<p>Hi, I’m a Sophomore at a private school in Texas. My first question is: what are my chances of making National Merit Finalist/Semi-finalist? This year (as a sophomore) I got a 189, which is 26 points higher than what I made last year. 64 points in both Critical Reading and Writing Skills, and 61 points in Mathematics. My parents are going to buy some old tests and I’ll do those and focus on where I’m going wrong, and hopefully improve on that. Is National Merit Finalist possible?</p>
<pre><code> The next thing is, how does this sound as a major? I’m interested in the way people behave and as a personal experience (my brother is bipolar and has ADHD) I’d like to find ways to directly help people like my brother. I’m taking AP Psychology next year to test the water, but I’d like to know if becoming a Psychiatrist is a stretch due to the difficulties of Medical school and the time, effort, and money it takes. I’d also like to add that I don’t have the best study habits most of the time: however, procrastinating has taught me that I respond well under the pressure of having things done the next day. I know Psychology will be okay, but is pre-med to Psychiatry a stretch?
Lastly, I’m estimating that my SAT will be about 1970-2070. My rough estimate. The Pre-ACT that I took (I forget what it is called), estimated me to make a 32+ on the ACT. I’m volunteering at a children’s hospital this summer and will probably getting a job. I played Varsity football Freshman year along with this past year, however I dropped it to focus on making straight A’s in my Pre-AP and Honor’s courses. I became a new member of NHS and Student Council this year and am planning on joining the chess club next year, along with taking every AP and dual-credit class that is available. What are some colleges that are reachable goals for me? I plan on applying to Michigan, UCLA (they’re great Psychology schools), Stanford, Harvard (I really just want to see if I’d get accepted), UT, Rice, and maybe a private school. I know the Ivy leagues are 98% out of my reach, but realistically, what are some colleges that I could be admitted to?
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<p>For lack of an edit option, I’d like to add that this past summer I’ve gone on a mission trip to California, raising money myself to serve underprivileged kids for a week. I’m also going to do the same mission trip this summer and every summer following it, even after high school.</p>
<p>The only part of your post that I feel I can address is your major choice. If you really want to develop working relationships with patients like your brother, I would think that the psychology route is the way to go. IT’s still rigorous, and you probably should get a PhD, but I think you would have more day to day interaction with patients.</p>
<p>Psychiatrists, to overgeneralize, mostly just manage the medication portion of a patient’s protocol. Sure, they do important work too, but they are not going to be providing the bulk of the cognitive or other counseling aspects that the patient needs. It sounds like that is more up your alley.</p>
<p>I think I can address the PSAT part of your question</p>
<p>I did not take the PSATs my freshman year, and my sophomore year I got a 176. I honestly wasn’t worried about that score, and the only studying I did my junior year for the PSATs was reading the little paper packet they give you. I read it the night before, got 10 hours of sleep, ate protein for breakfast and scored a 226 on them. </p>
<p>My point is, the sophomore score doesn’t really matter, and studying to the test may benefit you a little, but it is better to focus on being a better overall student. Over the summer, instead of studying to the test, I just read a lot and did lots of math puzzle books. I worked towards improving my overall education instead of a score. </p>
<p>So, the commended score nationally is normally 201, which is very possible for you. In years past, the semifinalist score for texas (I looked it up on this site [National</a> Merit Scholarships](<a href=“http://www.collegeplanningsimplified.com/NationalMerit.html]National”>http://www.collegeplanningsimplified.com/NationalMerit.html)) is around 215 and I think that is also very feasible for you. Once you get Semi-Finalist recognition, it is up to your essays and recommendations to achieve finalist status. </p>
<p>I don’t know if my jump from sophomore to junior was all that odd, but I wanted to let you know that I did it without studying for the test at all. Just work towards vocab by reading, not studying lists, and practice math by doing interesting problems, instead of the ones out of a PSAT book. Practice writing by actually writing things and learn grammar by having well educated people edit what you write.</p>
<p>I think your list of schools is good, a good mix of reaches and matches. I think your personal connection to your major may give you a boost in the ivy’s, duke and stanford. Good luck with your classes, the PSAT and everything in the future.</p>
<p>Student: Thanks for this. I’m not really concerned with the essays and recommendations because I’m much better at writing than anything else, and since my class size is about 40, my teachers know me well and can give pretty good recommendations, along with youth minister, ect.</p>
<p>But yeah, this year I didn’t study, just ate a good breakfast and was pretty surprised compared to last year. It seems the only things I really need to improve in are math (more than anything haha) and expanding my vocabulary. You gave some really good advice, and I’m glad that you did so well your Junior year.</p>
<p>Kari: you’re funny. 'nuff said.</p>