(Indicate advanced level, such as AP, IB, AICE, A-level, or college, courses as well as specifics in each subject)
English: Honors English 9, Honors British Literature, AP English Language and Composition
Math: Honors Algebra II, AP Statistics (5 on the exam), Honors Precalculus
Science: Honors Biology I, Honors Chemistry I, AP Physics C: Mechanics
History and social studies: Honors World History, AP European History (4 on the exam), AP US History
Language other than English: Honors French II, Honors French III
Visual or performing arts:
Other academic courses: AP Computer Science A
Awards
None… lol.
Extracurriculars
Weak extracurriculars. Bottom line: No sustained engineering-related extracurriculars, summer programs, or personal projects. I do track and field, but have never won any races or championships. I do competitive speedcubing and have won 11 medals and qualified for the world championships, but that’s not engineering-related at all.
Essays/LORs/Other
None
Schools
Assured (100% chance of admission and affordability): Utah Valley University, UTEP, community college
Extremely Likely:
Likely:
Toss-up: Iowa State, UTSA
Lower Probability: UTD, Drexel, BYU
Low Probability: TAMU, ASU, Purdue, Penn State, Rose-Hulman
Should I just go to community college or trade school at this point, considering that my extracurriculars are very weak?
Your toss ups are very safe. Iowa State would admit you - I believe within a day.
Your lower probability are safe - well, I don’t know about BYU but you’d get into both UTD and Drexel no problem.
Lower probability - ASU is safe. Texas A&M - not sure if they look into ECs or not but guess what - you do competitive speed cubing. I have zero idea what that is - but you know what you don’t need- any engineering related ECs - none, zero, zip. Is the kid in band or playing sports or scooping ice cream at baskin-robins or walking dogs at the shelter doing an engineering related PC? Nope - and they are great ECs.
So your ECs are likely not holding you back.
So A&M - let’s call a Target - but they have secondary admissions - so your’re not guaranteed your major.
ASU - I noted - very safe.
Purdue - a reach
Penn State - safety/low target but shocked if didn’t get in
Rose - Hulman - low target - really safe - very different than the rest (very small and isolated - is that for you)?
You’re selling yourself waaaaaaaaaaaaaay short.
I suspect you can get into all but Purdue unlikely and A&M maybe. BYU - I don’t know how to chance for there. I assume you are of the LDS religion.
The rest - you’d be in at all.
If you do find you have a budget, there are cheaper subs too - like for you (if a Junior), Alabama and Miss State would both be low 20s.
Many of your schools won’t require ECs and that’s a fine list.
Check with your parents one last time on budget.
That you go to a private, check with a counselor but I believe Iowa State and ASU are auto admit - you are beyond the minimum criteria.
A&M - with secondary admissions - means you may not get what you want. Purdue is sort of the same - you go through a common sequence in first year engineering - and then decide what you want. But as you decide, you have to be competitive - or you could get shut out - hence the secondary - wheras at other schools (not sure which on your list but you are directly placed in the major of choice).
So that’s something to look at from all your schools.
But you way overrated the difficulty. You are a strong candidate overall. But you picked some outstanding names!!
This. ASU allows admission with deficiency in two areas as long as they are not both math and science (it’s not stated above but I assume OP has completed geometry from the rest of the math courses). It looks to me like they would be auto admit to ASU, presumably with a requirement to make up the fine arts/technical/ career requirement once attending.
I can’t do the calc myself but looking at the overall profile , pretty sure Iowa state would also be auto admit?
Engineering applicants cannot have math or science deficiencies (as mentioned on the engineering major pages). However, Course competency requirements | Admission | ASU says that a 24 ACT math or 580 SAT math fulfills the math requirement.
But “admission may be granted with one deficiency in no more than two competency areas”, suggesting that having a deficiency in course work may lose the automatic admission based on the listed stat thresholds.
Yes, but from a cursory reading of OP’s list /assuming senior year courses to come it seems the only deficiency is the arts bracket. I can’t say for certain but I would still put ASU as a safety for an applicant given OP’s other stats and that being the only deficiency.
I think you are underselling your chances for A&M Engineering. 1460 SAT is a strong score for A&M - I have known multiple TX kids with lower SATs that got into Engineering. It’s not a guarantee, but a solid chance. I would have your application materials ready to submit in early August.
Rational thought needed. Abstract thought needed. In your mind you see how things fit together. Precision needed. A little error and everything messes up. Am I talking about speedcubing or engineering or computer science? Answer: Yes, I am.
I think that your ECs are fine. They might be weak for Harvard. That is fine. You probably don’t want to go to Harvard, and you definitely do not need to go to Harvard. You have multiple very good in-state public universities, and I think that your ECs will be fine for them. Grades and test scores are way more important than ECs. ECs are mostly how a tiny handful of very highly ranked universities (Harvard, Princeton, MIT, Stanford) differentiate between a long list of applicants with essentially perfect grades and near perfect test scores. For normal universities (including everything that you listed) ECs really are not that important.
You do track and field. Great exercise. Requires that you get along with others. You have stuck with it for a while. Engineering programs will not care how fast you run. I know plenty of engineers whose times in the 400 meters are not going to be close to yours (I think that I could probably beat 4 minutes). They are still very good engineers.
I did not see how 1460 SAT breaks between math and English.
Definitely apply to TAMU. I think that your chances are reasonable there, it is likely to be relative reasonably priced given that you are in-state, and they are very good for engineering and CS. If you would want to attend UT Austin, then it might be worth applying and seeing what happens. Otherwise I think that you list is pretty good except that I think that your chances are better than you are expecting. Perhaps if you shift everything up one category you might have it about right.
Wow. I have known a couple of people who were very good, but not 8 seconds good.
By the way, one daughter at the end of her junior year of high school had essentially no ECs. She was 5 for 5 in admissions to universities, and is currently working towards her PhD. ECs do not rule the world.
Speed cubing is so engineering. Very mathematical and able to recognize set patterns. Use that skill to your advantage. Keep doing things you enjoy. Speed cubing will set you apart. Very cool talent.
It’s also an Ec but you want an EC. Get a job. Schools love students that work. Teach others how to do your skill with success. That is being a leader or taking the lead. Tutor in a subject. It really doesn’t take much.
One thing I noticed was AP Physics C Mechanics, but no calculus.
Since that is a calculus-based course, and being a math graduate myself, but self-taught in physics, that is some feat that I think will catch the eye of any admissions officer. I know from experience that doing physics with the assumed math background is much easier than doing physics the other way around. Your grades look good for the schools, IMHO. Many schools don’t worry about EC’s, as another poster mentioned.
Again, as another poster said, ‘You’re selling yourself waaaaaaaaaaaaaay short.’,
I think you will get into at least one of your target schools. It’s up to you, but I don’t think you need to go the Community College route unless, for some reason, you want to.
Being able to do AP Physics C without calculus, and in no way wishing to disparage trade school, shows me you are capable of much more. I would not go that route in your case.
A&M will be difficult if not auto admit and highest math is only PreCal; they like to see at least Calculus by jr year. Perhaps an Engineering pathway-TEAB, Galveston, McAllen or Blinn Eng Academy in Brenham will be offered.
Wanting calculus Jr year; things are getting tough for admissions to some schools. I did it, but I am a math nerd. I didn’t know things were that tough at some schools in the US.
I think OP’s list is fine because they have multiple admits. If A&M doesn’t happen, they have many others on the list. And they can always add a Houston, TTU, or UTD if they want another in state.
