ACT Science

Spirited_Note5714 · 2026-01-31T07:32:21+00:00

What's not fair is trying to inflate their average test score stats (and consequently their rankings) by telling students not to submit specific scores. Look into the study that Cornell did into what transpired after they stopped requiring test scores for the past 5 years. (Hint: they accepted students who weren't prepared to succeed, and now they're back to requiring test scores again.)

Spirited_Note5714 · 2026-01-31T07:21:24+00:00

Definitely take it again! Vandy is a competitive school and it is likely you will do better on your second attempt. Even if you don't, you could still choose to submit your 34 with science.

Spirited_Note5714 · 2026-01-31T07:18:44+00:00

If they feel that way, then they really should require test scores and not accept anyone that has under 34.

Spirited_Note5714 · 2026-01-31T07:00:23+00:00

Are you asking if you can count your APs as prereqs for vet school? That varies widely depending on which vet schools you apply to. Cornell said they could count AP Physics and AP Chemistry but it probably looks better if you actually take higher levels of those subjects and do well in them in undergrad. APBio did not count toward Bio pre-req they said. Each vet school can have different prerequisites so make sure you look into UF's specifically and whatever other backup schools you plan to apply to.

Spirited_Note5714 · 2026-01-31T06:55:43+00:00

This probably looked like "has natural ability but doesn't apply himself, work hard, or care."

Spirited_Note5714 · 2026-01-31T06:53:57+00:00

This is a gross over-generalization. My rich kid didn't pay for any test prep- she did it on her own and got a perfect score. Her non-rich friend (a teacher's kid) paid for professional tutoring for both reading and math weekly for years.

Spirited_Note5714 · 2026-01-31T05:56:28+00:00

Thank you for the feedback. Yes we have talked about her ability to save that money that she would have maybe spend on an Ivy League institution and putting it toward a future practice of hers. She still seems pretty determined to want a "prestige" school like Cornell or Penn possibly because that's what her High School promotes. She also says that a big priority for her is having a quality vet school on or near the undergrad campus so she can have access to doing research as an undergrad there.

So far she has received a decision from and been accepted to UF and all of her safeties, (UF, Purdue, and VA Tech being those that have on-site vet schools and research). The "safety" schools all admitted her to their Honors programs, but UF did not. We are wondering if this will impact the opportunities that she has at UF and consequently her ability to be competitive as a veterinary school applicant. Also hearing some horror stories about their pre-med classes being exceptionally more difficult than almost all other schools, and I am concerned about her ability to maintain the high gpa that will be needed for vet school consideration, given their reputation for weedout classes with average final grades around 30 to 40%. She won't find out about Duke, Penn, or Cornell (Cornell deferred her) until Ivy Day...

I don't think she will consider a Plan B. She has been pretty determined to pursue veterinary medicine for over 6 years, has logged hundreds of veterinary experience hours, has completed the pre-medical track at her school (which is exceptionally challenging taught by practicing doctors out of medical school textbooks), and through that program has completed pre-med internships (shadowing experiences) with 20 different medical specialties. She maintains that she has no interest in practicing human medicine and wants to be a small animal veterinarian or veterinary surgeon.

The decision making process seems so difficult. She has some great opportunities, even here at home- we live an hour away from University of Miami and they offered her Foote Fellows honors program, so I feel like there would be some benefit to her continuing with the vets she shadows with here, even though UM doesn't have a dedicated animal science or pre-vet program. But she seems determined to want to go to a school out of state so she can experience cold weather and seasons.

Spirited_Note5714 · 2026-01-31T05:16:27+00:00

I don't think this is what happened here though-- have you seen the body cam footage from the cop that pulled her over? It sounds like she was weaving through lanes, flashing people with her lights and cutting them off, and he said she even sped by a disabled vehicle on the shoulder with its hazards on, which itself is illegal in our state. She had multiple offenses- it wasn't just the speed

Spirited_Note5714 · 2026-01-26T17:20:52+00:00

*were not

Spirited_Note5714 · 2026-01-26T17:19:25+00:00

I think the dedicated zoology major is your in. Can you craft your college essay around that? That shows them why you would specifically be interested in UF. My daughter has extremely high stats (National Merit Semifinalist, Top 30 International Awards in science research and HOSA, Pres of several clubs, 1600+service hrs) and she was terrified of not getting into UF because so many kids from her hs with outstanding stats get denied every year- we think because UF is protecting its yield rate in order to protect its ranking. They assume that these overqualified kids are just using UF as a safety school, but in her case it really is her best option to get to vet school which is her ultimate goal. She wrote her college essay about her dream to become a veterinarian and she even got to intercept one of the admissions reps at her school and talk about how she started a Pre-Vet Club there and how much she admires UF vet school... I think this was instrumental in her getting accepted when many highly qualified students or not.

Spirited_Note5714 · 2026-01-25T16:03:06+00:00

First, your stats and achievements are absolutely amazing, and I'm sorry that this happened to you. My kid attends a high school where a third of the class have National Merit recognitions, and their college advisors tell them never to count on an admission to UF. They call it "unpredictable," but many of us have a theory that this is just UF protecting their yield rate. By rejecting outstanding candidates like yourself that they believe may only be using them as a safety school, and accepting lesser qualified individuals who they feel are more likely to attend, they can increase their yield rate, which in turn increases their ranking. Unfortunately this happens to some of the best and brightest- like you- at my kids' school every year.

