Chances of admission for Mech/Aero/FYE with low grades but decent other stuff [IL resident, 3.67 GPA, 35 ACT, 1490 SAT]

Demographics
US Citizen
Illinois
Public High School
Asian Male
300k< (no financial aid)

Intended Major(s)
Aerospace Engineering
Mechanical Engineering

GPA, Rank, and Test Scores

  • Unweighted HS GPA: 3.67/4
  • Weighted HS GPA (incl. weighting system): N/A (school does not do honors classes, but I will have 10 high school APs)
  • Class Rank: N/A
  • ACT/SAT Scores:
    ACT Superscore: 35 34 35 36, SAT superscore: 760 reading 780 math
    ACT Best Ind.: 35 34 35 33, SAT Best Ind.: 710 reading 780 math

Coursework
Sophomore: AP Physics 1, AP Micro
Junior: AP USH, AP Spanish Lang, AP ES, AP Calc BC
Senior: AP English Lit, AP Physics C (E+M), AP Chem, AP Gov, AP Macro,

Awards
Month long summer exchange program scholarship awardee (180/6000) accepted.

Extracurriculars

  • 2 week michtech summer program
  • upenn summer virtual program (competitive)
  • motorsport club leader (2 years)
  • varsity swim (2 years)
  • ayso soccer (2 years)
  • vice president debate club, not team (1 year)
  • debate team (1 year)
  • county + school orchestra first violin (2 years)
  • work with various NGOs supporting refugees (2 years)
  • NHS (2 years)

Cost Constraints / Budget
Cost is not a worry

Schools

  • Safety
    None

  • Likely
    Colorado School of Mines (EA)
    UIUC? (EA)
    UC-Boulder (EA)
    Mizzou (EA)
    US Air Force Academy

  • Reach
    Purdue (EA)
    UW-Madison (EA)
    Case Western (EA)

not fully sure on final list but Purdue is the dream.

@tsbna44 can verify but I think UAH and UAB as well as the main campus would be safety schools for you.

I think Air Force Academy is a reach.

do you think I’d have any chances with Purdue? Thats where I’m really going for

@momofboiler1 would have a better idea!

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Doesn’t look like UAB has aero, just mechanical. Huntsville is solid and safety but looks like OP has no need issues (UAH is cheap).

1500 Illinoisans go to Bama (not UAH) - why - they buy them in.

A 3.67 - the students list -

Mizzou is safe. I think Mines happens but I’d call it a match and it doesn’t have Aero (a minor).

CU Boulder might be tough to get direct admit - but will get admit to the school. UIUC is a reach as is Air Force - plus you need a congressional nomination.

Purdue - will say high match. Not the most difficult admit but has secondary admission.

Madison a reach and CWRU - depends on demonstrated interest.

UAH, as @Thumper1 noted, would be a nice addition and is surrounded by defense companies…and since has School of Mines, Missouri School of Science and Tech which is stronger in engineering than Mizzou.

Iowa State would be a nice safety complement to Purdue/Wisconsin. Very respected.

Good luck.

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I do think you have a shot at Purdue. Your GPA is on the low side but your test scores and rigor are great. If you have high AP scores, that will also help.

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Thank you! Are the ECs pretty average or do I need to work more on those

This is some really great and useful information, thank you so much!!

My child had a bit higher gpa ~ 3.8 and was captain of two varsity sports but not a recruited athlete. He got a full AFROTC scholarship.
Accepted to boulder, Michigan, Yale
Rejected Purdue, GATech and northeastern

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I corrected my error - for CWRU, i mean to say Demonstrated Interest.

I agreed that the Air Force Academy is a reach. Direct entry to UC-Boulder is questionable.
Entry to Grainger at UIUC is not something I would necessarily call a likely. I would talk to your school counselors and see what the record from your school is to UIUC, particularly with respect to Grainger.

I’m concerned that you don’t have any safety schools listed. Some schools you may want to consider include:

  • Missouri Science & Technology
  • U. of Dayton
  • U. of Cincinnati
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I would expect UIUC aero to be a reach, but defer to your counselor.

I second safeties of Iowa State, UAH, Missouri S&T, Dayton (only has ME, not aero undergrad), and Cincinnati.

I do think Mizzou is a near safety for you. Note Mizzou does not have EA, they have rolling admissions and the app will be open Aug 1. If you apply in early August, you should have a decision by the end of August. Same is true of Iowa State as well.

No math senior year? As an incoming engineering major, you should not skip math. What are your options either at your HS or dual enrollment?

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OP is completing calculus BC in 11th grade.

Perhaps the OP can clarify what, if any, more advanced math is available. Some students may be where there is nothing beyond calculus BC, and commuting to nearby colleges is not feasible due to scheduling.

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Yep, that’s why I asked what the senior options are.

ETA: I would expect at a minimum that OP has the option of AP stats in their HS.

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Im taking Multivariable calc next yeaer

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UIUC and US Airforce Academy are reaches due to acceptance rates.

You need 2 safeties:
UIowa, UHouston Honors, uAlabama Honors, uMaine are all safeties.

You can add any 2 from UNebraska, UCincinnati Honors with co-op (likelies) or targets such as Penn State, UMN (would be low reqches for GPA but target thanks to rigor&test scores).

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