Let me give you a little information about myself. I’m 1st in my class at my high school. My freshman year I took two AP classes, AP U.S. Government and AP Biology, scoring a 5 and 4 respectively on them. This year I am taking AP World History, AP Physics 1, and AP Computer Science. I have a 4.0 GPA (unweighted). I’m proud of my accomplishments, but no matter how well I do, I know there’s always room for improvement. I also realize that there are people out there who are WAY more intelligent than I can ever dream of being. I currently want to major in Biochemistry and attend Medical School. I’m looking at 4 colleges to apply to my senior year, and have listed them below. This list is very flexible. I have listed what I think my chances are of attending based on a 1-10 scale, with 1 being high unlikely and 10 highly likely:
Emory- 8
Dartmouth- 6
Columbia- 6
Harvard- 3 (A stretch really, but it would be a wonderful opportunity)
I was very pleased when I received my scores, but I want to push myself to achieve a score of 2200+ on the SAT. Does this seem feasible? I believe I did well on the Writing Skills portion of the PSAT because I am pretty adapt at recognizing grammar errors and the like but I’m afraid that my Writing section may drop when I take the SAT since it includes a section with ACTUAL writing. This is because I have had a long train of teachers who did little of any writing in English class. I’d also like an opinion of what YOU think my chances are of getting into these colleges. I realize that more goes into a college admission decision than the information I’ve listed, but based on PSAT scores and the background I’ve given, what do you think my chances are and do you think my SAT goal is obtainable?
1.) Seek advice from others far more qualified than me, but it appears that your odds of getting into Med School would probably be better if you go to a less selective college for undergrad.
2.) Look at the National Merit Competition threads and find the qualifying PSAT score for your state. If you can raise your PSAT above the cutoff and, apparently, avoid Cs on your transcript you very well could complete your undergrad for almost nothing.
3.) Read and write every day. My experience has been that reading challenging material will help your own writing exponentially.
4.) To get into a highly selective college you will need a lot more than stats. Really work on your writing and find something to do in your spare time that you are passionate about and that will help you learn more about yourself. Your essays will be your chance to differentiate yourself from 10,000 other applicants whose stats are as good or better than yours.
Quick Question. Is your reasoning for me having a better chance of getting to med school based on the fact that I would have better grades in a less selective college?
Then again, some highly selective colleges have a reputation for grade inflation.
Some schools, like Case Western Reserve and the University of Toledo guarantee Medical School acceptance for accepted freshmen who meet certain criteria by the time they finish undergrad.
Not to come off as criticizing you, but non-selective colleges don’t just hand degrees out. Just because the school is “low” ranked doesn’t mean that you won’t have to work just as hard as you would at a selective school. Best of luck, and congrats on a great score.
I’m sorry if I came off as arrogant, that was my last intention! I understand that attending college practically anywhere is going to require effort on my part. I was merely curious to know if there was more behind greeninohio’s statement. Something important I left off is that I will not be able to attend college unless I “scholarship” my way through. Yet another reason improving my SAT score is important to me. Any additional comments based on this extra information?
OP, you should look up poster @mom2collegekids. She has a son in Med School and a great deal of very good advic about admissions/financial aid/etc. I’m just a guy in Ohio waiting for my son’s admission/denial letters to start coming in.
You should go to the best place you get into, because you may do a 180 and not want to do medicine anymore.
Read the pinned topics (xiggi’s guide, silverturtle’s guide) to understand how to score well on the SAT. The essay is mostly about length and a few quality examples, not actual writing ability. I think you’re in great shape to get 2200+.
As for your school ambitions, nothing you said really sets you apart from all the other qualified candidates. Definitely apply to some good match and safety schools, write terrific essays, get good recs, and go for it. Best of luck!
I doubt it. She seems very willing to lend advice to people - whether they want to hear it or not. She definitely knows what she’s talking about, though.
