I love Wesleyan to DEATH but...

madjoy
Sun, 02 Jul 2006 18:20:13 +0000

Are you applying early decision? That can help a lot, so that the school knows you’re in love with them. I also had not great grades (about a 3.9 W), and your grades are probably what are going to hurt you the most. Make sure you highly some of those extracurriculars on your application instead of just letting them hide in the little list room they give you on the Common App. Also, compared to a lot of top schools, Wes doesn’t have an overabundance of Asian students so that won’t hurt you and will probably actually help. A 2200 SAT is quite good - of course a 2300 would be better, but it definitely puts you in a good range. Like I said, your grades are the biggest problem, but the fact that you’re taking such a challenging courseload shows that you’re motivated to learn, at least.

By the time most people post these chances threads, there’s not THAT much that can be done. IF there’s a teacher who knows you really well, or any non-family adult really, get a recommendation from them - even if it’s not the class you got the best grades in. In fact, I got a recommendation from a teacher I loved and used to have good discussions with after school, but who I never got better than a B with, and it was outstanding and helped explain and counteract some of my bad grades and probably helped a lot.

Also, writing an outstanding essay is easier said than done, but make sure it allows your personality to shine through. Don’t try to make it too polished… I think the best essays often tend to be about some particular moment that stands out in your mind that reflects who you are, or etc. Also, if you want to be a pediatrician… mention that you’re interested in the sciences. Wesleyan loves science majors, particularly female science majors, since it’s marketing itself as a liberal arts school with some of the best sciences in the country. So when it asks for your major… just… mention that :P

Good luck!