#application components

Hi there,

I know I probably shouldn't be on here (it's not Sunday, after all) but I haven't posted anything since.. well, a few weeks. It feels pretty good. Now, Facebook, on the other hand, needs some work....

Going off on a tangent there, my bad.

Let's get back to the question:

Is being 11th in a class of 51 a good thing for a student who will be applying to Duke in the future?

I can assure you that in my class of 62 girls, I may or may not have been 15, maybe 20th in the class (my counselor may disagree and put me higher up, but I like to think this low). She did say I was in the top 10%, so one of the top 6 students in the class. That most likely fluctuated back and forth, percentages change. Being 11th in a class size of 51 is not so bad. To be honest, and I have tried to emphasize this,

stats and numbers are not that important when it comes to college admissions at Duke.

I used a handy site called Family Connection (some schools may have it available for the students, some may not), and it basically compared my academic profile (ACT scores, SAT scores, GPA, etc.) to those past students who've been admitted/enrolled at the schools I was considering. Now, there had been only 8-9 acceptances into Duke since the founding of my school, I believe. My school is celebrating it's 16th year this year, and 8-9 acceptances into Duke is not a lot. Out of all of those, maybe 3 have enrolled. Some ridiculous number like that. So technically the site didn't have much to go on in comparing me. Based on the collected stats, the only stat of mine that "qualified" for Duke was my ACT score. My GPA, SAT, SAT II's, etc., were all in blaring red. Duke may as well have denied me.

I'm not saying to completely disregard your scores and rankings. They can definitely help you. What I'm saying is Duke looks at all the components of your application: essays, personal pieces, scores, etc. That personal statement and other application essays are your best friends, I'm telling you now. Make those essays rock so the admissions officers can see who you are through your words on that sheet of paper.

If you show passion for Duke, for learning, and improvement in yourself, it won't matter you are 11th in your class. What will matter is that you show you are passionate about Duke and you want to be there.

I hope this helps.