^^ Unfortunately, applicants don’t know what colleges are looking for, as institutional needs change from year to year, and Admissions Offices everywhere are far from transparent. So, applicants have to throw a wide net in hopes that they’ll fit the criteria one college is looking for in the year they apply. That means students should apply to a wide range of colleges – safety, target and reaches. HYPSM are considered reaches for all students, even those with perfect GPA’s and test scores. So, you should not focus on one particular college. Instead, you should apply sideways to a number of good colleges: http://mitadmissions.org/blogs/entry/applying_sideways