doing EARLY DECISION)
and just really want an indicator of my chances from other people. I’d really appreciate any one who takes the time to read all of this.
Swarthmore ED: Reach
What are your non-reaches?
I think your chances are pretty good. I had wanted my D to consider Swarthmore last year but she wasn’t interested. I think intellectual rigor is pretty important for admissions. They seem to reject an inordinate number of perfect test score applicants, so they must be looking for something
Swarthmore is a High Match applying ED. Your EC’s as well as recommendations look stellar. Your GPA and ACT are also average for Swarthmore. I think you have a very good shot of getting in. Good luck.
I would think your prospects of getting in ED are pretty good but I’ve seen enough to know that no one can predict what admissions officers will do. Good luck!
Since you’re applying ED, I think that will definitely give you a boost to help your chances. I think that your ECs and letters of recommendation are impressive. Your stats are right in line with the average for Swarthmore. I’d that you definitely have a decent chance of getting in. Good luck!!
Thanks everybody for all your comments! My mind is somewhat more at ease.
I’m also applying to Cornell University, which I think I’ll be accepted to especially because of the programs I did there. I was there six weeks and took the two college courses with all A’s and I’m getting a recommendation from my law professor. My other schools currently are Bucknell, Lehigh, and Lafayette. I’m still looking for more match schools though.
You have listed these:
Swat - Reach
Cornell - Reach
Lehigh - High Match
Lafayette - High Match
Bucknell - Match
If you really want Swat, I think you should also apply to Haverford and Bryn Mawr (if you are a female). They are in the consortium with Swat, so you could take some classes at Swat if you got into Haverford or BM. Haverford is probably a low reach and Bryn Mawr a low reach or high match.
So yes – you should probably add a couple of true match schools and a safety.
I’d say high match/low reach for Swat (and I have a kid who got in RD two years ago). Just be sure you see your FA package before accepting an ED offer if you get one. There was a poster a couple of years ago who was unpleasantly surprised by his, and had to scramble to get RD apps in. We did not find the Swat FA to be very good in our case, either. Also, plug away diligently on your RD apps. It can be tough to do them if you don’t get into your early schools, it just knocks a lot of kids for a loop. And you need them ready if the FA isn’t what you need, too.
Matches – Dickinson would be a low match. Have you considered U of Chicago as another reach? They have that same academic intensity as Swat, lots of students apply to both (my kid was also accepted there, EA).
in response to Wje9164be
I’ve taken pretty rigorous courses and my high school is known to be extremely difficult. Freshman year I took geometry, biology, us history 1, Spanish 1, the beginning level of orchestra, business ethics (semester), Integrated computer applications(semester), gym, and English 1. I had all A’s and one A- in orchestra Sophomore year I took algebra 2 accelerated (B) , which is the same as honors, ap us (A), chemistry accelerated(B+), English 2 (A) (there was no honors offered), Spanish 2 (A), media studies (A) (semester), philosophy (A) (semester), drama 1 (A), gym (A). Junior year I took ap physics 1 (B), ap world history(A), Ap English 3(A-), Africa (A)( a semester history course), Russia(A) (a semester history course), drama 2 (A), gym (A), Spanish 3(A), and pre calc(A). I’m getting recommendations from my pre calc, ap world, and ap English 3 teachers and my Cornell Law professor. Senior year I’m taking the ap’s I have above and also Spanish 4, great books(semester), economics (semester and school requirement), drama seminar, and gym.
I’ve considered Dickinson. I really want to be in the north east for college and I really don’t like the city, so my options are a bit limited
Have you visited those schools? They do factor in your interest and as much as you are interested in Swat you do need backups
and an even safer backup
I’ve visited all of them but Bucknell, but I’m doing that next week. I also plan to interview for at least most of the schools I apply to. I really do need to find more backups and matches.
In our part of the country we consider Dickinson to be a school in the Northeast… are you sure you are thinking of the same school? (LAC in Carlisle, PA – maybe 50 miles from Bucknell)
Oh I meant Dickinson is in the north east, but U of Chicago isn’t. I am thinking about applying to Dickinson
For what it is worth, my kid doesn’t like large cities either, but she loved U of Chicago. Be sure to show some interest if you apply to Dickinson.
I definitely will and thanks so much for the feedback and advice!