Looking to optimize which of my choices to apply to / general advice [3.47? GPA, 1530 SAT; CS, math, Chinese language, music]

Chance Me / Match Me
1

I have looked into a lot of different choices, but need help deciding where best to spend effort actually applying to. Interested primarily in theoretical leaning CS and Mathematics, but would like to have access to a Chinese and music program of some substance.

Demographics

  • Female
  • White
  • Midwest
  • Private School (20ish ivy admits a year)
  • No fin-aid required
  • No hooks

Testing

  • SAT: 1530 (little to no preparation, will retake once)
  • Calc BC: 5 (self study, taken end of sophomore year)
  • APUSH: 5 (junior year)
  • Physics C Mechanics: 5 (junior year)

Notes on Coursework / Grading by year

Freshmen (3.38 UW, 3.46 W)

  • Mix of A and B grades
  • 1 honors, 0 AP Courses
  • Bā€™s in honors biology
  • C+ in Chinese I first semester
  • Intro CS and Geometry Class

Sophomore (3.75 UW, 3.84 W)

  • Nearly entirely straight Aā€™s
  • 1 honors, 0 AP Courses
  • Bā€™s in honor chemistry
  • Algebra II Class

Junior (3.30 UW, 3.85 W)

  • Mostly B grades
  • 0 honors, 2 AP Courses, 1 Advanced
  • Straight Aā€™s in Chinese III
  • Bā€™s in both AP classes
  • C+'s in Advanced Calculus II (crazy teacher)

Senior

  • not yet started
  • 3 honors, 0 AP course, 2 Advanced
  • Multivariate Calculus and Linear Algebra (my fav teacher)

Extracurriculars

  • intramural sports only
  • model UN freshmen year, no accomplishments
  • agricultural gardening volunteer club (200ish total hours)

Context of the grades

I am roughly 50th percentile GPA wise, weighted and unweighted. There are many levels of AP classes and above, so you can get GPA boosts without necessarily taking (relatively) harder classes. Nearly 90% AP pass rate, 100% for BC and Physics. I got extremely unlucky with my teachers junior year, not necessarily mean people, but their teaching was subpar at best, and their tests were absolutely mad for non-uni classes, curves from like a 40% to a 105%.

Other Application Information

Essays havenā€™t been written yet, but I expect them to be strong as I have always been told I am a strong writer, even if I cannot verify this for myself. Letters of recommendation are likely to be very positive, though none are from teachers in my subject area as Iā€™ve not had any Iā€™ve gotten on well with. Donā€™t want to apply ED anywhere. Not sure where to EA. School does not rank students.

Potential Colleges in Tier-List Fashion

Ranking based on a combination of what I think I know about each schools academics, culture, experience, and general utility to me in my own personal circumstances.

S

  • MIT
  • Williams
  • Amherst
  • Pomona
  • Harvey Mudd
  • Harvard
  • Oxford
  • Brown

A

  • Princeton
  • UCL
  • Imperial
  • Haverford
  • Swarthmore

B

  • University of Edinburgh
  • Colgate
  • NYU Shanghai
  • University of Toronto
  • Hamilton

C

  • Safeties with guaranteed admission

If you need any additional information to help me, please ask.

2

What is your budget?

3

Why did you self study ? Many of the schools you aspire to wonā€™t give AP credit.

If your school has 20 Ivy admits, theyā€™ll know where kids like you get into but perhaps an open curriculum school or one that allows multiple majors might be of interest ?

Chinese at many schools is limited.

On paper it seems you are far over reaching but given you go to such an esteemed private school, the normal rules may not apply.

1 Like
4

my family is thankfully going to be able to handle most places, if not with total ease, so not too big a factor.

5

I self studied BC because they wouldnā€™t let me take the class.

6

specifically they would force me to take precalc which didnā€™t interest me, and I couldnā€™t take physics, but bio, which also doesnā€™t interest me. Open curriculum is definitely a big reason I put amherst and brown so high up there.

7

Thereā€™s a reason they wouldnā€™t let you take them.

I canā€™t speak for your school, hence talk to the counselor, but if you said generic public school, your lack of rigor and gpa would preclude you from these. The test is not a sub for rigor etc.

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8

Iā€™m not quite sure I understand, but they wouldnā€™t let me take physics simply because they required a 3 or higher on calc AB as a prerequisite.

9

You self studied BC. got a 5. Then took what I assume is a similar class. You got a C.

The test is not a sub for the class. The C+ hurts you. The 5 does not help.

