What are my chances for umass amherst?

RoaringMice
Wed, 06 Jun 2018 19:09:26 +0000

UMass Amherst wants to see that you’ve kept your grades steady or improving over the HS years. With that said, it doesn’t mean that one math class in the 60’s will kill your chances there, if the rest of your grades are strong. UMass Amherst will not auto decline for one D. Others might, but they will not. You have a shot. Take APs and honors in the subjects you’re good at. Continue in your ECs. Apply to UMass.

With that said, you mentioned you may want to be a science major. That does concern me, re: this math grade. You’re also not in honors science right now. You’re weak in math and in science for someone who wants to be a science major at UMass and other strong colleges. If you apply to UMass Amherst as a science major, you may not get in. But don’t freak out, you have an option. You may want to apply to them undecided instead - so formally, you’d apply to their "exploratory track " for education. Then once you get in and get on campus, you can change your major to the science you want. This will get you into the school. Telling them, up front, that you want to be a science major when you are weak in math right now, and perhaps also weak in science, won’t do you any favors.

Here’s info on their exploratory tracks: https://www.umass.edu/admissions/exploratory-track-program

You’d apply to the exploratory track for education, and not for science, so they won’t weigh your current math grades and level (and perhaps also your current science classes) against you. Once you’re in the school and in your first term there, you can change your major. And for that first term, you’ll take the math and science classes needed for your science major - applying to this exploratory track doesn’t hold you back from that in any way. It just gets you a better chance of being admitted.