I forgot to post here, but I got matched to Oberlin through QuestBridge on December 1st which means that I received a full ride. Gpa 3.6 and 25ACT
I finally heard back from Irvine, so I can fully write down everything here!
When I applied, I was Level 5 (3.5UW, 3.7W)
Accepted:
Rutgers University (Honors College, $16000 merit scholarship)
University of Miami ($18000 merit scholarship)
Lewis & Clark College ($23000 merit scholarship)
Elon University ($6000 scholarship)
Rhodes College (deferred initially for lack of demonstrated interest, $27500 scholarship)
NYU (Gallatin)
Lafayette College
UCSC
Deferred Conditional Acceptance (or something??)
George Washington University (rejected from the university but accepted into their Paris Scholars Program)
Rejected:
Emory University & Oxford College
University of Washington
Vanderbilt
Barnard College
Bowdoin College
UC Davis
UCLA
UC Irvine
Waitlisted:
Tulane University
American University
Scripps College
Colgate University
Brandeis University
UCSD
UCSB
It’s a pretty even split, so I’m happy with it! I honestly thought I applied to too many schools (which, yeah), but if I had gone with my original list, I would have only been accepted at NYU and UCSC.
Notes for people to consider when looking at this:
- I’m in-state CA so that might have had an effect on my UC acceptances/rejections
- I don’t qualify for need-based aid at all
- I’m not a legacy anywhere unless you consider my sister going to UMiami as a legacy
- I mostly applied for Political Science (except NYU) or a combination with other majors, English or IR as my secondary at UCs, which may have helped in some ways, but not necessarily
- colleges apparently liked my essays even though I’d consider them mediocre (I got a P.S. about them on my Lewis & Clark app)
- great recs (I’m pretty sure) + somewhat mediocre ECs
- National Merit Finalist + 35ACT + pretty good AP scores
- my high school is apparently pretty competitive (and being from CA, I know I’m not in the top 10% because that gets you guaranteed admission to at least one UC)
Live out your dreams, friends! Don’t let this site convince you that you’re not going anywhere because you don’t have high stats - you’re going to go where you need to go, and do what you need to do, and you’re all going to end up fine!!
D had a 3uw and a 3.7w. 31 ACT. Mostly honors, 4 APs. Three varsity sports, lots of volunteering, mock trial, junior exec board, part time job. Interviewed almost everywhere and visited. Here are her results:
Accepted:
Allegheny (Honors program with 28k merit)
Dickinson (no merit)
Gettysburg (10k merit)
UMaine (15k merit)
URoch (haven’t yet heard on merit, not expecting a lot)
Siena (23k merit)
St. Lawrence (10k merit)
Susquehanna (Honors program with 29k merit)
Washington & Jefferson (28k merit)
Waitlisted: F&M, Conn College, Lafayette
Denied: Hamilton
When I chanced her at the beginning of this process the results that came in were grim. So take what you hear on cc with a grain of salt. We were very happy with the results.
I had a 3.4 uw and a 3.7 w got into Tulane, Dickinson, Uconn, Providence, Fairfield, and Gettysburg
I just wanted to say how much I love this thread and congrats to all of you!!
Son level 5, 32 ACT, URM, denied in state UCLA, UCSB; denied UMich, USC, & UVA; accepted Tulane w/ merit, Univ. of Miami (FL), USC (Carolina) w/ lots of merit, Univ. of Oregon, Indiana
congrats to all!! applying to college was so so difficult this year, this thread is a refreshing moment for this site.
congratulations!!!
@ivybae what was your weighted gpa? Mine after junior year will be 3.5 uw and 3.7 w and I was wondering what your weighted was because my school only sends weighted
@IvyBae ^
UPDATE: I was also admitted into RIT and Smith, and waitlisted at Wellesley. I just committed to UMass Amherst! Though if I get off Wellesely’s waitlist there’s a good chance I’ll go there. Best of luck to next year’s applicants!
I was looking at the naviance from my school and on the scattergrams and the school data it shows that 3-4 people from my school have gotten into Columbia and JHU with a 3.6 Weighted and no one has gotten into BU or BC under the gpa of 4.2 Weighted. I know that admissions are holistic, but this was too surprising
Any possibility that those 2 students are recruited athletes? We have a student from our school admitted to Princeton with an unusually low GPA. That student was a recruited athlete.
No, in my county there is one school that is sport centered that has 99%+ people who are recruited athletes, other than that no one in my school is- it’s not too big on sports. The people with the low gpa’s, I knew of one of them because she had a really great reputation among the teachers and students but she didn’t seem like one of the students the ivies accept.
Congrats everyone! So inspiring! Can you tell me what “level 4” and “level 5” are?
@vkumra - look at the very first post of this thread. It lists the levels; I think 4 is 3.0-3.4 and 5 is 3.5-3.7
Level 5 reporting in (3.7, mid30s ACT)
Accepted: Brandeis, Case Western, Grinnell, URochester, some CTCL schools* & 1 state U
Rejected: Macalester, Oberlin, Wesleyan,
- w/ merit
@throwback Mid 30s act is a 35. The difference would be helplful to know. And congrats on the great schools to choose from soon.
My kid at the end of 11th grade was 3.73 uw but ended up at the end of 12th grade slightly below 3.7 uw. So Level 5 I guess. Probably ended up around 4.2-ish fully weighted upon graduation if you include only his HS classes, and 4.05 UC GPA at the end of 11th grade. Barely in the top 10% of his graduating class, GPA-wise. Sort of had a hook as a nationally ranked chess player who previously represented the US in competitions.
35 ACT, 1540 SAT, 800 Math II, 780 Chem, 5 AP classes after 11th grade, 10.5 AP classes taken total. 13 AP tests taken, 6 5’s 4 4’s 3 3’s. 41.5 CC semester units and 41.33 AP semester units.
Decisions - all for CS
Accepted: UC-Berkeley (SIRed), UCSB, UC-Davis, Northeastern (CyberSecurity major)
Waitlisted: UCSD, UC-Irvine, Carnegie-Mellon (probably would have gotten in with ED)
Took the L: Northwestern, UCLA, Vanderbilt, USC, Stanford
lol @privatebanker - slow on the uptake here … I meant middle of the available ACT range of 30-36. Sorry for being unclear! Kid also solidly in the top 50% of a competitive community.
@ProfessorPlum168 I don’t really know if those GPAs at the beginning of this thread were weighted or unweighted but it sounds as if your kid might be possibly bordering on a (heretofore undefined?) Level 6? In any case congrats on some good options! (And thanks for a useful reality check for all those folks out there who think a 35 is a golden ticket to almost anywhere.)