STUPID QUESTION. can I get into Carleton with 30?

Colleges & Universities Carleton College
1

<p>Would it be an unrealistic and stupid decision to apply Early Decision to Carleton with an ACT score of 30? </p>

<p>Things I heard:
Carleton accepts 47% of applicants. (ED)
Carleton is “self-selecting”
Carleton’s admitted students stats are 29 - 33.</p>

<p>I believe the bottom half of 29-33 are always athletes, legacies, and minorities.
I am none of that!! :(<br>
Instead I am: </p>

<p>An international student
No need for F/A
Attend a competitive private boarding school in New England that sends 50% to ivies.
Impressive EC’s, stellar recommendations, all the less important factors are good. </p>

<p>I know Carleton is very academic, so I am not sure if I can compete with its other academic applicants. I am by no means stupid, as I think the GPA and recs will prove, but I just have unforgivingly low standardized test scores. Carleton’s stats are intimidating me!
Can someone please offer a realistic input?</p>

2

<p>Not stupid at all - it’s great to get a realistic assessment so you don’t either sell yourself short or set yourself up for disappointment. </p>

<p>1 in 3 students went to Carleton with below a 30 ACT (from '07-08 CDS) and Carleton does not put all it’s weight on a single test:) Geography is considered (so international will help a bit). You don’t say what your courseload has been, but if you’ve taken a rigorous schedule (some honors and APs where available) then your good grades and recs will be a strong plus in demonstrating that the test isn’t the whole story. Rigor of hs record and gpa are considered very important, recs, essay, and ECs are important. </p>

<p>With the economic situation, places like Carleton with minimal merit aid may have a decline in apps, so acceptance rate may be a bit higher next year. And not needing FA may help, depending on where in the process they have to shift from need-blind to need-sensitive (a few years ago they shifted from 100% need blind to 85%). </p>

<p>So bottom line, if Carleton is a clear first choice, then definitely apply ED.</p>

3

<p>^ Thank you for your kind reply!! </p>

<p>That’s interesting that FA will affect the admission chance this year, because of America’s current economic situation…</p>

4

<p>ahhhhh, can someone else please comment on this??? </p>

<p>i know you are not a college admission officer, but i’m just so anxious!!! :frowning: :(</p>

<p>i also need to decide soon…
and i don’t want to waste my ED if i have no chance of getting in. you see what i mean…</p>

5

<p>hellomacy, I feel the same way. The statistics suggest that your 30 is right in the middle of 28 - 32 of Carleton’s middle 50%, so you are pretty much very average. Also though, when I read previous posts on this forum, I saw many smart people with 34 and such get rejected from Carleton… haha.
And like what bingle said, they do a hollistic view of the candidate. GPA, EC, recs, etc… which also worries me because I GOT A “D” IN MY LAST MATH CLASS! LOLLLLLLLL
I’m trying my best to ignore it, because strangely the D didn’t bring my overall A- GPA down at all. See? People like me exist, so you shouldn’t worry so much!!!</p>

6

<p>You would only be “wasting” your ED choice by applying to Carleton if there was some other college you wanted to go to even more.</p>