Hi guys, as a new member, I just wanted to get your input on my chances at some of the best colleges in the country as well as other colleges in general. Best colleges including ivy’s as well as those such as U Chicago, UPENN, Duke, etc.
Others including Boston University/College, Northeastern, etc
So, I’ll start off with a short bio…
Year: Junior (2016)
Race: Asian
Rank: Top 3% in class of 480 at a public school.
Sophomore Year classes:
AP Stats: A- , AP Score: 4
Chem H: A-
Pre-calc/trig H: A
US II H: A
Spanish 2H: A
Art: A
English 10 H, A
DUAL ENROLLMENT: SOCIAL STUDIES - A
Junior Year Classes:
AP CALC BC: Projected B+/ A-
AP Language and Comp: Projected B
AP Physics 1: Projected B
Spanish 3: A-
Computer Science pre-AP: A+
World History, H A
ECs:
- American Red Cross (President)
- Club swim team of 200 members for 7 years (Captain) ***
- HS swim team (Captain Senior year)
- Varsity Crew
- Summer Math tutor
- Nation Honor Society
- Key Club
Volunteer Hours - easily 350+
*** I’m not sure if my times are up to those in D1 swimming schools nor am I entirely sure how the recruitment process will help me with college. If you have insight on this, any help would be appreciated as well! ***
I am going to take the AP Exams, SATS, and SATS2 in the upcoming months but hoping for:
- 4/5 on all exams
- Math 1/2: 700+
- Lit: 700 +
- SATs: 2100+
What are your initial thoughts? Should I be aiming at prestigious schools or lower tiered schools?
General advice is to pick some safeties, middle grounds, and those dream schools. Don’t apply to too many, you’ll spread yourself real thin
@collegeguy97 I understand having safeties, middle grounds, and dream schools but I’m more so asking which colleges are in my middle grounds range?
I’d say U Mich, U Wash, and pick a few Ivies you really want to go to. It depends on your SAT’s, as your Bs will pull you down… Do well on the SAT!
UMich should NOT be used as a match. This year they were very sporadic with who they accepted, and I would not suggest it as a match.
What are you trying to study?
@TheAtlantic @collegeguy97
How bad will those B’s weight me down? And will getting all A’s my first half of the year during senior year make up for anything? I’m not entirely sure what I want to study but likely something in the engineering/computer science field. I’m think of schools more in the northeast region, like BU, BC, and northeastern.
It is impossible to estimate your chances at those colleges without actual test scores. No admissions committee ever made a decision based on “expected” scores. Those “best colleges” will all reject thousands of highly-qualified applicants, and so it is at least as important to identify attractive match and safe schools as it is to ask your chances at schools that reject 90-95% of all applicants. If your test scores are competitive, then you should also add Lehigh, RPI, WPI, Stevens Institute, Temple, RIT, University of Rochester, Pitt, et al for consideration. Your chances would range from fair to excellent with that list. Nobody’s chances are good at the first colleges you mentioned, and they are especially selective in tech and engineering.
Don’t be discouraged by any of these comments. If you say you are the top 3%, then you do have a chance at good schools like U Mich, but again you need to do well on the SAT. Your 3 B’s definitely will hurt Ivy chances, especially if you’re Asian, which is why I recommend you to only apply to a few Ivies you REALLY want to go to. Focus your efforts on those higher institutions that are not Ivy league level.