Can I get into Northwestern?

Can I get into Pepperdine University, Northwestern University, New York University, UCLA?

• Unweighted GPA: 3.6129 Weighted GPA: 4.4130 Unweighted Rank: 118 of 613 (Top 19.2 Percentile) Weighted Rank: 48 of 615 (Top 7.8 Percentile) ^This is as of first semester junior year. One more semester to go! Extracurricular Activities: Student Council- Chairman Junior Class Council- Chairman Cultural Awareness- Co-Vice President Tennis (started soph year and will continue with it through senior year) ^This is as of junior year. I think I can also become a board-member of Student Council and an officer of Health and Medical Careers by the end of this year. Also, the sponsors of Cultural Awareness assured me that I will be president senior year! Community Service: Alexian Brothers Hospital- 150 hrs St. Peters Lutheran Church and School- 50 hrs Sunrise (retirement home)- 40 hrs ^This is as of right now. By the time I apply to universities, I think it's possible that I might have 400 hrs of community service. Also, I might be the youth coordinator at my own church. Occupation: I also worked at St. Peters Lutheran Church and School this summer and will work and volunteer there the summer before senior year. I'm hoping to get an engineering internship the summer before senior year as well. Honors: Spanish Honor Society (Kind of a joke in my school.) National Honor Society (I'm hoping I will get into it senior year because I didn't junior year.) ACT: I took the December ACT and I got a 27. I also took the February ACT and I only went up a point to a 28 composite. I'm hoping that my final act will be at least a 30!

• Answer:

  Here are last year's average admitted applicant's stats: (Keep in mind each year it gets more competitive - more applicants - so you will need to be above the averages below.) Pepperdine - 3.62 (unweighted), 3.95 (weighted), 28 ACT Northwestern - 3.75 (unweighted), 4.18 (weighted), 31 ACT UCLA - 3.69 (unweighted), 4.1 (weighted), 29 ACT NYU - 3.63 (unweighted), 4.0 (weighted), 29 ACT Your unweighted GPA is a little under for each school, though your weighted is above all of them. Your SAT is too low for any - aim for 30 + (32 for Northwestern). Unless you're California resident it'll be very difficult for you to get into UCLA since state & transfer students get priority. Out of state have to be far above their averages. It's great that you have leadership in your ECs. You need to make sure you write solid essays & your letter writers give you non-generic ones. Good luck!