<p>I mean @Much2learn ^</p>
<p>I think 100 would be a nice boost and give you a score that is above Cornell averages.</p>
<p>It never hurts to aim higher. Even if you miss, you will have achieved a lot. :)</p>
<p>Thank you @Much2learn for the advice. I’ll aim for the moon, and fall among stars :)</p>
<p>bump</p>
<p>Your test scores are definitely Ivy League material, but could always be higher. If you want a better shot at getting in I’d try to take your ACT score above a 34 or your SAT above a 2270. The October test date will work fine. Also keep in mind that Cornell requires the ACT writing section; so if you haven’t taken it and plan on submitting your ACT, I would do so in October. As far as your EC’s go, though you have only a few, you should try to demonstrate in your app that you spend a lot of time on one of them and you really make a difference. I’m not familiar with Cornell’s essay prompts, but I’m sure you could find a way to write about a specific EC. Also make sure you emphasize that you’re helping the community. </p>
<p>But as it stands, you have little to no chance of getting into Cornell. You simply need better test scores, excellent essays, and high profile national rewards in order to get into an ivy league school. </p>
<p>ED is usually filled with recruited athletes, legacy, and otherwise very competitive applicants. For Ivies, they don’t really worry about the yield and they can always accept more students in the RD and even waitlist. There is no reason for them to accept anyone much below their admission average in the early round.</p>
<p>Check out the ED acceptance thread sometimes and you see. Or get results a few years earlier.</p>
<p>Ask why would a competitive applicant wants to apply ED you will find that the real answer is that they are not competitive in the RD.</p>
<p>Definitely list your other ECs on the common app. There’s no real score you should set as a goal; there’s no cut off or anything. I only scored slightly higher than you on the SAT and still got in, but there are plenty of people who scored higher than I did and got rejected. So just aim to do the best you can! My second time taking the SAT, I scored 100 points higher than the first time. If you can pull that off, you’ll be in great shape!</p>
<p>I think that “little to no chance of getting into Cornell” is an overstatement. It is a bit of a stretch, but you are a solid candidate.</p>
<p>@Ranza123 : Thank you for the kind words. I hope I can get in</p>
<p>@nickchan1 : I was part of a historical society and really love it there. I did a lot for them and may end up as member of a town council. Would that be considered as part of the community? I know I’m not really all that competitive and thank you for being honest. I am retaking both the SAT and ACT the Sep date and Oct date.</p>
<p>.</p>
<p>Your app will be weak in the EC/community service department, but that’s okay. If you want my honest advice, I would apply to Cornell ED only if you get a 34 or a 2250. Your top-notch GPA, class rank, SAT IIs, and APs will do the rest. Otherwise I would consider other schools like U Illinois at UC, U Michigan, U Virginia, U North carolina, WashU at STL, or Vanderbilt (where I’m applying ED). But you should definitely apply to Cornell RD no matter what, because you still have a great shot at it and you may very well get in. Make sure to get multiple opinions on your essays though</p>
<p>UIUC and UMich engineering are probably not easier than Cornell. Both schools have great engineering schools within top 10 of the country. OP’s SAT is actually below average while ACT is around admission average for these 2 engineering school while the admission rate for OOS is low. The overall admission rate at UIUC is pretty high but they accept a much lower percentage of OOS student than UMich. The overall admission rate for UMich CoE is 20% this year. So it would be a reach school for most OOS applicants. Female applicant does have an advantage in applying to these engineering school though.</p>
<p>@billcsho : Thank you for the advice. I did my research and know that the overall admit rate for Cornell is also around 20% (although for females it is something like 30%?) Is OOS and In state that big of a difference? Would it help any that live in NY for example if I applied to Cornell?</p>
<p>The overall admission rate to Cornell is 14%, with varying rates for the different colleges. Being in state would only help your application to Cornell if you are applying to one of the land-grant schools.</p>
<p>@Ranza123 : Yes, I know. The college of engineering is fairly high as compared to any other college in Cornell. Thank you for the feedback though :)</p>
<p>The difference in admission rate between oos and in state students at public colleges can be big. There are around 23% students at UIUC from out of state while 40% at UMich. Before you look further, you should check out their NPC for your cost as neither one offer much aid to OOS students and you are not likely to get any merit scholarship with your current score. The nice thing at UIUC is that your 4 year tuition rate is fixed at the time of enrollment, while UMich’s tuition keep going up and the upperclassmen pay $2500 more per semester this year. You are looking at $50k to $55k per year.</p>