after much consideration, we have decided to let my son apply to schools other than the UCs
his new list will be:
UC Berkeley
UCLA
UCSB
UC DAVIS
UC SANTA CRUZ
TULANE
GEORGE WASHINGTON U
BOSTON U
MICHIGAN - ANN ARBOR
VANDY
EMORY
USC
please chance him ASAP - hasn’t applied to any of the non-uc schools yet, so if it is unrealistic, we may change his list…
ACT: 30
SAT II: 780 - US History
Unweighted GPA: 3.95
Weighted GPA: 4.27
AP’s he has taken: AP USH (5), AP Bio (5)
Senior Course Load: AP Chem, AP Government, AP Psychology, AP Spanish, H Calculus, French III, H English, Sports Medicine, H Philosophy
*** please note my son’s school limits the amount of AP’s a student can take - only 6 in all (he has taken the maximum)
Rank: N/A
ECs:
President of Teen Board for local charity (Active all 4 years)
Camp Counselor at Overnight Camp (active all four years)
Captain of football team
Chair for Church Young Group
Yearbook Editor
-National Honor Society
-Principal’s High Honor List
Personal Statement (10/10)
Recommendations( 10/10)
Other Info:
California Resident / Private Jesuit School
White Male
Applying as a History Major, second choice is Biology
I think your chances are good for Tulane, George Washington, USC, and Boston. It is on the lower end for Michigan, and outside 25th percentile for Vanderbilt and Emory. But anything can happen really, so it seems like a sensible list! A couple reach schools are good to have.
The schools are all very different from one another, in different parts of the country, and of varying sizes. The very good GPA is helpful at all of them. Tulane, USC, Emory and BC are all mid range 30-33 ACT schools, so he has a shot at all of those depending on what the admissions committee is looking for this year. U Michigan is very close at an 29-33 ACT range so that is a possibility as well. BU and GW both come in at 27-31 so his chances are even better there. Vandy and Berkeley going to be a real stretch, but you should be in good shape with UCLA, UCSB and the other California schools, especially given that he’s applying in-state. His ECs are pretty good but not stellar, so if he wants BC, Tulane, Michigan, Emory or USC, he’s going to have to figure out what each school is looking for, what they offer, how their respective offerings fit into his future plans, and show a great amount of interest. Best of luck to him!
i think your first mistake was not letting your son apply to the schools he wanted to go to. “we have decided to let him apply to non-uc’s” why did you limit him in the first place? it’s not your place to choose his future.
Well, if Bank of Mom & Dad is paying the tuition and they aren’t willing to pay out of state tuition, yeah it is their place to limit the list to affordable schools.
These schools have widely different costs as well, if that batters to you or your child. Is there a safety your child LOVES among the schools where he’s 95% likely to be admitted, you can afford and he would ge happy to attend? If not, that needs to be added asap.
If the cost is an issue then your hesitation to allow your son to apply is understandable. That being said, if you’re willing to pay for these schools then you should let your son apply to all of them. None are “out of reach”, and the cost of applying relative to the price you’ll end up paying over 4 years is negligible. Your son is about to make a huge leap of independence, applying to colleges should be the first step in that process.