Chances for class of 2013

timxc126 · 04-21-2008, 06:13 PM

I am just wondering, considering the selectivity of the admissions process this year, if I have a shot at Bowdoin. I love Bowdoin and I am planning on applying Early decision.

GPA weighted: 4.3 Unweighted 4.0
Class Rank: 11/270
SAT's: CR: 690 Math: 660 Writing: 710
AP classes taken/ going to take: English AP, US AP, European History AP, Comparative Government AP, Chem AP

EC are the strongest:
-President Key Club
-Secretary-General of Model United Nations
-8 Best delegate awards @ Model UN
-Model UN moderator and USA representative (largest club in the school)
-3 Leading roles in the musicals/ drama club
-Cross Country Captain (as a junior and senior)
-Spring Track Captain
-Treasurer of the class of 2009
-mentor to a 5th grader weekly

I still got time to bring my rank down to like 9 and get all my SATs in the 700s. So if I do, what are my ED chances

pb2002 · 04-21-2008, 09:31 PM

from what state are you applying?

timxc126 · 04-21-2008, 11:53 PM

Public school in MA, which the state besides ME with the most students admitted

pb2002 · 04-22-2008, 08:54 AM

naturally massachusetts is also the state from which the most students apply. i worked at the bowdoin admissions office as a student and i remember that when the acceptance rate was around 25% the massachusetts rate was at least 10 percentage points lower. this isn't to frighten you, but rather to encourage you to do as well as you can on your APs, and boost your SATs. also, it will be to your benefit to talk about what your passions in your admissions essay. is there anything that you are particularly passionate about? or is there a hobby in which you excel more than your other activities? remember your passion doesn't have to be selfless (so you don't necessarily want to write about your mentorship role unless it's truly your passion) but it should suggest an energy of interest that goes beyond mere competitiveness.

timxc126 · 04-22-2008, 09:00 PM

Yes the model UN program is by far the one I'm have become obsessed with, I spend about 10 hr a week with it and it never gets old. I love it. Hopefully writing about that and boosting SATs to around 700s will do it.

i_am_strong · 04-24-2008, 08:02 AM

pb2002-I have a question for you....when you worked in the bowdoin admission office, was RI a state with a lot of applicants. How was the admission rate for RI
Also, in terms of the admission rate based on state, do they go by the state you live in or the state you go to school in? Ie. what if you live in NY but go to school in NJ? Do they go with NY because you live there? I hope my question makes sense. Thanks

timxc126 · 04-24-2008, 10:26 AM

Don't worry that much about each state's admission rate.....I doubt they have an exact quota

twowire · 04-24-2008, 11:44 AM

timxc126, i am a senior right now (from MA!) going to bowdoin next year. Just wondering, I heard that for your class a lot more colleges are going to look at all three sub scores of the SAT equally. Is that true? Because I remember when I applied, Bowdoin did not look at the writing part ( i think...my writing score was not so great).

So back to the chance thread..

Are you going to take SAT IIs? which ones and how confident are you?

When it comes to application time I suggest only conveying the activities you are really passionate about. I did a boat load of things but in the end I only mentioned 3-4 things that are important to me/made me stand out.

Bustles · 04-24-2008, 12:26 PM

Just out of curiosity, how do you know your rank already as of junior year? (Junior year isn't even over yet). At my school we don't find out until late-Sept/October of senior year...

timxc126 · 04-24-2008, 01:07 PM

You can know your rank any time during your year at my school. Everyone knows.

Any advice on how to i can improve and anyone let me know that this isn't toooooooo far of a reach.

fatladysings · 04-24-2008, 01:41 PM

timxc - so much depends on information that we don't have, like how competitive your hs is (or how it is judged to be by each admissions department). But most importantly, you have to realize that no matter what we say, we're not the admissions department. So... figure out a bunch of schools-- reach, target and safety-- and apply to them. Do the best you can in school, write good essays and see what happens. And go do something fun!

timxc126 · 04-27-2008, 08:23 PM

Does anyone know how political science/ history department would be at Bowdoin, and if I'm going to go to law school its a good option

SVE673 · 04-27-2008, 08:48 PM

The government department at Bowdoin was ranked the top small school government program in the world. That should say alot about that department.... The reason I chose Bowdoin was because of their excellent government and legal studies program, so if you are a prospective gov. major, then Bowdoin would be an excellent choice. Good luck with admissions next year!