Am I on the right track?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>I know I'm only in 10th grade and that I shouldn't be worrying about these things just yet, but I want to know what to expect.
I've been planning on getting a Molecular Biology major at some prestigious college, I would like to attend an UPenn, Caltech, Columbia, Cornell, or MIT, but I wouldn't mind Duke, John Hopkins (which aren't easy to get in as well, but they would be like my match schools) and UM or UF, which would be like my safety schools.</p>

<p>9th & 10th Grade Resumes and future classes:</p>

<p>9th Grade
AP World History (A, got a "3" on the AP Exam)
AP Spanish Language & Culture (A, got a "5")
English Honors (A, high "3" on the FCAT reading)
Algebra I Honors (A, "4" on EOC)
Biology Honors (A, "5" on EOC)
Introduction to Accounting (A)
Physical Education (A)</p>

<p>10th Grade
AP Biology (A, don't know yet; expecting a "4" or "5")
AP Human Geography (A, most likely a "5"
English II Honors (A, "5" on FCAT reading, "4.5" on FCAT writing)
Geometry Honors (A, "4" in the EOC)
Algebra II Honors (A)
Italian I (A)
Accounting Applications (B)</p>

<p>11th Grade
AP American History
AP European History
AP English Language & Comp.
Pre-Calculus
Chemistry Honors
Italian III Honors
Marketing Essentials</p>

<p>12th Grade
AP United States Government
AP English Literature
AP Italian Language & Culture
AP Calculus AB
AP Environmental Science
Dual Enrollment Chemistry
Marketing Essentials II</p>

<p>Right now I have a 3.96 unweighted GPA and a 4.90/6.00 weighted.</p>

<p>My PSAT scores aren't that good, I got around the 1590 with all three combined but I didn't put any much effort into it so I know I can do much better.</p>

<p>After getting my major I would like to go into medical school and specialize in Obstetrics. (Probably at University of Miami - top 20 medical school in the US and also my hometown).</p>

<p>Could you guys tell me if I'm on the right path in order to get into any of those colleges? I've been having nightmares over that B in that class I was even forced to take, which made my GPA go from a 4.00 to a 3.96.</p>

<p>I'm no. 1 in my class rank
I'm hispanic in a school where 95% of the students are also Latinos, is that of any help?</p>

<p>Also I have been thinking whether I should mention that I came to the country when I was 10 years old without any knowledge of the English language and in just 3 years I started taking AP classes and standing out among my class members. I don't know, I don't want to sound too self-centered or selfish, but I feel like this would really help my future applications.
Thank you.</p>

2

<p>Try to get your PSAT score up for your junior year so you can attempt to be a National Merit Scholar and possibly get scholarships. Typically you have to score in the 2000s to be considered to be a SemiFinalist but you can search up the actual data for your state probably on google somewhere.</p>

<p>I would recommend that you take a diagnostic test on the collegeboard website for the SAT if you have not already and take it seriously to see what your score might be when the junior year PSAT comes around. After you do that you can buy the Collegeboard’s SAT Prep Book if your score isn’t where you want it to be at. </p>

<p>You should enter your extracurriculars, so people can chance you better. With 95% of the students being Latino, I think it might hinder rather than help you statistically speaking sorry. </p>

<p>Also, don’t constantly post the same thread please. </p>

3

<p>Wow, what a story. You’ve done very well. That B won’t matter a pip. If I were your dad, I’d be very proud of you. I’d also want to make sure you’re having some fun as you do all this excellent work. You have set very high goals, and along the way there will be some academic difficulties. If you’re having some fun periodically, the difficulties will not lead to burn out. Have some time this summer just for fun, if you can.</p>

<p>You’re on the right track. Two elements are missing, the SAT/ACT obviously, and money. So study for the PSAT, and study harder for the SAT. The second element missing from your track is an awareness of how you’re going to pay for college. That might come from your family or from another source, but you want to make it part of your search. I’ve probably said enough for now.</p>

4

<p>Duke’s Trinity College is harder to get into than the undergraduate colleges at Cornell and Penn. It’s definitely not a ‘match school’. It appears as though you’ve been badly misinformed. </p>

5

<p>1590? You’ve gotta be kidding me. How the heck are Duke and JHU match schools? You literally have 0 chance at any of the schools you listed unless you bring it up to at least 2150+, preferably 2250+</p>

6

<p>I know that my PSAT scores are very low but I’ve already started studying a lot for Junior year’s PSAT and I’m pretty sure I’m gonna do much better and I could even make it to be a National Merit Scholar semifinalist, and I said that so about Duke and JHU because besides the SAT I’m doing fairly well and I know I could easily get in. I don’t want to give out excuses but when I took this year’s PSAT I had barely started taking Algebra 2 and Geometry, (which was most of my math section) and my English is good but I have to definitely work on using a more advanced vocabulary. </p>

7

<p>Before you get solid SAT or ACT scores it’s difficult to predict anything. I think it’s bad habit to say “will get” or “planning to get”.</p>

8

<p>Also I’m going to start volunteering at Universityof Miami’s hospital in order to get my community service hours and also in the nursery where my dad works, but besides that, I don’t know which other extracurricular activities I could participate on. Any recommendations?
Also, I don’t worry so much about the money because my parents earn <20,000/year and besides the scholarships I could get I would also get financial aid, which combined with some loans I think would be enough.
I attend an inner city charter school, and so the student population isn’t very “focused”?! Or doesn’t really care all that much about school so I think that being one of the few that do care could actually help me.
Also, I don’t know if this would really influence anything, but every single year my school has sent a student to UPenn, one per year, I dont know, maybe I get lucky! </p>

9

<p>Look, OP, @kei04086 is not the only one who thinks you are overly optimistic and premature. When one is a sophomore, one doesn’t say “I know I could easily get in” to Duke or JHU if one wants to be taken seriously. Clam up about what you’re going to do until you do it.</p>

10

<p>I am very sorry if my words were misinterpreted, or their meaning, I meant to say that according to the path I’ve been following since I entered high school and the one I’m planning to continue on, I think that I could be a good match to get into a school like Duke or JHU, but I am not saying that I could get in right now, I know that there is still a lot of work to be done, and that I’ll gladly do it because all I want is to become a good professional and a better person. Thank you and sorry for any misconceptions.</p>

11

<p>I have a vocab word for you to study: hubris</p>

12

<p>^ I’m pretty sure I won’t forget what it means… :blush: sorry…</p>

13

<p>Can you guys relax</p>