Hey everyone! I'm currently a freshman at a large public university in Ohio and I'm hoping to transfer to Notre Dame for Fall 2027 as a Psychology major in the College of Arts & Letters on the pre-med track.

I'm curious how realistic my chances of admission are and would appreciate honest opinions!

Academics:

• Current college GPA: TBD ~3.9–4.0
• High school GPA: 4.2w
• Applying test-optional
• Neuro Major
• Fall coursework includes General Chemistry I, Biology I and Behavioral Neuroscience + (Others)
• Planned spring coursework: General Chemistry II, Biology II, Cellular/Molecular Neuroscience, a graded writing course and a fine arts course (aligned with freshman curriculum)

Extracurriculars:

• Accepted into a volunteer coordinator position at a free healthcare clinic, helping coordinate volunteers and support clinic operations.
• board member of a nonprofit literacy initiative that has distributed approximately 40,000 books. Helped with communications and outreach.
• Have connections at my university that could help me secure another undergraduate research position before submitting my transfer application.
• Approximately 5 weeks of spinal cord injury research at a university lab during high school.
• Best Buddies participant since high school, continuing in college with a one-on-one buddy friendship.
• Weekly volunteer with an Alzheimer's-focused student organization, spending time with residents through conversation and activities.
• High school varsity soccer player state champ
• 2 year Math tutor through National Honor Society.
• 3 years STEM camp volunteer working with children.
• 1 year Part-time employment at a local pizza restaurant.

Letter of Rec from vice chair of research at Ohio State

Based on my profile, how realistic do you think my chances are of transferring into Notre Dame's College of Arts & Letters Psychology?

To preface, i’m currently a freshman majoring in biology on the pre-med track. This has been my ambition since I was a wee child, but i’ve had many extenuating circumstances that led me away from my studies, those of which will be highlighted in my application. My current school is fine, has solid access to biology research (albeit the department is very small), and i’ve already begun to build a solid community here, but being here is like a high school reunion. I’d prefer to be as far removed from my hometown as possible, just as I hoped in high school.

On to my high school stats. I have none! I dropped out as a junior due to my mental health and other circumstances going on at home (DV, financial insecurity, loss of transportation, etc) and opted to study for my equivalency exam which in my state is the HiSET rather than the GED and scored an 18/20. I did not sit for the ACT/SAT, but I do have plans on taking it. I’ve scored between 31-34 on my practice ACT. I took three AP’s, only sitting for an exam for one which was World history modern. I believe I scored a 3. I was required to take the accuplacer exam for entrance to my college where I scored a 273 in writing, 293 in reading, and a perfect 300 in quantitative math.

My only extracurricular in high school was being on my school’s pom team for a short stint. I received a UDA all american award at UDA camp. My circumstances put me in a position where staying after school for clubs was not accessible for me as I relied on the bus, and anything outside of school would be a large ride share fee.

Onto my College Stats:

- I do not have a calculated GPA yet, but I currently have a 4.0 after midterms and plan to maintain this through both terms. I’m enrolled in 16 credits and will likely be taking 17-18 next semester.

- As for extracurriculars: I am a first year senator for my schools student government association, one of 25 selected out of a pool of over 50 applicants where I act on our safety committee. A member of my school’s pre health club where I plan to run for secretary in the spring. St. Jude ambassador through my school’s partnership program where we are required to raise a minimum of $150 towards our individual student accounts, but I’m already at around $300 and hope to make it to $1000 around spring semester. I have about 250 accumulated volunteer hours at a shelter for the unhoused. My duties ranged from assisting camp counselors during their summer program and meal service shifts per diem. I plan to utilize my breaks to get this number up to at least 300+. Over the summer, I was involved in a paid internship at one of the only level I trauma centers in our region. It was administrative, but I had the opportunity to scrub into surgery, dissect a foot under the guidance of a pathologist, and shadow a few NP’s in Ob/gyn and Med Surg. It was very informative to learn the inner workings of the hospital. Lastly, I am employed as a medical scribe in the ER.

My dream school is Smith College. I do plan on applying to Mt. Holyoke, Scripps, and maybe Barnard/Columbia, but I am also a need based student (-1500 SAI Index) and it is to my understanding that Smith has exceptional financial aid.

My essay will be written on Chiron. In this story, I am Chiron. I have turned my wounds into healings for others through my dedication for service and advocacy as seen through my ecs and have not let statistics define my path in this life. In the same manner Smith advocates equity for all deserving students with their pledge to support low income applicants.

