–Admission to elite colleges is insanely competitve and can be idiosyncratic.
–Even more so for Asian-Americans.
–Even more so for Asian-American males seeking to enter fields with an overabundance of Asian-American males at an elite uni. Even if race is not considered, after reading the 50th app from an Asian-American male from the coasts with terrific stats who plans to change the world with what he learns in CS/engineering, unless something stands out, they all kind of blend together. That’s just human nature.
Ergo
–Work hard on stuff that you derive intrinsic satisfaction from. Then anything extra (like being admitted to a top school) would be a bonus.
–Apply to schools like Emory/CWRU/Rochester where you could potentially get a lot of merit money if you want to go far away from home for college.
–Apply to LACs where you may even get an edge as an Asian-American male from the coasts. Especially Midwestern/southern ones like Grinnell/Macalester/Kenyon.
–Apply to McGill, which costs about the same as in-state even for Americans, is highly regarded, and cares only about scores.