William and Mary... what are my chances?

Colleges and Universities A-Z College of William and Mary
1

Hi!! I’m a current junior in high school and wonder my chances (I know these threads are annoying, I’m sorry) to College of William and Mary. I’ll make this short and simple. I’m from Omaha, Nebraska, and my grandparents live in Carrollton, VA.

Grades:

  • 3.59 UW (my school doesn’t weight)
  • class rank: 102 of 458
  • AP Geography: 3
  • AP Composition and Language: haven’t taken test yet
  • AP Physics 1: did not take test
  • almost all honors and AP classes,
  • next year I plan on taking AP Calc, AP Stats, and AP French
  • ACT: 27, I’m currently waiting on my new score from statewide testing

EC’s:

  • Yearbook
  • Contributor to Thrive Global (outside publication because I’ve been censored by admin)
  • captain of mock trial team
  • captain of debate team
  • speech team
  • tennis team
  • leadership board of French club
  • National French Honors Society
  • National Honors Society
  • camp counselor at summer camp
  • part time job

Accomplishments?:

  • Developed a high school class
  • Testified for bills in front of the Judiciary Committee at state capital
  • Started an ‘introductory to French’ elementary school program
  • Competed at journalism nationals two years in a row

Uhhhhhh I know there’s a lot there, my grades aren’t perfect because i’ve been loaded up on extracurriculars, but if someone could please send a girl some advice, that would be amazing! Thank you so much for your time!!

2

OH! I plan on going into mathematics and French!! sorry I forgot to say that!

3

You sound like an awesome student!

That said, you already know your grades and ACT are low for William and Mary. I suggest you see how you do on the SAT.

You should apply to W&M and possibly take advantage of the ED or ED II (new next year). Please do not fall in love with any one school. Find at least 4 safeties that would suit you well. Apply EA if that’s allowed by your ED school. Pay special attention to schools with honors colleges. If you are political, take an extra look in Iowa or New Hampshire.

This process totally sucks so protect yourself (see above).

Good luck!

4

Keep in mind that OOS is more competetive.

5

Congratulations on your hard work and success! As noted above, OOS females are the toughest category in applying to William and Mary, considering gender and in-state/out-of-state status. Accepted, unhooked OOS females, it seems, typically have an ACT in the low to mid 30s, are solidly in the top 10% of their graduating classes, and have ECs similar to yours. I’m certainly not saying you won’t be accepted and shouldn’t apply. You haven’t even put together your application or written your essays, and I have no way of knowing how it will all strike the readers. If it’s your dream school, then certainly apply. It’s just helpful to understand that it is very competitive.

If you love William and Mary, first, you have great taste. Second, here are some schools that you might also want to explore. All have great campuses and are in some ways similar to William and Mary, if not always exactly comparable. Most of these are also competitive, but you might have a higher likelihood of success.

Rhodes College–stunning campus in Memphis, great LAC. I love the photo on the Rhodes homepage:

https://www.rhodes.edu

Dickinson College–really beautiful campus in a small town in PA, great LAC

Gettysburg College–also in a historic town

Denison University–also a beautiful campus, great LAC, small town not far from Columbus OH

Elon University–rising national university in NC, similar in size to William and Mary, similar weather, completely remade (had been a regional LAC a few decades ago), beautiful campus; like WM has a nice student area nearby. It’s ranking is on an upward trajectory. Students love it there.

https://www.elon.edu/u/about/elon-at-a-glance/

Sewanee–spectacular natural setting in TN mountains, beautiful campus, high quality academics. Check out their video:

http://admission.sewanee.edu

Mount Holyoke–if you would consider an all-female college; beautiful campus; member of Five College Consortium (with Amherst, Hampshire, Smith, and U Mass Amherst) and students can take some classes and take advantage of opportunities at other member schools, which are located nearby.

https://www.fivecolleges.edu

Good luck, I hope you can visit WM and some of these other schools!

6

I just wanted to add a comment about Elon to my already lengthy post. I know about a half dozen current students at Elon. They all love it. All (where I know the scores) had very strong ACTs, from the high 20s to the low 30s. I know it is not as well known in the Midwest.

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Hi @Chlochlo08! My son’s stats are similar to yours (same GPA, 29 ACT, his school does weight but your rigor of schedule sounds about the same as his). We are considering W&M a reach for him. He loves it and we have hope, but we have to go down a step for more matchy schools, and many in @TTG s list above are on our list for schools that are more of a match. If you are trying to be in the same state as your grandparents, James Madison U and George Mason U would be more of a match, but both are large 1900 but well regarded. Also Christopher Newport U would be more matchy and has enrollment of 5000.

OH most importantly, we have an email from W&M that they strongly recommend interviews, on campus, over the summer…if you’re not on their mailing list, get on it!