Where should I apply to University?

[das1330]

I'm confused to why you suggested UChicago being that GPA-wise it's a reach at best.

 

You are in fact correct; to be competitive for UChicago you would need to increase your class rank somewhat.

[KittyKat]

I'm confused to why you suggested UChicago being that GPA-wise it's a reach at best.

 

You are in fact correct; to be competitive for UChicago you would need to increase your class rank somewhat.

 

His class rank (top 10%) is for the most part fine. What he needs to increase is his unweighted GPA to around 3.7 to make UChicago and Rice matches.

[das1330]

I'm confused to why you suggested UChicago being that GPA-wise it's a reach at best.

 

You are in fact correct; to be competitive for UChicago you would need to increase your class rank somewhat.

 

His class rank (top 10%) is for the most part fine. What he needs to increase is his unweighted GPA to around 3.7 to make UChicago and Rice matches.

 

I would disagree there - while I am unaware of other schools, I know Harvard looks almost exclusively at class rank rather then overall GPA, since relative grading difficulty varies so much between schools. I assume Chicago is similar.

[KittyKat]

I'm confused to why you suggested UChicago being that GPA-wise it's a reach at best.

 

You are in fact correct; to be competitive for UChicago you would need to increase your class rank somewhat.

 

His class rank (top 10%) is for the most part fine. What he needs to increase is his unweighted GPA to around 3.7 to make UChicago and Rice matches.

 

I would disagree there - while I am unaware of other schools, I know Harvard looks almost exclusively at class rank rather then overall GPA, since relative grading difficulty varies so much between schools. I assume Chicago is similar.

Ivy leagues tend to be holistic in determining which students to accept. While Harvard is selective enough to pick out quite a few valedictorians, it isn't always the case. A student's GPA tends to be the first hurdle in the application process for determining whether a student is "good enough." Hate to break it but 3.6 is fairly unlikely for UChicago or Rice regardless of class rank.

 

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@OP: if you are considering studying in the North West, you could apply to University of Washington.

[Lenticular_J]

You have automatic admission to UT Austin. Really any public school in the country will take you.

 

Rice, however... I think you have a shot. They judge on more than just GPA (and yours is pretty good, actually - but bringing it up won't hurt). So raise your GPA, get recommendations from core class teachers (preferably in whatever you want to study) and tell your parents to sit down whenever you show them the tuition bill (whether that means you've gotten some of their great financial aid or ... not!).

[Knotch_Blade]

I'd like to point out that last year, my parents were divorcing, so I was averaging 82/83 in Honors/AP Courses. This year I've been averaging 87-92 in honors classes. Hopefully my GPA should be much closer to a 4.

 

I'd like to go to Rice because that's where my girlfriend is going, but the double major program at Reed (biochemistry and molecular biology) is really tempting.

 

As for recommendations, I was actually planning on getting one from my freshman english teacher, my sophomore/senior World history/Euro teacher, and my current physics teacher. I could expand (ie Orchestra Director all 3 years, Biology teacher freshman year, my current PreCal teacher.

 

Auto-Admission to UT Austin for my graduating class is 9% (so I think 60+ class rank is right).

 

I just need to focus on my schoolwork and stop stressing about it.

[Range_This11]

University of North Texas's Jazz Studies program :thumbsup:

[Diesel]

As for recommendations, I was actually planning on getting one from my freshman english teacher, my sophomore/senior World history/Euro teacher, and my current physics teacher. I could expand (ie Orchestra Director all 3 years, Biology teacher freshman year, my current PreCal teacher.

 

I was told at my high school to choose teachers that you had during your last two years (junior and senior years) rather than teachers from your freshman and sophomore years, because students can change significantly good or bad from their first two years of high school. Something to think about if you choose to ask your freshman English teacher.

 

Good luck in your search. I started my first year at Xavier this fall and I'm loving it so far.