Senior in HS
UW GPA: 3.4
W GPA: 3.8
SAT: 1570 (780M / 790 R&W)
Taken 5 AP’s by end of Junior year and 10 AP’s by graduation
About a half dozen honors and community college courses as well
Mostly A’s and B’s, with a bit of an upward trend
UW GPA will be 3.5 after senior year
5s and 4s on all AP exams
EC:
Varsity Debate (4 years)
Internship
A lot of different political EC’s and community service/volunteering
Nothing incredible here but I stayed committed to my EC’s for all four years and they all sort of have a theme of social justice and community service
Essays and Rec’s are good but again nothing incredible
I’m not sure where I have a chance of actually going because my grades are not terrific but I have taken the strongest possible course rigor at my school and have a pretty high SAT
For reach schools I’ve got:
Tufts
Boston Uni
Uni of Rochester
William and Mary
Case Western
Northeastern
And for targets I have:
UW Madison
Uni of Maryland
GWU
How will colleges see lower GPA but high SAT? Do my targets/reaches seem reasonable? Do I have a chance at say UVA or UNC oos? What about Georgetown / USC / Lehigh / Villanova? If anyone could suggest more targets that would be great. Any help is much appreciated.
I think that your matches and safeties need to be matches and safeties given your unweighted GPA.
A high SAT and a low GPA looks like bad study habits. When you go to university you are going to find classes are tougher. It is going to be important to keep ahead in your class work, to attend every class, and to always pay attention.
It is not unusual for strong students to suddenly discover that they need to develop good study skills in a hurry.
I disagree with DadTwoGirls. Other than GWU as a target, I don’t think your reaches and targets are so unrealistic, particularly since Covid throws everything up in the air. Just add some very solid safeties (acceptance rate at least 50%) to the mix.
I think your list is fine and that you’ll have options in the spring. If I were a betting person, I would guess that Tufts will be a no - they are very stats conscious - but your social justice interests will help.
Trinity is very strong in economics. Union is also good. Both are smaller than those on your list and in smaller cities if you want to expand your list.
Definitely keep up your grades senior year. If you end up on a WL, showing that you finished strong could make a difference. It sounds like your senior grades will be your best, and that’s not always the case!
My kid had a similar profile. I would give some thought to why your grades aren’t higher (especially because your AP scores suggest you have mastered the material.) Do you use the tests in school as a way of assessing your understanding rather than doing that assessment in preparing for them? Do you not hand in work on time? Might you have an LD that you need a better strategy to manage? Could you be more strategic in your allocation of time so that you are spending the most time on the assignments that will be most heavily weighted? Do you not understand what the teacher is looking for You? You sound very capable and figuring out what is breaking down could help. (Sorry, that wasn’t the advice you came looking for!)
Does your school have Naviance? At D’s school, your GPA wouldn’t be considered exceptionally low, and some colleges know that. UW Madison out of state I think would be a reach (it would be at our school). Lehigh didn’t make their numbers last year, if I remember correctly, so they may be accepting more this year. Your counselor may also have some insight on these schools.
Remember, it going to be the transcript, not simple cum GPA. Rigor and grades in cores, especially those related to the possible major, matter most.
You can’t control for LoRs, but use the time to go over the big essay and any supp answers. Show the traits they look for, relevant to a college admit review.
Unless you are appying for a T20 school, a great list of ECs can replace the points for your average/low GPA during the admissions process. I heard this from a very famous private college counselor so it should be pretty accurate. Focus on your essays and make sure that your GPA trend isn’t downhill.
@Qwerty0128 Did you match those schools against your specific GPA/SAT combo? Some schools weigh GPA more heavily and some are more balanced. In all cases, it’s important. Also, is your school a place where the average GPA is something like 4.2 or it it a place where grades aren’t inflated?
Did you place in TOC in debate or regionals? Having an EC where you clearly excel can help a lot. Just being part of an EC for a specific amount of time matter less.
If the rigor is strong that would be another factor in your favor. Lots of AP’s or the highest level offered with advanced classes would be a plus in your favor.
I’d run your scores through one of those online calculators. BTW, an unusually high score on an SAT can help a lot. What they would be looking for, is laziness or some other issue which has kept your grades low. Hopefully you have an upward trend. Good luck.
Your SAT is evidence that you have the intelligence to excel. Apply wherever you want to go. When you get there, work on your study habits. Fraternities keep files of old exams to make things easier.
My son also had high SAT and more average grades/many APs. He is attending one of your reach schools and got wait listed at another on the reach list. He applied EA to the admit and RD for the wait list. He probably would have had a better chance if he EA.