Let me write a little more about what distinguishes me as an individual. I’m hispanic and I was originally born in Mexico, but moved here at the age of 8 months (legally!). I consider myself to be in lower-middle class. I am heavily involved in 4-H and the band program at my school. Examples of some the highlights I have experienced through 4-H:
*A Part of the County Board which is comprised of the 5 most involved 4-Hers that have made it through a rigorous interview.
*Attended Adopt-A-Stream Workshops, certified in Chemical and Biological Stream Monitoring
*Taught an Enviroscape class to 250+ 6th graders at a “Water Field Day”
*Helped run monthly 4-H meetings
*Ran a “Jeopardy” game station with information on water pollution
*A teen leader at a summer camp for 5th and 6th graders (Along with 1 adult, took care of a cabin with 20 kids. Responsibilities such as disease, medication administration, punctuality, etc. fell on us)
*Worked at county fair food booth
*Ran a game station at Halloween party for kids in poverty with no access to safe candy
*Placed 1st in state competition called Project Achievement- (4-Hers from all over the state first attend a district competition where 50% of your score comes from a collection of all the activities you have done in 4H, with pictures and a letter and the other 50% from a 12 minute memorized presentation on a chosen topic. Then they proceed to the state competition and if they place 1st again get the opportunity to attend a National Congress, a $700 trip that is paid for by lovely donors, with 4-Hers from all over the country )
*Currently in the process of a Food Product Development Team that challenges 4Hers to design a food and everything that goes along with selling a food (marketing, packaging, etc.)
Here are some of my the band activities I’m a part of/accomplishments:
*1st chair underclass percussionist
*Member of the Jazz Band
*Member of the Symphonic (Highest Level) Band
*Member of the Marching Band
I find it harder to elaborate on my band experiences without dragging on, so I’ll leave it at that. Probably wrote too much that most people care to read anyway. I want to reiterate that these are some of the highlights in these extracurriculars and I do other things as well. Any additional comments?
Are you low income? Maybe look into Questbridge. There is a Questbridge forum on CC. I don’t believe they have hard and fast income requirements, but you would probably have to be Pell Grant eligible. There is a FAFSA forecaster on the FAFSA.gov website that would tell you if you are. Google Questbridge and visit their website. If nothing else, it will give you some other schools to think about - schools that meet 100% of demonstrated need. They are hard to get into, but some might be more realistic than Harvard.
Improving to a 2200+ is feasible. In your “chances” did you assume you would achieve that score? If not, you’re chance assumptions are extremely optimistic. With a 2080 I doubt you’d have a 30% chance to get into any of the Ivy’s in which you’ve expressed interest. If you’re only applying to four schools, or even 4 plus a safety or two, you should consider more likely options even if you score 2200.
I was assuming reaching a 2200. I should have specified, pardon. I was considering Emory as “more” of a safety than the others but obviously it’s still a rigorous school and difficult to get into. What do you think my chances would be of entrance into Emory with these stats?
More than 25% of admitted applicants score over 2250. I think you’d be safer if you can get to 2250. Even then, its hard to say you’re more than 50/50 since they only accept about 27% of applicants. If you apply to a few schools of this caliber, keep your grades up, write strong essays and get over 2200, I think you’d have a very strong chance of getting into at least 1. The Ivy’s you mentioned are worth applying to only if you are applying to more than 4 schools - they’re a reach for valedictorians with 2400s.
Ok, so I’ve done a bit more research. I have used the FAFSA estimator and it says I do not qualify for any federal aid (by like a few thousand sighs). However, I went onto the Dartmouth net price calculator and it says they would be able to reduce costs to about $8,000 based on the information I entered. If I do not qualify for FAFSA I believe they will give no help. I’m not sure how the FAFSA calculator works but clearly if (estimates) my parents earn $70,000 a year and a college costs $65,000, my parents can’t afford to live on $5,000. Not sure about that logic, but there must be some thought I just don’t know behind it. Any tips or suggestions. I’m kind of lost since I was counting on need-based scholarships.