Hi Everyone! As a rising senior, one of my main decisions to make is whether to apply to Harvard or Duke ED. My stats are listed below. Please let me know whether applying to Duke would be a better option because of the increased acceptance rates or Harvard.
Objective -
GPA: 4.0/4.0 UW
SAT: 1500 (first try)
AP(s): Sophomore Year - AP Biology (4), AP United States History (4), and AP Environmental Science (4) Junior Year - AP Chemistry, AP United States Government and Politics, AP Macroeconomics, AP French Language, AP English Language Senior Year Course Load: AP Calculus BC, AP English Literature, AP Psychology, AP Human Geography, AP Spanish Language, AP Physics 1
Intended Major: Premed - Biology
Rank: Top 1%
Major Awards: Harvard Book Award
Subjective -
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Science Honor Society (chief of staff), English Honor Society, Math Honor Society, History Honor Society, French Honor Society, National Honor Society, HOSA (chief of staff), Also founded my school’s chapter for two clubs, Horse trainer and rider (World Competition Champion)
Job/Work Experience: Research internship at two local universities (based on cellular and molecular biology - research papers written)
Volunteer/Community service: 200+ hours volunteering at a local hospital, Volunteer at a local therapeutic horseback riding center for disabled children, project coordinator for a local nonprofit cancer organization, and more
Summer Activities: Stanford CSSSI summer program
Ethnicity and Race : Hispanic, White (first generation american)
Gender : Female
Please let me know!!!
ur being a lil ambitious with Harvard and Duke. Look at the tier below like G-town and Cornell cuz that’s more realistic for u
Harvard don’t have ED, have EA, If you apply to Harvard under Early Action, you may also apply at the same time to any public college.
The first post has a point. I would not risk applying to Harvard SCEA because it will prevent you from applying to other colleges early (Harvard does not have ED). Even Harvard’s SCEA acceptance rate is still very low and too risky. On the other hand, if money is not a problem and you would love going to Duke, I recommend applying Duke ED. It will significantly raise your chances, and even if you get deferred the first round, you will still have a higher chance than other RD applicants. Definitely apply to other colleges as well for backup options. Good luck!
I know Harvard has SCEA but I am not applying to any public colleges. I also am applying to many safety and middle range schools. I was more incline to apply to Duke early because of the increased acceptance rates, but still had hesitations here and there. Don’t really think applying to schools you like is being “too ambitious”, even if they are hard to get into.
I think you have a decent chance at Harvard. They like first generation kids. And being Hispanic will also help.
But as others point out, you’ll need to craft more of a compelling ‘story’. This takes a bit of skill in how best to present yourself on paper, and make yourself sound interesting. You still have time. Look at posts on the Harvard forum of accepted kids profiles, and you’ll see what I mean.
@danyelluh
You would get more of an admissions boost by opting for Duke ED than Harvard SCEA. However, you should only consider ED if Duke is your clear first choice (post #4 suggests some reservations) and your parents are willing and able to pay and fully support your choice. If you were to be accepted to Duke, would you regret giving up the chance to be admitted to Harvard?
Ideally, you should visit campus before applying ED if you haven’t already done so.
Your stats are in-line with accepted students, but with single digit acceptance rates at both, most qualified applicants are turned away. Keep your expectations realistic and apply to safer options that you would be genuinely happy to attend.
Have you taken SAT subject tests yet?
Hi! Thank you for your replies! I will be visiting Duke at the end of summer. I will also be taking the math 2 and chemistry subject tests in August and the french and biology subject tests in October. My only reservation was if I applied to adule ED, that I would miss the chance of having a better shot of getting into Harvard (like you mentioned). But at the same time, applying to Duke ED would significantly increase my chances.
@mamaedefamilia
@danyelluh I totally understand your difficult decision. Last year I applied to Duke ED, and I took a gamble because I also kind of wanted to go to Harvard. If I got accepted to Duke early, there would always be a “what if I had gotten into Harvard” possibility. Actually there is someone on CC who experienced this. After I got deferred, I was free to apply to other schools like Harvard. I either got rejected or waitlisted from the ivies. Surprisingly, Duke accepted me in the RD round. Honestly, I feel like if I didn’t apply to Duke ED I would have been rejected too. Now I am content knowing that Duke is indeed my best choice. That is why I feel applying to Duke ED does increase your chances by a lot.
I think Harvard has only Restrcitive Early Action
So 
which college did make it in to/ go to?