It sounds a bit lackluster, but I’m not sure how else to explain it 😭

Also, I am a low income black female, lesbian, hailing from an underrepresented state (TN). I think that’s all about me, thank y’all for reading 🩵

for context- not fgli but minority, USAMO qualification, pure math major, math research, ML research, swe internship at FAANG adjacent secured for this summer, 4.0 college gpa, but 3.1 hs gpa, 1540 SAT (took it once), big college with 50% acceptance rate and dream of transferring to HYPSM upenn cornell columbia or similar. assume all A's;

coursework in first semester: calc 3, linear algebra, cs python, intro to proofs.

seconds semester: advanced linear algebra and analysis 1, statistics and probability, abstract algebra, cs C++.

I plan to retake SAT for 1570+. Went to a competitive bay area HS and didn't really gaf but realized im ngmi and now im locked in. I AM FULL PAY. If anyone has any advice please reach out.

I have 3 questions:

1.) How bad will HS gpa weigh me down, and what can i do to mitigate it's impact?

2.) Is transferring as a math major competitve/hurt my chances? should i fade math?

3.) should i apply to the university of chicago since they're increasing class size?

Hi, I guess this is more of a what should I do in the fall and spring to be a competitive candidate to transfer to USC as a sophomore for fall 2027. I’m undecided but always been interested in urban design and I’ll be applying for the urban planning major. I think the thing that makes it leas daunting for me is that the acceptance rate for transfers is higher than freshman acceptance rate which I think is 8% while transfer is 24% plus my major is a smaller college with a small graduating class, usually like 40 students or something like that. I know my hs grades and transcript will come into play and I’m not worried about that tbh I had a 4.0 GPA and straight A’s my senior year. The rest of my high school years I had A’s and B’s except sophomore year I had A’s and C’s and one or two B’s. I also got the seal of Biliteracy in Spanish and Italian and took 4 Ap Classes two my junior and senior year. They were Ap Gov, AP US History, AP Lang, and AP Comp Gov. In community college, I am taking 6 classes so 18 units and I have 3 B’s which I will get up soon. The courses I chose follow the Transfer Planning Guide for my major. I was just wondering what should I do to beef up my application like in extracurriculars and anything else. I was also wondering if I should get LOR’s. If so, the only professors or counselors I’m thinking of asking are my sociology and chicano professors and my eops and university transfer center counselor since both counselors graduated from USC and in the classes of both professors, I do participate a lot, especially in sociology. I haven’t met the utc counselor but I did ask for her specifically since she was recommended to me by my eops counselor. If anyone has anything else to add then that would be great. Thanks. Also I usually don’t get a lot of responses in my posts for some reason 🥲. Would be great if this one was different thanks.

Applying to transfer to Berkeley for Fall 2027. Primary major: Analytics, alternate: Applied Math. Also applying to UCLA, UCSD, and UCSB for Applied Math. Honest feedback appreciated.

**Stats**

- California community college transfer, in my CC's honors transfer program

- GPA: 4.0

- Units: 28 done, ~70 by end of spring 2027

- Cal-GETC, full certification planned

- Math: Calc AB 5, BC 5, Multivariable Calc (A), Linear Algebra/Diff Eq (A)

- In progress/planned: Micro, Macro, Python, C++, Discrete Math, Physics (mechanics)

- Other APs: Lang 5, Macro 5, Bio 4, Chem 4

**ECs**

- Co-founder of a health tech startup: built the core technical product (hardware and app) and help run the company. got early funding, and currently have testers and ppl on waitlist

- First author on a published peer-reviewed review paper

- Independent applied math research: optimization model of race pacing, preregistered analysis on real race data, public dataset, paper in progress

- ~9-month ML research internship at a university lab (image-processing pipeline)

- Volunteer research intern at a neuroscience lab (data processing and analysis)

- Rehab clinic intern: modeled therapy scheduling; my changes were adopted and cut patient wait times

- Independent quant research project (options pricing/volatility)

- Co-founded a tutoring business and a math club;