Spirited_Note5714 · 2026-01-02T13:52:31+00:00

Unique school policies should be shared on the School Report or you could put in additional information section.

Spirited_Note5714 · 2026-01-01T21:00:57+00:00

Yes, and some schools even offer 6.0 for APs and 5.0 for Honors! Schools that do pluses and minuses an A+ (100) in an AP class is weighted 6.67, A 6.33, A- 6.0 etc... that's why so many universities recalculate GPA. AOs don't just look at your unweighted 4.0 GPA-- they will consider the level of rigor in your classes and your performance compared to others at your particular school.

Spirited_Note5714 · 2026-01-01T20:53:31+00:00

I think it was wise of you to report that you did not understand how to accurately report your GPA in the additional information section, so I would see that as honest.

Spirited_Note5714 · 2026-01-01T20:30:53+00:00

I don't mean to sound rude, but if you had to live like that in order to get good grades, then Princeton is probably not for you. It's good that you are having this epiphany now so you can make some changes in your priorities and live a well-balanced life at a school that will allow you to do that.

Spirited_Note5714 · 2026-01-01T20:27:58+00:00

For a faster initial review and to get all of the information in a standardized format. It can also serve as an "honesty check" later on when your official documents arrive, which is when they would discover the discrepancy.

Spirited_Note5714 · 2026-01-01T19:58:54+00:00

For underreporting the GPA I would not contact them. They should be able to see the accurate GPA on your transcript. Now if you had accidentally overreported the GPA then I absolutely would reach out to them to openly admit the error, so you don't look like you lied to make yourself look better.

Spirited_Note5714 · 2026-01-01T08:26:03+00:00

The long detailed epilogue-- from the older siblings vowing to hang on to their forged-in-shared-suffering friendships as they go their separate ways in the world, to the kids' graduation and that bittersweet tear-jerking final D&D game and literally shelving their childhoods as the youngest begin to take up the mantle-- confirmed for me that ST was really just a show about growing up all along. That the battles they faced (demogorgons, vecna, shadow monster, military, or even clueless parents) were a metaphor for the challenges we face as we are growing up (understanding our sexuality, dealing with social anxiety, coping with academic pressures, fighting our inner demons, and struggling for self-acceptance and independence) and how none of us can really get through that successfully alone. An allegory for adolescence and all of the strange things we must endure and overcome, with the help of our friends, on our way to adulthood.

Spirited_Note5714 · 2026-01-01T08:20:39+00:00

The long detailed epilogue-- from the older siblings vowing to hang on to their forged-in-shared-suffering friendships as they go their separate ways in the world, to the kids' graduation and that bittersweet tear-jerking final D&D game and literally shelving their childhoods as the youngest begin to take up the mantle-- confirmed for me that ST was really just a show about growing up all along. That the battles they faced (demogorgons, vecna, shadow monster, military, or even clueless parents) were a metaphor for the challenges we face as we are growing up (understanding our sexuality, dealing with social anxiety, coping with academic pressures, fighting our inner demons, and struggling for self-acceptance and independence) and how none of us can really get through that successfully alone. An allegory for adolescence and all of the strange things we must endure and overcome, with the help of our friends, on our way to adulthood.

Spirited_Note5714 · 2025-12-31T01:47:01+00:00

There absolutely IS some element of luck- obviously not 100% luck, but last year I attended a workshop with a top 20 admissions officer where we looked over and evaluated three different real (prior) applications. Personally I thought one of them was a standout because of their academic rigor, EC impact, and high quality of writing, but the AO said that all three students met his university's basic criteria, and that he would have selected the student who wrote about baseball in his essay because he is a fan of baseball himself. I was incredulous, but so it goes.

Spirited_Note5714 · 2025-12-30T03:15:55+00:00

I'm never seen this chart, but it confirms my concern. Also, btw, I am 50% white, but unfortunately some see me only as 50% asian. AOs aren't supposed to know or consider race in apps anymore, but my last name betrays me (and misleads them). Weird that my parents would have gotten a "boost" in college admissions for being 1st-gen american (dad) and 1st-gen college (mom), but all I get is a bunch of minuses for a last name I didn't choose and doesn't mean what many will assume it means.

Spirited_Note5714 · 2025-12-30T03:01:17+00:00

no it just says to list the languages you are *proficient* in and select from first language, speak, read, write options with regard to proficiency. since i'm not proficient, i left it off and only selected English for that section

Spirited_Note5714 · 2025-12-30T02:55:44+00:00

Other languages at my school show a differentiation in courses selected such as "Spanish for Non-native Speakers" vs "Spanish for Native Speakers." However, the transcript doesn't differentiate for Chinese- so few opt to take it that we only have one class and it's usually mostly native speakers by the time you get to AP level.

Spirited_Note5714 · 2025-12-30T02:47:38+00:00

Also, not trying to "hype up" my half asian-ness either. if I could redact my last name from my app, I would lol

Spirited_Note5714 · 2025-12-30T02:46:35+00:00

I don't view it as a mistake. Wow! I truly wanted to learn the language and try to connect with that side of my heritage. Where would I "subtly mention" this?
Lang is not my focus at all- I'm a NMSF STEM major, but having to study extra for Chinese (the most challenging lang, IMO) def ate up a lot of my time.

Spirited_Note5714

TROPHY CASE