What exactly do you consider the “top 10”??? I can not say this enough to new posters on the chances forum: THE TOP 10 IS NOT REAL. It is all a matter of what you want, your interests, preferences, etc. For example, rather than applying to Andover, I may apply to some school in Montana because it has a program that fits my exact interests. Please don’t be ignorant: these schools aren’t for everyone. It’s all about fit. I don’t want to be condescending, I just think that it’s important for people to understand this. Moving on from that… I’m assuming by top ten you may mean Andover, Exeter, Deerfield, Hotchkiss, maybe Choate, Groton, Lawrenceville, Middlesex, Milton, Saint Paul’s? We use the acronym GLADCHEMMS, although I don’t really like it because there are schools that are just as good as these ten (like Cate or Taft).
As long as your ISEE is around the 90s then you’re fine. Not a big difference between somebody with a 93% and a 99% .
How good are you at your sports? Unless you’re a highly skilled player that could be recruited, then it probably won’t make much of a difference. If you’re very good, then you should get in contact with some coaches.
I don’t know what destination imagination is, but I’m guessing that it will help if you’re a regional champ.
I don’t know if the programs will help a ton: it really depends on what they were exactly, and who else applied for them.
If you’re going to need financial aid, and only applying to the “top 10”, then I would say that you should try and get some more extracurriculars, and maybe do some community service. Try to do something community service related that nobody else has: something specific to your interests.
If you have any questions, just PM me. My piece of advice is to really really scrutinize each school before applying. Your “top ten” can’t all possibly be a good fit for you. For example, I think I could picture myself at Choate or Andover; but not Groton, as it’s too small for me. Get the point? Anyways, feel free to pm me with questions!