I have a 4.35 unweighted gpa out of 4.5 and a 4.7 out of 5 weighted gpa
I live in Massachusetts so I would be receiving in state college.
However my SAT is fairly lower which I received a 2290 out of 2400 and not sure if my ACT is better but have a 34 overall.
Of course I have a lot of ec. And Clubs.
Captain of debate team and varsity player for 2 sports for 3 years.
Have about 250 hours of community service at hospital and other organisation to help children.
I know for a fact I can get into Boston College. However Is it smarter to go to Harvard if I can or should I go to Boston College in which I pay nearly noting in because of the grants I will receive.
Obviously your stats make you an excellent candidate for BC and it might well be a safety for you, but “I know for a fact” is a fairly bold statement. How do you know? Also, how do you know what you would get in grants from BC?
Your apparent assumption that being in-state would mean a tuition break (assuming that’s what you mean by “I would be receiving in state college.”) leads me to believe that you are not well informed about this process.
In any case, Harvard provides excellent need based financial aid, so if you have a reasonable expectation of need based grants from BC, you can assume the same of Harvard.
Your stats would seem to make you a plausible candidate for Harvard, but that’s true of the vast majority of their applicants and their acceptance rate is around 6%, so there’s a lot of room between being a plausible candidate who’s not wasting an application and getting in.
Would it be smarter to go to Harvard? What do you mean by that? Are you asking about relative cost? Value of having your resume say Harvard instead of BC? Quality of education? Where you’ll be happier? Which will lead to a happier, more fulfilled life?
Are you looking at other schools besides these two?
Boston College offers a merit scholarship to 20 students a year so there doesn’t seem to be any reason to assume that the OP would automatically get that. I agree that the student should apply to Harvard and BC if need - based aid is expected.
There are many things that make this post troublesome. OP doesn’t know how to use a conversion chart to see which is better between his SAT and ACT scores (answer the SAT is marginally better as it is bumped into the lowest spot of a 35). Second, OP mentions in-state as if they would get him in or money. Third, OP cannot spell organization. Fourth, the arrogance to state he will get into BC and will be getting grants. The only way the last statement is true is whether he has connections to BC which may get him into the school, but how can he be so sure of grants.
Another fact the OP should understand: Selective colleges, such as Harvard and BC, view a student in the context on their high school, but as most high schools do not use a 4.50 unweighted scale, Admissions often consults a conversion table to translate a GPA into a standardized 4.0 unweighted scale. FWIW: A 4.35 GPA on 4.50 unweighted scale translates to a 3.87 on a 4.0 scale: https://www.pdx.edu/asian-studies/sites/www.pdx.edu.asian-studies/files/Attachment8_GPA_Conversion_Table.pdf
@MITer94 yes, organisation is a valid spelling in the UK, but he said he lives in Massachusetts. If you live in Massachusetts, you soon realize the differences in American speech and spelling and other parts of the world. Or, at least an elite UK student should.
What’s your EFC? Can you afford that EFC? Have you run the NPC on BC, which, although it claims to meet full need, will expect you to use your entire equity?
With these stats, your safety is UMAss Amherst, and you have a good shot (match) at Commonwealth Honors.
BC is a reach for everyone due to selectivity - perhaps a low reach for you, but not a safety.
Did you confuse Boston College (elite, private) and Umass Boston (not selective, commuter, public)?
Massachusetts is bad in that public “tuition” is low, but “fees” are enormous - and kids with a “full tuition” scholarship realize that in fact, it’s just 4k out of 16K mandatory fees…