A rural IL kids chances at H,P,Dart, UChi, Rice, ETC.

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Wellllll I'm just trying to get an early feel for what is going on here, it's only my junior year yet, but I still would like to know where I stand.</p>

<p>White Male
GPA: 4.0 uw, 4.whatever w
Class Rank: 1/270
School: Crappy public in a small town, few even go to college
Courseload: Most rigorous available, will have taken or be taking every AP my school offers by the time I apply, may self-study for the two AP Gov. tests to take at the end of this year.
SAT I: 2090 (680CR, 700M, 710W) This was my first take, should go up significantly. Will also take ACT 3 times.
SAT II: Projected that I will at least get all to 700 (a conservatively low estimate) on US History, Math IIC, and Chem most likely.
Projected AP scores: mix of 3s, 4s, and 5s in Chem, APUSH, Lit. and Comp, Comparative Gov, and US Gov and Politics, + will be enrolled in Calc AB (BC if my school decides to offer it), Bio, and Lang. and Comp. senior year
Intended Major: Political Science/Government and/or Economics</p>

<p>Honors: AAA Travel Challenge state finalist
IMEA District choir (as a junior and senior)
POSSIBLE All-State Choir senior year
Made WYSE (world youth in science and engineering) team (an honor because very few make the team)this year
~3 hours a week, 4 weeks
will be NHS member
NM Commended (slim chance at semi-finalist)</p>

<p>ECs/Work: Scholastic Bowl: Captain soph. and senior year.
~10 hours a week, 20 weeks a year
Intramural Basketball:
~4 hours a week, 8 weeks a year
Tennis: JV (non-recruitable)
~12 hours a week, 16 weeks
Work at Papa Murphy's pizza
~10 hours a week, all year
Musicals: a few minor roles and chorus
~8 hours a week, 10 weeks
Band and Chorus (in schools classes)
~2 hours a week, all week for outside class requirements (percussion ensemble)
Madrigals/Chamber Singers (fresh and soph):
~6 hours a week, 16 weeks
Jazz Band:
~2 hours a week, 20 weeks
Pep band:
~3 hours a week, 10 weeks
Concert Choir:
~3 hours a week, 20 weeks
Math Team
~5 hours a week, 10 weeks
HS Republicans (we put on a debate)
~3 hours a week, 6 weeks</p>

<p>Summer: ACE Quiz Bowl Camp (only a week)
ELCA Church Youth Gathering (a week)
Reading a LOT
~25 hours a week, all summer
Work at Papa Murphy's
~17 hours a week, all summer
Might work on gubernatorial campaign this summer</p>

<p>Volunteering: NHS requires 2 hours a month I think
4-H member (community service and learning projects)
-4-H federation (teen leadership group within 4-H)
-4-H Ambassadors (promotes 4-H)
~altogether probably 6 hours a week, 16 weeks
Church Youth Group: (community service and bible studying type things)
~including church-going, 5 hours a week, all year</p>

<p>ABOVE NUMBERS ARE PROBABLY STRETCHED, BUT THAT'S WHAT WILL PROBABLY GO ON MY APP (sorry if it is a little dishonest)</p>

<p>Recs: should be pretty good, one or two could be really good
Essays: should be relatively good</p>

<p>The schools that are definitely on the list (maybes are in parentheses):
Uber-Reaches:
Harvard
Princeton</p>

<p>Reach-Matches:
Dartmouth
UChicago
Rice (will apply Interim Decision)
(WUSTL)</p>

<p>Matches:
Georgetown
UVA
(Emory)</p>

<p>Safeties:
UMaryland
American
Case Western
(UIUC)
(George Washington)</p>

<p>Here are the possible scenarios for EA/ED, depending on how my SAT scores come up and my SAT II scores, and if I can actually be led to believe I have any chance at all at Harvard or Princeton:
SCEA Harvard, ID Rice
ED Princeton, ID Rice
ED Dartmouth, EA Chicago, ID Rice (it is legal under Dart's ED policy)
EA Chicago, ID Rice</p>

<p>Chances Please! And also ANY advice at all, for where to apply or whatever, is helpful.</p>

<p>PS sorry for the loooooonnnnnnnnggggggggg post!</p>

2

<p>I guess I'm also going to try to play up the "farm kid" side of me, because I'm sure there aren't many farm kids in these type of schools. I live 12 miles from town and such, and I help my dad do chores and such occasionally. I also ride dirt bikes and snowmobiles a lot, I may write something about that (being an American Motorcyclist Association member, having a motorcycle license, and a snowmobile permit thingy, do those help in the quirky factor?)</p>

3

<p>Noooooooooooo Oneeeeeeeeee??????? Come on people! I need help!</p>

4

<p>I forgot to mention that I will be All-Conference in schol bowl at the varsity level 3 years in a row. I also have made many all tournament teams.</p>

5

<p>What state are you from?</p>

<p>Being a farm kid from Maryland wont help AS much as being a farm kid from a more rual state (such as West Virginia or Oklahoma)</p>