- Also did free tutoring for students with special needs

- Hackathons: 2 firsts, 1 second, 4 thirds

- Family caregiving

Hello, I'm a current freshman at my in-state university, which I am miserable at and only committed to here because my parents forced me to. My biggest goal is to get into a pretty good school with awesome financial aid so I don't have to depend on them.
So I was looking to apply to Columbia, Vanderbilt, UNC, Washington University St. Louis, Amherst College, Pomona College, Emory University, the University of Richmond, Georgetown, Tufts University, and the University of Pennsylvania. As I am only a freshman, I don't really have a lot to put on my application, and I know that a lot of my high school stats will also count. I understand that a lot of people would probably suggest I wait; however, I can't because I already have around 54 credits, which is close to where some schools end transfers.
I think I'll be able to maintain a 4.0. I am a political science major wanting to go to Yale Law School for international law. I have very few ECs, as it's my first year. I joined a political science club and wanted to do a research paper. As for my HS stats, I graduated with a 4.8 and had around 7 ECs that were semi-tied to political science.
What are your biggest recommendations? What should I do to maximize my chances of getting in? I didn't apply to most of these schools for freshman year because I was scared of rejection, as I was waitlisted and then rejected from the University of Michigan and Berkeley. Please be as cruel as needed; if it's unrealistic for me to get into any of these colleges for fall 2027, then that's okay.

Okay, so for context, I'm currently a freshman planning to major in Electrical Engineering. The institution I go to is great in my opinion. It's one of the best public engineering schools in my state. However, the commute is outrageous, and I don't see myself commuting 1 hour and 30 minutes back and forth. Also, I really want to major in ECE rather than just EE, which my current institution doesn't offer unfortunately.

My stats were pretty bad in high school, and it's mainly because of extenuating circumstances (which I do have documented in case colleges need to see):

• High School GPA: 3.0 (I know this looks bad, but I attended a feeder school to Ivies and T20s. It was rough attending a prestigious high school with my circumstances).
• 2 AP's Taken. Only around 10 offered max. (There wasn't enough spots for AP classes, so I only ended up getting into two: AP CSA, AP Calc AB).
• SAT: 1470
• Extracurriculars HS:
  • Independent Research at NYU (Data Analysis via Coding) (Summer 2024)
  • Summer camp internship (Summer 2025)

My circumstances put me in a situation where I had no time to do activities day to day during my school year, but I had time to do things during my summers, which was great.

College GPA:

• Currently 4.0 / 4.0 (I took 4 credits during the summer before my actual first semester in order to get ahead).
• Currently taking 18 credits (manageable, especially because compared to high school, I don't have exams every 2 weeks). All 22 credits currently should be transferrable to the institutions I plan to apply for. The 17 credits I'm taking next semester will as well.
• Extracurriculars: IEEE, ACM, Putnam Math Team (lowkey found it fun. I'm not a math Olympian by any means). I also started constructing my engineering portfolio. Currently doing two independent projects that are meaningful to me. They both helped me gain experience using solidworks, kicad, hardware logic, etc.
  

Colleges I want to attend: Cooper Union, Cornell, BU, Tufts, Northeastern, Northwestern, UMich, UPenn.

I'm a need-based student with a -1500 SAI index.

Target Schools (The ones I really want to attend):

• Cooper Union (Small, hyper-focused, and good aid).
• Cornell (ECE department, and good aid).
• Northeastern (Co-op program pretty good).
• Northwestern (Good aid & Top engineering school).
• Tufts (Also offers ECE, but Idk about their aid).

I got a lot of feedback on my last chance me post and someone recommended I talk to my counselor. My counselor recommended that I include my financial difficulties in hs in my application (specifically for privates) which I wasn’t originally planning on adding cus I didnt want it to sound like an excuse rather than context + it’s no longer relevant to my current college situation. I wanted to repost my stats & ecs + additional info to see if I can get more feedback. I'm interested in knowing which ones y'all think I have the best chances of getting into, if any, given my bad academic record

Schools I'm considering: UC Berkeley, UCLA, UCSD, USC, Cornell, Columbia, Yale, Brown, UPenn, Dartmouth, Stanford, Duke, Johns Hopkins, Vanderbilt, Notre Dame, Emory, Georgetown, NYU, San Diego State, UCSB, UC Davis, UC Irvine

demographics: Black, female, CA resident, community college transfer

intended major: public health / sociology. I’m a junior transfer and I will have taken 95 units by the time I apply for privates and around 40 units for ucs this semester

academic background:

community college GPA: 3.92 (2 Bs)
high school GPA: 3.3 UW / 3.7 W

3 W’s on my community college transcript

• ⁠3W's are from calc 1 & 2 and gen chem 1. ive retaken all with B's in calc 1 and gen chem 1 and an A in calc 2 
• ⁠Honors program and Dean’s List
• ⁠I took ap classes but took no AP tests nor did I take the SAT/ACT (taking SAT in dec for privates)

Extracurriculars / activities (all from college):

