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Chance me please :(


Ovi

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Help me out please? :(

Background: African American

Country: Nigeria and The United States (Maryland)

School Type: International School

IB Predicted Grades

  • Chemistry HL - 6
  • Biology HL - 5
  • English Lang&Lit HL - 6
  • Economics SL - 4
  • Spanish AB - 6
  • Math SL - 6

TOK - B

EE (Biology) - B

35

  • SAT I - M 630 READING AND WRITING 540 :(
  • SAT II - None (Should I take them)
  • IGCSE's: Chemistry A*, Biology A, Maths A, English Second Language A, ICT A, French A, Physics B, Environmental Management B, Economics B

 

Extracurricular:

  • Attended a local primary school to provide help
  • School football

Major: Biochemistry

Choices

  • University of Maryland Baltimore County
  • University of Maryland College Park
  • UC San Diego
  • UC Santa Barbara
  • University of Florida
  • University of South Florida
  • University of Washington
  • Hofstra (waiver)
  • Fordham (waiver)
  • University of Texas at Austin
  • UBC
  • University of Toronto

I am also considering

  • Boston University (haven't applied yet)
  • Suffolk University

Any advice/ tips? :(

Edited by Ovi
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2 hours ago, Ovi said:

Help me out please? :(

Background: African American

Country: Nigeria and The United States (Maryland)

School Type: International School

IB Predicted Grades

  • Chemistry HL - 6
  • Biology HL - 5
  • English Lang&Lit SL - 6
  • Economics SL - 4
  • Spanish AB - 6
  • Math SL - 6

TOK - B

EE (Biology) - B

35

  • SAT I - M 630 READING AND WRITING 540 :(
  • SAT II - None (Should I take them)
  • IGCSE's: Chemistry A*, Biology A, Maths A, English Second Language A, ICT A, French A, Physics B, Environmental Management B, Economics B

 

Extracurricular:

  • Attended a local primary school to provide help
  • School football

Major: Biochemistry

Choices

  • University of Maryland Baltimore County
  • University of Maryland College Park
  • UC San Diego
  • UC Santa Barbara
  • University of Florida
  • University of South Florida
  • University of Washington
  • Hofstra (waiver)
  • Fordham (waiver)
  • University of Texas at Austin
  • UBC
  • University of Toronto

I am also considering

  • Boston University (haven't applied yet)
  • Suffolk University

Any advice/ tips? :(

I think you have a solid chance for all of them. Your UCs have average IB DP scores of 32-33 out of 45 (Berkeley, UCLA, and Irvine have the highest being 38, 38, 34, respectively).  BU has an average score of 34, so you're above all their averages. 

As for SAT IIs, yes I really think you should, given that you take both Biology and Chemistry at HL and performing well in them, you should take SAT Biology & SAT Chemistry. They're not too hard, you only need about 1-2 weeks to get used to the formatting and some revision of content. (If you're confident about your Maths however, take either SAT Math I or II (II is more challenging) and SAT Chemistry instead)

A lot of people applying to Biochemistry majors will be taking those SAT II subjects, so don't disadvantage yourself by not doing the same. I think the last data you can take for the results to come in time for your applications are on January 21, 2017. The deadline for registering has passed and you will now need to pay a late fee in order to sign up (an extra $20-30). However, I think its crucial that you take the subject tests anyway despite this fee and use these next few weeks to set aside some preparation time for the tests. Moreover, they'll also makeup slightly for your less than ideal SAT I scores. Unfortunately, January 21 is also the last date for you to take SAT I and I doubt you can take both subject tests and SAT I at the same time. Chooese the SAT subject tests instead as that's where you'll have a better chance of performing much better, in addition to them being at least "strongly recommended" (if not required) for your major.

Florida schools are like the IB hub of the US and you'll have no issues whatsoever getting in there. I'd say Uni of Texas at Austin is probably the most "reach" university you've got, but also with the fact that you're an underrepresented minority, you'll still have a strong chance of getting in.

