<p>Caucasian Male
New York City
Top-Tier Private School</p>
<p>3.9 UW GPA (school does not weight)
School does not rank (would be about 4/120)
School no longer offers APs, but I have the hardest possible schedule
-->last year: AP Spanish IV, AP Chem, an advanced 2-credit combined us history/literature class, Precalculus Honors, Photo II
-->senior year: AP Spanish V, Advanced Physics, Advanced Calculus BC, Integrated Liberal Studies (advanced), Shakespeare, Law, .5 credit Social Entrepreneurship and Ethics course</p>
<p>Stats:
35 ACT (8 writing)
800 SAT Math II, 800 SAT US Hist, 780 SAT Chem, 650 SAT spanish
PSAT 230 (ntnl merit semifinalist)
Chem and US Hist AP's (expecting 5's)</p>
<p>EC's:
VP of Operations of an active and prolific microfinance 501(c)(3)
Varsity wrestling 11th grade
JV baseball 9th, 10th
Varsity cross country 9th
Acolyte at my church
umpiring youth baseball job
spanish language program last summer in barcelona
internship at a wall street research firm this summer
travelled to Botswana for three weeks on a school trip (teacher started a non-profit that runs a center for at-risk kids)--> worked with kids, mentored adults, sandbagged other charities
investment club 9th grade
newspaper this year and last year</p>
<p>it’s sort of hard to determine for the ivies. However, I would say your chances, unless you have some kind of hook’ or an outstanding award, are looking kind of slim. Really sorry to be a jerk about it. I mean, your #s are great, but your e.c.'s are nothing special. I’d say Dartmouth, Princeton, Harvard all high reach, GTown Reach. and the others I really don’t know much about.</p>
<p>Your stats look great; pretty hard to beat actually. The fact that you have taken so little APs will hurt you though, because, compared to other students applying to Ivies, you will have taken a weak schedule. Also, there seams to be a lack of leadership. However, if your write a good essay and get good recommendations, I think you have a shot. Good luck</p>
<p>Very top high schools like the one the OP is referring to often offer nothing called APs because all classes are at or above that level and colleges know it.</p>
<p>Your best bet is looking at your school’s Naviance or equal and talking to your counselor who will often be a former ivy adcom at schools like yours. The biggest issue at these schools is that your class is likely filled with ivy legcies, top URMs and children of the powerful and connected. That can make ivy admission highly dependent on who else is applying.</p>
<p>“Very top high schools like the one the OP is referring to often offer nothing called APs because all classes are at or above that level and colleges know it.”</p>
<p>Very true!
My child is attending an elite HS that does not offer any AP class.
Some kids take AP exams to get college credits and most of them get 5’s without AP classes.
Some high schools offer classes that are higher level than AP classes.
BTW, about 40-50% got accepted from top 20 schools every year.</p>
<p>1) Over 50% of my school’s graduating class usually goes to top-15/ top-20 schools</p>
<p>2) I do have some leadership positions, awards, and the like:
the microfinance one is definitely a leadership position, I am one of the founders and I have a lot of specific things I’ve done with that such as presenting to the school’s board of trustees, doing interviews for the administration, etc.; it has become sort of a “pride of the school” type of organization and we are working on many different projects with the school
American Math Competition 2nd place in school
one of two kids in the school chosen by headmaster to go on a lobbying trip
honor roll every semester
school science award three straight years</p>
<p>3) to confirm, the school over the last two years has phased out APs. Every single one of my courses has been at or above AP level</p>
<p>And the fact that you haven’t taken a lot of AP classes won’t hurt you given the circumstances. People who think otherwise haven’t looked at these universities’ admissions policies properly.</p>
<p>Your ECs are kind of bland (it’s admirable that you’ve been involved with volunteer efforts in Botswana, don’t get me wrong, and your internship sounds impressive, but you don’t really demonstrate interests beyond schoolwork and athletics), but you can still fix this.</p>
<p>Concentrate on your essays. The adcoms have to acknowledge you as a person (it’s better to be known as “that kid with the nine siblings” or “the girl who forgot her speech at graduation and fainted” than as a set of numbers) and your ECs don’t really serve this purpose. So. Make your essays evocative, sincere and personal.</p>
<p>Admissions may be unpredictable in nature but you shouldn’t give him false hopes. So OP, pretty much disregard x<em>Ambivalent</em>x’s remarks about all of these top tier universities that you’re supposedly being accepted to.</p>
<p>In my experience, at schools like yours HYP are highly unlikely without a hook. Too many legacies and top URMs. But Williams and Midd are highly likely. Changing a bit as they takes up the slack of so many not getting into ivies so no guarantee, but you are their bread and butter. GTown should also be no problem.</p>
<p>The ivies are tough, there are more than a dozen high schools like yours in NYC, add in the top ones in every city, affluent suburb and the boarding schools…you have lots of high stats kids all wanting to go to the same few schools and they read similarly. The legacies, recruited athletes, and URMs take a lot of the space these schools are allowed.</p>
<p>Just throw your hat in the ring and have some non ivies you love.</p>
<p>contrary to all the naysayers around cc, I think you look like a very compelling candidate. try to use your business acumen in your personal statements…</p>
<p>Hmm, a lot of the sports you did, you started and then quit, at least after two years. I think a little bit on the commitment part you lack, since only one of the EC’s are are three or more years, non are really 4 years from what I saw… It might be making a mistake though. A lot of the EC’s however are unique such as the Botswana, and spanish Barcelona tutoring… You should some how point that out in an essay, and place emphasis on those.
Grades/Test wise, its really good.</p>
<p>Dartmouth: Low Reach
HYP: Reach for non hooks
Rest of Ivies: Mid Reach-Low reach
GTown, Williams, Middlebury: not familiar with liberal arts. Sorry!</p>