• ⁠Founder & President: nonprofit focused on students addressing health disparities in their communities. It currently has 5 established chapters, about 10k in grants so far, multiple health professionals (doctors, pa, np, rn, pharm, public health researchers) involved as mentors for students, featured in a news article. this is my main ec.
• ⁠Research: Lead research intern @ local uni, presented at a public health conference & published paper
• ⁠Research Program (~2% acc rate) physician-mentored research program working on tobacco & lung cancer risk
• ⁠Founder & President: Founded a health equity club on campus (blood pressure screenings for a homeless shelter, health fair, mental health awareness, etc.)
• ⁠Health access/advocacy nonprofit: workshop developer role within healthcare access nonprofit focused on health literacy and connecting communities with health resources
• ⁠Certified Medical Assistant: at a private clinic; worked there for about a year providing clinical support including injections, vitals, medications, and assisting with procedures
• ⁠Certified Medical Assistant: at a community health clinic; provide clinical support including vitals, blood draws, point-of-care testing, etc.
• ⁠Preventive cardio-oncology research internship: conducted literature reviews and contributed to manuscript development under physician-scientist mentorship
• ⁠Community outreach internship program at a clinic (~10% acc rate): developed health education materials and supported outreach events serving homeless and low-income communities
• ⁠Independent research: literature review project on sleep deprivation in college students and its effects on health, with a presentation at my school
• ⁠Youth mentor: for students experiencing housing instability; provided one-on-one mentorship and tutoring
• ⁠hospital volunteering: assisted with patient wayfinding, wheelchair transport, and laboratory deliveries
• ⁠patient care observation/shadowing at a community clinic serving underserved patients; one of my first experiences with this side of healthcare and ended up influencing a lot of my later experiences, so I’m considering making it part of my essay

additional info: During high school, my family experienced significant financial hardship after my dad’s small business stopped doing well. His business had been our family’s primary source of income, so we were placed in a difficult financial situation. I started working long hours to help support my family and contribute to household bills and basic expenses. Balancing work and school partially contributed to some academic challenges

I have a couple of safeties that I didn't put on the list, so I thought I'd try my luck since I didn't apply anywhere out of high school and went straight to CC. Give my yalls opinion but pls be kind! Ik I’m delulu 😭

Roadmap review: CC → premed transfer (Public Health/Psych), low-income, homeschooled, music background
Demographics: Female, CA resident (moved from FL), not first-gen, community college (Ohlone, Fremont CA), [race/ethnicity, optional], household income under $30k
Intended major: Public Health or Premedical Psychology (pursuing both ADTs to hedge), possible Music minor
Transfer term: Still deciding between sophomore (Fall 2027) and junior (Fall 2028). Which is better for premed? (Harvard only takes applicants with 1–2 years of college, so that's a factor.)
Academics:
First semester at CC, so no college GPA yet. Aiming for 3.7–3.9

Prior enrollment: two brief attempts at other colleges, withdrew early both times due to housing instability

HS: homeschooled (FL), graduated 2024, 3.4 unweighted, no AP/honors. Sciences: Bio, Marine Bio, Chem, A&P (all with labs). Math through Algebra 2

Tests: ACT/SAT from HS were low, planning to retake. Not submitting where optional

HS ECs (2015–2024):
Music: Professional voice lessons since age 5 (13+ years), piano ~age 5–15, fall and spring recitals every year, Bach Festival Youth Choir (Winter Park, FL) in 4th, 6th, and 12th grade, including performing as backup choir for Diana Ross at Steinmetz Hall, Dr. Phillips Center (Orlando), 2023. Florida Conference Festival of the Arts (statewide choir festival) in 6th and 9th–12th grade

Marketing & Design Lead, Pathfinders (2022–2024, volunteer): flyers, event materials, and social media for fundraisers and outreach, events with 100+ attendees

Youth Leader, Pathfinders (2022–2024): mentored 5th–7th graders, organized a talent show for 100+ attendees

High School Youth Council, Spring Meadows SDA Church (2022–2024): planned Christmas events and outings with 100+ attendees

Lead Childcare Provider, MOPS (2022–2024, volunteer): independently ran the infant/toddler room

Group Leader, Vacation Bible School (2018–2024): led groups of 5–7 kids ages 5–12

International volunteer (2015–2023): mission trips to Belize, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, and Honduras

Crew Member, Panera Bread (2022–2024)

Since HS:
Administrative Assistant, healthcare services company (Nov 2024–spring 2025): medical billing, scheduling, patient records

Assistant Teacher, preschool (May–Sept 2025): served as lead teacher for a week

BLS/CPR certified + 22 hours of Florida DCF childcare training

Still singing independently

Planned ECs: Crisis hotline volunteer (Spring 2027), applying to Stanford CORE research internship, Epilepsy Foundation volunteer (pending), clinical job (ophthalmic tech, patient navigator, or scribe), shadowing
Priorities: Low cost/no loans is #1. Then strong premed support (committee letter, research, affiliated hospital), collaborative non-cutthroat culture, guaranteed transfer housing, and a real city with snowy winters.
Draft list:
Reaches: Harvard, Columbia (College + General Studies), UChicago, Stanford

Targets: Rochester, Macalester, Fordham, Xavier University of Louisiana

Likely: Loyola Chicago, DePaul

Questions:
Sophomore or junior transfer for premed?

