I really want to go to IU, but apparently I don't have the required pulse.

Colleges & Universities Indiana University - Bloomington
1

<p>IU is one of the schools that a lot of kids from my high school go to, and I’ve heard a LOT of people (students, teachers, and internet) say “If you have a pulse, you’ll get into IU.” Or “IU takes everyone.” Or, “If you can’t get into IU, you don’t belong in college.”</p>

<p>But a lot of people tell me not even to apply because I’m basically an automatic rejetee. While some people think I’m in. And I just felt my chest, and I DO infact have a pulse.</p>

<p>Do you guys think it’s wort an app? Do I “have a pulse?”</p>

<p>Junior year is over, so this is all official.</p>

<p>White Girl from Michigan
Visited, on maling list
GPA Unweighted: 2.88 (Freshman year bad, sophomore good, junior okayish)
GPA Weighted: 2.97
Feb. 7th ACT: 29
Apr. 4th ACT: 27 (10 writing)
Rank: 51st Percentile
4-5 Years of all core subjects, including Spanish
Lots of Honors and AP Classes. Took several AP Exams. Will have 9 AP’s upon graduation.</p>

<p>**I have 2 F’s on my transcript, but they do not reflect my academic potential and I will be attaching a sheet explaining the situation and why it happened and what I’ve learned/gained.</p>

<p>-I’m captain of the dance team, cross country team, and track team.
-I’ve been to two psychology summer camps over the last 2 years.
-I am in a statewrite youth writers association
-I have a job and work 30 hours every week.
-I have starred in one play and one musical at school
-I am on my class committee
-I am in Mock Trial
-I am in Environmental Club
-I play the Viola in the highest up oprchestra
-I am running for senior senate
-I did chemistry work with my dad over the summer in his lab
-I have 3 poems and one story published
-I was in an Aquafina Commercial</p>

<p>I kno for IU the rec/essay is optional. I’m going to do them both and make sure that they’re great.</p>

<p>So yeah. Worth it? Not so much?</p>

<p>Thanks bunches. =]</p>

2

<p>97% of this year’s IU freshman class was in the top fifty percent of their high school class. That stat says that you don’t have much of a chance of getting in. Your ACT and extracurriculars are outstanding. Unfortunately, IU pays more attention to class rank and gpa than anything else, and they don’t even provide many opportunities to highlight your particular strengths, since essays are optional, probably rarely submitted, and who knows if the admissions people even have the time to read them. IU really likes to see a lot of effort from applicants, and the high aptitude test/relatively low gpa/very low class ranking combination imply a lack of effort. IU can be choosy with out of state students, too, adding high achievers from OSS to counterbalance the aptitude test scores of less talented in-state kids that IU lets in because IU has a legitimate obligation to educated the kids of tax paying citizens if at all possible. If you can get their attention somehow, maybe lots of e-mails to the admissions counselor who has your area, and if you show improvement with your next semester grades and send them as soon as you can to IU. I think you will have to work at it, because I don’t think IU’s admissions process is set up very well to look at cases like yours. Low class rank and the F’s will be difficult to overcome.</p>

3

<p>I did email them already. Like 3 times. And they ignored me.</p>

4

<p>You can click on the map at this link and get the email address of the admissions counselor in your area. Maybe she can help.</p>

<p>[Indiana</a> University Bloomington || Interactive Counselor Map](<a href=“http://emthost.askadmissions.net/Map/indiana/counselor/us-map.html]Indiana”>http://emthost.askadmissions.net/Map/indiana/counselor/us-map.html)</p>

5

<p>Okay, here’s the thing:</p>

<p>Based upon what bthomp1 wrote (most of which I agree with), here’s what you need to do:</p>

<p>Your problem is entirely based upon the grades and rank–because your ACT score (29) puts you in the top 25% of students admitted to Indiana and your ECs (extracurriculars) and number of AP classes far exceeds what you need for Indiana.</p>

<p>In the first semester of your senior year, try to get at least 4 As and 2 Bs. Doing this will move your overall weighted GPA up to about a 3.17 and your weighted GPA since your sophomore year up to at least 3.25 weighted or so. Then apply after the grades come out and you can send the newly revised report card with the new grades to Indiana.</p>

<p>(P.S. Make sure your school puts the weighted GPA on the report card, because Indiana counts whatever is on the report card. If the weighted GPA isn’t on there, get your school counselor to include a letter stating what your weighted GPA is in the envelope with the transcript when it gets sent.)</p>

<p>Now to get these higher grades, you will need to probably cut down on your EC participation somewhere. Right now you are doing dance, track, cross country, mock trial, environmental club, music courses, doing musicals and plays, writing poetry, and working 30 hours. Cutting out either the job temporarily or else cutting out at least three of the activities for this period will probably do the trick.</p>

<p>I suggest you not apply until after the new grades come out–because if you apply before then and are rejected, you have to wait a longer period to apply (like one year). You are fortunate because Indiana has a rolling admissions schedule, which many schools don’t have. </p>

