<p>My S just received a 2120 (710V, 630M, 780W (12 essay)).</p>
<p>He has a 770 World History SAT2 and 750 Lit. We think he has a good shot at an 800 in US History next year (or at least real high 700s - its his strength and passion).</p>
<p>He is an Eagle Scout, Section editor of his award winnig school newspaper next year (about 20 hours/wk), 2 years ago, he published a novelette and in the past year has had published in the bi-monthly journal put out by an international group that is associated with a hobby of his (with a nexus to his passion - history). He plans on majoring in history or govt. He has published numerous articles in his school newspaper and received regional recognition for one as this year’s best news story (out of hundreds, he came in second). He has hundreds of hours in community service, NHS, etc. His unweighted gpa is 96.5 in a very tough college prep all-boys catholic HS. He’s probably in the top 7 or 8% of his class. </p>
<p>The issue is will his best section (W) be discounted by some of his schools and he is below 1400 on the other 2 sections (1340) combined. I think Gtown told us on the tour that it won’t be considered at all.<br>
Neeless to say, we are very proud of him and know that he will have a lot of good choices. However, at present, he wants to consider as his top choices Columbia, Notre Dame, JHopkins, Chicago and and Gtown. He also likes Villanova, BC, and a few others. And, he has a few other safety schools in mind.</p>
<p>He will retake in October. And take his final SAT2 in November.</p>
<p>My question is will his overall score help him or will the schools really be focussing in on the M&V only. He knows he needs to up his M score and will be working all summer to do so (as well as his V). Should he take the ACT?</p>
<p>Are these schools (esp. the first grouping) unrealistic for him?</p>
<p>Your son’s scores, academics and ec’s are outstanding. I don’t think his first grouping of schools is unrealistic at all. Just know that Columbia admitted less than ten percent of its applicants this year, and Gtown was probably well under 20 percent, so don’t consider either of those schools a sure thing.</p>
<p>Not a parent, and I can only comment on what I know best…</p>
<p>… Georgetown admissions, in general, is complex – like all upper-tier universities (as ranked by USNWR, I wrote a Letter to the Editor of the Hoya regarding an unhealthy obsession with USNWR rankings, but that’s another story). </p>
<p>I’m assuming he’s applying to the School of Foreign Service or the College (International History or just History). A bit of improvement on the Math portion on the SAT should help a ton (… when I applied in '04, I had a 630 or so on the Math portion and a 660 in Math when I submitted my December scores for RD). </p>
<p>I think what will factor in positively for your S will be his strong focus and passion for History, as well as his strong GPA (has your S’s high school sent students to GU before?). It is true that the admissions committee will not take into account the Writing score (the adcom has stated that the new writing test is not reflective of a student’s true abilities.) Another strong point would be his extracurriculars, but again, Georgetown has a pool of very strong applicants which only grows stronger every year. </p>
<p>Georgetown, however, seems like a realistic choice.</p>
<p>Is your S considering Early Action/Decision? Best of luck. :)</p>
<p>Most colleges only ask for two SATIIs. Only if the colleges on his list ask for SATIIs in both humanities and sciences should he take another SAT II. His SAT scores are more than respectable. The 12 on the essay is fabulous. He may want to stay with the scores he has or retake; if he does not raise his scores substantially, it won’t hurt. I have no opinion as to whether he should take the ACT.</p>
<p>His list of colleges seems very reasonable. JHU is better known for its science offerings, but it has a decent history department. There are some reaches (reaches for everyone) and many matches. As well, you say he has some safeties. So it looks fine to me.</p>
<p>Your son sounds like an interesting young man. I’d only be guessing about the weight given to his SAT Writing section by those particular schools. I’ll bet the AOs would tell you straight out if you called them directly.</p>
<p>Also, if your son would consider a smaller school, (2,800), I suggest Wesleyan Univ. in CT. Wes students are really into social sciences: my daughter is a History major there, Gov’t is also big. Middletown is NOT NYC or DC, but students volunteer in town and the student body is very “chill” and politically active. Just an idea.</p>
<p>I don’t see any issue with the first set of schools on his list. But I don’t think BC is sufficiently less selective to be considered much more likely than the first group; Villanova maybe. </p>
<p>I do think he is a strong applicant, with his strong academics/Eagle Scout/other strong accomplishments). He’e got a great set of reaches and reachy matches mapped out. But I think he needs to spend his time identifying schools he really likes with acceptance rates in the 40%+ range for his 50/50 (“match”) schools. Then he needs to be sure that those “other” schools he has in mind for safeties are schools he really likes. He also probably need to be sure to demonstrate interest in his 50/50 and safety schools.</p>
<p>I think you should assume that the primary evaluation of his SAT score will be on MV. The W will be a nice “plus point” for him, but since colleges are still deciding whether and how to use the W score, he should plan his list of reach/50-50/likely schools using the MV score - to be safe.</p>
