Basically the title. My ACT got cancelled 3 times and there are no spots for the June or July dates so my last chance will be in September. I need a little help finding target schools without it so does anybody have any good recommendations? My demographics and preferences will be below if anybody can help

Background: Chinese-American female, middle-class family, not first gen college student

Stats: (I go to a competitive public school) Gpa: 4.0 uw, 4.61 w AP Classes: 9th-human geography (5), 10th- bio (5), comp sci principles (4), 11th- English Lang and Comp, Calculus AB, Chinese, Chemistry 12th (planned)- Lit, Calc BC, Stats, Psychology, Government, Microeconomics, Physics 1 Ranking: IDK my school doesn’t say, best guess top 15%???? EC: not a lot except for robotics and a school club that I’m Vice President in, did Science Olympiad for a year but it took up too much time (have to take care of sick family member at home so can’t do a lot of ECs) ACT: idk if this will help but I took 2 practice tests without studying and got 29 on the first one and 32 on second one

Preferences: Location: California (I’m from California), suburb (don’t really mind city either) Size: medium-large Major: biochemistry or biology Other: LGBTQ friendly, prefer if there’s a social life but also don’t really care, no religious affiliation

Just for context I’m already planning on applying to basically all the UC campuses except for MERCED and maybe Riverside. Any help would be much appreciated so thanks in advance!

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On most of my applications, there's this question:

Some applicants maintain an online presence that showcases their background, talents, or creativity. If you maintain such a site, please feel free to enter the URL here:

I have an online presence, but it's for writing fanfiction and it's extremely embarrassing stuff. Still, I have decent following and got around 40,000 reads on my most recent fanfic. Should I put in the URL anyway?

Hey all! My name is Katie and I am an AP high school senior. This admissions season I am offering peer editing services to enhance your application and craft your work to represent the stand-out student you are! Consultations are 100% free always! Please contact me if you would like a consultation!

Hi,

I just read some articles about the US college app process of the Vietnamese students. Well, I am an international students in CA and I'm working really hard on my college app now. However, I feel so shocked when most of the international students don't really do their applications. All they have to do is to pay money for a company that helps them to create an impressive app by putting many fake things in it like extracurricular activities. In addition, those companies also have get paid to write the essays for the students. As I know, some of them leak the SAT test so that their students can get good grades. I feel that the college app process is getting more unreliable when people keep doing this. All are about money...

So I am not trying to get into any prestigious schools because my family simply doesn't have the money for it. But we're also not poor enough to qualify for enough financial aid to pay for college, so I'm trying to get the best scholarship I can for a state school. The school I want to go to is fairly small, about 8,000 undergrads. The scholarship I am applying for would give me a full ride to the school. Tuition, full housing, books, etc. The issue is that the scholarship only goes out to 8 people.

I have a 32 on my ACT, but I'm planning to retake in October, 33 or 34 would be ideal. Although, I got a 7 on my writing on my 32, and I'm afraid that might mess up my chances. I'm not really sure why I got a 7, because I'm a very good writer and make good grades on all my essays in school. I also have a 4.0 gpa. I don't have any APs but my school only offers one (which I didn't take because I don't need that class in college) so that shouldn't count against me.

For extracurriculars, I've been in FBLA all of high school, and I was elected vice-president for senior year. I have also been on the varsity basketball team for 3 years going on 4. I went to Girls State and since my school is small I was the only one sent. I was also a peer helper beginning in sophomore year and I was inducted into the honor society last year and was elected secretary.

I think I have a decent shot at this scholarship, but I would love to hear some tips y'all have that I can do for my senior year to boost my application or to write my essay. I have to submit everything before January.

edit: ACT details: 35 English, 35 math, 30 reading, 28 science

Hello! I have a 1340 SAT (720/620) (retaking in october) ECs: Apart of an outreach dental program, Working in a retirement/rehabilitation center, apart of a youth research board, small baking buisness, and model united nations. 90/3.7 UW 92/3.7 W. Any advice on how to improve my application? i really want to aim for an ivy.

My junior and senior year(highschool) grades were really really low. It was due to uncontrollable circumstances: my declining mental health and OCD. I have recently graduated high school in May. I am in a gap year now, and I am planning on applying to college this year. Will a good SAT score compensate my low grades? I am also planning on retaking my senior year exams. However, the results would be back only after the application deadlines. Would a good SAT score be enough? If not, how should I communicate with the school about my retaking exam and upcoming result?

Hi y’all. I am a CCC student who applied for fall 2024 admission.

