Question about Second Semester GPA Freshman Year and Retaking SATs

Transfer Students
1

<p>I have a freshman friend currently at Vanderbilt who is contemplating transferring to Dartmouth, Duke, etc. </p>

<p>Her first semester GPA was roughly 3.6 but some of these schools recommend at least a 3.8
gpa. If she gets a 4.0 for her midterm grades, will this count as getting a 3.8? </p>

<p>Also she has the opportunity to retake her SATs. She got a 34 on the ACT but a 2150 on her SAT and has no subject tests. Would it be better to take a Math II and Chemistry subject tests or just retake the general SAT if applying for a quantitative major?</p>

<p>Lastly she is interested in both computer science (Arts and Sciences) and biomedical engineering. Although the average stats for the engineering department are higher, being a female applying in the engineering school could be a hook. Should she apply arts and sciences or engineering to give herself the best chance?</p>

2

<p>these are all excellent questions, but the answers depend largely on where your daughter will be applying?</p>

<p>as for GPA, overall they will only look at first semester and high school (not too much weight is placed on mid term reports)</p>

3

<p>I’m not sure I understand why anyone with a 34 ACT would consider retaking the SAT, particularly if they didn’t take any Subject tests to accompany it? </p>

<p>IMO, while it is sometimes advisable to retake the ACT or SAT in college, Subject tests are really only for HS students. Since Subject tests are meant to test subject matter, they are superseded by college coursework. If you take a look at college websites, many schools still require SAT/ACT scores for transfers, but are much more lax about Subject tests.</p>