<p>Columbia, Notre Dame, JHopkins, Chicago and and Gtown will all be reaches for him, but they are for most students. His class rank won’t help, nor will his SAT scores. Chicago, for one, has stated publicly that it will not count the writing score at all until it gets more experience with the scores. (This means it will track enrolled students to see how they do compared to their writing scores. It is part of institutional research.) But, they are not unrealistic at this point.</p>
<p>The good news is that, historically, kids see a good jump in scores whe n they retake the exam in the fall of their senior. After all, they are six months older.</p>
<p>Just remember that every kid needs a range of schools. Admissions the past few years has just become too erratic to crystal ball with any accuracy.</p>
<p>I want to thank everyone who responded, all with some ggod information and insights.</p>
<p>Each year, S’s school sends 2-5 to Gtown, 7-10 BC, 10 or so to ND, 15+ to Villanova, 2 or 3 to Columbia, and maybe 1 or 2 every 2 or 3 years to JH and Chi.</p>
<p>His rank is “low” because of the competitiveness of his school. In our local public school, he would be #1 or 2 in his class.</p>
<p>I think the recco that we assume the M/V will be the main point of consideration is right. He will be focussing on improving accross the board before October, and he will be taking a prep class.</p>
<p>As far as the SAT2’s, Georgetown requires 3, so he will take the 3rd one in Nov.</p>
<p>As of now, I think he’s shooting for RD in all cases, but that could change.</p>
<p>If anyone thinks that the ACT would be worthwhile, I would like to know that.</p>
<p>Obviously no-one can predict the outcome of admissions. He certainly sounds like an excellent candidate for all the schools he is considering. I would say that his chances at Hopkins, Chicago and ND are slightly better. Columbia is a wild card for anyone. And if he is applying to the SFS at GU, that is probably the toughest to get into. SFS admissions is looking for a lot more than good SATs and GPA. </p>
<p>Of his top 5 choices, only Columbia offers Early Decision; the other 4 are Early Action schools.</p>
<p>Most the schools listed are indeed reaches. The overall acceptance rate can be a little misleading. As mini has pointed out many times, one has to look at the rate for students who actually have a shot. For example, UChicago with its smaller applicant pool has a 36% admit rate, which would suggest a better chance of being admitted than a school with a 20% or less rate. However, when the student numbers are examined one finds the mid 50% numbers for admitted UChicago students are a little higher than Columbia’s students. The pool against which one is competing is critical to consider. Also as newmassdad has noted, some schools may not use the writing section in their evaluation, it would be good to know who does and does not. Also, many take the best component scores and build a “best composite” so raising a low score can be a benefit even if the formerly best score drops a bit (others, however, take best sitting). Some put more weight on essays, others EC’s, others GPA and test scores. It all comes down to homework.</p>
<p>Ditto jmmom - and good luck with the test prep. </p>
<p>If your son is reasonably good at math - but not so hot at SAT I math - he might consider taking the Math IIC if he does well in practice. My son’s 750 on the IIC took a bit of the sting out of his 670 on the regular SAT math.</p>
<p>DuckPondParent
My D applied to almost all the schools on your son’s list, last year. She also has some similarities in profile. PM me if you want some info.</p>
<p>DPP - I see no downside to trying the ACT (except for the test burnout factor. . and it’s a great way to ruin a Saturday). Most students will do about the same relative to their peers but some will score better. Ideally, do not indicate on the ACT that you want results sent to any particular schools. (Same advice could hold for SAT.) See how he does; then decide about reporting.</p>
<p>Look up xiggi’s SAT tips to get that Math score higher. Anyone know the link offhand?</p>
<p>Otherwise, he is a good fit for Gtown–especially if his Catholic school is run by the Jebbies? </p>
<p>Count me as another who thinks the SFS is impossible to get into–except for Super Stars like tlaktan. If we did it over again, I’d have S1 apply to the college and then transfer into SFS after he got there. Supposedly that’s common practice.</p>
<p>You might ask tlaktan for advice on essays and framing ECs for Gtown. He did a great job of it.</p>
<p>Here’s the link to xiggi’s test prep thread - it’s on a sticky in the SAT Preparation forum. Wonderful advice from which my rising junior d hopes to profit!</p>
<p>Have your son look at W&L. They have a very strong history department and give some merit aid, Coming from a private school, he may want to at least examine some smaller LACs.</p>
<p>Congrats on your son’s outstanding accomplishments.</p>
<p>I second hiker’s/motherdear’s suggestions that your son consider a few LACs.</p>
<p>Many are outstanding in history and humanities; most offer lots of personal interaction with profs, small classes, mentoring, outstanding grad school placement. Your son’s application will also get slightly more holistic attention in a smaller pool of applicants. </p>
<p>Finally, with his ‘all-male HS, catholic, eagle scout’ profile, he will stand out from the crowd at a liberal/secular school like Brown, Wesleyan, Amherst, or Grinnell-- whereas, I bet, Notre Dame gets relatively more of these applicants. I am a big believer in ‘applying against type’ so you do not disappear into a sea of clones of yourself. </p>
<p>JHU might be an interesting option for him as a humanities kid. </p>
<p>I predict a school with a male/female ratio imbalance (like Vassar) would almost be in match territory.</p>