Am i being realistic? :S

Chance Me / Match Me!
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<p>hi there =)</p>

<p>this is my first post on the site and erm atm im really nervous after pretty much having a crap session with my college counselor in school, she doesn't seem to think that i have much of a chance getting into any universities that i wan2 apply for except maybe GWU and that also might be an aspiration with my grades according to her...</p>

<p>I have a straight A transcript from kindergarten to grade 10 and idk if anyone's familiar with the english system of GCSE's but for my IGCSE's which are basically 10th grade external exams set by cambridge that act as pre-requisites for its A level program, i took 10 subjects and scored A* in all of them,</p>

<p>after 10th i moved countries, and having never done so b4 i kinda took a while to adjust...i moved from the middle east to asia...and my dad stayed back as well so for me the change was kinda big...espec the change in lifestyle i'd been used to since i was born in the middle east as well...</p>

<p>i had ter move coz i got kicked out of my old school for having a beard...something i had because im Sikh and my faith requires me ter not shave, i was kinda going to use that for my commonapp essay probably and was gonna ask for thoughts on that as well,</p>

<p>i moved into the IB program and had a lousy first year as i said...having a 28 in the program in my december and may grade...</p>

<p>in addition i really messed up SAT 1, scoring 700 CR 670 Math and 650 Writing =/, so i'm going to have to give that again.</p>

<p>atm i've just been predicted a 37 for my IB grade, which is the grade that goes to universities, so will they take into account the fact that i moved countries and had a bit of a stumble initially but then worked really hard to overcome that initial block and end up with an almost 10 point increase? as well as my past grades? :S</p>

<p>in terms of extra curriculars i'm not worried because i've got a lot of them, including leadership, MUN's, music, varsity sports, public speaking, acting etc. i'll elaborate if needed</p>

<p>im allowed 8 universities and this' my list atm:</p>

<p>Harvard (Dream university)
Upenn/Stanford</p>

<p>Georgetown
UVA
Tufts</p>

<p>American University/Wesleyan
GWU
Berkely</p>

<p>so ye please tell me if the university list is too optimistic or inflated, coz i reallly am lost atm and need all the help i can get =/</p>

<p>i want to do a joint degree in IR and Eco/Business as an undergrad and business/law grad, initially was applying to huntsman ED but i doubt ill get in...dya think i can make it in2 upenn college of arts and sciences ED?</p>

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<p>What about non-reaches and safeties?
(And for the record, it’s much easier to read a post and help a person if he types out words all the way :wink: )</p>

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<p>I’m not really too confident about my knowledge on the English school system, but from what you said, and your interesting life story, it seems that you would have a pretty good chance at getting into UVA, Tufts, American, and GWU. As for the others, I’m not too sure. The Ivies and Stanford seem like major reaches with your SAT scores, but maybe if you improve, you could try applying at Penn SAS (but probably not Huntsman, which has a tiny acceptance rate). Oh, and you really need some safeties. And to write ‘to’ instead of ‘ter’.</p>

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<p>my bad raider =/</p>

<p>cheers raven =), my SAT score was a first timer, so i hope 2 improve next time round i guess :S</p>

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<p>I think American is the easiest to get into for you and a much better choice than Wes for IR.</p>

<p>Is money a consideration? If so, than lists can significantly change because many schools do not have financial aid for international students.</p>

<p>I’d caution any school ED because you won’t have the 2nd SAT scores before some ED deadlines.</p>

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<p>i’m not applying for financial aid, </p>

<p>and i was thinking of ‘rushing’ my scores in as i’d retake sat 1 in november?</p>

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<p>bump? :s
please let me know your thoughts people</p>

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<p>I think your counselor gave good advice. Without knowing what country you’re from and more details, it’s hard for people here to know as well as a professional at your school that has years of seeing who got in where. Ivies look highly unlikely unless you’re a minority from a nation sending few applicants to the US.</p>