Bottomline, go sign up for your SAT Subject Tests (Biology & Chemistry) ASAP, and finish all those applications before their respective deadlines. Polish your essays as best as you can.

As for your extracurriculars, make sure that you show you're passionate about them. Since you lack quantity, maximize your quality. Hobbies get people rejected, and passion is what gets people in. 

 

Edited by IB`ez
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7 hours ago, IB`ez said:

I think you have a solid chance for all of them. Your UCs have average IB DP scores of 32-33 out of 45 (Berkeley, UCLA, and Irvine have the highest being 38, 38, 34, respectively).  BU has an average score of 34, so you're above all their averages. 

As for SAT IIs, yes I really think you should, given that you take both Biology and Chemistry at HL and performing well in them, you should take SAT Biology & SAT Chemistry. They're not too hard, you only need about 1-2 weeks to get used to the formatting and some revision of content. (If you're confident about your Maths however, take either SAT Math I or II (II is more challenging) and SAT Chemistry instead)

A lot of people applying to Biochemistry majors will be taking those SAT II subjects, so don't disadvantage yourself by not doing the same. I think the last data you can take for the results to come in time for your applications are on January 21, 2017. The deadline for registering has passed and you will now need to pay a late fee in order to sign up (an extra $20-30). However, I think its crucial that you take the subject tests anyway despite this fee and use these next few weeks to set aside some preparation time for the tests. Moreover, they'll also makeup slightly for your less than ideal SAT I scores. Unfortunately, January 21 is also the last date for you to take SAT I and I doubt you can take both subject tests and SAT I at the same time. Chooese the SAT subject tests instead as that's where you'll have a better chance of performing much better, in addition to them being at least "strongly recommended" (if not required) for your major.

Florida schools are like the IB hub of the US and you'll have no issues whatsoever getting in there. I'd say Uni of Texas at Austin is probably the most "reach" university you've got, but also with the fact that you're an underrepresented minority, you'll still have a strong chance of getting in.

Bottomline, go sign up for your SAT Subject Tests (Biology & Chemistry) ASAP, and finish all those applications before their respective deadlines. Polish your essays as best as you can.

As for your extracurriculars, make sure that you show you're passionate about them. Since you lack quantity, maximize your quality. Hobbies get people rejected, and passion is what gets people in. 

 

You managed to lift a huge weight off my chest, I thought I'd be unable to get in because of my below average SAT I's, do university also consider my IGCSE's (British exam)? And what should I be aiming for in my SAT II's? 

Thanks for the response

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5 hours ago, Ovi said:

You managed to lift a huge weight off my chest, I thought I'd be unable to get in because of my below average SAT I's, do university also consider my IGCSE's (British exam)? And what should I be aiming for in my SAT II's? 

Thanks for the response

No problem.

US universities don't really care about iGCSEs as American schools don't offer it. US universities care only about the context of your school – if the school doesn't offer IB/AP/A-Levels, the student won't be penalized for not taking it. She/he is only responsible for ensuring that they challenge themselves sufficiently through their selections of available courses.

Sorry to be blunt, but yes, your SAT isn't that good. At this point, there's no way around it. But your high IB scores and the fact that you're an underrepresented minority (URM) will make up for it. Also some high-tier universities like New York University don't even require the SATs if you take the IB Diploma, so research all your universities and find out if SAT Is are only optional. If they're only optional, don't send the SAT scores.

For SAT IIs, I'd suggest aiming for around 650/800 (avoid getting below 600 if possible) on both tests. You'd be (pleasantly) surprised to know how low some scores can go of even people accepted into universities like MIT/Ivy league. 

You'd also be glad to know that even your hardest university, Boston Uni, accepts around 60-65% of its applicants that are IB Diploma candidates.

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It seems that none of Boston, NYU or Northeastern requires SAT subject scores. I wasn't able to find the information on Tulane's website. I think your IB scores are more spectacular than your SATs so be should to emphasize that if you are given the opportunity to do so in your supplementary application. If you could possibly get a 6 predicted in Biology HL that could benefit your application. But so far if all goes well I think you have good chances to get at least 1 offer from these schools. 

