<p>I'm a fairly poor, first gen, African American girl coming from a rural public school in Oklahoma. I am about to be a senior in the fall. My EC's are decent considering my school's limitations. I'm regularly involved in BPA, NHS, Class Office, and Academic Bowl but have participated in many organizations throughout high school. I have a few officer positions in my class, math club, and BPA, and will probably have some more next year. My academic team is pretty good and we've competed in nationals for the past two years (for a public school of our size and location I'm proud of that one :) ). Further involvement has been a challenge because most community activity in my town is church related, and I'm not religious. I am in a local Upward Bound program as well. I'm a contender for valedictorian (tied with a few other for number 1)and have a 4.0 GPA unweighted. I have not taken any AP tests, but my school offers no AP classes. I am taking some classes at a local university and am doing well, but I can't overload on them because they are too expensive for my family ($300 a pop :/ )</p>
<p>I'm not in many organizations, but I'm an active hobbyist. I'm a good artist and have won a few local competitions, but my school doesn't offer art so there is much opportunity and support there. I'm also very musical and I enjoy performing.</p>
<p>My ACT score is a 33 (E:33 M:34 R:33 S:30). I haven't taken the writing portion yet, but am pretty sure I'll do okay on it. I have not taken the SAT. I am not a national merit semifinalist, but I am commended. I will hopefully qualify for national achievement.</p>
<p>As far as my essay, I've got plenty of stuff to write an interesting story. I've dealt with a lot of racism, poverty, discouragement from my community, and have overcome some big personal challenges. I'm pretty sure that I'll be able to milk my life to produce something sufficient. </p>
<p>I'm mostly worried about my EC's and rigor. I've tried to be fairly rigorous in my classes, but what my school offers are limited. I'm also worried because I don't feel like I fit the standard. I HATE leadership roles, am not the most sociable, or the best behaved. However I highly value my education and I feel that I have good vision in life. I am very ambitious.</p>
<p>Currently, I'm reaching for Harvard, Columbia, and Stanford. The ones I'm mostly aiming for however are WashU, Duke, Barnard, Wellesley, Emory, and possibly UChicago. What are my chances? What can I do to improve? Any other schools I should consider?</p>