Chance me Brown ED

Chance Me / Match Me
1

Demographics

  • US Domestic
  • Maryland
  • Private School

Intended Major(s) Biology/Bio-Medical Sciences (something premed related)

GPA, Rank, and Test Scores

  • Unweighted HS GPA: N/A—not calculated
  • Weighted HS GPA: 98.3% (+5% for honors and APs)
  • Class Rank: N/A - No class rank
  • ACT Score: Super score - 34 (35 E, 33 M, 34 R, 35 S)

HS coursework

NOTES:
Honors are viewed noticeably more difficult than the on-level version of that class and receive a +5% add to the grade on report cards (so do APs)
It is a requirement to take Honors Biology, Physics, Chemistry, and English I/II before their respective AP Class

  • English: Honors I, Honors II, AP Lang, AP Lit
  • Math: Honors Geometry, Honors Algebra II, Precalculus, AP Calculus AB
  • Science: Honors Biology, Honors Chemistry, AP Chemistry, AP Biology, Honors Physics
  • History and social studies: Human Geo (no AP offered), AP World, APUSH, AP Micro, AP Macro
  • Language other than English: Spanish III, Spanish IV, Spanish V, Honors Latin American Studies (did not take AP Spanish, HLAS is an elective that is also very difficult)
  • Visual or performing arts: Intro to studio art (required to take to graduate)

Awards
App Entrepreneurship Competition Top 10 Finalist - International
Community Service Gold (100+ hours) x2 Years - School
High Honor Roll - School
Cum Laude - School
AP Scholar with honor - National
College board national recognition - National

Extracurriculars

Co-Founder of NonProfit: 3 Years
Hosted multiple drives to collect 1,000+ pieces of sports equipment to combat medical disorders from inactivity in low-income kids; partnered with a larger organization.

Founder/Editor/Writer of Medical Blog: 3 Years
Aims to educate teens in medicine; self-published 70+ articles on science/public health topics; conducted interviews/research; contributors recruited.

Co-Leader of Club: 4 Years
Helps kids w/ medical issues: Autism, Down Syndrome, etc. play sports; led weekly meetings for 30+ kids; organized end-year banquet w/ 150+ kids.

Global Health Conference: 1 Summer
~8% accept. rate; learned about current public health issues from professionals; researched low income obesity crisis.

Local Hospital Teen Volunteer: 1 Year
Volunteer at stroke & CCU 100+ hrs; assisted w/ patient care: organized charts, shadowed doctors/nurses, answered patient calls, discharged patients.

Head Junior Swim Coach–Paid: 3 Years
CPR certified; coached 150+ kids ages 5-18; organized/planned daily practices & social events like shaving cream battle; cheered on kids at meets.

Science Student Tutor: 3 Years
Tutored 25+ students in biology/physics/chemistry and ACT; taught basic principles of each subject; communicated w/ teachers; averaged 30% increase in scores.

Club Swim Team: 10 Years
10 total years of swim; responsible for leading lane in practices; attending daily practices/meets; assisting coach in writing practices.

Varsity Swim Team Member: 3 Years
Attended daily practices/meets; cheered on teammates; assisted in the recruiting process; helped decide meet themes; provided tips for new swimmers.

Head Student Ambassador: 4 Years
Led tours for prospective families/students; hosted 1-1 days, introducing students to classes/peers; answered questions; represented school at events.

Schools
Dartmouth
Brown RD
UVA EA
Emory RD
Tufts RD
PENN RD
BC RD
University of Maryland EA
UF EA
Vanderbilt RD
Colgate RD
UMichigan EA
University of South Carolina EA
Penn State EA

2

Can you please calculate your unweighted gpa on a 4 scale ? Your school will say what # is an A, B, etc.

Take out PE and health - just use core classes.

Each A gets 4 (even a + or minus), B = 3, C =2). Add up and divide by # of classes.

Any cost issues ? You have near $100k schools on your list so $400k. Plus another at least $400k for med school.

Any concerns there or do you qualify for need aid ? If not sure have your folks fill this out.

