Chance me at the impossible LACs?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>I am a junior in high school who has been obsessively researching colleges (intending to major in bio/environmental studies)...and I have unfortunately fallen in love with some of the elite LACs who's admission rates are low enough to intimidate even the most dedicated over-achiever. </p>

<p>It would help me so SO much if you could attempt to give me some sort of idea of my chances at: Bowdoin, Williams, Vassar, Tufts and Middlebury, as well as Colgate, Colby, and Hamilton. In addition, if these schools all seem like considerable reaches, could you recommend some safety/target schools?</p>

<p>My stats:</p>

<p>Lower-middle class white girl from Pensylvania
I go to a small, well-respected private school in PA on 1/2 tuition merit scholarship</p>

<p>All regular foundation classes freshman year, mostly honors classes sophomore year, and all APs or honors this year.</p>

<p>My classes this year: AP bio, Spanish honors, precalc honors, and AP American seminar, which is a two-bell, invitation-only class combining AP US history and AP American literature. we spend a large part of the year writing a 40-60 page historical fiction "odyssey" - it is by far the most challenging class offered at my school.</p>

<p>I have had above a 4.0 weighted gpa each year, and currently have around a 4.3 (around 3.7 or 3.8 unweighted). </p>

<p>I took the PLAN (practice ACT) test last year and was predicted to score around 30-33 on the ACT with a perfect English score on the PLAN.</p>

<p>My school does not rank, but my adviser thinks I am in the top 10% at the moment, which could put me in a position to be inducted into the cum laude society next year.</p>

<p>ECs (probably my weakest point)</p>

<p>Varsity cross country probably all four years, but that's not much of an accomplishment because our team is pretty awful
Stage crew spring of freshman year
Winter drama workshop sophomore year on up
International club sophomore year on up (we have a large intl. population at school)
Photography club junior and possibly senior year
Environmental club junior and probably senior year
Science research group junior and probably senior year
Possibly joining the school's key club this year
80+ hours of community service so far from junior camp counseling and a few other things
Considering starting an Amnesty International club at the school this year but this is NOT a definite
Going on a Spain exchange trip over spring break</p>

<p>Please please help to give me some context and advice on how to proceed!</p>

2

<p>The fact that you’re thinking so earnestly about college proves that you’re already on the right track. Just continue doing what you’re doing, score as high as you can on the ACT, and you’ll probably be fine.</p>

3

<p>Nobody cares about the PLAN and it doesn’t mean anything. I got a 29 on it and then a few months later got a 35 on the actual ACT. Colleges don’t really want to hear about it.</p>

<p>I think you’ll be OK if you try to get some leadership positions within those clubs or maybe start that amnesty club. Your AP American class sounds like it won’t prepare you very well for the AP exams so I would make sure to prepare for those in order to get at least 4’s. Good luck.</p>