Chance Me: Extracurricular Machine Aiming For the Ivy League

Chance Me / Match Me!
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Hi! I am taking a gap year starting this coming fall and will be applying to college in the meantime! Please give me your honest feedback and advice- I’m not really sure how this works.

Demographics

  • US Citizen
  • New Jersey
  • Type of high school: noncompetitive public (we send a few students to top 20s and Ivies every year)
  • Blasian F
  • No special factors or hooks I believe

Intended Major(s)
(Not sure what to pick yet- I’m all over the place- so here’s a ballpark)
Neuroscience, International Relations, Psychology, Classical Studies, Public Health, Linguistics, Anthropology, Biology, Natural Sciences, Environmental Studies, Physics, & History

GPA, Rank, and Test Scores
-Unweighted HS GPA: 3.7/4.0
-Weighted HS GPA (incl. weighting system): 4.5/5? I’m not sure how to calculate this

  • Class Rank: 3/106
    -ACT/SAT Scores: (retaking this summer + trying out the ACT!)
    1510 SAT, pretty even split

Coursework
APs (putting a * next to the ones I only took the exam for):

  • Research, Seminar, 2D Art & Design, 3D Art & Design*, Art History, Music Theory, English Lit, English Lang, Comparative Govt., European History, Macroeconomics, Microeconomics, Psychology, US Govt., United States History, World History: Modern, Calculus AB, Calculus BC, Computer Science A, Computer Science Principles, Statistics, Biology, Chemistry, Environmental Science, Physics 1, Physics 2, Physics C: E&M, Physics C: Mechanics, French, Japanese, Latin

(I passed all of these- not sure about the ones for this year, but fingers crossed- but will probably only send in 4s, and 5s, which I still have 16 of total)

A-Levels: Mathematics, Classical Civilisation, Ancient History

Dual Enrollment: Philosophy

College Courses: Abnormal Psychology, Cultural Psychology, Developmental Psychology, Neuroscience, Physics I & II, Chemistry w/lab I, Biology w/lab, Number Theory, Introduction to International Relations, Game Theory, Ethics, Politics, & Public Policy

Niche Interests:

  • soft robotics & marine science
  • conservation
  • neurodermatology
  • plutocratic theory
  • biophysics

Unusual Academic Electives:

  • Marine Science Honors
  • Archaeology
  • Sociology
  • Advanced Acting
  • Anatomy & Physiology
  • Psychology of Crime
  • Foreign Conflict & Relations
  • Aviation & Drones (earned student pilot & drone licenses)
  • Esports Analysis
  • Astronomy Honors
  • Sustainable Engineering

Awards

  • Excellence in scouting leadership (national)
  • Figure skating national title for my skill level (intermediate)
  • Research fellowship at a well-known museum
  • Most classes taken at my school (I got a plaque for this lol)
  • 18 best delegate awards, some at international conferences

Extracurriculars

  • Marching band captain, 4 yrs
  • Scout Leader, 3 yrs
  • Study abroad for 2 summers
  • Well-known Zoo intern & researcher, 3 yrs (received an award for a paper I coauthored here)
  • Model UN delegate (about 30 conferences independently and as the club president), 3 yrs
  • Varsity swim, 4yrs (co-captain)
  • NAACP & Habitat for Humanity volunteer, 2 yrs
  • Business owner, 3 yrs (e-commerce fashion brand with an upstanding amount of sales)
  • Tutoring, 6 yrs (I did this often and taught 1st grade all the way up to college sophomores at a local uni I took classes at)
  • Musical Theater, 8 yrs (performed and directed regional shows & won 3 pretty insignificant awards for it)
  • Museum Intern at two very esteemed institutions, 2 yrs
  • Teacher at a local Islamic School, 2 yrs
  • Local Environmental nonprofit organizer and founder, 5 yrs
  • Study abroad language program at Yonsei University during the summer
  • Worked at a Japanese bookstore, 1 yr
  • National Honors Society president, 1 yr (been a member throughout all 4 years)
  • Independent artist + fashion designer, 4 yrs (some of my works were exhibited at well-known galleries)
  • Robotics Club president + member, 4 yrs
  • Climate Club president, 3 yrs (the largest club at my HS)

Some lesser school clubs that met during lunch or after school:

  • Bee + Butterfly Club, 3 yrs
  • Fashion club, 1 yr (founder)
  • Dance club, 3 yrs (founder)
  • Peer Leadership Volunteering, 6 yrs
  • Japanese Club, 5 yrs
  • International Club, 4 yrs
  • Gay/Straight Alliance, 6 yrs (president)

Other:

  • Biomedical engineering summer intensive
  • HMX courses
  • JHCTY program

Essays/LORs/Other

LORs: (there’s a lot haha)

  • outstanding one from my acting mentor and close friend of my father who has starred in principal roles on Broadway (12/10- I got to read this one)
  • stellar rec letter from a guidance counselor who is basically my mother figure
  • adequate teacher recs from philosophy & math teacher
  • incredible recs from my AP research & music teachers
  • personal rec letter from a professor I took 3 courses under at a t20 university
  • great letter from my research mentor and advisor at the zoo (10/10- mentioned how mature and intelligent of a pupil I was, even compared to some of the graduate students)

Essays:

  • CommonApp Essay: Not sure what to write yet to be honest!
  • Supplementals: cultural essay about the time I’ve spent in Japan compared to the slums in Africa growing up and how my families differed, my love for the ocean and fish + the time I was bit by a shark (not sure if I should include that part), Ancient Greece, and explaining why I took such a vast array of classes and how it can benefit my college career

Other:
I’m going to be submitting a maker/robotics portfolio in addition to my artistic portfolio. I will also be sending in my top 3 research papers, one of which was published and another currently pending publication.

