<p>For starters, I'm a huge history buff. I am a sophomore at a small public school and I love the U.S. History college class that I'm taking through a community college nearby. I also love law, politics, and economics. I've interned with Andrew Romanoff's Campaign (he was not running in my area, but I felt the need to help him beat Mike Coffman. Unfortunately, Romanoff lost.) I often get discouraged because I'm not sure what will make me stand out. Students like me who love politics don't get a lot of attention compared to students who excel in the STEM field. Anyways, here are my stats/ECs:
GPA: 3.86
Class Rank: 2/64
ACT/SAT: Haven't taken yet.
Debate: 2013-Present, Captain
Math Honors Society: Secretary
Youth Roots: Member, (Philanthropy group)
Ed Permutter's Youth Advisory Council: Member, (Youth tackle important issues affecting our community)
Action Now Program: Member, (Started by my friend who got accepted into Yale, Princeton, and Harvard. She chose Yale, Empowers students who want to attend higher education)
I have a few other basic activities with leadership positions like Student Council and District Leadership)
I am going to Moot Court Nationals and have a really high chance at going to Policy Debate Nationals this year too.
I am applying to Yale Young Global Scholars currently (the PLE one).
I also got accepted into the Ivy League Project, it's a selective project that encourages students with disadvantaged backgrounds to apply to Ivy Leagues, we also get to tour them all during spring break! (:
My school doesn't offer AP or Honors classes, so I take college classes. I tested into English Comp and I'm going to take General Psychology II along with it. I intend on taking three college classes each semester for my junior and senior year.
Any suggestions? This year is going to be heavily dedicated to community service. The most I've done is help tutor kids when they need math help.
Thank you in advance! I appreciate any feedback and constructive criticism. Also, if you are attending Princeton, can you give me your experience? Thanks again!</p>
<p>You seem to be very aware that your stats are good and are very confident in what you’re planning to do next. Are you looking for advice or reassurance? </p>
<p>I’m really seeking advice. I have no family members that have gone to college, so I’m doing this by myself with the help of a few teachers and my guidance counselor. Do you have any recommendations for me? Also, thank you so much for replying. (:</p>
<p>I’d like to first mention that I’m not an expert and pretty much no one on CC is – no one out there besides the adcoms the year you apply to college can tell you whether or not you’ll get in, or what admissions wants to see. If you really want advice, I’d recommend checking out some of the old/well-written threads here. I don’t have most of them on hand, but here’s one for starters:</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/stanford-university/533633-how-get-into-stanford-admitted-student.html”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/stanford-university/533633-how-get-into-stanford-admitted-student.html</a></p>
<p>You mentioned you had a disadvantaged background. If by that you mean you’re low income, check out Questbridge. Huge advantage for applying to Ivies.</p>
<p>Otherwise, I’ll say this: You seem to be doing well and know what you’re doing in terms of academics and going for opportunities. However, don’t be stuck in the mindset of “I need to satisfy each category with x amount of hours or activities”. Having 10 different extracurriculars, 200 hours of community service, and a 3.8 GPA/2330 SAT really won’t impress Pton adcoms if your interests are absolutely scattered. Sure, you filled each of the categories/bins, but if you did it just trying to fill those “bins” for the admissions, it won’t look good.</p>
<p>My point here is (and I may be wrong, I don’t know much about many of the programs you listed) that your interests are not very clear from the activities you listed. You said you love law/politics/economics. I have no specific examples to give, not knowing much about it – but pursue that. Show them you are focused, dedicated and excel at what you love. It’s much better than having several academic awards and scattered ECs and volunteering at the nursing home just because you wanted to look like you like helping people/wanted community service hours (like all the other flat and fake-sounding Ivy applicants.)</p>
<p>But yes, you are on the right track. </p>
<p>Try to get involved in a wide range of ECs that are related to what you want to do. If you like politics, get involved in stuff like Model UN or things like that if your school offers it. These ECs can provide a good backbone for your application, along with high testing scores and rigorous coursework.</p>