"So, my rec from my State Senator will not help in your opinion? I guess for me to be a “hooked applicant” "
You can’t imagine how much schools hate use of “names” for letters of Rec unless the reason to have asked that person is because the student completed substantial work for that person-in which case the name isn’t the focus anyway. As you interned for this person, I would expect that the level of influence of the letter rests on what he/she can say about you rather than the fact that the writer has a recognized name.
I don’t mean to be negative but is work with a state senator really of all that much interest to colleges? I’m not asking because I want to diminish the work of the OP which may be formidable. But are state politics typically of interest? In my state there are 50 state senators and they have a gajillion interns cycling through. Individually they are not very powerful and the experience may not be very meaningful. I doubt anyone from Harvard would know any state senators outside of Massachusetts. Just curious about the idea of that as a “hook” at all. New Jersey has 40 state senators no one outside of NJ will ever have heard of.
But it’s a nice show of pursuing this interest. And most kids interested in poli sci, govt, or IR don’t get out of the high school evironment to experience the milieu. Not even in an election year. It’s usually grunt work, but still exposure to the process. Other ways are working with an advocacy group (adult, already established.)
OP is talking Harvard here. Any tippy top ups the ante. But even asking if it’s a hook shows a misunderstanding.
This is favorable: “-I got a 3rd rec letter from my State Senator that I interned with. He was really great. I worked really hard (I basically became a part-time staff member because I worked so much. Other staffers said that I was basically staff too). I hope this letter goes a long way with Harvard.”
But not a hook. And your scores are probably low for Harvard.
Why do you want Harvard anyway? There are so many good options out there, some better for your interests.
Look at Tufts, Wesleyan, Amherst, Williams, Middlebury etc. if you want a tippy top school and many do not even require test scores (check the list I linked). And schools in DC would be a great match.
If you think Harvard is right for you, you should apply. No harm in trying – well, besides $75. Statistically, yeah, your SAT isn’t strong, but I know students that have gotten in with lower.
If your academic and extracurricular accomplishments show that you can handle the Harvard workload, your SAT becomes much less relevant.