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3

First you title says Brown ED, your list says Brown RD. Which is it?

Secondly, you mentioned the important word: “premed”. If you want to keep open any realistic chance of ever attending medical school then you need to budget for a full 8 years in university. Are you parents okay with being full pay for a full 8 years (figure on something like $800,000 total, possibly a bit more), or have you run the NPCs?

Being in-state in Maryland should help you. I am hoping that it is a safety for you although your guidance counselor will know this better than I do. The University of Maryland can prepare you very well to apply to medical schools. Penn State also looks very likely to me, as is South Carolina.

As long as you are fine with your safeties (and I think that you should be assuming that UMD is a safety), and as long as you have run the NPCs or are fine with being full pay for a full 8 years, I think that you have a good list. You do however have a lot of reaches, and might want to consider trimming the list a bit focusing on keeping the schools that you feel are likely to be a good fit for you. This does mean that you should think about what you want in a university. You also should probably visit a few schools (although you might have already done this).

And I think that you are competitive for admissions at any university that you apply to. For Brown the large majority of other applicants are also competitive for admissions, so it is a reach. However, you can be well prepared for medical school at any university on your list, and to me it looks like you are doing well.

Finally keep in mind that premed classes will be tough at any university on your list. Expect to work very hard in university and you are likely to do well. Best wishes.

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4

Thanks for the advice. We’ve run the NPCs and all school said we’d get lots off. The brown RD was a typo. Do you think I have a chance to be considered based off my stats?

5

My GPA is a 4.0 UW. We’ve run the NPCs and they’re all very favorable.

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6

Thanks for your responses.

You still need a budget.

For example, Dartmouth , Brown, UVA, Emory, Tufts, Penn, BC, Vandy and Colgate meet need. You are certainly capable but it’s hard to guess for these schools. Colgate might be difficult depending on how much you need as they are need aware. 69% are full pay meaning this is a wealthy kid’s school. If you need $50k your odds will be better than $90k.

Michigan is currently $80k for the first two years and then $85k after. Aid is unlikely. Can you afford that ? If not, what’s your budget and let’s replace with one you can.

Penn State is currently near $57k. Same as Michigan - you need a budget. Aid unlikely.

U of SC is $54k. Another $1200 cost for Honors. Merit is likely. With $24.5k merit, it’s low 30s. Can you afford that ? If not let’s sub with another.

In short, you have a chance anywhere but non ED hurts at schools like Tufts and Vandy. Need aware can hurt at Colgate.

When schools have a 5-15% acceptance rate it’s just too hard to know. Michigan ok odds for bio but can you afford it ?

But you are capable. At Brown the ACT might hinder - sadly. Might. But 4.0 and 36s get turned down.

UMD, PSU and U of SC yes to admittance.

Three things -

  1. you are going to med school. That’s another at least $400k. Budget for eight years. And med school doesn’t care if you go to Towson or Tufts. They care about your grades, MCAT and more.

  2. You are at a private school. They are best to chance you. They should have counseling for this.

  3. Bio is one of the worst paying, most overcrowded majors. If you don’t go to med school, then what ? No issue if you choose to study it. But of course you can study anything and be pre med. just making you aware.

Best of luck.

7

Based on your interest in Brown, perhaps consider ideas from this site:

The University of Rochester, for example, might suit you. Or perhaps consider additional LACs?

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8

If you have an UW 4.0 in a rigorous college prep curriculum and a 34 ACT, then I think you are prima facie a competitive applicant for Brown. Brown then still rejects the large majority of such applicants, including in ED. But if it is your favorite college, would be comfortably affordable, and you are fine with the idea that if admitted you would immediately withdraw all other applications . . . why not? It might work and then you could relax and enjoy the rest of your senior year.

Then for other colleges, I agree that thinking in terms of what other colleges kids who like Brown also tend to like is not a bad idea.

Rochester is definitely a strong contender. Tufts is a good choice too, although a lot more competitive for high numbers kids because so many more of them apply to Tufts for just this reason. William & Mary is another a lot of Brown kids I know consider, but you would have to check if the costs would work.

