These are his top choices. Dartmouth and Harvard give zero dollars in merit aid and zero dollars in athletic scholarships.
Georgetown does not give athletic scholarships and has a couple of very very competitive merit awards, I believe. Not to be counted on…at all. No matter how many AP courses one takes.
The top D3 schools give NO merit aid…and all D3 schools give no athletic scholarships.
This student seems to be aiming for the top. Just pointing out these financial issues…as they might impact this student.
Instead of taking online classes can you do duel enrollment? College level english would be good because most schools expect to see four years of english. Spanish could be taken as a duel enrollment too. AP computer science doesn’t seem to fit your interests and isn’t a core class so I don’t think it would look all that impressive.
Most challenging courseload...so if APs are offered at your school...that will be expected....oh and with excellent grades.
Excellent essays.
Excellent LORs.
Excellent commitment to ECs.
BUT wait…your application will be reviewed t tippy top schools along with a ton of others with equally strong applications. Some of the top schools only accept 10% or less of applicants. Do the math. Even with fabulous credentials, your chances of being accepted to these top schools are low.
@thumper1 I’m not where your information is coming from, but D3’s absolutely give merit aid to entice student athletes (Case, Carnegie, Wash U, etc), that is assuming of course they meet or exceed the selection criteria.
Georgetown is D1 FCS in the Patriot league all of which offer full athletic scholarships, but I believe Georgetown has deferred last year to offer scholarships. Not sure if they will this coming year or not. They do offer merit and a lot of it.
All his top schools meet 100% of demonstrated financial need. That is always a huge plus as well.
Please read what I wrote again. I said the TOP division 3 schools give NO merit aid…and I stand by that. I’m talking schools like Williams, Amherst, Bates, and all of the Ivy League schools. No merit…and no athletic scholarships.
Yes, Wash U and Vandy give some merit aid…but it is HIGHLY competitive, and is not predicated on the number of AP courses you take.
I didn’t hear that this student was so accomplished that he could be a D 1 athletic recruit. Did I miss that?
Anyway…back to the question. Will the number of AP courses taken help this applicant get into top universities? My opinion…the expectation will be that he takes the most aggressive courseload offered…but then so will all the other competitive applicants to these top universities. So…no…the number won’t really help…because he needs to do that to be a competitive applicant anyway…like all,the others who apply.
@thumper1 I guess it depends on what your definition of “Top” is. UAA schools (Case, Carnegie, WashU, Rochester, etc) all offer Academic Merit Aid to athletes as long as they “academically” deserve it. MIT and UChicago do not, but the rest of the Top 50 ranked schools certainly do.
I respectfully disagree based on personal experience and will leave it at that.
As for OP, I stand by my initial comments. AP’s are an absolute need, but they will not differentiate the applicant by any means. If you are able to take college classes at an accredited University, these will add value as well.
Again best of luck and keep pushing hard. Seems like your doing a great job !!
@fbsdreams@thumper1 I am not seeking to play varsity sports in college because while good, I didn’t dedicate myself to trying to get recruited because over time my passions changed. Instead, i focused on internships and programs relating to my main interest: politics. That’s where my depth lies.
I apologize if this has been covered already. Do you have financial considerations when it comes to choosing colleges…or is anything possible?
You have some great credentials and it sounds like you are taking a strong and challenging courseload. This could position you for merit aid at some places.
GEORGETOWN ATHLETIC GRANTS-IN-AID
Georgetown University athletic grants-in-aid are awarded by the Department of Athletics on the basis of athletic and academic potential. Many are awarded based on demonstrated financial need for scholarship assistance, and participation in a particular intercollegiate sport. Further information about these opportunities can be obtained by contacting the GU Department of Athletics at 202-687-2435.
Your contribution to Georgetown’s Athletic Scholarships allows the University to successfully recruit elite talent both on the athletic field as well as in the classroom.
Establishing Endowed Scholarships not only expands the capacity of Georgetown’s Athletic Department to aid our 750 student-athletes, but also fosters the University’s Jesuit creed: mens sana in corpore sano. The scholarship program will contribute to the Georgetown Athletic Department’s mission to support the comprehensive development of student potential by providing opportunities for student-athletes to excel athletically and academically at the highest level both forming character and fostering growth of future leaders of our society.
Not being argumentative as I realize that the top quote also mentions need. I just have a friend whose daughter is being recruited and this is what they were told, so I was interested.
OP, you seem like you already made up your mind as to what you want to do. If I’m being honest you come off a little arrogant and if that shines through on your college apps, you’re toast.
I think you should reconsider those online APs – I’m in AP Art History right now and the workload is massive – and focus on finishing high school strong. Invest lots of time into crafting your college apps, researching/visiting colleges, and doing interviews. Don’t worry about being valedictorian as thousands of valedictorians across the country get rejected from top schools every year. Focus on standing out from the crowd in other ways. Good luck
You asked if the number of APs you are taken and have taken make you stand out against other candidates who are applying to the same schools. The answer is no. But there may be other things in your resume that set you apart, or the schools may like the total package and decide to admit you. Or they could decide that you are qualified to attend, but they just don’t have room for you.
There is nothing more you can do to position yourself other than to keep doing what you are doing, and when the time comes, apply to the schools that interest you and hope for the best.
A little late, and correct me if I’m wrong, but you seem to be missing physics in your list of APs. Maybe you should take that instead of force-feeding yourself other APs and online classes and college apps and your 1.75 pages of ECs simultaneously.
And if you “do not wish to major in STEM,” then why are you considering AP Comp. Sci.? I don’t understand your line of thinking here.
I am taking taking either AP physics or honors physics next year I haven’t decided. Probably honors. I want to know more about computers that’s why I’m taking it. I decided to focus on my interests rather than pure course loading. My school doesn’t offer the ap’s i want so some online ones are a necessity. @muhammadsajjad
An overload of APs is now a potential warning sign rather than the advantage it used to be. Colleges see their own students struggling with a college workload and doubt that most students in HS can take five or more AP classes in a year and get A’s. Typically Online APs are not going to help, but they could position you as too academic focused.