Williams or Amherst chances

Colleges and Universities A-Z Williams College
1

Hi! I was ready to submit and be done with my college apps until I took a second look at the LACs, specifically Williams. After reading into the college and its curriculum, I grew in love with it and Amherst! So, please, I’d love some input on where my chances lie at either college.

SAT I:
1410/2130
-Critical Reading: 800
-Math: 610 (working on getting it up)
-Writing: 720

SAT II:
-World History: 780
-United States History: 770
(I love, love, love history)

Class Rank:
-25 out of 222

GPA:
-Weighted: 4.67
-Unweighted: 3.79

Extracurriculars:
-Beta Club (President)
-Key Club (President) (Founder)
-Dungeons and Dragons Club (President) (Founder)
-Cross-Country (Team Captain)
-Track and Field (Team Captain)
-AFJROTC (Deputy Corps Commander)
-Palmetto Boys’ State
-Interact Club (Historian)
(One of my other passions is community service, which stems from my poor past/background and desire to give back to the community.)

APs:
-AP US History: 5
-AP Human Geography: 4
-AP Psychology: 5
-AP World History (self-studied): 5
-AP Art History (self-studied): 5
-AP European History (self-studied): 5
(Through my love for history, I tried to take AP’s in my high school related to it. Sadly, they only offered one history course. So as a result, I embraced independency and self-studied every other history AP the CB offered and got 5’s on all of them.)

Awards:
-West Point Leadership Award.
-Academic Gold Medalist.
-Cross-Country Rookie of the Year.
-AP Scholar with distinction.
-Cross-Country all-Region athlete.
-Cross-Country County Champion
-Cross-Country Rookie of the Year.

Hooks:
-First generation college student

-Ward of the state during my middle school year due to my family neglecting me and creating an unsafe home environment (poverty, drugs etc).

-Homeless for a couple months before moving into a foster home in the summer before my ninth grade year.

-Currently in a foster home.

Income: 28,000.
State: South Carolina.
Intended major: History.
Recommendations: Probably all 8/10 or 9/10.
Financial Aid: Due to being a Foster kid, and not living with my biological mother, I qualify for full aid.

2

Get that math up and you’ll be an excellent applicant.

3

UPDATE: I checked with Amherst and Williams, and they all said they would accept my late application with no penalties!! WOOOOOOOOO.

So what do you guys think now?? :smiley:

@marvin100 Thanks!!!

4

I think you’ll get into one of them, if not both. Math is low but you’ve obviously had to overcome a lot of adversity. Best of luck!

5

@DressingIron Thanks! I’m trying really hard to get that math up. Do you know if they look at individual subscores as much as the overall score?

6

@ASJU511

Honestly, I’m not sure how they weigh it. It’s possible they’ll overlook the math because of the strength of the rest of your academic record, and in light of your personal circumstance. If you’re signed up for the Jan. SAT, go in and try your best and even if you don’t crack 700 you’ll probably be alright.

7

@DressingIron cool, thanks!

8

Sub-scores, I’m quite sure. In your case, I think even getting your M above 650 will strongly help your chances.

9

@marvin100 alright cool. I’ll do my best come January.

10

I wouldn’t even sweat the math. While there is no such thing as a sure thing at schools like this, I’d be stunned if you didn’t get into at least one of these two, more likely both, given what you’ve overcome and how strong your other credentials are. Good luck!

11

They are quite different colleges.

12

@sadovaya In what ways?

13

Just my opinion: Williams felt far more preppy and also more sporty. I felt wealth there in a way I didn’t at Amherst. For lower income students, Amherst really dishes out the FA. Best thing I liked about Amherst was the five-college consortium. That said, I know some guys who love Williams.

14

@sadovaya Oh I see! So what’s the vibe like at Amherst compared to Williams?