Ambitious High School Sophomore

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

Hi there, I know it’s a bit ‘early’ to be worrying about this, but I want to be attending at least a top 50 school and my grades are a bit worrisome. I have been living with a mental illness ever since I can remember, and it’s been really hard for me this year, and has caused me to miss at least 1-2 days of school per week. I have just started on my medication, and I can already see an improvement in my grades, and it seems that colleges like improvement, so I figured it would work in my favor.

By the end of high school I plan to have taken 12 AP classes (AP Macro, AP World History, AP US History, AP Spanish Lang, AP Biology, AP Lang, AP Lit, AP Environmental Science, AP Statistics, AP Psychology, AP Comparative Gov, and AP Micro). So that checks off “student has taken the most rigorous course as possible” considering they only offer 14 AP classes at my school and I will be self studying two of these (AP Psych and AP Micro). I’m confident I have gotten fours or fives on my current AP classes (AP Micro and AP World History)

My cumulative GPA: around 3.4 unweighted (around 4.0 weighted)

I really hope that I can miss less school next year and in turn increase my GPA.

My EC’s: National Honor Society, RAKE (random acts of kindness), FCCLA (a cooking club that caters often), I also plan to join the UN club at my school next year, as it is new, and I am extremely interested in pursuing something in politics.

I have not taken the ACT or SAT yet, but I did get a PSAT score in the 85th percentile this year (I have only been taking geometry which led to a lower score in the math area, but I plan to take Alg. 2 w/ trig over the summer so I can get a head start)

I’m from Seattle, Washington so I aim to either get into the University of Washington or go to a University of California college.

My reaches: Stanford, UC Berkeley, UCLA, University of Chicago

My reachable-goals: University of Washington, Pepperdine University

My safety schools: Washington State University, Seattle College

I always aim to be the best I can be, and I’m convinced I can write a great essay.

I think that’s it, thank you!

2

Do you think a stressful overachieving environment is going to be good for your mental health?

3

I also forgot to mention- I do quite a bit of community service in my town (avg: 10 hours a month) and plan to the play and musical next year at my school. I also have been on the swim team for the past two years and plan to do softball or golf for the next two years.

4

My mental health has increasingly been getting better, as it was a chemical imbalance rather than the usual environmental factors, and my meds have been correcting it.

5

Your PSAT scores are low if those are the schools you are aiming for. With some work you could probably improve them enough for Pepperdine and U of Wash, but its unlikely that you would be even considered if your SAT and ACT scores reflect your PSAT. Also, your ECs are a bit too… well-rounded and dull. There isn’t anything there that would make you stand out. You should focus on one or two things that you are really good at and passionate about.

6

I do aim to get my SAT/ACT scores up (I was advised not to study at all for the PSAT at my school and went in like a deer in headlights), and what EC’s would you recommend for someone deeply interested in improving human rights / being involved in politics?

7

I was/am in the same boat as you and let me tell you- things may not work out as easily as you think. Last year, I was taking a similar course load to you(2 APs) and I was also missing significant amounts of school due to mental illness. I got on medication in early May and, confident that it would solve everything, I signed up for 3 APs and 3 honors for this school year. And yeah, the medication did work at first, and I passed the first semester with flying colors, but I developed a tolerance later and it was horrible. I missed even more school than I did last year, never studied or did any work, had to go to the hospital twice, and now I’m on the brink of failing one of my classes. I hate to be so negative, and I’m not saying that things aren’t going to get better for you, but you could very well end up in the same situation as me. And you do not want to be in 5 AP classes while you’re dealing with that. Trust me.

Thankfully, due to holistic admissions, you probably won’t be too disadvantaged if you don’t take that many APs. I think there’s a good chance of you scoring high on the SAT since there’s a lot of room to improve in the time you have. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with your ECs, but if you do want to be less ‘generic’, you could replace NHS(pretty sure most college bound students do this one). Since you’re interested in politics, you could join young dems/ young republicans and get internships through that.

8

For ideas, read How to Be a High School Superstar by Cal Newport. A favorite.

9

@Eagles016 yeah my school doesn’t even offer it because like 3/4 of my school qualifies lol

10

@Eagles016 that could definitely work at some tier one schools, but I would be worried about them denying me admission because they don’t want to have their stats hurt by someone committing suicide, flunking out, taking a leave of absence,etc personally.

11

@Eagles016 1) not sure what illness OP was diagnosed with, but many psychiatric illnesses will follow you around your whole life. Mild general depression and anxiety can be gotten rid of, but things like bipolar, OCD are going to stick.
2) With a mental illness, an amazing year is going to be a crapshoot. It could either be the worst or best year of your life, you’ll never know. And I counter your statement that it’s “not too hard”, if you’re at a point where you can’t even get out of bed, how are you supposed to do well in 5 rigorous courses?
I know I’m sounding really negative and harsh, but this very well could be reality. I have 5 members of my family with mental illness, including myself, and you never know what’s gonna come next.
OP, your health is more important than getting in to tier 1 schools. Going to a state U won’t guarantee failure, nor will an Ivy league be a golden ticket to the rest of life. ASU actually has a larger number of undergrads getting better entry level positions than most Ivy league grads. And you can still get into places like stanford and UCB without taking 5 APs per year.

12

Hi! Here’s an updated post:

  • I still plan to take all of the AP classes mentioned above, and it's because I truly love learning and exploring what's out there in terms of a career.
  • My mental health has drastically improved, me and my doctor have found the right medication for me. I ended last semester with a 3.8, and hopefully it will continue to go up. If my mental health fails me, I will take a load off of my course list. I'm diagnosed with general anxiety disorder. -I've set better expectations for myself, and don't plan on going to an Ivy.

My Updated List of EC’s:

  • Model UN (running for president this year, as it’s a new club)
  • Spanish National Honor Society
  • 10+ hours of volunteer work a month

I’m looking into volunteering regularly at a nearby hospital and/or an LGBT organization. I’m also considering starting a chapter at my school or town for HS democrats. I’m looking for quality over quantity though, and what a program I can really commit to.

In 2017, I’m going to Peru for 6 weeks to volunteer and help with a human rights organization in Cuzco, whilst taking classes to improve my Spanish.

I’m also taking algebra 2 with trig this summer (I am almost completed with this) and hopefully this will boost my PSAT scores. I didn’t do too well on my AP tests this year (likely due to my lack of interest).

My Reaches: UCLA/ University of Chicago
Ideal Schools: University of Washington / UC Berkeley

Thank you!

P.S. If any of you know of keyboarding competitions that compete nationally that would be great to have. I’ve looked but I can’t see to find any. I want to compete on this level, as I have a 120 wpm typing speed. Thanks!