Chance for Stanford or Ivies?

Applying to College
1

<p>I am 17 years old. I am full Egyptian(my parents immigrated from Egypt) with dual US-Egypt citizenship.</p>

<p>ACADEMICS:
9th grade: I was living in Japan and the school I went to did not offer honors or AP classes for freshmen.
10th grade: Biology Honors, Algebra 2/Trig, Chemistry, AP Euro, Pre-IB Language Arts 2, Spanish 2
11th grade: SL Economics, HL English, Spanish 3, IB TOK, Trig/Math Analysis(Pre-Calc), AP US History
12th grade: HL Biology, HL History of the Americas, Math Methods SL, SL Spanish 4, HL English Year 2</p>

<p>HONORS AND AWARDS:
Honor Roll: 10th, 11th, and 12th
Distinguished Scholar: 10th, 11th, and 12th
Scholar Athlete: 10th, 11th, and 12th</p>

<p>CLUBS/ACTIVITIES/SPORTS:
JV and Varsity soccer: 9th through 12th
JV and Varsity Track: 9th, 10th, and 12th
Club Soccer: 10th, 11th, and 12th
Habitat for Humanity: 9th( in Japan)
Cambodian Relief Organization: 9th
National Honor Society: 11th and 12th</p>

<p>COMMUNITY SERVICE:
Volunteered for a non-profit cancer relief organization called GrantWishes with about 100 hours: 10th, 11th, and 12th
Volunteered as a counselor at a 6-week summer camp for kids with a total of 250 hours
Volunteered as an assistant coach helping teach kids the basics of several different sports with a total of 5 hours</p>

<p>LEADERSHIP:
JV captain for soccer: 9th
Camp counselor for 6 weeks
assistant coach teaching basic sports skills
NHS</p>

<p>PERSONAL BACKGROUND:
My two passions in life are travelling and soccer. I've played soccer for 12 years and I've played in 3 different countries including Japan( on a local soccer team), in Egypt, and in the US. I love travelling whenever I get the chance and I go to Egypt every summer. I'm fluent in Arabic and English.</p>

<p>My freshman year I did not do so well and my GPA was a 3.85( One B both semesters). My sophomore year I had a GPA of 4.21(straight A's). My Junior year I had a 4.5(straight A's). I feel like my SAT score is not where it should be but I got a 760 in Math, 650 in CR, and 670 in Writing. I also took the SAT II and i got a 670 in Literature and 740 in US History.</p>

<p>Thank you for your help. Any advice on what I should improve on would be greatly appreciated.</p>

2

<p>It would be nice if you could bring your SATs up 100 points, but maybe you can.</p>

<p>The real problem is that there is nothing outstanding about you; at least not that you have mentioned. They reject 80% of the well qualified applicants they get, accepting the ones that seem outstanding. I don’t see it there.</p>

<p>I am assuming 12th is what you will be doing. If not, explain.</p>

3

<p>I disagree with Lmaniac. Izzy1313, I think there are many outstanding things you have done, especially taking advantage of the fact that you lived in Japan for your first year of high school. Your volunteer time is quite significant, and your work in Asia with Habitat for Humanity and the Cambodian Relief Organization is extraordinary. I would say you are well-rounded academically, athletically, and socially. </p>

<p>Are you somehow involved in the arts? If so, you should state that because that is another aspect that college admission officers might look into. You have pretty good SAT scores, but I’m sure you’ll take the test again to increase your scores. I would say you have a pretty good chance, just keep working towards your goals. Best of luck!</p>

4

<p>“Are you somehow involved in the arts? If so, you should state that because that is another aspect that college admission officers might look into.”</p>

<p>This is the ‘well-rounded student’ myth - college admissions is not a menu where you are supposed to pick one from column A and one from column B and one from column C. Just do what you love.</p>

<p>Your language and writing scores are a bit low - but if English is your second language and Arabic is spoken at home, then you may be cut some slack, especially if you haven’t been educated continuously in an English speaking country (like Japan). </p>

<p>And certainly your insights into playing soccer in three such different countries would make for a unique personal perspective on sports culture. Ditto educational experiences. On the other hand, ‘travel’ as a hobby just means your family is affluent and educated. Unless you have done this travel independently, as a foreign exchange student, or can tie it back to your knowledge of sports cultures, I wouldn’t see it as particularly noteworthy by itself.</p>

<p>And not that 2 Bs matter, but Stanford doesn’t include freshman grades in calculating your relevant GPA.</p>

5

<p>When talking about the Ivies and Stanford it’s important to remember that the admit rates are so low that realistically, without a hook, no one has a “good” chance. Harvard, Yale, Princeton and Stanford reject >90% of applicants with Columbia and Brown rejecting right around 90%. Cornell is the “easiest” Ivy to get into with an 18% acceptance rate (roughly 2 out of every 11 applicants). </p>

<p>You have an interesting background but so do most if not all of the applicants to these schools. Throw in a composite SAT of 2080 and you’re fighting an uphill battle. Do you have a chance at these schools? Yes, but not a great one. I suggest picking one or two as reach schools and dramatically expanding your list of other possibilities.</p>