Hello to all... I am going into my senior year and I plan to go into either a Physics or Aerospace Engineering major during my four years of undergrad,then getting a masters in Astrophysics in grad school. My stats are listed as below...
GPA: UW 3.73 (the highest GPA you can get at my school is a 3.88) On a 4.0 scale my GPA would be a 3.84.
ACT: 25 composite (yes I know that it is well under the average for Cornell) My highest section was Reading followed by Math. The English/Writing and Science sections were tough for me. I recently took the ACT again, June 9th, so I wll be getting my results back in a few days (I think I did much better the second time). (Haven't taken the SAT yet..)
As far as high school rigor goes:
3 IB classes (8th grade year)
All honors classes freshmen year (I used to go to school in Tennessee, but then moved to Philadelphia sophomore year). At my current school only the science classes are considered honors, and no APs are offered.
ECs:
(Co-Founder of the Science Club)
Engineering Club for 3 years
Chess Club for 3 years
Varsity Soccer for 3 years
Wing Chun Kung-Fu for 2 years.
Played Club indoor soccer for YSC sports in Philadelphia.
1st Place Winner in Earth/Space Science in the city wide "George C. Washington Philadelphia Science Fair" sophomore year. I did a project on Terraforming Mars.
Honorable mention in Earth/Space Science for the Delaware Valley Tri-State Science Fair.
Honorable Mention in the city wide "George C. Washington Philadelphia Science Fair" junior year for the category of Physics. I did a project on the Manipulation of Electrons in CRT televisions. (mentored by Stephon Alexander of Haverford University).
Distinguished young scientist of the city of Philadelphia 2010-2011.
Volunteer @ MANNA food packaging service (once a week)
Volunteer @ The Franklin Institute (Big Science Museum in Philly)
I am a member of a five man research team at the Joel Bloom Observatory where we take composite images of the Sun with astronomer Derrick Pitts.
Member of the Rittenhouse Astronomical Society of Philadelphia.
Finalist of the Ableton Live Summer Music Challenge, which was a global contest for producers under the ages of 18. (2010-2011).
URM (African-American male, if that helps at all..)
I plan on applying EA and I know that my number priority is higher test scores. I am not sure that since I took the ACT I need to take subject test?? When I get my new ACT scores back that will tell me whether or not I will be taking the ACT/SAT at the beginning of this school year. If any of you could, please also post colleges with strong physics programs that I my stats would be more suited to(if not Cornell)! Thanks!
Last edited by churchill1995; 06-23-2012 at 11:48 PM.
Reason: Change of title!
Forgot to mention that I took Algebra 1 before high school so I will be in Calculus senior year. And as of freshmen year, my grades have shown increase.
1. Cornell has no EA, but has ED
2. Yeah, URM helps, but it will not be enough to overshadow your 25 ACT. Your grades and ECs are not amazing either.
3. Even if EDing, low chance
Apply ED since it will improve your chances. Try taking the SATs and seeing if you do better on them, but a 28 is a decent score on the ACT. It won't hurt you, nor will it help you. All you can do now is write an amazing essay about how much you feel you can benefit CALS and how passionate you are about your interests.
Average chance at best, your numbers are still mediocre. Given that you want to do physics it also does not help that your math score is so low on your ACT.
Not that a changing in major will compensate for a low math score, but I'm thinking about applying to CALS for the Science of Earth Systems or some geology related major? Better chances then?
Definitely don't consider applying to Engineering. Fortunately for you, CAS doesn't really consider what major you're applying for since you can't apply to your major until after you've started your freshman year.
Your chances for CAS ED aren't terrible with your URM status. The 28 ACT hurts you, but it's not a deal breaker. The biggest red flags are your lack of course rigor, which I understand are NOT your fault. And while technically speaking, that doesn't count against you, Cornell will have to question whether or not you can handle the rigor. If I were you, I'd steer the essay away from your intended major as much as possible, because you don't want to draw too much attention to the fact that you're a weak science candidate.
Keep in mind, especially for science courses, your grades are determined by a curve, where students have taken and excelled in APs, Honors, and SAT's. At Cornell, be prepared to work extra hard your freshman year to "catch up" to everyone else, or else all 4 years will likely be miserable if you don't switch majors.
Teachers / professors tend to teach (and grade) to the class norm. Given your intended majors, I would guess that the average ACT math scores in those majors are going to be a 33-34? I would really be wary of putting my own child in that situation.
