iwannagotoBC

GPA: 89.2 Unweighted
Weighted unknown.
Not ranked. (I go to a highly competitive college prep school that grades very hard)

SAT: 2120/2400
ACT: 34 Composite (36 E, 32 M, 33 R, 33 S, 10 W)

Retaking SAT in October, I expect ~2200

Honors Courses:
English 9,10,11
Math 9,10
French 12

AP Classes/Exams:
AP English Composition - 5
AP Psychology - Will take
AP US Government - Will take
Taking college level REL 103 through Niagara University

EC's:
Mock Trial - 4 Years (VP 11, President 12)
Community Service - 4 Years teaching religious education (30 weeks/year)
French Club - 4 Years
School Scholars - 4 Years (plays, lectures, readings etc)
Ski Club - 4 Years

Summer Programs:
10 day Law Program at Stanford - 2008
10 day Law Program at Bentley - 2009
10 day National Leadership/Politics Program at Georgetown - 2009
10 day Business/Entrepreneurship Program at Pace - 2009

Mics:
I feel that my writing skills are strong and I am very confident in my essay.
I have the best ACT scores in my very competitive school.



Bottom line:
I do not know if I should apply EA or regular. BC is my first choice. Recommendations will come from the president of my school (principle, he rarely writes recommendations), English Teacher, and religion teacher.

I think that I can get my GPA to a 90 flat after the first semester, so I don't know if I should apply EA.

Thank you so much for looking!!

bluebayou

Go for it. If they have a question about your grades, they'll just defer you to RD, but you will still have sent the message that BC is a top choice.

foxysoxy804

The low GPA/lack of honors and AP courses will hurt you. EA is very competitive, even more competitive than RD. There's a chance you will be deferred, and from there only 20% of the deferred are offered admission in the spring.

I'm guessing you want to study law. You've shown promising interest in your ECs, especially the summer programs you've participated in.

Your test scores (particularly ACT score) are very high and well above average for BC. What worries me is that you say you have the best ACT score at your "highly competitive" school. How is that possible? Last year alone my school had 2 36's out of a senior class of maybe 250 kids (college prep school, but not competitive). What do you mean by "grades very hard"?

Go ahead and apply EA, because BC is your first choice. If you get deferred, your school will be able to send your first semester grades and show adcoms that you have improved.

Good luck!
-Fellow 2014 applicant, school of nursing

Zenbadabing

Your activities and scores will give you a fair shot at BC- but I can't stress enough the importance of writing a unique personal essay . I dare say that the adcoms at BC value the essay above all else, so keep up the good work and give your self time to think about what it is that you want to convey to admissions officers. Good luck.

scottj

Dear iwannagottoBC : Your ACT composite score of 34 outweighs the SAT I scoring and should be the showcase of your board scores. (A 34 equates to a 1490-1530 scoring range for comparison which fits well with the BC curve's top quartile.) The downside here is your average in the 89 range which is going to need some positioning. Despite a "tough grading high school" if this average is not a top 10% performance, questions will be asked about your ability to take standardized tests (strong) versus your day-in/day-out academic performance in the classroom. This is certainly an area that requires your attention and likely that of your guidance counselor.

Sports (aside from ski club, not scholastic sports) and music/fine arts are missing from your profile which does not give me much of a school spirit picture from you. Your passion for law and business classes is interesting and unique. The question is how you will craft those elements into your essay and application. Will your letters of recommendation make reference to this material as a core strength in your application?

If Boston College is your first choice, apply in the early round. If your board scores are not able to negate the GPA presented, it will get harder in the regular decision round if your class rank is not near the top decile. Good luck.