Letter Response

Here's a letter I recently got that I thought I'd share, I have a feeling a lot of you will have similar questions in the coming days, weeks, and months leading up to the fall.

My name is --- and I am about to be a Senior at a high school in Georgia. I was on the GWU website and I came across your amazing blog, and I thought you might be able to help me out a bit. I'm sure you know how difficult the college process is, so every bit of advice would really help. 

1. What is a good SAT/ACT score and GPA? (I know it gives you an idea on different sites like the Princeton Review but I wanted to know straight from a student.) 
2. What would you say is the best part of attending GWU?
3. What are some of the best clubs/organizations available?

MY RESPONSE:

First off, thanks!  Hearing "amazing" in the same sentence as "your blog" is more than enough flattery to swell my head!

And you're right--I do know a lot about the college admissions process.  As an employee as well as a volunteer for GW's admissions office, I'd like to think I've gained a lot of know-how on the topic.  

I'd like to start by saying that schools are definitely weary of giving admissions statistics for some reason, but lucky for you, I was able to find this link with the ballpark range for accepted Freshmen in all of GW's schools:  http://www.gwu.edu/apply/undergraduateadmissions/beforeapplying/freshmanclassprofile

Anything within those grade ranges is more than acceptable, but if you deviate outside that range, don't worry!  I'll use myself as an example: I took both the ACT and the SAT, and I did SIGNIFICANTLY better on the SAT, one might even say I did just "eh" on the ACT.  And my GPA was good, but not a 4.6 or anything ridiculous like that.  So my numbers weren't nearly perfect, yet I got an admission offer and some SWEET scholarships!

As for the best part about GWU, I'd say it's how connected the school is with DC.  GW is the only DC university with a metro stop right on campus (all others have it near or in the same neighborhood, and with most you even have to take a shuttle bus to get to the stop!)  The campus is really urban; it's right smack dab in the middle of everything DC, yet you can still tell very distinctly when you're on campus and when you've ventured off.  It's definitely because of all that that I fell in love with GWU.  And I'm not just selling you a line here, I truly love school.  In fact I'm REALLY missing it and I don't want to be home anymore!  :(

Best clubs?  Well, I'm not sure!  I guess I have to plug Voices for Choices (The Pro-Choice & Sexual Health Awareness Club).  I'm a board member, along with Kim Wollner, another blogger.  However, if that's not your thing, there's a club or student org for literally ANYTHING.  College Democrats is huge on campus, and it probably has the biggest membership, but College Republicans also has a following.  There's even really specific groups like Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), The Humane Animal Treatment Society (HATS) and the Fair Trade Society (I think that's what they're called?).  Additionally, there's a bunch of student theatre and a capella groups if you're interested, and there's a club for most every religion or ethnicity.

I always end up writing more than I anticipated on these responses.  I hope you found all this useful, and let me know if you have any other questions or updates!

--- Enjoy it?  Thought so.  Keep emailing!  ShireenS@gwmail.gwu.edu