<p>PSAT:237 (also semifinalist awaiting news of finalist)
SAT:2260 (do I need to raise this?)
CR:700
M:800
W:760
SAT Subject Level II Math: 800
Chemistry: 800
US History: 760
Biology: 750
AP tests: Chem 5
Bio 5
US History 5</p>
<p>Currently taking AP Physics C, Calc BC, Spanish, Lit, and Gov.</p>
<p>Tons of Science/Debate awards at the local, regional, and state level (almost one national but didn't get it )</p>
<p>Tennis 4 years, couple of awards, Varsity past 2 years
Piano since kindergarten. Tons of awards here too...
Intern at an Air Force Base (was chosen from a nationwide application)
National Young Leaders Conference and National Young Leaders State Conference participant
Roughly 250 hours of volunteering</p>
<p>Please be honest and sincere in your answer, as I am genuinely worried/curious about what my resume reveals (granted, this isn't all of it, but it is the juicier parts).</p>
<p>Thanks. My GPA is 4.0 unweighted and 4.63 weighted, but it will be around 4.7 by the end of this year.</p>
<p>I’m also Debate Captain for two years in a row.
And the 5s on the AP tests were the only tests scores I have for AP (meaning I don’t have others that I chose not to reveal)
I am also ranked in the top 1% in my school.</p>
<p>And yes, I know UPenn is ivy, and I mis-typed.
I should have said that I’m especially interested in Upenn compared to the others and wanted a different opinion on my chances on getting into Ivy as opposed to my chances of getting into Upenn specifically.</p>
<p>Oh, I also plan on applying ED to Penn. Would that make my chances significantly better, or should I try a different method, as in apply to a different school with EA?</p>
<p>EA & ED always help, so do that! But Ivies are crapshoots for everyone, unfortunately. But, I’d say that you have great chances to get in to some of them. Just make sure that you have stellar essays & recommendations from your teachers!</p>
<p>Your test scores are pretty much top-notch as is your GPA. Your ECs are a little weak though, you might have a hard time at some of the upper Ivy’s with them. I’d say you’ll probably get in ED to Penn, Cornell/Brown and maybe Dartmouth are within reach. The other four are a bit of a crapshoot, you might get in, you might not get in to any, just get some fantastic recs and work hard on your essays and you might be able to push it in to a couple.</p>
<p>Thanks for the feedback.
As for EC, if I typed them all out, they wouldn’t appear quite as weak in my opinion, but I can see where you’re coming from.
Will chance you back after this post.</p>
<p>It’s generic in that you have similar scores and ECs to that of a lot of other science-oriented students applying to Ivy schools. Having lots of awards in things like science bowl, or what have you, is cool, but it’s nothing the adcoms haven’t seen before, you know?</p>
<p>Really, they probably see it daily during admissions time. High math scores, lower elsewhere (though still impressive), piano since the age of five, tennis… I don’t know if you’re Asian, and I’m not trying to come off as racist here, but you sort of perfectly fit the stereotype of a high-achieving Asian applying to such universities. The problem with that is you don’t seem to particularly stand out. Enter the mind of the person viewing your application. They’ve gone through hundreds, and have hundreds yet to go, that’s for certain. What makes you stand out from the others? Science awards at the state level are impressive, but it isn’t near as much a sell as going to Intel. (You know all of this, I’m just over-demonstrating my point, haha.)</p>
<p>I think you can really sell your application in your essays. If they are creative and can prove that you are well-rounded and adept in subjects across the board, I think you’ll have some leverage. Also true is that when you lay out all of those awards and whatnot, you’ll appear to be more accomplished than similar applicants. Getting a really good rec from a humanities teacher would help, too. It’s a good thing that you demonstrate passion and interest in your ECs, and utilizing the rest of the app to prove that you’re balanced will certainly help.</p>
<p>ED will probably help to some degree for Penn, though not as much as it would at less selective universities. I think you’ve got a genuinely good shot at Penn. (Relatively speaking, ofc.) Don’t cross your fingers for HYP, but I think if you were to apply to every Ivy, hypothetically speaking, you’d probably make one to three, maybe four depending on your luck.</p>
<p>I’d say you have a pretty good chance at the lower ranked ivies, your EC’s are good your test score is in the range, and colleges like National Merit Finalists</p>
<p>@Viking - thanks, but I’m not a finalist yet…we’ll see. Will chance after this post.</p>
<p>@experientia - On EC, I was more banking on my debate stuff to make me “stand out”. Yes, I am an Asian, and hopefully high acheiving, and based on my experiences, Asians tend not to speak well and therefore don’t do quite as well at debate as others. I on the other hand have qualified for states, gotten ___loads of awards, am captain, etc. (my essay is also about this passion of mine).
I’m also retaking the SAT to get a higher CR (had 700…) and will hopefully get over 2300. Will this improve my chances significantly?
Regarding essays, I’m of the same mindset.
This may seem like a noob question, but what does HYP stand for?
And thanks for the Ivy comment. The fact that someone thinks I can get into an Ivy with the rather vague resume I put on here encourages me quite a bit!</p>
<p>Definitely work on EC involvement. You need to have lots of outlets and interests other than academic. Do that and the EC factor + Stats is in your favor.</p>