On 12/22/2016 at 7:46 PM, IB`ez said:

I think you have a solid chance for all of them. Your UCs have average IB DP scores of 32-33 out of 45 (Berkeley, UCLA, and Irvine have the highest being 38, 38, 34, respectively).  BU has an average score of 34, so you're above all their averages. 

As for SAT IIs, yes I really think you should, given that you take both Biology and Chemistry at HL and performing well in them, you should take SAT Biology & SAT Chemistry. They're not too hard, you only need about 1-2 weeks to get used to the formatting and some revision of content. (If you're confident about your Maths however, take either SAT Math I or II (II is more challenging) and SAT Chemistry instead)

However, I think its crucial that you take the subject tests anyway despite this fee and use these next few weeks to set aside some preparation time for the tests. Moreover, they'll also makeup slightly for your less than ideal SAT I scores. Unfortunately, January 21 is also the last date for you to take SAT I and I doubt you can take both subject tests and SAT I at the same time. 

I respectfully disagree. Subject tests are only useful if you can get over 680-700 (given your IB scores). 6 in Chemistry HL is already impressive. Your portfolio could be improved by getting Biology HL to a 6, but not necessarily by taking the optional subject tests. Think it like this: SAT/ACT are merely metrics that allow admission office to compare everyone against the same metric, but your IB scores serve the same purpose. 

The thing with SAT scores is that as long you are at or above the threshold (which differs by the school) you are good. It would be ideal if you can get Reading/Writing to 600. It's not possible to take both SAT and subject tests in the same sitting but I do recommend the regular SAT if you are interested.

With all that said, the most useful thing you can do is to provide a spectacular common app or supplementary essay. You should sincerely and enthusiastically portray your best self in the essay(s) to allow admission officers to know you better as a person. 

Best of luck

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Certainly the chances are not in your favor but it is not impossible. If you want to take the january SAT sitting be sure to create a study plan for try to get reading/writing to 600-650 and math to ~680. It may be helpful to hire a tutor or ask a high-performing classmate for help. And if you have essays remain to be submitted revise those diligently as well. 

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If you do not get into all of those unis I will be quite shocked, your IB grades and IGCSEs are both stellar, your SAT is not great but is well above average. 

Unluckily your grades aren't good enough for free rides, and these universities cost at least 30k each for tuition never mind the cost of living, have you thought about state universities with cheaper tuition, I recommend the CUNY and SUNY schools which are cheap compared to other schools for out of state tuition.

good luck on your application mate, I'll be applying to the US next year!

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10 minutes ago, Rory Peel said:

If you do not get into all of those unis I will be quite shocked, your IB grades and IGCSEs are both stellar, your SAT is not great but is well above average. 

Unluckily your grades aren't good enough for free rides, and these universities cost at least 30k each for tuition never mind the cost of living, have you thought about state universities with cheaper tuition, I recommend the CUNY and SUNY schools which are cheap compared to other schools for out of state tuition.

good luck on your application mate, I'll be applying to the US next year!

So you think I'd most likely to get into all of these universities? Can you please tell me how likely I am to get into each university? Right now the tuition fee isn't my major concern because I am also applying to universities in the UK which cost more.

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14 minutes ago, Ovi said:

So you think I'd most likely to get into all of these universities? Can you please tell me how likely I am to get into each university? Right now the tuition fee isn't my major concern because I am also applying to universities in the UK which cost more.

Hofstra and Fordham are universities I do not know at all thus I cannot give you my opinion. However both Maryland colleges will accept you, UCSD will consider, yet you may be waitlisted as it is top tier, UCSB will accept no question, U of Florida is the same as UCSD thus a conclusion cannot be made as they are both easily top 100 in the US, USF will accept and may offer a scholarship, UW will probably accept but I am not certain as it is highly ranked especially in the areas of science so they may be more selective, UT will accept, UBC will acccept and U of Toronto will accept. I even have an uncle who is a professor at Toronto, but I do not know him well. 

