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I want actual answers and not to be told to apply and see and all that nonsense.
I plan on an engineering major. Probably Computer Science.
SAT
CR- 780
M- 790
W- 700
Total- 2270
Unweighted GPA- 3.9
Weighted GPA- 4.50
Class rank- 7/450
Advanced placement classes
Calculus: 5
French: 4
Comp. Sci.: 5 (Was able to skip 1st level)
Chemestry: 5
English: 4
Extracurriculars- I have a job at a technology retailer, I am Captain of my schools robotics team, Co captain of science team, International relations vice president (Model UN club, I participate in the model UN events), track and field in winter and spring. Ever since freshman year of HS, i started taking Chinese lessons. I can speak and listen at an intermediate level. I taught myself level 1 German. I also taught myself multiple programming languages. I even had an internship at a large sized technology company in Boston (Where I am from) last summer.
Volunteer- Teach Programming (Java) at High School after school hours for community education program (Two hour classes once a week, this is my second year), also 400 hours doing technology work every summer for school system
So do I have chances at these colleges below?
Please give me a chance for each of them. (Ex. CalTech: Low Reach)
CalTech
Carnegie Mellon University
UC Berkeley
UCLA
Duke (Early Action/ Early Decision)
Stanford
UNC
Harvard
MIT
What other colleges should I look at? I have a bunch of safety schools in mind, but i dont want to put them on the list.
Thanks!
Nobody on this site can give you a good idea of your chances. You seem like a great student.
For computer science, Carnegie Mellon acceptance rate is also in the single digits. That specific program is as highly regarded as MIT and Stanford.
Good catch on Carnegie Mellon requiring a degree specific application for computer science. That creates the same problem for the OP as UC Berkeley then. I would honestly recommend WUSTL over Carnegie Mellon. Strong CS program with a lot of nearby startup tech companies (not to mention being the home of GlobalHack), and not the same sort of competitive admissions to get into CS.
I want actual answers and not to be told to apply and see and all that nonsense.
I plan on an engineering major. Probably Computer Science.
SAT
CR- 780
M- 790
W- 700
Total- 2270
Unweighted GPA- 3.9
Weighted GPA- 4.50
Class rank- 7/450
Advanced placement classes
Calculus: 5
French: 4
Comp. Sci.: 5 (Was able to skip 1st level)
Chemestry: 5
English: 4
Extracurriculars- I have a job at a technology retailer, I am Captain of my schools robotics team, Co captain of science team, International relations vice president (Model UN club, I participate in the model UN events), track and field in winter and spring. Ever since freshman year of HS, i started taking Chinese lessons. I can speak and listen at an intermediate level. I taught myself level 1 German. I also taught myself multiple programming languages. I even had an internship at a large sized technology company in Boston (Where I am from) last summer.
Volunteer- Teach Programming (Java) at High School after school hours for community education program (Two hour classes once a week, this is my second year), also 400 hours doing technology work every summer for school system
So do I have chances at these colleges below?
Please give me a chance for each of them. (Ex. CalTech: Low Reach)
CalTech
Carnegie Mellon University
UC Berkeley
UCLA
Duke (Early Action/ Early Decision)
Stanford
UNC
Harvard
MIT
What other colleges should I look at? I have a bunch of safety schools in mind, but i dont want to put them on the list.
Thanks!
If you're not from California getting into UCLA and Berkeley will be extremely hard. The same can be said for UNC. I used to be a private admission counselor and my advice would be to get a more realistic list. Yes, you are a great student but there is nothing remarkable about your stats for Harvard, Duke, Stanford and MIT. I don't say this to be mean, but to help you understand the road ahead.
You need to take some SAT II exams also. If you're going to apply the two UCs the deadline is looming. I take it that Duke is your top choice since you are applying early? If that is the case I would nix Harvard and Stanford, and CalTech. I would make sure that my application for Duke was STELLAR. Let your English teacher read your essay and have your counselor go over the entire essay with a fine toothed comb.
If you're not from California, I would tell you to not apply to those schools. Getting in Berkeley OOS state is like getting into Harvard. It's just really hard and you have to have something special to add to their student body to get in.
There are some schools I think you could really get into: Vanderbilt, Georgia Tech, Rice. Actually, I think you should really look into Rice.
What's your background? Do you attend a competitive high school?
Location: RI, MA, VT, WI, IL, CA, IN (that one sucked), KY
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I too was wondering about the school. You mentioned interning in Boston, so assuming you're a Boston suburban student, you might fare very differently if you went to Lexington high than lets say Quincy high.
do you have an underrepresented minority or legacy status? if you are a URM you'd probably be a shoe in almost anywhere. state residency also plays a role. eg if you live in north dakota you'd probably be a shoe in at the tougher places as well since the state is so underrepresented at top higher ed institutions. otherwise i'd say it'd be a toss up at the really competitive schools (~12% or less admission rate) and easy entry at the less competitive places (20% + admission) so you really should do a good spread of apps at the places you're interested in. finances also play a role. you might want to apply to more "easy" entry places because you'd likely get decent scholarship options. don't forget about financial aid either since just about all of the top institutions are generous with need-based aid. again that would depend on your financial situation though.
if you do early decision at duke you'd probably get in- admission is easier for early decision there. my sat scores were a little weaker than yours (based on the old SAT- no writing), volunteer/extra stuff about the same, and courseload/grades slightly stronger and i got in regular decision. im not a URM or a legacy and i'm from virgina so no help on that front. that was in 2005 so things are a bit more competitive now, but like i said with the early decision i think you'd get in. the admission rate for early decision is much higher than regular decision at duke, moreso than the norm i think. they like applicants who seem really interested in the school. we are very "school spirit" oriented, especially as one of the few top universities with a strong athletic program. i think admission rate to the engineering school (pratt) is higher than that of the college of arts and sciences (trinity) as well, but that could just be self-selection. i dont think our computer science program is that strong compared to our other programs nor compared to that of some of the other schools you are considering. however, it is improving and everyone i know who majored in computer science is doing well right now... lots of people i know are working for google and facebook. if you have any questions about duke in particular feel free to pm me.
just keep in mind that at the most competitive schools, there are a lot of applicants just like you. after a certain point they hone in on creating a diverse and interesting class so things like ethnicity, rare talents/accomplishments, life experiences/adversities, residency, early decision commitment, etc. will set you apart. they have to turn down quite a few qualified applicants. something trivial like being a trombone player in a year where not many other applicants play the trombone is important once you meet the initial criteria. based on your stats you should "qualify" at just about any school so its going to be the extra stuff that makes a difference.
These schools have acceptance rates as noted next to each (2013 numbers). Bear in mind each school has lots of applicants just like you to sort through, so while your stats are impressive...you're kind of just another number. I would strongly suggest stronger looks at some of your better "safety schools" where you're more liable to stick out and achieve a much better financial aid package so that you're not 100K in debt when you graduate.
CalTech - 10%
Carnegie Mellon University - 30%
UC Berkeley - 21%
UCLA - 20%
Duke (Early Action/ Early Decision) - 11%
Stanford - 6%
UNC - 25%
Harvard - 6%
MIT - 9%
Illinois, Georgia Tech and Michigan are highly ranked national universities and all three are in the Top 5
Best Computer Engineering programs in the US and have acceptance rates at 67%, 52% and 40% respectively,
and two (UI and UM) come without budget crushing tuition. I'd say they are worth serious consideration.
These are all state universities and cater to their own residents first.
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