This kid has no test scores and has a 4.0 from a tiny school with 1 AP class thus far. We really don’t know he has
" excellent stats," so the money and that stats are yet to be defined. WUE just doesn’t offer great bargains at 150%. And as above, good schools in WUE states might not extend WUE to certain schools/majors. Come back with a real budget and test scores for better help.
I am going to be taking 5 AP classes next year. I am expecting that about 3 of those AP classes will be A’s considering the teachers that teach the courses. It is just so difficult to take them in my school since all of the AP classes are only offered during one period every cycle.
I don’t have test scores yet, I am just trying to get an idea. I know that I was in the 94th percentile in the PSAT.
@SmallTown101 It is still early in the process for you. You still need to get test scores. However, it looks to me that you are doing very well so far. I am not concerned at all about your being from a tiny school. I know lots of people from tiny schools who continued to do very well even after they went to large competitive universities.
Your should do some SAT or ACT preparation, keep ahead in your classes, and expect next year to be a LOT of work with 5 AP classes. Also, you should consider the cost of universities that you are looking at and definitely consider schools other than Berkeley (which is a great school which I seriously considered attending at one point, but large and expensive since you are out of state). With this I expect that you will do very well at some appropriate university. Good luck and best wishes.
That is 1240 right? Are you prepping for your ACT/SAT? You really should start prepping. Did you do any prep at all for that score?
Arizona State has only a miniscule amount of options under WUE.
And CPP is top 15% of WUE applicants, I actually didn’t even know it was WUE though, so that was an eye opener. U of Utah is probably the best WUE option for bio.
@DadTwoGirls I was also thinking about going to the University of Idaho for 2 years then transferring to a better out of state school if that sounds like a good Idea. I could get U of I costs down to 16,000 in-state including housing and food. They have a decent Biology program but still not that great. I do like the town though and it is a 4-hour drive away from home.
Is it that much harder to transfer to a different college???
I do know that 5 AP classes will be tough. I am ready for it though because school is a complete breeze for me right now. Only about 1 hour of studying/homework every night.
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Look at schools you can afford without taking massive loans. Either schools who will throw need-based aid or merit aid at you. Going to a Cal will be like going to a private for an OOS student like you. A degree from a big name institution is great and all, but that 100K+ debt ball-and-chain is a hole that too many students willingly dig themselves that stifles their economic lives for decades.
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You are breezing through school right now because you are only taking 1 AP. There is a big difference between 1 AP class and 5. AP classes give you a taste of what college will be like, but they still aren’t the same. Cal is littered with kids who took 10+ AP’s and are really struggling, mostly because they didn’t learn how to study/grind.
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Competitive schools want to see rigor in your schedule. Sophomore and junior years are the most crucial (many colleges don’t care about freshman year) because senior year grades aren’t in yet when college apps are due. In hindsight, you should have taken more AP’s this year.
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What do you want to do with a bio major? If it’s to go to medical school, I’d maybe rethink Cal, known for it’s grade deflation.
Sorry this seems harsh, but I think you underestimate the competitiveness of schools like Cal.