Letters of Rec

Colleges & Universities University of Michigan
1

<p>D is a junior, out of state, GPA 4.1 uw soph and junior yrs. All honors - 5 APs. Will take SAT next week. PSAT not great (1864.) Dad is an alum.</p>

<p>Her strongest component will be teacher recs. She’s got three teachers who taught her as a freshman and now as a junior and have marveled at her growth. </p>

<p>Any problem with submitting three teacher recs? They will be in English, Social Studies and Spanish. (Ironically, her strongest subject is math.) How important are these rec letters to admissions officers?</p>

<p>Does she have a shot in general?</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

2

<p>4.1 UW and 1864 PSAT are both impossible. I don’t see why sending extra recs could hurt but I think they only require 1.</p>

3

<p>“Impossible” as in she doesn’t have a chance? She’s taking a SAT review course and will take the SATs twice.</p>

<p>Forgive me, but as my name suggests, I’m new to this.</p>

4

<p>No, he’s saying that an “UW” GPA can not be above a 4.0 (unless it’s on a 5.0 scale which is not exactly common in the US). Also the PSAT scores do not go that high. I believe the highest is 240 (a composite of 3 different scores that each range from 20-80).</p>

5

<p>Oh, sorry. In her HS they count an A as a 4.0 and an A+ as a 4.5. I thought all (or most schools did it that way.) Then when they calculate the weighted GPA they add another .5 for honors and 1.0 for AP classes. </p>

<p>And she got a 186 on the PSAT. That was a typo.</p>

6

<p>No, most schools calculate on a 4.0 scale. Could you please do the same? A=4, B=3, C=2,etc. Use end-of-semester grades if possible.</p>

<p>I can’t say anything until she takes the SAT. The PSAT is nothing like the SAT. I got an 180 on my sophomore PSAT and a 192 on my junior PSAT.</p>

<p>I took a Kaplan course for the SAT and got a 2230. Although the Kaplan course didn’t teach me much, it did give me motivation and opportunity to practice.</p>

<p>So, until I hear about her GPA on a 4.0 scale as well as her SAT, I cna’t give a fair chance.</p>

<p>Letters of Recs are not the most important part of an application, but they could cause a university to “take a chance” on a student with records slightly below their usual students.</p>

7

<p>Well the best I can do is to tell you that on a 4.0 scale, she has a 4.0 uw gpa.</p>

<p>I won’t be able to tell you anything about the SAT until after next Saturday. She’s been taking a review class and working diligently. She’ll also take the SAT in October. If she scores, say over 2100 does she have a shot? She has good ec’s and she’ll have great teacher recs.</p>

8

<p>Big problem here is that UMich will rely a bit heavier on scores than recs. OOS also hurts her chances. But yeah, if she gets above 2100 her chances will get much better.</p>

9

<p>With a 2100 she has an average/below average chance.</p>

<p>Above 2250 and she’ll have a great chance.</p>

10

<p>With a 4.0 and a even a decent SAT score, as long as she has some ECs and applies early she should be fine. Try to apply by early October THE LATEST.</p>