Hey, I was just wondering if anyone could give me some insight on my chances at Lehigh next year(I’m a Junior). I know that there are a lot of subjective parts of the college admission process, but I just want to have an idea if I would be competitive at Lehigh based solely on stats.
SAT I: 2230/2400 and 1540/1600 (800 math, 740 reading, and 690 writing 10 essay). I also got a 221 on my PSAT so I’ll probably be at least a semifinalist (Pennsylvania)
Unweighted GPA: Based on my school its a 3.96 but I got 3 B+'s so I think that’s wrong. I tried to convert it to a normal scale and I got something like 3.833
Weighted GPA: My school has a weird system so its like 4.97. On a system based out of 5( add .5 for honors and 1 for AP), I think I have a 4.35.
Class Rank: I wasn’t looking into competitive colleges as a freshman and sophomore so my class rank was 39/558 at the beginning of the this school year. It is now 19/558 after one semester and it will likely go up.
AP Classes: Due to scheduling errors, I was not able to take AP Chemistry this year but I was able to take AP Statistics. Next year I hope to take AP Chem AB, AP Calc AB, AP Calc BC, AP Micro, AP physics AB, and AP physics BC. My school has 4 classes one semester and 4 new ones the next semester.
EC’s: I know these are subjective so I will just list them.
-Robotics Club (FTC) since 10th grade. Co-Captain this year and most likely Captain next year
-Anchor Club (Community Service) no position
Peer Tutoring in Math since 10th grade
Rec soccer for 11 years
Habitat for Humanity (started this year)
Summer Job at local children’s amusement park (around 35 hrs/ week)
I’m definitely more math, science, and engineering oriented as compared to English and the humanities, but I still want to take English classes. I think I would want to major in physics or mechanical engineering. What do you think my chances would be for early decision and regular decision?
You’ll definitely get in for early decision. As for regular, id say visit the school as many times possible (official visit). interest plays a vital role
Completely agree with maniactango. I image you’ll apply RD and based on your stats you have a great chance of getting accepted as long as you visit/show interest.
My guidance counselor told me how some very qualified students got rejected because they never showed any interest in the school so Lehigh probably thought it was just their backup or something.
Wow, you have a fantastic stats! You have obviously worked very hard and have been very serious about your schoolwork! Good for you. I also think it is really great for you to start thinking about schools now. I would recommend for you to purchase a copy of US News and World Report College Edition. Your math teacher or guidance counselor can help you literally draw lines in the rankings for safety, match and reach schools. I would p[lan on applying to 10-15 schools depending on how many reach schools you want to try to attend.
I do not think anyone could really ever call Lehigh their safety school just because there is such a limited number of spots available - that applies to all of the top schools. When students start reporting who is accepted you will be surprised how many fantastic students won’t get accepted to Lehigh.
I would treat Lehigh as a match or reach. You are just the kind of student Lehigh would love to have!
Do not apply to any schools for early admission if a certain financial package is needed for you to afford the school. Early admission to most schools is a binding decision regardless of what the school chooses to give you for a financial package.
Please spend some time this summer visiting schools. A school that has the perfect vibe for one student can be absolutely wrong for another student. Really! We took our son to visit one school and he literally refused to get out of the car. Later he said he wasn’t interested in attending that school because he thought the town was economically depressed. A friend of mine’s son went to that school and absolutely loved it. It is a really personal choice that no one can for you.
Thanks to everyone who replied. I’ve visited lehigh before but I just drove through the campus. I really liked the campus and all the stone buildings and I plan on doing an official visit soon. The town of Bethlehem looked a little run down but I don’t think that would be a problem. Does anybody have some extra advice to help my chances?
It would be great if you were able to take a friend and walk around campus. You can go have a meal in one of the cafeterias. Also check out the Linderman Library. It is the “social” library where students hang out to study. Maybe even take the Lehigh bus around the campus. Go to the bookstore and have a drink at the Starbucks. My sons favorite restaurants close to campus were the Goosey Gander Deli and the Blue Sky Cafe. You will get the best vibe of the Lehigh kids by just being around them. The campus tour is okay but you are just hanging around other prospective students. We really liked walking around the campus on our own.
Yes, the town of Bethlehem does look a little run down. But there are all sorts of other areas that are very nice. You just need to know where to look. My favorite shopping area is The Promanade which has over 70 restaurants, stores and a movie theaters. We loved Kome Fine Japanese Cuisine and Shula’s Steakhouse. There are lots of the common mall stores but also more upscale stores like Brooks Brothers.There is a bus that will get you there in about 15 minutes.