Sorry for posting this again but now I have a college list and some questions
Demographics
Undocumented (soon to be DACA recipient)
North Texas
Public early college high school
Hispanic make
First-gen
GPA, Rank, and Test Scores
Unweighted HS GPA: 3.97/4.0
Weighted HS GPA: 4.63/5.0
Class Rank: top 10%
ACT/SAT Scores:
ACT: 35
SAT Math: 780
SAT English: 760
Coursework
Freshman:
AP Human Geography
AP Physics
Sophomore:
AP Bio
Dual Credit College Algebra
Dual Credit Art Appreciation
Junior:
AP Spanish Language
AP Calc AB
Dual Credit Chemistry
Dual Credit Psychology
Senior (next year):
AP Calc BC
The other AP Spanish
Dual Credit Physics
Dual Credit Economy
Dual Credit Probability and Statistics
Awards
I won something at an UIL social studies competition
Extracurriculars
HOSA for 2 years
UIL sophomore year
Volunteered at local library for 50+ hours
Participated in a turtle research program
Sometimes caretaker for my dad
Work junior year and this summer
Learned German to the B1 level
Virtual club this summer related to philosophy
Should I still try to improve my ECs or should I just leave them like this?
Essays/LORs/Other
I’m a fairly good writer so I’m not very worried about this
I get along well with my English teacher and some other teachers
I haven’t really contacted my counselor before other than once or twice but I’ll try to change that once school starts
Cost Constraints / Budget
EFC 0
Schools
My safety schools are UNT and UT Arlington
I’m applying ED to Rice
I’ve made a list of schools that consider undocumented students domestic and offer 100% demonstrated financial need
However, all of these school are very hard to get into
Brown, Columbia, Dartmouth, Northwestern, Princeton, Stanford, Tufts, UChicago, UPenn, Yale, WUSTL
Of course I don’t (or anybody really) have a great shot at these schools but is there a chance I’ll get into one or two if I apply to all of them?
Or should I just pick a 4 or 5 out of these?
Anyways thank you in advance for all of your help!
Yeah I’m considering that and I think it’s an awesome opportunity. But it worries me that I might get matched with let’s say Columbia (although probably not) and i wont know if other schools that I ranked lower accepted me or not. Basically I would prefer to keep my options open but yeah, I’ll probably apply through questbridge
You sound like a great applicant and I think anyone of those colleges is a possibility. I agree that you should look at Questbridge. I think apps are due in August. https://www.questbridge.org/
If you don’t do QB, which does have some limitations, I’d apply to one of them ED or SCEA, if there is one you definitely want to go to and will be happy to attend. If not, I’d take a shot at all of them.
As far as ECs, sure, keep them up as long as they don’t affect your GPA. Colleges like to see you developing your interest, so be involved beyond just the surface level.
I would look at your list of schools and drill-down into the majors and course work. Some might not have the major you want or you might not like how the classes are structured. For engineering are the schools ABET accredited?
Also, travel costs can add-up. I would have a few more on your list. I’m assuming UT-Austin or UT-Dallas? Some people will disagree but college apps take time. There’s always more essays to write. Personally, I think any more than 10-12 gets hard to manage. Quality over quantity.
Of the schools on your list Yale might check all the boxes. At least all the posts on CC point to how much help Yale provides for its students.
I would do Questbridge, and just don’t rank schools that you don’t want to attend. Also, don’t rank any that won’t take DACA/undocumented students.
I agree with others that you will have some good options. Regarding UNT and UT-Arlington…I don’t think they will be affordable, because they won’t meet your full need (nor will any other UT system schools).
Questbridge, from a financial POV, is the way to go. Why does it matter what other schools might have accepted you if you get into the one you ranked highest?
Frankly, as QB is a total full ride, even if it was Alaska Anchorage (and they’re not on the list), it’d be worth it. In other words, QB is beyond a dream from a financial point of view.
hi there !! fellow rising senior. i’m also planning to apply to questbridge ncm and i’m just backing up what the others have said above. qb is amazing, and it gives you more room than the common app to explain extenuating circumstances through its questions and essays. literally all of your reach schools are QB partners so if you absolutely love them, you can rank up to 12. a downside if you think your ECs are your strength – they only have 5 EC slots. even if you don’t get matched, QB NCM finalist is an honor you can put on common app !!
How long have you been in the US? The lack of strong ECs, in or out of school, may be an issue with T20 schools. Also, recommendations don’t seem to point to “best I’ve seen.” One school that recruits north Texas heavily is Johns Hopkins. They cover full aid. Chicago as well. If you’re in the Top 6%, I recommend pursuing UT-Austin. It will take some loans if those are available. They have great programs for students in need.
I’ve been here continuously for ~16 years. My problem with student loans is that no bank I know of is willing to give them out to DACA recipients. I’ll be sure to look into John Hopkins
This might work for you: The National Scholarship Award will cover your tuition and fees up to a maximum of $16,500 for an associate degree and $33,000 for a bachelor’s degree, at one of our Partner Colleges. Please note, some Scholars may be eligible for an additional stipend of up to $4,000 (or $1,000 per year) for books, supplies, and transportation.
That amount would pay for full cost at the University of Houston (Honors College) which is in-state for you. I see other strong partner college options like Rutgers and ASU.
Would you actually like to go to all of these schools? Are you more engineering or more pre-Med? Engineering + pre-med can be done, but it is a hard road. Add in things like core requirements (esp UChicago & Columbia) and it gets even harder.
I would have to do more research and narrow down my college list, but these are the schools that are more accepting of DACA recipients. The schools I would really like to go to are Rice, Columbia, Yale, UPenn, and Stanford. I realize that these schools are far reaches for anyone, but if I were admitted to any of these schools I would not have to worry about the price
This sounds like a great opportunity, however, I’m still not a DACA recipient. Judging by how long the process takes I should receive DACA status early next year
Is Rice on your list because of location? Its a lot harder to get into Rice if you’re a TX student. Broaden your list. As others point out, you have a serious shot at one of the HYPSM or Chicago. Good luck wherever you end up.
This is why Questbridge would be a good idea. OP can rank 12 schools, including Rice and all of the others listed in his original post. If Rice is truly his first choice, he can rank it first - no harm in that at all. He just needs to figure out his own order of preference and then let the matching process take its course. And if he doesn’t match, being a QB finalist still confers an advantage in the regular or ED2 cycle.