~!My Chances!~ Minorities

silly09er
Tue, 29 Sep 2009 19:18:40 +0000

I wouldn’t give up hope just yet! I agree with wis75, that you should talk to your high school guidance counselor and have some backup options just in case Madison doesn’t work out! You can always transfer (That’s what I’m doing right now!), and you never know, you may find a school you end up liking more! But even if you don’t think you’ll get in, apply. Because if you don’t you’ll end up regretting it and you’ll be mad with yourself (sorry I don’t know if you applied already or not. But, that being said…here are a few things I would say…

1) I would retake the ACT again. a 21 isn’t terrible, but UW is a large public school that’s becoming more and more selective each year. A 21 is below what most kids who apply to and get into UW have, so you’ll want to try and bump it up. I know how you feel though…I retook the ACT four times, and I was ready to light that stupid test, along with the test proctor on fire. But it paid off, because I went from a 26 to a 31. Also, is there a type of ACT tutor class you could take? I never took one (didn’t have the money for them), but if you really want to improve, I would suggest either looking for an ACT tutor (they proved very helpful for my friends), or else buy the ACT study book and go through it a couple times. That’s what I did, and it did wonders for me! I’m sure your high school counselor can help you with that stuff.

2) Actually, I think you’re minority status will help you somewhat. Yes, it is a large public school with 30,000+ kids, but last time I looked, UW’s Asian American population was less than 10% (I want to say 6 or 7%, but I’m not entirely sure, it could be even less than that). It’s not like you’re applying to a UC school, where there are ALOT of Asian Americans applying every year. Your Vietnamese/Cambodian background will help, i think.

3) Have you considered writing a small statement to the school, as like a supplement to your application, about why you’re grades dropped? Sometimes, if you give an explanation of why they dropped like that (your uncle’s illness for example), they take that into consideration. I’m not saying it’ll push your application right to the top, but if they see there was some sort of life event that affected you, it gives them insight that you weren’t just being a slacker and didn’t care about your grades.

Overall, I wouldn’t say your chances are downright awful, but you may have a harder time getting in because of your low ACT score. But again, still apply! Because you never know, you may just get in with the stats you have now! And trust me, you don’t want regrets of not applying to that “one” school. It makes me mad just thinking about it! lol…

Hope that helps! GOOD LUCK!