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Sophia University: GPA or SAT? 2010/5/5 03:37
Hello!

I'm a high school student in Georgia, about a month or so away from graduating. My dream is to get accepted into Sophia University.

BUT

My grades are, say, TERRIBLE. I came into high school with a bare minimum knowledge of English not to land me in a English as a Second Language Class, although that is no excuse for my lazy behavior. Drum-roll please? ....A 2.5 GPA. Ugh. Ugh! I know! I'm a horrible loser at life :(

However, I studied my back-side off for the SATs and scored a solid 1600 (still not great, but whatever). I have a firm grip on Japanese (I have a six-grade writing level for kanji...and better for reading and speaking). I attended a Japanese school from 3rd to 5th grade. I can write mind-blowing English essays, and have three good recommendation letters from my kind teachers (whos classes I did well in).

My mother's also purely Japanese, while my father's American. My grandparents live in Yokohama.

I am very, very doubtful of where I stand write now. The application IS near $300, and I was wondering if I had even the slightest shot at getting in, or if I was just wasting my time or money.

Also, I was wondering if taking the TOEFL would increase my chances....

So what do you say? Should I give it a shot?

by Sayabean (guest)  

questions? 2010/5/6 14:29
Is that your combined total score? How does it break down in the three sections? What do you plan on majoring in? Why do you want to go to Sophia?

by Tilt (guest) rate this post as useful

Research first. 2010/5/12 12:21
I went to Sophia as an exchange student awhile back....bout 9 yrs. ago. You should go on their website and get their info. about int'l enrolling as full time students. I don't remember all the details, but your reading/writing/comprehension has to be QUITE good as you'll need to be on the same level as the other regular students. Just make sure you look at all their info. first before you decideas they don't have that many slots open for int'l full time students . I had a great year at Sophia and made many friends, however I do regret that the 2 campuses are physically separated, Yotsuya for Japanese students and Ichigaya (Comparative Culture studies) for exchange/language students and classes taught in English.
by AOI (guest) rate this post as useful

$300 is nothing for a dream 2010/5/12 13:57
If going to Sophia is your dream, then you should apply. Otherwise, you will always wonder, "Could I have gotten in?"

If $300 is not something you can afford to risk on the application to your dream school, the tuition will be beyond your means.

If you are worried about "wasting your time" by applying to your dream school, then you should absolutely not apply. The one thing you have plenty of right now is "time."

Spend the money, write one of your kickass English essays for the application, and see what happens.

Don't be afraid of being rejected. If you are rejected, you will find something else and have a great experience at that, whatever or wherever it is.

As a case in point, I didn't get into my first choice for studying in Japan 20 years ago, so I went to Sophia as "Plan B" and ended up meeting my future wife there. So even if you have to go study somewhere else, it will not be the end of the world.

If you don't apply, you will always wonder...what might have been?

Incidentally, in contrast to what the previous poster said, the former Ichigaya program (the international program) is now housed on the main campus at Yotsuya.

If after reading this you still are not sure if you should try or not, maybe you aren't meant to go to Sophia after all.
by Guest (guest) rate this post as useful

Thank you for the info! 2010/5/13 05:20
Thank you for all the replies!

To get straight to my answers:

My 1600 SAT score is broken down into:
560 Reading 550 Math 490 Writing

I plan on majoring in Linguistics, and I want to go to Sophia because my grandparents live near the campus. (Well, not really. They live about a hour away on train, but it's not that big of a deal). Also, Sophia's a school known for their internationality, and it's also got a widely known name throughout Japan, which could also score me a job in the future.

The application fee isn't a major problem in comparison to my ambitions, so I suppose I'll take the chance and apply ^^. Thank you for the motivation!

by Sayabean (guest) rate this post as useful

Yep 2010/7/24 19:03
I'm a third year in Sophia's FLA.

You'll get in for sure. You're a Japanese citizen, your mum's Japanese and you've lived in America your whole life, effectively making you a native English speaker on paper. Your grades are irrelevant.

That being said though, please start reading more in English. Readings are a killer here. If you take 4-5 classes a week, be prepared to read at least 30 pages a day of academic journals, books, etc. It's easy to pass but hard to get an A. Now that GPA counts even if you come from a good school, better start improving your English so your GPA will be good.

All the best!
by Reina (guest) rate this post as useful

Going Back Is A Mistake 2010/7/25 23:10
I wouldn't recommend Sophia or any Japan college to you. You have done well for someone that arrived in U.S. at high school age, and your GPA and combined SAT scores will get you into most U.S. college. Stay in USA if possible, get your BA and MA Degrees. Your education in the U.S. plus your bi-lingual abilities will open more door for you in Japan in the future.

I am very impressed with what you have achieved. My uncle had similar experience as you. He came to U.S. at age 15. He had alike GPA and SAT scores. He went to the local junior college. Transferred to the State College in Calif. He was accepted to the Calif School of Optometry in Fullerton, and now practice in Redondo Beach. I tell you his story because he had a dream. Now work on your dream!

by M (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Sophia University: GPA or SAT? 2012/1/26 04:47
hey. just wondering how you did!

did you get in?
by noemi (guest) rate this post as useful

Re: Sophia University: GPA or SAT? 2012/2/10 13:06
Hey, I don't know if you already applied or what but I wanted to let you know that like you I had a terrible GPA in high school, well worse than 2.5 on a 4.0 scale. However, my SAT scores were all above 700 (total 2200) so that balanced things out. After high school I took about 6 years off before applying to Sophia. I am half german half Japanese but born in the US so a bit weird. Not only did I get in with my terrible GPA they actually elected me the class representative ha. Japanese schools care more about test scores than your GPA. Write a good essay and you should be fine.
I do agree with others about not going to a Japanese university, they are kind of a joke. They focus mainly on job hunting rather than education. I am already trying to transfer to schools back in the US
Hope that helps
by Kanagawakenji7 (guest) rate this post as useful

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