Hi, I’m a senior in high school and am in the midst of the application process since Christmas break has begun. I’m just wondering if I should even bother applying to any ivy leagues. My mother is a graduate of columbia university and went to juilliard music school while my dad went to university of illinois and then to georgetown medical. they both encourage me to apply to all the colleges, but after looking at the ivy league student profiles, i don’t think i stand a chance:
I’m asian and have lived in Korea and attended my first three years of high school in germany..over there, i would have graduated top 1% but after moving to florida and due to their different grading system, i’m about top 10% here.
GPA: 4.3 weighted…3.9999 unweighted (i have one B?)
only 3 AP’s but i’m in all dual enrollment courses at the local college now.
SAT’s…reading 710
math 660
writing 680
I understand that they aren’t that great, but it’s too late to take them again.
SAT 2: chemistry: 630
math 1: 660
I was on the swim team for 2 years in germany (varsity), on the JROTC drill team, was kitty hawk (jrotc honors society) president, german honors society president, member of NHS, treasurer/secretary for MUN, did spring track and field, and attended summer and winter camps for swimming in austria for 2 years in a row…
And I volunteered as a red cross at the local hospital and currently am volunteering at the library..
I have pretty good teacher recommendations, including one from my counselor.
My chances are pretty low right? Should I even both applying to any Ivy Leagues?
I’m also applying to Bryn Mawr, Smith, Wellesley, and Barnard becaue i think i have a chance at the seven sisters…if i write a good essay of course….and I am also applying to University of Miami and University of Florida which are much cheaper since i get a scholarship (bright futures) for florida colleges.
Sorry, if you can give me some suggestions, i’d appreciate it VERY much.
4 Comments
Your GPA is outstanding but your SAT scores seem quite low for Ivy League colleges. I suggest looking into some of the elite colleges that are SAT optional like Bowdoin, Wake Forest, College of the Holy Cross.
Along with being ridiculously overpriced, you do realize that the Ivies are painfully overrated right?
You can receive the same high quality education in a much cheaper state school as an Ivy.
I would add a few of the Ivies to your list. I would try for Columbia and Dartmouth–both might be possiibilities and they like international experience. Do get them in–in rolling admissions, the sooner the better. Spend a LOT of time on your essays and make sure you show how YOU will contribute to the freshman class, not JUST what you want from them.
You’re right that your SATs are not great in terms of Ivy League stats. The bigger question, though, is what do you want from a school? Do you want the atmosphere of a small, liberal arts women’s college, in which case most of the Ivies may not be the best fit for you and those big state schools will probably make you miserable regardless of the tuition break, or are you just thinking in terms of prestige and your admissions chances?
Assuming that you are going for the liberal arts atmosphere, I’d think more in terms of schools like Swarthmore and Williams as your reaches than pressure-cookers like Harvard and Yale – or Columbia, which unfortunately tends to be very stats-driven. (Brown might be worth considering, if you absolutely have to have an Ivy on there.) I’d also echo the Bates and Bowdoin suggestion, and throw in Sarah Lawrence. As long as you’ve got some places on your list you feel you have a reasonable shot at, go ahead and apply where you think you’ll be happy – just make sure it’s what you want and not what you think you should want.