<p>You still have a good chance though</p>

6

<p>rural illinois? well at least you live closer to a larger town than we do! last year, almost 50% of the graduating class enrolled in the local junior college. my son is the first kid in maybe the last 40 years to get accepted at an ivy league school. don't know how many have applied every year, but i would guess not too many! i don't think being from rural illinois is much of a hook, so keep up the good work!</p>

7

<p>Yes I know that it is not a hook, and probably barely even an advantage of any sort, but still, 99/100 people on this forum are in a large city or suburb and go to very competitive high schools, which is not the situation I am in. At our school, I believe only 20% go to ANY type of college, and probably 3/4 of that 20% go to the local CC. Our top, top, kids from the last few years have gone to University of Illinois and Purdue mostly, with one at Wake Forest and one at UMich - Ann Arbor. My counselor, who is a smart man, has very little experience with the types of schools I'm looking at, he barely knows what an SAT II is. We have a huge poverty issue, our school is practically bankrupt, and our school will be taken over by the government next year if our Hispanic population and our 'socio-economically challenged' group don't raise their ACT scores.</p>

8

<p>Any school specific comments?</p>

9

<p>dude, Gtown is not a match for u buddy, its a reach, where would u ascertain that from?</p>

10

<p>Well looking at Gtown's SAT percentiles, they are a significant amount lower than the schools I had listed above there. <em>Waits for "SATs aren't everything</em> comments*. So I think that Gtown is a match if I can raise my SAT to a 2200 or so, which I think I will.</p>

<p>I also forgot to mention that in my ECs that I will have been a Science Club officer for 3 years next year, and that takes ~4 hours a week, 8 weeks a year</p>

11

<p>more shameless bumping! pleeeaaaassssssseeeeeeeee comment some more people</p>

12

<p>mooooooooreeeeeeeeeeeeeeee bumping!</p>

13

<p>I like the situation you are in - try to get it into essay somewhere about how your school is a failure and it's about to get taken over by the government. It will seem like - WOW! He got a 2080 SAT with these poor resources available ! When he comes to our great university he will do much better! Socio-economic diversity is needed from students like this ! Admit him! </p>

<p>Problems I see:</p>

<p>You seem to have so many Extra Curriculars that it seems like a laundry list with no real chain of importance, colleges aren't looking for you to participate in everything - they want to see dedication ( many years in one activity ) and leadership from your ECs.</p>

<p>Just my opinion.
Mike</p>

14

<p>Georgetown and UVA are not matches, sorry. OOS for UVA is INSANE, basically Ivy level selectivity, G-town is barely a step below.</p>

15

<p>Just wondering how you spend 5 hrs/week on the math team or 10 hrs/week on scholastic bowl. That's a lot of time put in for EC's like those...</p>

<p>I agree with Mike...you've got a lot of random EC's.</p>

16

<p>With how much ECs you have it seems as if you never sleep or study - are you seriously lying/exaggerating?</p>

17

<p>I think the other people on this forum are a bit harsh on you. Well you're #1, that can't hurt. You're SAT is a bit low so you will need to take it, also you need to start erasing some of that BS off your EC's because god knows you are lying about your #'s. Exaggeration is a bit of an understatement. I don't understand how you can be a soontobe nhs member, and yet still have NHS volunteer hours.</p>

18

<p>If i assume your school last around 30 weeks, and all your EC's are during the school year. You are putting in 1000+ hours not including work. Which rougly means you put in 33 hours a week on EC's, divided by 7 days, you put in 5 hours a day in EC's Plus work Plus volunteering. Is it possible? sure. Is it likely? probably not</p>

19

<p>Clarification: those NHS hours are future, it's a requirement to do 2 hours a month to remain a member</p>

<p>Thanks for all the advice/criticism. I know my ECs are a total laundry list, even though I do have all 4 years of participation in most of them. I think I am going to center them around Music even though I'm not truly passionate about it. And I AM passionate about politics, so that will make it in the app somewhere. I have a small dose of leadership in Schol Bowl and Science Club, but that is basically it. At times I considered starting my own EC activity, but nothing I came up with had any real interest from the kids at my school. </p>

<p>Baklava: I am realizing your advice is good, and that the numbers just LOOK exaggerated. LOL. I will definitely take it down a notch on the overcompensation for certain things, and it will look more realistic. is there anything you would take completely off?</p>

20

<p>Thanks, baklava. Yeah those numbers are pretty exaggerated. I did figure in travel time though (as was discussed on another thread) which for me is a whole hour each time I have to go to town. It is also evened out by the fact that the Musical, Schol Bowl, and Tennis do not overlap, so time committments are spread out. And I have almost no actual time volunteering, but I am BSing by counting my membership in 4-H and Youth Group (which do SOME community service) as volunteering. The NHS hours I will do next year is about all, and that's only like 2 a month. That and I help my parents run a food stand at our country fair for the county Pork Producers Association (not-for-profit) which takes up about 40 hours during a 4 day fair.</p>

<p>And meateater: I was not really aware about that for VA. A girl got in from my school last year with lower stats than me, and would have gone if she could swing it financially. I will visit UVA at some point, and I plan on rasing my SAT to at least their 75% mark, and that combined with being ranked 1st, I don't see how they could reject me.</p>