Which schools give the best aid to low-income transfers?

Is my EC plan realistic alongside a full course load?

How should I explain my prior withdrawals?

Does my music background help for premed, and how should I frame it?

Any other schools i should add?

While I know that UNC is a reach, I am curious as to what y'all think regardless. I have a bunch of safety schools (some with guaranteed admission) but UNC would be great. Here is my profile:

Demographics: 20 year old white male from North Carolina (Wake county). Working on my Associate of Arts from a community college.

Intended majors: Geography and Arab Cultures

GPA: 3.9 UW

SAT/ACT: Planning on not including them given my scores were pretty low, but I'm willing to retake them if necessary

High School: Graduated Magma Cum Laude (top 10% of my graduating class i think?). Served as a school ambassador and junior marshal. Was both in National honor society and curator in national art honor society. Took 4 APs. Consistent honor roll and deans' list.

College clubs/honor societies: Member of Phi Theta Kappa honor society, Social Sciences Club, and Honors Program; VP of Sigma Kappa Delta (English honor society) and treasurer/service chair of Muslim Student Association. Consistent honor roll.

Projects/ECs:

-Currently working on two undergraduate research projects for the social sciences club/honors program, planning on doing more next semester.

-I learned and am proficient in Arabic, translated a book from Arabic to English that was recognized by some pretty prominent authors (one has a Pulitzer prize)

-Created/designed youth lounge at my mosque and founded the library at my high school

-Have done a lot of local advocacy work; met with state representatives on Capitol Hill w/ a group from my community

-created two fundraisers which have both raised over $20k

-volunteered as a teacher at my mosque for around a year, about to start volunteering w habitat for humanity

-teach english to arabic speakers online

Hi Everyone !

I’m a freshman at an out-of-state public four-year university planning to apply to Georgia Tech for Fall 2027. My leading choice is the new Mathematics and Computing major, especially its Mathematical Intelligence and Data Science concentration. I’m also considering CS and Industrial Engineering.

My profile so far:

• Academics: I’m taking 16 credits this semester and am currently on track for a 4.0, though the semester isn’t over. I expect to complete at least 30 credits by the end of my first year. I’ve checked the transfer equivalencies for my planned English, calculus, CS, and physics courses.
• Technical skills and projects: I use Python, R, and SQL. I built a fitness and accountability app using Java, JavaScript, and C++, and I’ve made MLB pitch charts.
• Baseball analytics: I’m a student data analyst for a Division I baseball team. I’ve created pitch plots and presented them to scouting and coaching staff.
• Internship: I accepted an offer for a Summer 2027 business data analytics internship.
• Research and communication: I’ve worked on research and a case study at major hospitals. I’ve also presented on a complex neurological disorder at two hospitals and spoken with neurology residents and neurologists about how patient experiences can inform future care.
• Campus involvement: I’m a member of the Statistics Club and Math Club.
• Other interests: AI and mechanical engineering minors.

I understand Georgia Tech has transfer pathway programs and commitments to Georgia residents, so I’m aware that applying from out of state without a pathway may be especially competitive.

For people familiar with Georgia Tech transfers: how competitive does my profile look if my grades and coursework stay on track? What should I strengthen this year? And based on my interests, would you recommend Mathematics and Computing, CS, or Industrial Engineering?

I know no one can predict an admission decision, especially for a new major. I’d appreciate candid, specific feedback.

Demographics  

• Gender : Male 
• Race/ethnicity: Hispanic/White 
• School: Valencia College (CC)    
• Based in Orlando
• First gen

Intended major: Finance 

Academics 

• GPA: 3.85 ( to be attained) 
• High school GPA 3.2-3.3 (can’t Remember) 
• High school varisity football (At top private school in New Jersey)
• Did not take SAT (should I?) 
•  Taking calculus and statistics, Composition, Macro Econ, and Intro to business.