I also agree that Brown kids often look at various LACs. Off that TKG list, for sure Wesleyan is a common overlap school in my experience. Pomona, Oberlin, Hamilton, and Skidmore too. Others I would look into would include Vassar, Grinnell, Macalester, and Kalamazoo. There are really a lot.

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9

Thanks for the info! Really appreciate it!!

10

Is UMD desired ? If not is SC affordable - knowing merit isn’t assured like some schools but likely ?

That’s your lowest cost - or is PSU at mid 50s affordable?

Based on your first comment, I’m guessing UM isn’t. Public schools cater to their own students. The top OOS schools use OOS students for revenue.

I think you’ll get into a reach - you have enough - but you could be shut out - no fault of your own.

UMD and U of SC will be your cheapest. If you can pay for both, you are good. If not we need to find you a less expensive safety - and yes they exist.

Your safety or landing spot in your list of reaches is ALWAYS as important if not more.

If you can afford UMD full pay (about $30k for tuition, room and board) and will be happy to attend, I think you’re good.

11

Yes I think that you have a chance. Your ACT is slightly low for Brown, particularly the math score, but note the word “slightly”. 35 on the science part of the ACT is encouraging for someone who is intending to major in a science (with or without a premed intention).

Brown is a reach, regardless of whether you apply RD or ED. However, if you are sure that it is your first choice, and if the NPC says that it is likely to be affordable and will fit your 8 year budget, then applying ED should help your chances a bit.

Most importantly it appears that you have solid safeties. This means that a year from now you should be headed for a very good university.

And UMD is a very good university. Whether you end up at Brown or UMD or somewhere else you should be able to do very well.

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12

Thank you so much!!

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13

If you do research LACs from the site above, note that some may be similar to Brown for different reasons. Skidmore, Wesleyan and Oberlin, for example, have campus atmospheres like those of Brown, while Hamilton and Amherst offer curricular approaches similar to Brown’s (i.e., highly flexible). Nonethless, there’s at least some similarity across all of these schools.

14

Wesleyan has both–similar culture and open curriculum. Lots of overlap between these schools…

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15

If Penn State, the University of South Carolina, and the University of Maryland are all schools that are affordable and where you would be happy, then you are good to go. I would add Pitt, but that’s just me.

I think you are a competitive applicant for all of these schools, and if you are ok with your safeties you have a good list. Your reaches are….reaches.

I see no problem with biology - you can use it to pivot to another path if you change your mind about medical school. Biostats is commonly recommended as a major, if you are interested.

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16

“Brown is a reach, regardless of whether you apply RD or ED. However, if you are sure that it is your first choice, and if the NPC says that it is likely to be affordable and will fit your 8 year budget, then applying ED should help your chances a bit.”

I don’t believe that applying ED helps " a bit". I believe it doesn’t help at all, and if a student is on a major uptick senior year better to wait and apply RD when the transcript will reflect grades, a potentially stronger teacher recommendation, etc.

Many students who apply early and are accepted are athletes, legacies, children of staff or faculty, and other special situations. You cannot look at the overall ED admissions rate and conclude "hey, my chances are better ". If your parent was a Brown employee, you’d know it AND you’d know to apply early as well.

For an unhooked student? Apply RD with the very strongest application you can.

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17

Not sure if this is how you plan to write about them on the Common App, but I’d recommend beefing them up a little. Did you qualify for high level meets? Win any team awards? Ranked in events on the team?

18

Yes thanks for the advice! I will definently “beef” them up a little bit because I did qualify for more stuff like that!

19

Got it! Thanks for the advice.

20

I don’t think a student with room for ‘a major uptick’ in grades with one additional semester is likely to be competitive at Brown. The impact most students can have on their 6 semester cumulative GPA after the 7th semester is de minimus.

Since we don’t have the data that would support a benefit of applying ED to Brown or not, I can’t argue that there is a benefit. Just know that many HS and private counselors, based on their experience and knowledge of admissions, would tell many students to apply ED to give them the best chance of admission. (Given affordability and number one choice.)

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