URM chances of getting into Ivie's or others

Chance Me / Match Me
1

Hello I’m new here just wanted to see my chances.

GENERAL

Graduation date: June 2016
Demographics: black
High school: Best in DC last year. Very competitive catholic school. All boys. Don’t know how I got in but I pay very little cause of financial aid.
State: Washington dc
Will apply for financial aid: yes

ACADEMICS

GPA:
unweighted the only one that matters
3.48

Testing/Scores:

-SAT I: 2010

-ACT:
Composite 34

-AP Tests:
AP comparative politics: 5
AP: lang comp: 5
AP US gov: 5
AP French: 5
AP biology: 3

-SAT Subject Tests:
French and maybe US gov still to take

Courses Taken: every class at my school is honors and starting from junior year you can take AP
I took 6 AP’s junior year

----neatly organized for your reading ease

Extracurriculars:
The thing I am trying to sell about myself to colleges is my interest in international relations and Outreach. First of all I am first generation American as I was born in cameroon and came here starting 9th grade. I’ve been coming here prior to staying fro school so it was easy to get citizenship.

Last year following the outbreak of the ebola virus my uncle and I created a musical group to edutainment people on the virus. We were able to bring in prominent musicians from the stricken countries who were fleeing the virus. We got so much success from our first song “Ebola we can overcome” please check it out. The UN and the World Bank invited us to perform in new York and dc respectively. We have recently been told by the world Bank we could be going to Ethiopia soon.
The name of the group is artists with one voice and I’m the leader with my uncle of many older and experienced musicians.
We are performing for many activists groups in the DC area for the moment

Other EC’s:
Varsity soccer 10 11 12 and jv captain 9 grade
Awareness of black culture group head 11 and 12
Latin club
student activities coordinator
john Hopkins center for talented youth
had a full time job since 9 th grade aND help pay for my tuition this messes my grades up though too much time working.
Tutor 7 th graders at my school we have a middle school
teacher assistant at a black school in dc
about to become a certified soccer referwe which will pay and I need the money
French honors society
latin silver medal and Cum Laude 9 10 11 12
Have a rap mixtape and am releasing another one soon getting good reviews in cameroon. ( yeah I know right)

Essay: would be about coming to America and discovering the disadvantages people in Africa had and falling in love with outreach
recs: latin teacher and biology teacher really good. Counselor recommendaction will also be good and about how I love internationalism and learning.
One more recomendation from a prominent Outreach activist in my community.

Intended major: international relations

“HOOKS”
*URM
*first generation

Languages I speak (S) read ® write (W) besides English
French fluent
West african creole fluent

Chance me for:
Yale
Stanford
Cornell or any others

2

Your SAT isn’t nearly as good as your ACT, so don’t know if you should submit SAT unless you have to. Good for Cornell, as good of chances as anyone else for the other schools. Top tier schools are hard to predict considering they are basically lotteries.

3

Thanks for the reply

4

Anybody there please chance will chance back. Please

5

One thing you need to keep in mind is that your gpa is extremely low for an ivy school. However, your circumstances and extracurriculars are amazing. But then again, because of your low gpa, most of the schools you are looking at are reaches. Congrats on the act score! That’s really amazing. You have a shot, but a very low one at that. Don’t rely on your URM status when doing application. Let it shine through. Mention your immigration from Cameroon to here in your essay. I think it might be cliche…but it is probably one of the most defining experiences of your life (or at least, I would think it is)! Best of luck, keep us posted, and i hope you get into one of your schools of choice!

Chance me back?: http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1779000-princeton-class-of-2020-ea-chances-p1.html

6

Thank you

7

Look to have some safeties in your college list. Apply to American, Howard, and George Mason. I live in the DMV area so American is my top safety as well as UMD and my low match, UVA. Chance me please? Need another opinion on my thread for someone of the DMV area!

8

@Kting98 You obviously know the combination of your stats, race and Catholic school makes you as close to a shoe-in at ND and BC as humanly possible. You would also have a nice advantage at the New England LACs. Your advantage at the Ivy League schools is much less.

Your GPA is just ok but if your school is well known it should be OK.

My son just graduated from an all boys Catholic school and his school was viewed way up there.

9

I got ypu. I have a lot of safeties and do you think if my gpa went up to like 3.6 or 3.5 I’ll have a better chance

10

Theoretically yes, but the expected value would not increase much because the odds are so low.

You should apply to Stanford, Cornell and Yale like you want but the edges you have will yield more elsewhere. You still need a list of schools with strong matches, just not safeties. I was not thinking that ND and BC were safeties but better than average chances.

11

Hahah I feel like I know you…Don’t live in DC but I go there sometimes w/ my family to visit other Cameroonian family. We came here when I was 8. And ironically, my dad sent me the video that you talk about above! Lol

12

If you try really hard your 1st semester of senior yr, and bring your GPA up to a 3.5, you would have more of a chance. Regardless, as long as your GPA does not decrease, you should still apply because the elite colleges want diversity and students with interesting stories. I’m not sure what your chances are, but you’ll never know unless you try!

13

Z blue where do you live and are you sure you know me.

14

@Kting98 no, I’m not sure I know you, but I might lol. I live in the Midwest (Illinois,Indiana, Ohio, Michigan area).

15

@ZBlue17 do you live in Chicago. If so I might know your dad.

16

@Kting98 . Bateparent and Princetonian have shared some key points. I also believe your achilles may be your GPA. Also note, there are some schools that require the SAT Subject Tests even if you only submit it. Cornell, for example, depending on the college you are applying does require SAT Subject Test. Yale, does not, but it does not hurt to take those test where you are proficient and can ace them to bolster your application.

Here is a list I shared awhile ago you can go through this thread. If you have any further questions, feel free to PM me. I believe you require at least 15 posts to be able to PM :slight_smile:

http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/african-american-students/1543483-resources-for-african-american-students-start-here.html#latest

17

Go with the ACT: 34 is competitive everywhere and should get you over the “test score” hurdle at even HYP. Your GPA, however, is going to really hurt your chances at the elite schools - Ivies, Chicago, Stanford, MIT, Duke, Northwestern, JHU, etc.

Working hard to improve your GPA in the time you have left will not only help your chances at admission to the traditional “reach” schools, but it will help to make you a better student per se… something that will come in handy once you are in college.

18

Your GPA is really going to hurt you. My daughter (a URM) at an Ivy, and GPA is for most of these schools, weighted more heavily than test scores. Good news is that many other schools would be interested in you–best.

19

No, I don’t like in Chicago. I guess we don’t know each other

20

I would no submit your SAT score, only your ACT. I think the only thing hindering you is your GPA, but some of this will be understandable, as your school is so challenging and that you’ve had to work so much. I think you could have a shot at any of those colleges, but definitely apply to at least 1 safety school.