Berkeley, UCLA, Northwestern, John Hopkins, Stanford chances

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - GENERAL
1

Hi before I get into it, I want to specify that I am a sophomore in high school. But as my junior year is nearing, I want to be able to understand the journey ahead.

Grade: 10th
Unweighted GPA: 3.83
Weighted: 4.28

Taking my first AP course this year (freshmen can’t take AP at my school)- APEuro; got an A first semester
Taking chem honors, and more accelerated classes.

I am yet to take the SAT and ACT.

Sadly, I have currently 3 B’s in my transcript starting from freshmen year :frowning:

I participate heavily in Speech and Debate, and I am extremely passionate about it. I am ranked very high in my state and have qualified to the State and National Championships my freshman year. I’ve won countless awards, including at Stanford, Santa Clara University, Berkeley, State, etc. I am in a small leadership position for my 300+ team, and will be running for VP then President later on.

What scores should I aim for for the SAT and the ACT? Should I take both. I want to major in a medical field.
Are my B’s going to affect my chances of my choice colleges greatly?
Anything else I should work on, get doing beforehand? In terms of SAT classes, getting a private counselor, etc.

I do not have anyone to ask these questions too, and my school counselors do not care.

Please help me out!

2

You have a great GPA and ECs - an SAT around 1450 ACT of 30+ or higher would probably keep you competitive. All of those are really competitive and it is really difficult to stand out when they all reject more 4 out of 5 applicants. There is a LOT of subjectivity to the admissions process, so be sure to also apply broadly - 5 or 6 UCs, SDSU and CPSLO and take a look at a couple of privates like USD and Loyola Marymount - Perhaps Santa Clara as well.

Do you have any budget constraints?

3

I do not have any budget constraints.
I plan on applying to plenty of the UC’s, but I do not plan on applying to USD, LMU or SCU. My top choices are most definitely (not in order), UCLA, Berkeley, Northwestern, UCSD and Stanford. I realize that Stanford is insanely difficult to get into- especially since I currently have 3 B’s on my transcript.
What do I do to stand out?

4

sounds like you have a good plan. Stanford is looking for truly exceptional people - a national championship in debate might help … but you need competitive stats too. Keep your grades up and don’t bury yourself with an unreasonable course load next year.

good luck.