OFFICIAL Bowdoin College 2014 DECISION THREAD

starryeyed615
Sat, 27 Mar 2010 20:48:41 +0000

Decision: Rejected :(

Objective:
SAT I: 800 CR 740 M 800 W
ACT: Didn’t take
SAT II: 790 Lit 730 Math IIC 730 US History (Submitted all)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.75
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Unsure, school does not rank.
AP (place score in parenthesis): US History (5), English Literature and Composition (5), European History (5), French Language (4)
Senior Year Course Load: (School does not offer honors or AP classes)
AB Calculus
French Literature II
Modern African History
South African Literature
Greek I
Acting and Dramatic Literature

Subjective:
Extracurriculars:
Ballet, 13 years 6 days/week
School Orchestra, First Violin
Manual Photography
School Newspaper - Staff writer and photography editor
School Tour Guide
Co-head/Co-founder of GSA
Co-head of Model United Nations
Babysitting 5 days/week
Athletics:
None, unless you count ballet.
Volunteer/Community service:
None expressed directly, however School Tour Guide comes under this category.
Essays:
Common App – Living with a host family in France, the various linguistic impediments to communication in both French and English.
Bowdoin supplement – Finding an academic environment where people were unafraid to be passionate about their interests - something I experienced in high school and recognized at Bowdoin.
Teacher Recommendation: Didn’t read, but can safely guess that one was exceptional and the other was also extremely positive though not quite on a par (I’m very close to one of the teachers who wrote for me)
Counselor Rec: Didn’t like me very much, but I’m sure it was solid. No way she’d intentionally sabotage a student.
Supplementary Rec: 8 year old for whom I babysit. She’s quite articulate
Interview: Student interviewer which only occurred at Bowdoin. The interview itself was great though, couldn’t have asked for a better one.

Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: English
State (if domestic applicant): NY
School Type: Small, private, all-girls.
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: <$50,000
Hooks: The closest thing approaching a hook for any application would be ballet I think, not especially helpful at Bowdoin (although the dance department is being expanded)

Reflection
Strengths: Essay (I think), Extracurriculars, Work Experience
Weaknesses: Some bad grades on my transcript from freshman/sophomore year, leading to a weaker GPA than my junior/senior fall grades would suggest.
Why you think you were rejected: I wish they told you this! (Not just Bowdoin, anyone) I suppose I simply wasn’t of the calibre they were looking for, or didn’t seem like I’d be a good fit.
General Comments: Devastated sounds melodramatic, but it’s accurate. Congratulations to all those who were accepted though and enjoy Bowdoin - it’s a really unique, special place.