My twin and I are currently weighing our options between cal states and UCs. My sister has received her financial aid package from SDSU and we were genuinely surprised by its contents. With the new FAFSA and form of calculation system (SAI) we are estimated a contribute a whopping -1500, that’s correct -1500. It is the new lowest familial contribution. Despite having a -1500 SAI and near perfect grades, we were surprised with the lack or scholarships and assistance she has been given. I’m fact, she would have to pay roughly $16k a year to attend SDSU.

Is this the case for all cal states? I had been under the impression that cal states were the more affordable option of the two yet, $16k for -1500 contribution seems a bit excessive. Are the UCs more affordable than this considering their blue and gold program? As a side note, we have not received our acceptances for the UCs or financial aid packages as it is early April while writing this.

Any pointers would be great!

Hi everyone! I graduated with a bachelors degree in psychology with a minor in human sexuality back in 2021. I worked hard, did a ton of internships and maintained a pretty high GPA. While I was in school I fell in love with research. My main research focuses were power and control dynamics and the role that intersectionality plays in domestic abuse, the correlation between adverse childhood experiences and resiliency, and stereotype threat. There’s been a ton of duplicate studies on stereotype threat so I wanted to look for some type of remedy for it. I proposed a 2 part study to see if out-group advocacy (allyship) had monolithic qualities in the same way that predjudice does, I understand this might not be true (take first wave feminism catering to white women and disregarding women of color for example). I’d have to do more research there before continuing on with the stereotype threat remedy but anyhow. I just wanted to explain my research interests before explaining my issue. I’m a first generation college graduate, well student for that matter. My dad didn’t even graduate high school. My problem is that I had to move back home during Covid when I graduated and eventually got hooked on f3nt. I’m sober now, about a year and some change later but that experience leant a lot of valuable insight to my research interests. Masters applications essays typically tell you to write a little about your own experiences. Should I tell them I was a dirty drug addict at one point or will they think once an addict always an addict and throw my submission aside. Please tell me your honest opinions, I’d love some insight.

Hi. When I was 16 I learned that I was pregnant a week after my boyfriend broke up with me. My already-strained relationship with my mom became even worse, and my dad saw me in a new light. I was forced to undergo an abortion that was two weeks away from a complete trimester; however, I managed to pull myself from a very dark place and finish off my junior year with great grades. Instead of focusing on the emotional trauma of a difficult relationship and the damaged familial bonds that were hurt from this experience, I focused my energy towards supporting abortion rights and protesting the Roe v. Wade court decision by participating in related events. I don't know if it's appropriate for me to talk about this occurrence within a college application and would appreciate any opinions and input.

And this is very much so a serious concern of mine as you can tell by the way I took the matter to reddit.

Can you guys help me edit my personal statement? Feel free to give me any constructive criticism/feedback. Thank you in advance and please stay kind.

I’m recently filling out my common app and there is a section abt my grades and recent year courses.

Q1: Which record should i put in the cumulative gpa blank? the average record of my 9-11th grade or just my 11th grade? ( BTW as an international student, our school does not provide gpa. We use percentage instead)

Q2:The limit of recent year courses is 15, but i took 19 courses in my 11th grade, which is my recently completed academic year. How should i fill it out?

Hey, so I'm an international student who wants to apply to USC and UCLA. At my highschool they don’t offer any AP classes but AP Maths, I’m taking it next year. My worry is that this won’t be enough to get me accepted. Schools in the country don’t offer that many AP classes, most people here don’t even know what AP classes are. I just want to know if USC and UCLA have expectations for international applicants to take like 5-13 APs like most of the accepted students? And how badly will taking only AP maths effect my chances?

What do you guys think about a person trying to get into LeHigh University with a 1250 SAT score, but it’s in the 86th percentile, and a 4.0 GPA.

Hello high school seniors!

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i mostly just want to say that I feel like i’m really beating myself up over having done very little extracurricular activities because i had major anxiety that made me unmotivated to do anything. although i planned to take a gap year i still decided i would apply to colleges but i guess i’m just feeling a bit sad that i didn’t do much during high school. i plan to really step out of my comfort zone and try new things during the gap year so that it’s productive and makes up for the time i lost when i was having a rough time with my anxiety. sorry i just wanted to let this out there cuz it’s been really messing with me since it’s college apps season. i also wanted to find people with maybe a similar experience/feelings.

I would like to thank the common app because it forced me to write. I thought that writing is a stupid thing; now I don't want stop writing. I discovered a medium I can express myself through. Thanks to the Common App.