onhcetum

Hey guys, what are my chances?

Keep in my mind that my rank is highly blown out of port portions. There are many students ranked ahead of me who are still taking Precalculus or who have taken easy classes such as Teacher Cadet or Advanced Physical Education. There are others who are taking English 12A and Physics, while I am taking AP Language and Composition and AP Physics C. I have taken harder classes than 99% of the students at my school.

Background:
Vietnamese-American (born in Vietnam)
First Generation College Student
Male
In-state (Virginia)

GPA:
3.73 (Top 25%)

Rank:
70/280

I know my rank is pretty sub par, but I really took hard classes. There are some students ranked ahead of me who are taking Precalculus. There are others are who take easy classes such as Drama or Advanced Physical Education. My point is that I've taken extremely hard classes.

SAT I:
2100 (At least... still awaiting October SAT Score)
(750 Writing)
(750 Math)
(600 Reading)

SAT II: -- Would not be available by Early Decision deadline
SAT II Math II: Pending (November)
SAT II Math I: Pending (November)
SAT II US History: Pending (November)

Courses Taken:
30 Total Courses Taken (10 AP Classes)

English 9
English 10
English 11
AP Language and Composition

Earth Science
Biology
Chemistry
Physics
AP Biology
AP Chemistry
AP Physics C

World History I
AP World History
AP US History
AP US Government
AP Psychology

Algebra I
Geometry
Algebra II w/ Trigonometry
Pre-Calculus
AP Calculus
AP Statistics

Spanish I
Spanish II
Spanish III
Spanish IV

Art I
Sports Marketing
PE/Health I
PE/Health II

Extracurriculars:
Football (Three years) -- Two year Varsity player
Tae Kwon Do (Six years) -- 1st Degree Black belt
Boys Scout (Four years) -- Not an eagle scout
York Swim Club (One Year) -- Completed in meets and competitions
World Cup Soccer Club (Two years)
Running Club (Two years)
Boys Varsity Basketball Highlight Video Project (made a highlight video)
US History Video Projects (made a few videos for the class in order to better understand the event or subject)
DECA Member (Three years)
Writer for ESEA (Gaming News Outlet)
Volunteer at the Herndon Neighborhood Center (WIC) -- Helped manage and organize data
Volunteer at the Herndon Neighborhood Center (VU) -- Supervised children during various activities
Volunteer for Lower Loudoun Boys Football League -- Kept score, commentated, clock management, etc.
NHS Member (Pending)
Volunteer at the Cascades Public Library

Awards:
AP Scholar
Art Award (Awarded by the George Washington University)

Essays/Recommendations:
My essays and recommendations should be solid. My Spanish teacher and my history teacher will be writing my recommendations.

First Quarter Interim:
AP Chemistry -- 106% (A+)
AP Physics -- 95% (A)
AP Statistics -- 92% (A)
AP Calculus -- 94% (A)
AP Govt. -- 95% (A)
AP Language -- 89% (B+)
Spanish IV -- 92% (A)

Rixs

Everything looks great except the rank.

However, depending on what box your counselor checks (most rigorous, moderately rigorous, etc), the interpretation may change a lot.

Your transcript should also mention whether or not your school bases rank on weighted or unweighted GPA (which also changes a lot).

Overall, because you are In-state, you have a significantly higher chance.

I think that, depending on your transcript and counselor rec (and if you write stellar essays), you have a pretty good shot.

Everything is spotless save for the rank.

soccerguy315

if you can explain the rank successfully, i think you will have a solid chance

onhcetum

Where can I explain the rank? How do you think I should go in explaining it?

I never was a straight A's student (which is why my rank is what it is), but it was never because of a lack of effort. School didn't come easy for me. Getting a B was the best I could do.

According to collegeboard, here are my SAT percentiles for seniors at my high school.

Writing -- 99th percentile
Math -- 99th percentile
Reading -- 90th percentile

W&M Admission

It does sound like you have many wonderful qualities. Because W&M considers a wide variety of factors (both academic and personal) one specific shortcoming doesn't automatically make you a less desirable candidate. You can use the "additional information" portion of the Common Application to explain your rank and you can also ask your counselor to do the same in his/her letter of recommendation.

soccerguy315

if you have "most rigorous course load" that will help you... just know that most of the kids in each class at W&M (I think the number is roughly 80%) were in the top 10% in high school.

onhcetum

Yeah, unfortunately, it's the same for all the colleges that I want to go to.

At least 80% or so are top 10% in their class.

I don't really know what to say. I tried my best each year. B's in some classes were my best efforts.

I hope they weight SAT Scores more than they do GPA Scores, because in comparison to my %school, I have a really high top 5% SAT Score.

soccerguy315

that still means there are 20% that aren't in the top 20%, which is 1 out of every 5 students, which at W&M should be roughly 280 students in each class. You have definitely taken a difficult schedule, and your numerical GPA is not bad, and [to me] your rank is surprisingly low for your GPA. You can definitely overcome class rank if the rest of your application is strong. I think you will have a solid chance.

Rixs

I'm a top 5 student, but not even in the top 5%. xD

I would meet with you GC and ask him/her about how they are going to present your school's ranking system. Obviously, you will be marked with a "rigorous schedule," but I also think you should further consult with your GC on how to present your rank.

onhcetum

Thank you for the replies! It is much appreciated.