Schools

(only listing my reaches): Harvard Harvard Harvard Harvard, did I say Harvard?
Columbia/Barnard, Yale, Brown, Princeton, UPenn, Dartmouth, Oxford (England)

-Thank you so much! I could really use some advice and feedback since I’m super nervous about the upcoming application season-

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So you are 3rd of 106 with a 3.7? What is the waiting system that you got a 4.5 from a 3.7 ? I assume not plus half for honors and plus 1 for ap.

Why these schools? Dartmouth seems ‘different’

I’m glad you have safeties. Not because you don’t have a chance but likely not a great chance.

You do need to organize your ECs to put a cohesive view of yourself.

What will you do this gap year ? That may matter too.

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My goodness, that was exhausting just to read! I can’t imagine how you juggled all that, but congrats on all the accomplishments!

Agree with this. Reading through all the varied and disparate interests and activities I came away having no idea who you are. It was like reading a list comprised of the ECs of more than one person. The common app - and most other apps - will not have space to list all of these things. I think the common app only has space for 10 ECs? So perhaps the first thing is zeroing in on what’s most important to you and what you feel best represents who you are and what you do - and hope to keep doing. I would start there and see how that shapes up. Once you do that, you can see what you feel is still missing and that missing piece can form the basis of your personal statement.

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Paging @AustenNut for school recommendations + advice! /warmly

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I’ll comment on this. Most colleges want to see LORs from academic teachers you have had, not family friends and the like. Plus, you have way too many as you know. You more than likely will need to choose only 2 of these. Some colleges allow 3. If you send more…some places won’t even read them.

These are all reaches. All of them I hear that you would love to attend Harvard. Please keep in mind that the acceptance rate there is low single digits for even the best candidates. The rest of your list is very top heavy. You know that also.

I guess my big question is…why are you taking a gap year?

Also, the ACT is supposed to be taken while in high school, not after graduation. Not sure if that will matter when you apply.

I’m sure you have looked at the common application. You can see…you won’t be able to list all of these activities. Not enough room. I would suggest omitting the “lesser” ones.

What exactly are you looking for in a college? Size? Location? Religious vs Secular? Give us more information.

Cost? Any issues with costs?

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Because it’s an Ivy…guess they don’t like Cornell.

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When I saw robotics (whatever soft is), I actually thought Cornell.

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Which seems like something worth unpacking. Why Ivy League? All Ivy League? Some Ivy League? Is Ivy the main criterion? Why? Is it just the brand name, or does the Ivy League -as diverse as those schools are - inherently offer something to the OP that they can’t get elsewhere? If so, what? Or is is Ivy for the sake of Ivy prestige?

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This, I suspect.

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As do I…Which is worth exploring because ,as we know, this is often not a good strategy for most applicants.

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Did you apply to colleges this past cycle, as a senior? If so, what were the results?

I would not spend any time on the ACT and SAT…they are not for post-HS grads. And a 1510 is high enough to be submitted to any of the schools you mentioned (Oxford excepted, as their testing requirements are different).

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Do not send more than four LORs to include:
– Guidance counselor (1);
– Classroom teachers (2 max.) - preferably one humanities teacher and one STEM teacher;
– A supplemental LOR (1 max.) is optional. If sent, this letter should be from an adult who knows you in a non-classroom setting (eg. employer, coach etc.).

A saying often quoted on CC is “the thicker the file the thicker the student.”

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This post is just to discuss my chances for the Ivy League + Oxford, not the other schools I plan on applying.
For me, I am interested in HYPC because of the course electives, research opportunities, and the people. Harvard has been my dream school since I was little, and not just because of the prestige. It’s the network and the niche exploration with so many resources available that draws me in.

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Are you still waiting to hear about the waitlist for Northwestern for this coming academic year?

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I’m not going to be applying for engineering, if that’s what you mean. I tried it out in HS and decided that it wasn’t something I was super passionate about. In general, I just don’t like the vibes of Cornell but might apply anyway

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that’s for my brother, but he’s likely going to a LAC instead

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Back to my question…why are you taking a gap year?

Also, how were you able to win a national figure skating award even at the intermediate level. This usually takes hours and hours of training.

I’m having trouble understanding how you did all the things you listed in your OP…and if I’m having trouble…others likely will too.

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Temporarily closing.

And re-opening.