ED Chances at Amhoist

interesteddad
Sun, 17 Sep 2006 00:21:58 +0000

Lrich:

On the plus side, your academic transcript is excellent and your high school sends quite a few kids to top colleges. So, that’s solid. The only minor ding you might get is no Physics. But, you look solid – even more so if you nearer the top of the top 10%.

Your test scores are definitely on the low side for Amherst. Enough that you’ll probably end up getting an academic rating that is borderline for unhooked applicants at Amherst.

I’m trying to figure out what you should hang your hat on as far as ECs. The mock trial stuff looks promising. I think you should also think about the summer internships/job at a counseling center. That’s something that could possibly let you stand out from the pack. Give some thought about essay topics to reinforce one or more of your ECs so they can picture some kind of clear identity that is different and interesting relative to the rest of the apps in pile. If you can really bring something to life, it will help.

Overall, I’m pretty much in agreement with Dean. I’d put the odds of ED acceptance somewhere in the 25% to 50% range. It’s a reach because I’m just not sure they’ll see an EC that knocks 'em out enough to overcome the test scores and bump you from the “consideration” pile to the “accept” pile. I think you have to be realistic – that there’s a good chance you won’t get in. So take that into consideration as you flesh out your list of colleges. Don’t let the ED app distract you from the big picture.