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Hi! I'm an asian junior at a top, competitive public boarding high school and i'm extremely curious to know what my chances are at UPenn Wharton, HPME northwestern (I don't know if i want to go into med or business yet), and Harvard (and schools similar to these).
I just took the SAT and got a 1510 (790 Math, 720 Verbal) and have not yet taken SAT IIs or APs but i will in the next 4 months. Should I take the SATs again to improve my verbal score or does it really matter? My school doesn't calculate GPA but they show minuses and pluses on the transcript. Ive gotten all As except for 5 A minuses, and a B+ for all 3 years of high school so far, but i got the B+ recently in a small one semester science class. Is that B+ going to hurt me a lot? Do A minuses look weak?
I have strong leadership positions at school and I have an internship in research at Northwestern right now. I went to a summer program at UC last summer. However, I don't have very many significant awards in math/science. I'm extremely extroverted and teachers seem to love me so i'm expecting great recs/interview impressions. Hopefully my essay will be good... My school isn't big on APs so i will only be able to take chem and BC calc. Do these factors mean that I have a low chance of getting into the highly selective schools that I dream about getting into? I'm actually pretty worried because after looking at the rest of the people who have posted in this site, I feel like I'm gonna end up at some community college!

PLEASE respond and give me your honest opinion and any suggestions for improvement. Thank you so much!

-Joanna

By Zwieback0 (Zwieback0) on Monday, February 23, 2004 - 03:07 am: Edit

Youre a junior. ....worry when you are a senior.

Post edited. Make your points without being vulgar.
Moderator DoveofPeace

By Joanna (Joanna) on Tuesday, February 24, 2004 - 08:06 am: Edit

Zwieback, from the many posts that I have read on this site, I know that plenty of juniors, even sophomores, are starting to worry just like me. I don't see a reason for the insult.

If anyone has any suggestions for improvement/honest opinion, I would be extremely grateful.

Thanks.

By Chasgoose (Chasgoose) on Tuesday, February 24, 2004 - 08:52 am: Edit

You don't want to do HPME or any BA/MD program if you aren't sure that you want to be a doctor. Otherwise you have a chance for all of those schools but it depends on a lot of things that you won't know until later. Don't let Zwieback make you feel bad about posting, you should start thinking about colleges now, just know that chances for most schools are really hard to predict.

By Dhonch (Dhonch) on Tuesday, February 24, 2004 - 08:57 pm: Edit

Joanna, honestly, get a life. The kind of schools you're applying to don't want students who only worry about admissions anyway. You have good enough marks to get into a great school, be happy...there are people with much bigger problems than receiving a B+.

By Boxosox (Boxosox) on Wednesday, February 25, 2004 - 10:41 pm: Edit

If she is very close to another applicant, sometimes the smallest things can be the deciding factor. Jenna, i think your concern is valid, just don't obsess, no the b isn't going to hurt you much, especially if you go to a top competative school where getting an A isn't a walk in the park. Because variations among schools in grading systems are so high, i don't think A minuses will look weak, they recalculate your gpa according to their own system anyway and a A is an A despite the +/-. Keep in mind that the adcom will look at you within you the context of your environment and how well you took advantage of the opportunities available to you. Because your school isn't big on APs won't kill your chances, that will actually be a factor they look at. But try to do well on them nonetheless.

"Joanna, honestly, get a life."

Well school is obviously a big part of her life, Where you go to college is one of the most important decisions of your life, so i would say you have your priorities straight, just don't lose perspective on the big picture. You are a GREAT student and will get into a GREAT school. If Harvard rejects you it doesn;t mean you wern't qualified to go there. It's futile to try and guess the adcom's strategy for determing admissions, primarily because they are extremely subjective. You'll be in the running but the adcom doesn't reduce each applicant to a mere list of stats, so you can't determine your chances by doing that. Just do your best, do what you love to do with passion, and you will be in great shape. Good Luck

By Joanna (Joanna) on Thursday, February 26, 2004 - 12:51 am: Edit

thanks so much; i truly appreciate the feedback!

By Shsjonb (Shsjonb) on Sunday, March 07, 2004 - 05:32 pm: Edit

Joanna what's going on? I remember you from SHS. You were in my Geometry class with Ehrhart. As far as your chances are concerned I would say compete in the Intel Science Program and keep excelling in math. The one way I know to almost guarantee your admission to those schools is to study really seriously for the AMC, AIME, USAMO and keep advancing. If you make it to the USAMO level you will be considered one of the top 300 Young Mathematicians in the country and those colleges will activley recruit you. If you become a Simiens semifinalist or finalist you will seal the deal.

By Jordana (Jordana) on Sunday, March 07, 2004 - 06:03 pm: Edit

well I dont think a B will hurt you at all. Well the only B's that I think will hurt are like in Culinary Arts and PE. I think you have great stats. You have gone a really good job. Just make sure you have great ec's and good cummunity service. Good Luck!!!!!!!!

By Jordana (Jordana) on Sunday, March 07, 2004 - 06:03 pm: Edit

well I dont think a B will hurt you at all. Well the only B's that I think will hurt are like in Culinary Arts and PE. I think you have great stats. You have gone a really good job. Just make sure you have great ec's and good community service. Good Luck!!!!!!!!

By Joanna (Joanna) on Thursday, April 29, 2004 - 12:53 am: Edit

aww thanks guys, you all are so helpful. i hardly ever check this board but i just came across it while i was procrastinating today and i noticed these new comments! yeah, i just realized that this board is so nice for a little confidence booster, or a reality check, whichever way you look at it. i think when i was writing my original entry, which came off as a little obsessive-compulsive, i was feeling a bit intimidated by all the geniuses who post at this site. but then you think about it and it's like we're all gonna get into college, and our futures are not dependent on the college we attend. they're dependent on the people we are and how we take advantage of the resources around us. so that's what i tell myself when i start to doubt myself. sorry about my long post,just wanted to get that out of my system;D