How much do low GPA + rank vs high SATs matter

dc2013
Mon, 17 Dec 2012 10:30:53 +0000

Statistically speaking, I could stand a decent shot at some of the schools I’m looking at, as my SAT scores are about 100 points above the top 75% of applicants and accepted students. But my GPA and rank are low, which kind of indicates that I am a slacker. Just wondering, do any “holistic admissions process” liberal arts colleges actually look beyond GPA?
I was recently looking at Lafayette, and I realized that my 2.7 UW (3.6/4.2 W) GPA makes me fall within the bottom 10% of accepted students, but my rank makes me fall within the bottom 3%. I scored a 2030 on the SAT which puts me around the top 30%-25% of all applicants. While I’m not an athlete, I am a URM so that could be a plus. Is there any hope, at all? If it helps any, I will have taken 5 AP classes by senior year’s end and gotten a 5 on the AP English Language test.