All in all I reckon you will get into most if not all of these unis, however UCSD, Florida and UW are unpredictable as you sit at their 50% percentile range, but they will most likely accept as you will be paying international fees and you will diversify the school.

when applying to these unis in particular UCSD Florida and UW, mention your co curricular activities, community service etc. As they will be receiving many international offers and you need to stand out from the crowd.

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3 hours ago, Rory Peel said:

Hofstra and Fordham are universities I do not know at all thus I cannot give you my opinion. However both Maryland colleges will accept you, UCSD will consider, yet you may be waitlisted as it is top tier, UCSB will accept no question, U of Florida is the same as UCSD thus a conclusion cannot be made as they are both easily top 100 in the US, USF will accept and may offer a scholarship, UW will probably accept but I am not certain as it is highly ranked especially in the areas of science so they may be more selective, UT will accept, UBC will acccept and U of Toronto will accept. I even have an uncle who is a professor at Toronto, but I do not know him well. 

All in all I reckon you will get into most if not all of these unis, however UCSD, Florida and UW are unpredictable as you sit at their 50% percentile range, but they will most likely accept as you will be paying international fees and you will diversify the school.

when applying to these unis in particular UCSD Florida and UW, mention your co curricular activities, community service etc. As they will be receiving many international offers and you need to stand out from the crowd.

Oh haha thank you, how about Boston University and NYU? I probably don't have any chance I'm guessing for NYU but Boston accept 71% of diploma applicants, will my low SAT scores drastically reduce my chances?

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Low sat scores do not generally reduce your chances if you are an international student, they look at your IB grades and your co curricular activities. NYU is an arty type of school and the only people I've known to get in are not that academically strong, yet they flourish in the arts for example a friend of mine just got accepted early admission with about 1200 on the sat yet he was in a highly ranked local band. Boston University will most likely accept you, yet a scholarship will most likely not be offered, and thus for the money it will cost to attend in my opinion it is not worth it. In your case I recommend trying hard to get into either the University of Maryland or any UC, they have the best bang for your buck.

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On 12/22/2016 at 4:33 PM, Ovi said:

Help me out please? :(

Background: African American

Country: Nigeria and The United States (Maryland)

School Type: International School

IB Predicted Grades

  • Chemistry HL - 6
  • Biology HL - 5
  • English Lang&Lit SL - 6
  • Economics SL - 4
  • Spanish AB - 6
  • Math SL - 6

TOK - B

EE (Biology) - B

35

  • SAT I - M 630 READING AND WRITING 540 :(
  • SAT II - None (Should I take them)
  • IGCSE's: Chemistry A*, Biology A, Maths A, English Second Language A, ICT A, French A, Physics B, Environmental Management B, Economics B

 

Extracurricular:

  • Attended a local primary school to provide help
  • School football

Major: Biochemistry

Choices

  • University of Maryland Baltimore County
  • University of Maryland College Park
  • UC San Diego
  • UC Santa Barbara
  • University of Florida
  • University of South Florida
  • University of Washington
  • Hofstra (waiver)
  • Fordham (waiver)
  • University of Texas at Austin
  • UBC
  • University of Toronto

I am also considering

  • Boston University (haven't applied yet)
  • Suffolk University

Any advice/ tips? :(

I can speak a bit for UBC (current UBC student here) and U of T 

 

With UBC, I am not too sure about how they look at SAT scores since I'm a domestic student, but I can speak in terms of grades and extracurriculars. Depending on the faculty you're going into, 35 is solid marks wise, and with your EC's.. it all depends on how you wrote about them and you also don't just talk about your EC's but some questions also prompt you to bring in some other life experiences. You will have a decent shot at getting into UBC if you maintain that IB score and if your personal profile is up to snuff (they want to know what you learned from your EC's/other experiences rather than a description of what your EC's are). 

