<p>Hello,</p>
<p>Rising senior at a new england boarding prep school, rigorous academics.</p>
<p>State: NY
GPA: 3.4 unweighted (my school is rough, nationally ranked)
SAT: 1900 (low I know)
SAT 2: 760 on US, 670 on world</p>
<p>Financial: Low income <30,000
Race: 1st gen. asian</p>
<p>EC: (This is all i really have)</p>
<p>football- (currently being recruited, they said they’d push for me)- 3 year varsity starter
student council- 4 years, class rep
co founder of buddhist club
2nd degree black belt
work experience working in restaurant </p>
<p>most likely to apply E/D to 11/15 due to football support</p>
<p>bump… anyone want to help out?</p>
<p>ED application, male, Asian, and football all work in your favor. If a 3.4 GPA is good for your school (top 10%-ish) and you took a rigorous course load, your grades may be strong enough to get you a serious look. Test scores are a little low, but not out of range. Beyond that, much depends on intangibles like your essay and the sense of person conveyed by your recommendations and interview.</p>
<p>Thank you so much. Anyone else?</p>
<p>Honestly, your academics/scores don’t put you out of the running. Make sure that your essays are very reflective, sincere, and well-written, and you definitely have a chance. You might want to consider re-taking the SAT as well, or simply taking the ACT instead, but otherwise there’s not much else you can do.</p>
<p>Also make sure that you’re truly gung ho about attending, since it’d be a binding commitment if you were accepted. </p>
<p>Good luck! :)</p>
<p>"*Also make sure that you’re truly gung ho about attending, since it’d be a binding commitment if you were accepted. *"</p>
<p>It would not be binding in this case. When you ask for financial aid, applying ED does not lock you in. The school will make you a financial aid offer, and you must take it or leave it; you give up the ability to compare financial aid offers from other schools. But if you have that one dream school above all others, and your only question is “Can I afford it?” then ED may confer some admission advantage over RD (re loving applicants who love the school).</p>
<p>I think that as a first-generation student and especially as an athletic recruit, you have a decent chance. Your test scores are on the lower side, but if you are planning to apply ED - and the coaches said that they would push for you - then I think you have a good shot, especially if your schedule is rigorous. I might also suggest taking the ACT just to see how you do, to strengthen your application.</p>
<p>Best of luck and hopefully everything will work out well!</p>
<p>Does anyone know how generous Carleton is with financial aid?</p>