I am applying to UW-Madison which has gone test-optional from spring 2021 to spring 2023. My highest SAT score is 1310 which falls just outside their middle 50% score range. I got a 660 on the Math portion and a 650 on the EBRW; their middle 50% for each respectively is 680-780 and 630-710. I have taken 5 AP courses and no honors course and have an unweighted GPA of 3.7/4.0. I have an upwards GPA trend (and harder courses) from 3.38 freshman year to a 3.95 senior year (This is something they look for in applicants). In general, I am slightly below their average admitted student but I think my essays and ECs will help a lot. That being said, I'm not sure if I should apply test-optional or not. My counselor said I shouldn't but I have an aversion to applying test-optional anywhere. Should I send them in?
I don't know if this will help you gauge where I stand academically or in any other way, but I was admitted to UC San Diego as an out-of-state for fall 2020 admissions.
Probably around 3.65 or so, I'm not sure. I got straight A's my senior year though and I ended up getting accepted to Madison (didn't end up submitting my SAT). I will say that I think my essays carried me more than anything else when applying or so I assume. (Was surprised to see a comment on here since it's so old)
I agree with your HS counselor because although you state 1310 is the 25% Percentile because 630 and 680 = 1310 on the 2020 Common Data Set the 25% percentile composite score is actually 20 points higher at 1330. So while 25% of students get a 630 in English and 25% get a 680 in Math, according to the CDS report, when students report their composite it's 1330 to 1450 not 1310 to 1490. And that has nothing to do with superscoring because UW Madison doesn't superscore.
https://uwmadison.app.box.com/s/cf2vstfvk9l26o4tv8h2ww5io301rmsu
Also, you can see something else with regards to GPA as well on the CDS file which is that 80% of admits have a UWGPA between 3.75 and 4.0 with 43.1% of them reporting perfect grades. 15.5% were admitted with a 3.50-3.74 GPA.
Are you applying Early Action? Is there any advantage to applying early you think?
Best of luck with your college admissions journey.
To keep this community safe and supportive:
What was your GPA after the end of your junior year or at the beginning of your senior year?