<p>Like has someone with a really bad SAT score and a stellar GPA (or vice versa) and no ECs or leadership get into an Ivy, or someone with an ok SAT score and an ok GPA and stellar ECs get into a school over someone else with a better academic record. my point is to show that not all kids have to have the PERFECT resume to get in. this gives hopes to us average joes!!</p>
<p>My SAT math was way below average for the Ivy I was accepted to. My ECs were pretty unremarkable (except maybe for my job), and I had no volunteer hours. I was rejected from lots of schools, including some below the level of the school I'll be going to.</p>
<p>I was waitlisted, then accepted. It was a huge surprise. I think my teacher recs and faculty support from my HS had a lot to do with my acceptance. The best thing you can do is prove to the school that you're passionate about your interests, and can appreciate and utilize the opportunities there. If you can prove dedication and passion, then the battle's half won.</p>
<p>Well, I don't think this really satisfies your criteria, since I had a pretty good record all-around, but this is still a pretty funny story. Of the ivies, I only applied to Princeton and Harvard. I don't know if you know this, but H sends you an email notification of admission unless you opt out of it, which I did, fearing the emotional stress that such a thing would cause me. Princeton does not give you such an option. The week preceding admission decisions, I behaved and felt like I was on crack - very jumpy, overly giggly, etc. Then, on March 31 (or April 1, I don't remember) at 5 p.m., I checked my Princeton decision and was flat-out rejected. That put a pretty miserable end to my excitement and energy, and I was walking depressed for the next two days. I didn't even have any hope left for H. Then, on Wednesday, I received an email from a H graduate congratulating me on admission. That one almost made me sick, since I was again soaring from depression into a high. Plus, it wasn't official, and I had no way of telling if it was a joke. My father thought it was, lol. But the next day, I got the official acceptance letter, and some serious calling ensued. :)
Anyways, I guess the point of this is that ivies don't always have the same criteria for admission. They're all great institutions, but they are all different, so don't think that a rejection by one means an automatic rejection by all the others.</p>