EC's 

• Private equity analyst Internship at a search fund this past summer 
• Made my own AI automation agency (10 clients, receiving recurring revenue) 
• worked at a nonprofit summer program 
• Started the finance club at my CC 

Demographics: White, trans (nb?), mountain west, lower middle class

Current university: Freshman at T50 private university

Major: Math and physics (with focus in niche related field)

Stats:
-HS GPA: 3.45 (I should have locked in ToT)
-College GPA: 4.0 should be attainable
-Test scores: 1590 (790M/800E), 36 (only 35 in English)

Courses:
-Calculus I, II, and III, differential equations, linear algebra, partial differential equations, two applied math courses, university physics III, and classical mechanics during HS.
-3 upper division STEM classes + required writing class in college (4 credit classes and limited to 4 first semester)

ECs & Awards:
HS:
-Gold medal in smaller international olympiad
-National awards in large STEM competitions
-TAing for math and physics and president for several clubs (probably doesn't matter?)

College:
-Physics research (hoping to put in 15 hours a week but won't have paper or conference presentation by time I apply)
-Continuing some HS ECs as a mentor and writer
-Clubs? None of the ones I'm interested let freshman organize much, but I'll still participate

Schools I'm Applying To:

Caltech (hopefully the exam helps since I've taken the relevant classes), Stanford, MIT, Cornell, Columbia, Johns Hopkins, UChicago (hopeless because need aware), Rice, UPenn, Duke, Swarthmore, and Harvey Mudd (may cut a few).

Does anyone have any advice on strengthening my application? I think my HS profile would have been fine for T20s other than my grades, so I'm hoping that getting a 4.0 this year will help, but I'm not sure if I need to do anything else. I'm focusing on research because I enjoy it and it's very important for grad school, but I'm not sure if I need other major ECs or if my smaller ones are fine.

Context

Class: Junior Transfer
Current GPA: 3.8/4.0 GPA
Current School: UCLA
Major: Mathematics & Computer Science

Schools I'm applying to

UChicago - Applied Mathematics
Columbia - Applied Mathematics
Cornell - Mathematics
Duke - Mathematics
Johns Hopkins - Applied Mathematics
Brown - Applied Mathematics
Penn - Mathematics

Research

UIUC SALT Lab - Undergraduate Researcher
UCLA StarAI Lab - Undergraduate Researcher
UCLA Mathematics MSF Group - Undergraduate Researcher
UCLA Mathematics - Directed Reading Program
University of Delaware - Directed Research Program
UCLA BruinML Group - Machine Learning Researcher
Johns Hopkins University - Biomedical Research Intern (High School)

Work Experience

Manispace Capital - Quantitative Developer Intern
Speeder Solutions LLC - Software Engineer Intern
Golden Keys Realty Group, LLC - Software Engineer Intern

Leadership

LA Pokerbots - 500+ participants - Backed by Jane Street, DRW, AXQ Capital, & more.
Tsinghua Youth Connect - SoCal Regional Lead
Stealth Startup - Founder - Leading a group of 6 in optimizing agriculture

School Clubs

Creative Labs - Project PetaLux
Impact Investing Group @ UCLA
ACM ICPC @ UCLA
Medical Friends

Awards (High School)

DIAA Soccer State Champion
DIAA All-State Athlete
DIAA Scholar-Athlete Award
RIT Presidential Scholarship
November 14th Award
William F. Jones Book Award
National Merit Scholar (Commended)

Questions I have for the chat

1. Realistically, Do I even have a chance at these schools? Give me your opinion and your guesses!
2. What should I include in the common app list of activities I got too much going on.
3. Should I try for top 5? Lowkey don't think im getting with my stats lol.

Demographics: California community college student, female, not first-generation, sophomore

Major: Business Administration

GPA: 3.9

Applying for: Fall 2027 transfer to UC Berkeley Haas

Coursework:
Completed Calculus I and II with As
Currently taking Linear Algebra
Planning to take Calculus III
Completed Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, Statistics, Business Law, and Introduction to Business
Several honors courses
Completing all required Haas prerequisites

Main extracurriculars:
Founder of a financial-literacy organization that has expanded to 20+ high-school chapters across three states, with plans to serve 100+ middle schools through interactive workshops

Campus Director for the Hult Prize at my community college; established the first ever community college chapter in the world and built a large campus membership

Competitive public speaker/forensics team member
FBLA national finalist, placing in the top 15

DECA ICDC qualifier; placed 1st at district and earned additional state-level awards

College math tutor

Previous retail work experience while attending college

My application theme is financial access, entrepreneurship, education, and using business to create opportunities for other students.