<p>Can you get the grades I mentioned? That’s up to you–but by doing fewer ECs or less at a job, then you should have the time you need. Just remember–your focus should be on grades more than anything else next semester–and even all of next year (and you can even start this summer if you want to take classes then). Right now, I think you can do this. And if you do have some trouble, you can even wait until after the Spring Semester is over if it takes that long to get the grades up high enough. (Did you know that Indiana is still accepting some applications for this coming Fall semester right now?–so you can wait to apply and still get in.)</p>

<p>Good luck.</p>

<p>P.S. There are probably two reasons Indiana isn’t responding right now–(1) the semester just finished, so many people are on vacation from now until after the Memorial Day holiday, and (2) nobody at the school is allowed to tell you how you will do if you apply–that isn’t allowed, since implying an acceptance and then rejecting you would open them up to a lawsuit–so they won’t tell you your chances, if that is what you write them about. Instead, just ask general questions about what it takes to get in and then go to this website:</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.indiana.edu/~upira//reports/compliance/doc/common_dataset/CDS_2008/IUB_2008.pdf[/url]”>http://www.indiana.edu/~upira//reports/compliance/doc/common_dataset/CDS_2008/IUB_2008.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>where you can get statistics on the average composition of those who were accepted and enrolled last year.</p>

6

<p>One other thing–when you do apply to Indiana, either apply as undecided or else choose a less competitive major. That is, avoid applying as a major in business, music, nursing, journalism or sports management. </p>

<p>You can always switch majors later if you really need to, but for admission purposes, you’d be better off choosing something like philosophy, political science, or geology.</p>

7

<p>That is great advice Calcruzer gave. You definitely need to raise the gpa.</p>

<p>Also, you might even want to take a couple of classes at a cc in Michigan this summer and get good grades in them. This could demonstrate some commitment to IU. I see from another post you are from Benton Harbor. Their cc summer session starts the last week of June.</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

8

<p>To those who say you only need a pulse to be admitted to IUB, the facts obviously differ. As bthomp1 states, 97% of 2008 enrollees were in the top 50% of their class. A little further down in the report Calcruzer linked, you can also see that approximately 95% of 2008 enrollees had GPAs of 3.0 and above. </p>

<p>Maybe, years ago, it was easier to get in, but standards have been raised and, especially for OOS students, it’s not a sure thing anymore.</p>

<p>If you are serious about IU, follow Calcruzer’s advice and get your GPA up next semester.</p>

9

<p>also the average ACT incoming fr. is 26</p>

10

<p>Take some easy classes and get your GPA up. If you don’t get in, take a semester of community college classes and re-apply. Stop re-taking the ACT…you seem to be getting worse.</p>

<p>Being white and from Benton Harbor is an unusual combination. Perhaps you could mention that in an application. Isn’t that the city where the police cars were repossessed?</p>

11

<p>If you never apply you will never know. And a rejection is just a rejection. Don’t be afraid. You are going to apply to more than one school anyway. Do what you can to get over that 3.0 hump. Even if you apply early, they may wait to see your fall senior grades.</p>

12

<p>Be smart about your senior year classes instead of opting for the easy ones :slight_smile: Though IU gets a zillion applications, good grades in moderately challenging classes are better than great grades…you get the picture. I agree with the advice to take a class at a cc this summer - take something you’re interested in and that you’re reasonably sure you’ll do well in.</p>

13

<p>Since IU places more emphasis on GPA and rank, it is super important for those to shoot up senior year. Here is what I recommend:</p>

<p>Raise your GPA and ACT score just a little and get rewarded. I think if you can get your GPA over a 3.0, there is something visibly more appealing than a 2.99. Seriously, that is not a joke. Stores do it in the opposite by pricing items just under the dollar because customers see the first digit and think it’s less. Same goes for your GPA, but in the opposite way. Get your GPA at or above that 3.0 and it looks higher. How can you do that?<br>
*Quit the job if you can and use the extra time to study like crazy for classes; even when there is no homework, YOU will study.
*Start studying for fall right NOW. Yes, it’s summer soon, but you have a plan and you don’t want to waste this perfect study season. Sit by the pool with you senior class materials or an ACT study guide! :wink:
*Cut back on the extras a bit. You already have more than enough to impress Bloomington.<br>
*As soon as possible, get tutoring in any class that seems even remotely hard. If you see that your grades slip on one assignment, immediately get help! Studying every night, even when there’s no homework, will help you do better on tests. Better safe than sorry.
*If possible, prepare for and retake that ACT. If you can pull it up into the 30s, I think that seeing a 3 in the tens place makes a difference. :)</p>

<p>When you apply, (you should) include a detailed explanation about those low grades. Did someone die in the family? Were there any domestic issues taking place? Did something else happen that could have caused that dip in grades? My grades freshman and sophomore years were low, too, but the reason was detailed in letters of recommendation and in one essay, (I was very sick.) Yes, the IU essay’s optional…but not if you want to go there!!! And especially since you are a fantastic writer! :slight_smile: Dazzle them with a brilliant essay!! </p>

<p>I think that if your senior grades rise (pulling up your GPA and rank), and you can bump that 29 to a 30, your unique and engaging essay will put you over the edge to a fat envelope. GOOD LUCK!!! :)</p>