 

With U of T, I don't think you need to worry about bringing in EC's unless you're going for Engineering or Rotman Commerce because those have supplemental applications as well. If you're not going into either of those two faculties, then I would focus more so on marks. Again, I can't speak SAT-wise so sorry about that again D:

 

Hope I helped a bit! 

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On 12/28/2016 at 6:10 AM, ShootingStar16 said:

I can speak a bit for UBC (current UBC student here) and U of T 

 

With UBC, I am not too sure about how they look at SAT scores since I'm a domestic student, but I can speak in terms of grades and extracurriculars. Depending on the faculty you're going into, 35 is solid marks wise, and with your EC's.. it all depends on how you wrote about them and you also don't just talk about your EC's but some questions also prompt you to bring in some other life experiences. You will have a decent shot at getting into UBC if you maintain that IB score and if your personal profile is up to snuff (they want to know what you learned from your EC's/other experiences rather than a description of what your EC's are). 

 

With U of T, I don't think you need to worry about bringing in EC's unless you're going for Engineering or Rotman Commerce because those have supplemental applications as well. If you're not going into either of those two faculties, then I would focus more so on marks. Again, I can't speak SAT-wise so sorry about that again D:

 

Hope I helped a bit! 

Yes you did, I ended up applying to USC, they're acceptance rate is 20% :(, but on http://www.ibo.org/contentassets/5895a05412144fe890312bad52b17044/recognition---international-student-guide-us--march2016---eng.pdf.pdf it says their average IB Diploma acceptance is a 35, which is what I am currently predicted. On their website they also said they would like to see my IGCSE results as well as my predicted grades and I have 1A* 5As 3BS which is pretty decent. I am writing SATs again this month tho so what do you think I should be aiming at to have any real chance?  They're average IB acceptance rate is a 76.7% so do I stand any chance?

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On 1/1/2017 at 1:06 PM, Ovi said:

Yes you did, I ended up applying to USC, they're acceptance rate is 20% :(, but on http://www.ibo.org/contentassets/5895a05412144fe890312bad52b17044/recognition---international-student-guide-us--march2016---eng.pdf.pdf it says their average IB Diploma acceptance is a 35, which is what I am currently predicted. On their website they also said they would like to see my IGCSE results as well as my predicted grades and I have 1A* 5As 3BS which is pretty decent. I am writing SATs again this month tho so what do you think I should be aiming at to have any real chance?  They're average IB acceptance rate is a 76.7% so do I stand any chance?

To be honest, I think you do have a pretty solid chance. No guarantees of course, but I think you should be fine if you can maintain your mark and have a solid personal profile :D

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Most of the advice has already been covered so I'll just add my 2 cents. Firstly quit worrying about your SAT scores, most colleges just need their students to hit their respective minimum threshold. The SAT score is just a number to them and doesn't say much about you to them. Hence your personal essays and grades matter far more.

Secondly, don't forget the very first thing a college will look at when they begin with your application: your finances. Whether or not you can afford to pay for the next 4 years plays a fairly big role. If you plan to apply for financial aid/scholarships your chances are overall automatically lowered. If not, you should be golden.

On another note, Based on your list I personally recommend UCSB. Its a good mix of partying and education and Santa Barbara is an awesome city. Take it from someone who's just graduated college, It is SO much better going to a school next to a beach rather than someplace cold and boring like Maryland..... or Canada.

Source: I worked for my university's admission department for a year.

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  • 2 months later...

So far here are my decisions:

  • University of Maryland Baltimore County (accepted)
  • UC San Diego (waitlisted)
  • University of South Florida (accepted)
  • University of Texas at Austin (rejected)
  • UBC (accepted)
  • University of Toronto (accepted + offer of scholarship)

Based on this so far what do you feel my chances are for these other unis I applied to:

  • University of Maryland College Park
  • UC Santa Barbara
  • University of Florida
  • University of Washington
  • Fordham

And do you feel I have a chance of being accepted of UC San Diego's waitlist?

 

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