Kalamazoo is an LAC with an open curriculum. I havenā€™t checked into your interests. Iā€™m sure a safety. Many on her with music recommend St Olaf and with multiple majors Case Western.

Your profile is unique and I urge you to talk to school counselors but Iā€™m guessing you need to take your list down a few notches.

There are many many many schools, private and public, that will fit bucket C.

1 Like
10

Have you had any college advising yet? Do you have access to Naviance? These things would put your grades, scores, etc into context, which we donā€™t have. So, with that caveat, virtually all the schools you list are reaches, or as @AustenNut characterizes them, very low probability schools. I would strongly urge you to refocus your search on high probability schools.

1 Like
11

Oh yes, I see. I definitely understand the 5 being no substitute for the class, it is what I most dislike about my application. I have many safeties that I know about, and am confident in. Do you have any recommendations for more realistic colleges for a B or A tier? Region is unimportant.

12

Yes, I have met with the college counseling team a little bit, and they seem to agree on me needing more likely choices. I am just unsure how to prioritize.

13

The purpose of prerequisites is not to provide you with classes that interest you. The purpose is to make sure that you have a strong foundation before moving ahead. Your up and down performance suggests that you are plenty smart and capable but have weak prep in core areas.

Why not let your guidance counselor take the lead here?? Self studying is not a substitute for a comprehensive and rigorous HS prepā€¦

You may not be interested in bioā€¦but every prospective math or stem student will need to master the core components of a scientific education before advancingā€¦bio, chem, physics with labs, and solid performance in advanced statistics and calculus. Your prep seems all over the placeā€¦

5 Likes
14

Depends on what kind of school interests you - size etc but Iā€™d again talk to your counselors. But a school like Richmond or St Olaf or Franklin and Marshall are fantastic LACs with great names that are easier but not easy then what you chose. And a tier lower Rhodes, Furman, Sewanee.

But you have distinct interests. Finding a school to fit those matters more than name.

Rochester, Wesleyan, and more have open curriculums with Kalamazoo a safety thatā€™s open. Smith and Hampshire are worth a look too. Not sure if they match with your varied interests.

Talk to the school. 20 Ivies a year. They have good intel.

15

Ok, thanks for the schools! I will look into these and talk with my counselor about the balance on this list with some adjustments.

16

These are the most important. Find two assured. They may be public LACs like UNC Asheville, St Maryā€™s MD, College of Charleston, Christopher Newport and more. In the Midwest, Truman State or privates like K I mentioned, Depauw, Wooster etc.

You only have large out of country schools but depending on your state - the flagship. Thereā€™s great publics that are safe for you - the Iowa and Kansas Schools, Mizzou, a few in Ohio, Indiana etc.

After that ( two assured and affordable) you can shoot for the moon. But with your list has the potential for a lot of rejection so you have to be prepared for that.

But you can only go to one - I prefer two safeties in case - so if you are rejected, it doesnā€™t matter. You still will have a great home. But focus on finding these - they are the most important on your list, far more important than the high reaches.

Ps - u seem to like prestige. Check out RPI and Rose Hulman.

But I urge you to find the right environment for yourself and not just a big name.

You will be somewhere for four years, day after day. Once on campus the big name does nothing to bring happiness.

Good luck.

17

Honestly, my counselor never viewed any of this as a problem before. I am certainly not trying to self study my way out of things, more self study my way into things I think will be more beneficial to learn earlier on. I will ask them more about this, but Iā€™m not really missing any major fields, Iā€™ve taken bio and chem, but I didnā€™t think I had time to do their AP counterparts in HS, so I prioritized filling in physics. Can you elaborate on the prep being ā€˜all over the placeā€™?

18

I did look into rit, rpi, stevens and such, but I didnā€™t like their technical feel. I think a lot of the ā€œmore prestigousā€ schools unfortunately lined up with a more academic/theoretical focus. Thank you for the info.

19

I think youā€™ll do better in the U.K., since the SAT and AP scores are what matter. But Oxford, Imperial and UCL are probably still out of reach (Imperial is a tougher admit than UCL).

Add some more universities that are comparable to Edinburgh. Maybe Durham and St Andrews, since you appear to be keen on prestige, and KCL if you like London. If limiting your list to 5 UCAS schools, you should drop Oxford and/or Imperial.

You will need a reference from a math teacher, the one you have senior year (your ā€œfavoriteā€) could work if you drop Oxford and only need to apply in Dec/Jan.

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20

Does the UCAS only operate in a single go, like if I do oxford earlier, I canā€™t wait on the others? Or do you just mean that I would need a math rec for oxford, which I couldnā€™t get?