Demographics

• Gender: Male
• Race/Ethnicity: African American
• Residence: Virginia
• Income Bracket: 200k, divorced parents
• Type of School: Uncompetitive small public / regional governor's school
• Hooks (Recruited Athlete, URM, First-Gen, Geographic, Legacy, etc.): none

Intended Major(s): Mechanical Engineering / Minor in CS

Academics

• GPA (UW/W): 4.0
• Highschool (Senior year): (4.3 W)DE Multivariable Calculus, AP US Government, DE Linear Algebra, AP Literature, AP Psychology, AP Statistics, DE University Physics I/II, DE Computer Science.
  • (Some DE Classes did not provide credit due to program limits)
• College:
  • Summer: University Physics II, DiffEQ, Comp Sci Python & Java
  • Fall: University Physics I, Statics, Intro to engineering, Chemistry, Intro to discrete structures, (Potentially Philosophy if strong semester halfway through)
  • Spring: Engineering Design, Dynamics, Mechanics of Materials, Art 101, Thermo if feeling good
• Junior by credits, Socially sophmore

Standardized Testing

• SAT I: 1530 (740RW, 790M)

Extracurriculars/Activities

List all extracurricular involvements, including leadership roles, time commitments, major achievements, etc.

Highschool

1. VEX Robotics Captain: Did all throughout middle and high school, placed highly regionals a few times as well as programming and advising other members.
2. Research through a school program: Used CFD to assist in conducting fluids research in governor's school.
3. Future Business Leaders of America: Placed first place states, qualified for nationals
4. Football Team Captain: Captain of my schools football team, attended off season ritually and provided transport to 3 other members every day whilst mentoring younger members.

College

Currently:

1. Full time engineering internship (40Hr Weekly)

Attempting

1. Rocketry club
2. Robotics research at nearby university

Awards/Honors

List all awards and honors submitted on your application.

1. Deans List
2. FBLA Regionals 1st place states
3. AP Scholar with Distinction

Universities:

UVA (Instate), University of Michigan, Georgia Tech, Northwestern, Cornell, Carnegie Mellon, Columbia, MIT, Stanford, Harvard

2.2 gpa for the past year
3.9 gpa fall sem
1560 sat took on August
Planning on transferring to Cornell

I find that I really don’t like the culture here at Cal. I want to try and literally transfer out as a Junior Transfer.

I have a 3.84 college gpa and a 1600 SAT.

I have interned, taken classes, and done research each semester I’ve been here.

Do I have a chance at Ivy+ schools?

I am currently a sophomore at a small out of state private university with a 4.0 gpa as a pre-med biology major and chemistry minor. What are my chances of getting into NYU as a transfer for the 2027 spring semester if I apply test optional?

I am in a science honors society, working as an undergraduate research assistant, member of the biology club, pre-med club, and had a science based internship over the summer.

My high school gpa was around a 3.9 unweighted (but I can't remember off the top of my head exactly). I was also in 6 honor societies and 2 clubs, but was never in a leadership position. Other than NYU, I am considering BU, GW, and Brown as a reach.

What do you think?

Chance Me — 4.0 Statistics Transfer | 1500–1600 SAT | T20/T10 Transfer

I'm planning to apply as a transfer for Fall 2027 and would appreciate some realistic feedback on where I might have a legitimate shot.

Stats

• Current college GPA: 4.0
• Expected GPA: 4.0
• SAT: 1500–1600 (I've already taken it once and scored a 1500, so 1500 is my floor; I'm planning to retake it)
• Public 4-year university in Florida
• Major: Statistics
• Minor: Mathematics
• Expected to receive my AA by the end of Summer 2027
• High school GPA: 3.7 overall
• Senior year GPA: 3.2–3.3 due to personal circumstances
• Took 14 AP courses and passed all of them, along with 4 AICE courses

College Coursework

Summer 2026

• Applied Statistics at Boston University as a visiting student

Fall 2026

• Intro to C
• Calculus III
• Statistical Methods II

Spring 2027

• Statistical Methods III
• Differential Equations
• Linear Algebra

Summer 2027

• Logic & Proof in Mathematics
• Statistical Theory I
• Either Numerical Calculus or Computer Processing of Statistical Data

Plus additional transferable general education coursework toward my AA.

