I currently have a 3.85 GPA, but I am worried that I won’t be able to get into college.
Some of my college choices are: Boston College, UNC, UGA, and NC state.
Do you think I have a chance of getting in? My high school is very competitive and one of the top challenging high schools in GA.
Also, what should I aim for on the SAT if I want to get into one of these colleges?
Others can speak to the SAT score you should shoot for, but I’d like to address your statement:
“I am worried that I won’t be able to get into college.”
You should not worry about that. There are between 3,000 - 4,000 colleges and universities in the U.S., and that includes many very good institutions that would be happy to have you. I think your fear is that you won’t get into one of the schools you’re gunning for, and that’s a different matter.
No one can tell you whether or not you’ll be accepted to one or all of the schools on your list. Once you have SAT scores, you can compare those and your GPA to the stats of accepted students in each school’s common data set. You can also determine the relative importance of each element of your application (i.e., stats, legacy, ECs, etc.) If your stats fall solidly within the top 25% of accepted students, that’s a great start.
You need to get the highest SAT score you can. The higher the score the more options you will have. Like stated theri is a college for everyone. It is impossible to give you advice without knowing your scores. At this point all we know is your GPA and the fact that you go to a competitive school.
^ You should aim for north of 1450 and/or 32 ACT to make you competitive for the schools that you listed.
Prepscholar website will tell you the target SAT score for you. You figure out your target school. They tell you what level of SAT that school wants. We have found this help for calming us down and it also guides you on where you currently are and how many hours of studying you will probably need to do to achieve your scoring goal.
Type into google the name of your desired college and the word “prepscholar” and up comes your GPA and test score profile. As I said, it’s calming. There are thousands of colleges out there. You will find the right one for you.
@chirp717 Your GPA is very good. Of course you will get in somewhere, make sure you apply to a range of safety/match/reach schools.
Average SAT’s of accepted students for the colleges you mention:
BC: Reading 670; Math 695
UNC Chapel Hill: Reading 645 Math 656
UGA: R 625 M 633
NC State: R 610 M 640
look up the tool dustyfeathers mentions, it really is helpful.
Prepscholar is a subscription site. You don’t need that. Google “Common Data Set [school name].” The CDS is free and will give you a lot of info. on each school you’re interested in. Check the college websites too. You can find the average score ranges for admitted students in the admissions section.
Also go to each college’s Net Price Calculator and run it with your parents to get an idea of estimated costs. You’ll have to do it again when you start applying because the formulas do change, but it will give you a rough idea. Having competitive scores is only half the battle. The colleges also have to be affordable. Good luck.
@austinmshauri I use prepscholar all the time without paying a dime. You have to follow the directions given above: you have to google the college name along with your sat score and it will come up in the search. Give it a try.
@Fishnlines29, I’ll try that. Thank you.
Edited to add:
Googling the “[college name] prep scholar” does generate some very interesting reading. I checked my son’s school (a medium sized public university in NYS) and I think their info. is pretty accurate. Thanks for the suggestion.
You have good advice. Practice and prepare for your tests.
Perhaps a better question for you at this stage of the game is: Do you know your EFC? Can your family pay your EFC? How much will those schools cost your family and can they pay it?
UNC offers good need based aid but your family still has to pay their expected portion. For some families that is $10,000 per year and for other families that is $40,000 per year. Make sure you know what that looks like for you.
You are OOS for NC state and will likely be in line for paying out-of-state tuition. Can you do that?
Run the net price calculators on each school website. Have a financial talk with your parents and then build your list accordingly.
Definitely need your sat/ act scores. UNC will be hard to get into no matter your scores because of the 82% instate rule, so be aware of that.
Eh, I don’t trust prepscholar because they aren’t necessarily accurate (they don’t update SAT scores either). I recommend Common Data Set over prespscholar’s data. Or check “[school name] ‘freshman profile’” to see more in-depth data.