IMSA Applicant Class of 2023

0chotona1liensis · May 1

Hello future applicants to the Illinois Math and Science Academy, this forum is for discussion relating to admissions for the class of 2023. I am a graduating senior in the class of 2019 and my year's forum was quite helpful for me, so I thought I'd get this started.
The discussion can involve chances, questions, etc.
Good luck everyone!

BrainyCells · June 2

Hello guys, I am in 7th grade.

This I guess, is where I will be watching other people show off their stats while I haven't even formally taken the SAT yet.

BrainyCells · June 2

A question:

I live 40 minutes away from IMSA, what do you think will be a reasonable SAT score to have if you want to get in as an eighth grader?

BrainyCells · June 2

And also, how do we write our ECS and awards

Do we simply list them? Or do we have to say how many hours we do it and describe what it is

sasukekun · June 18

Hey guys, I was accepted into the class of 2022, so I can help you guys out with some stuff!

sasukekun · June 18

Yes, you have to choose your four most meaningful extracurriculars, write down any positions you had in them, and how long you did them each week.
If you live in chicagoland area, it's pretty competitive. I don't come from there, so I wouldn't know, but if it's not a competitive area, I would assume 1350 plus is a decent score

alwaystired11 · June 19

Hi, I am a freshman applying for the class of 2023. I am a female from metro east st louis region. What do you think would be a good sat score to get?

BrainyCells · June 22

Is going on a church mission trip that helped Nepal refugees helpful on your application?
If so, where should I put it? Not my ECS.

@alwaystired11 the average IMSA Sat score is 1100 - 1300. Since you live far away and you don't live anywhere near a competitive region, I would say a sat score of 1100 and above will be good. You have a very high chance of making it because of your region

BrainyCells · June 22

If you are applying as an eighth grader, how would you take a high school science course?

Also, how would IMSA know you took it? How would you prove that on your application?

K9Dude17 · June 24

Hey guys, I was accepted to the class of 2022. I can answer some of your questions.

K9Dude17 · June 24

@BrainyCells usually SAT doesn’t matter as much as you think. However, because you are an eighth grader, your SAT and GPA have to be higher because they want to make sure you’ll be ready for IMSA, and they don’t accept very many eighth graders. You probably want to have at least a 1400.

For your ECS and awards, you list as well as describe how many hours per week. I also put for how many years I had been doing them.

You would probably have to take a science course online, though I don’t know much about that.

You could probably talk about your trip to Nepal in your essays, where you could elaborate fully about it.

@alwaystired11 BrainyCells is right, though you probably want to have an SAT score on the higher end or above that range. Tbh, SAT doesn’t matter as much (if you’re applying as a freshman) as your essays, ecs and awards, and teacher recs. One of my friends was waitpooled with a 1550, whereas another was accepted with a 1360. Your interest in STEM is what really matters, and you mostly show that through your essays, ECS, and awards.

BrainyCells · June 24

I am an asian male from Naperville 40 minutes away from IMSA applying as an eighth grader...

How many people last year were accepted like me?

0chotona1liensis · June 26

@BrainyCells I applied as an eighth grader and I took a remote physical science course with the Keystone school, a similar mail-in/online school course or taking a course at your local college should work. You will have to have the online school send your transcript to IMSA and the IMSA application should let you enter grades from multiple schools. Don't hesitate to ask an actual IMSA admissions officer for more help to make sure everything is in order, I'm just some random 17 year old on the internet aha. If you're an eighth grader, also make extra sure you have a geometry credit they will accept.

pranets251 · July 2

To what degree of recognition should your awards be in order to be a likely candidate for IMSA?

tigerjshdk · July 8

i’m going into 8th grade at the moment. is it a good idea to apply both this year and next year to get a feel for the process even though there is quite a high chance i won’t get in?

Xwingpilot15 · July 10

Hey guys,
I'm a rising freshman and I'm hoping to apply in the 2019-2020 school year.
My SAT score is 1440 (i took it in june), 670 reading and 770 math.
However, my GPA in 7th grade was not great. My 8th grade was around 3.75 but my seventh grade was more around 3.5. Will that have a huge effect on my application?

K9Dude17 · July 12

@pranets251
The better your awards are, the better off your application will be, but I’m not sure how much it will really matter.

@tigerjshdk
Definitely, if you have the time and money.

@Xwingpilot15
It depends. The only subjects that imsa looks at are your math, reading, and science. I don’t know whether or not you accounted for other subjects in your gpa or not. Assuming you didn’t, you still have a chance, but you’ll probably have to work harder in freshman year to have a better shot.

IllinoisStar · July 13

Hi, to all on this forum.
Does my application look good for the Illinois Mathematics Science Academy?

Xwingpilot15 · July 13

@K9Dude17 Oh, I was accounting for all. Then, it should be good. Thanks!

IllinoisStar · July 16

How does IMSA calculate Grade Point Average (GPA)?
I have always had high A's (95% or above) in English, Math, and Science, each quarter. Only once, in the first quarter of 6th Grade Project Arrow Math, I have had a low A (92.3%).
Am I fine? Will this hurt my application, as some sources say this low aspect will matter?

K9Dude17 · July 17

@IllinoisStar I don’t think that will matter at all.

IMSA Applicant Class of 2023

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