Have you engaged your parents in any substantive discussions yet? They do need to understand that even students with outstanding scores are likely to be rejected at the Ivies and places like Georgia Tech, UNC and Duke. There are simply too many applicants who bring amazing credentials to the table As far as cheerleading goes, I think your suggestions of GT, UNC and Duke are great, but these schools are reaches. Everybody needs matches and safeties too, regardless of what your parents’ expectations might be. With regard to the poster who suggested Georgia Tech as a back-up to the Ivies, think again, because admission there as an out-of-stater is equally unlikely. UVA has a great cheerleading squad and is slightly easier to get into, but here again, I wouldn’t count my chickens before they hatch. Plenty of top kids get rejected from UVA too. Long story short: I would apply to Ivies with good cheer squads (not sure which ones these are), Georgia Tech, UNC, Duke, Vandy and UVA – all as reaches. Maybe you’ll get lucky and get a hit. I would also look into some more reasonable cheer-worthy schools in the match and safety categories. I think the schools with top sports teams are a good place to start looking. Cheer is not my niche so I’m not too knowledgeable about it, but from what I’ve heard, you could consider Boston College, which is quite reputable for academics too. U Maryland comes to mind also. Good luck on both counts (college admissions and reasoning with your parents).