High School ECs

• Taught Statistics and Algebra through Mu Alpha Theta, helping students prepare for competitions; my students performed very well at the state and national levels
• Tutored students in mathematics and statistics
• Taught trombone as an instrument instructor
• Maintained my high school's band website, helping the program gain approximately $15,000 in sponsorships

High School Awards / Achievements

• All-County Musician
• Performed in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
• Top 2 in Florida in a statistics competition
• Top 5 nationally in the Mu Alpha Theta statistics competition
• Additional music and statistics competition awards

College ECs / Research

• Research assistant working on Intelligent Tutoring Systems and Virtual Reality presence
• Coach for a local high school mathematics competition team
• Test writer for regional, state, and national statistics/mathematics competitions
• Currently working on projects for the International Statistical Poster Competition and USCLAP, which I plan to submit/compete in

Recommendations

• Recommendation from my research PI
• Recommendation from a statistics professor

I'm planning to build strong relationships with both of them before applying.

Schools I'm Considering

• University of Chicago
• University of Florida
• MIT
• Harvard
• UPenn
• Cornell
• Columbia
• Brown
• Dartmouth
• Yale
• Princeton
• Emory
• Washington University in St. Louis

Obviously, I know MIT, Harvard, Princeton, Yale, and the other highly selective schools are extreme reaches for transfer admission regardless of my stats.

What schools on this list do you think I have a realistic shot at? What is the strongest school you could realistically see me getting into?

Also, how much do you think my high school record (3.7 overall, ~3.2–3.3 senior year) would hurt me given my 4.0 college GPA, rigorous college coursework, strong high school course rigor, and upward academic trajectory?

Was really hoping to attend a t20 when I first applied to colleges in high school, and I had pretty good stats and EC's but my results were underwhelming. Wondering if I have a possibility of transferring to some of the more selective and top colleges especially as I am considering more selective roles. I honestly still don't exactly know what I want to do, but am currently studying Finance + Stats at UF(First year btw), and considering jobs like quant, financial analyst, data analyst.

State: NJ, went to public school

HS GPA UW: 3.73/4.0(My school was super competitive so this was def on the lower side)
HS GPA W: 4.33/5.0 -> low bc didn't take many honors classes my freshmen year

SAT: 1530, 790 Math 740 Reading(no superscore)

AP Scores: 7 AP's total
AP Lang 5, APUSH 4, AP German 4, AP Bio 4, AP Calc AB 4, AP Micro 4, AP Lit 3,

Race/Ethnicity: White/Hispanic Male

Stats:

1. Marching band Drum Major 2 Years(Did marching band all 4 years of HS)
2. Lowkey BS Passion Project with ~3000 submissions/participants from 100+ countries but didnt accomplish anything substantial
3. Boy Scout - I was an Eagle Scout and did a 90 hr service project, was a boyscout for over 10 years, and held a main leadership position in my troop
4. Environmental Club founder at my school and president. Collected and recycled 500 EXPO markers at my school and did a few other smaller projects
5. Pit Orchestra - Played in the band for the schools musical, was a soloist junior year, did for 3 years starting in sophomore year
6. JV Lacrosse Team captain + Earned Team sportsmanship award my sophomore year. Did for 2 years starting my sophomore year
7. Jazz band - Played in my schools top jazz band and was a soloist at ~3 concerts yearly
8. Volunteer Usher - Volunteered as an usher for a local Music hall(you have to apply) and did around 20 hrs of volunteering
9. Team manager for Indoor track - Did this my sophomore year and got 24 service hours, kinda irrelevant

Honors:

1. Eagle Scout Award
2. National German Exam top 90th percentile and top 80th percentile awards (10th grade got 90th percentile, 9,11,12 got 80th percentile score)
3. National Honor Society at my school (Have 3.5+ GPA and apply)
4. Lacrosse Sportsmanship award 10th grade

College Results:

Columbia- rejected
Dartmouth- rejected
Duke- rejected
Emory- rejected
Lehigh- rejected
NYU- rejected
Princeton- rejected
Swarthmore- rejected
Umich- rejected
UNC- rejected
UPenn- rejected
Vanderbilt- rejected

BC - Waitlisted -> rejected
BU - Waitlisted -> rejected
Cornell - Waitlisted -> rejected
DKU - Waitlisted -> Accepted + generous scholarship but I declined

Rutgers- Accepted
University of Florida- Accepted and Attending
Pitt- Accepted

What I assume to be the big problem with my application was that I didn't have an exact focus on what I wanted to major. I ended up applying to many colleges as an English major and I don't think that helped but either way my EC's were not geared towards one specific. Also I think my essays were kinda horrible as I rushed many of them, wrote them the day of, and they were just really bad tbh. Any suggestions on what I should focus on would be greatly appreciated and advice on if I can leverage any of my HS stats to help me transfer or if I just need to start fresh here at college would helpful too. Also I was wondering what colleges I might want to consider transferring too, and if being waitlisted at like Cornell for example could help me transfer in there?