Chance Me for:
Princeton
Dartmouth
Cornell
Bowdoin
Colby
Planned major: Chemistry (want to do research and get doctorate)
1530 SAT (750 Reading/Writing, 780 Math)
790 Chem SAT II
99.41 weighted (around 98 mid weighted) my school is weird about how they weight classes
rank not generally reported at my school but counselor told me 4/ 130 and will report in rec
from small rigorous Catholic high school in upstate new york
have taken very rigorous path (if one does not account that I dropped latin) though what school offers
AP Chem: 5
AP World: 5
AP Lang: 4
AP US: 5
This year taking:
AP BC calc
AP Psych
AP Physics 1
AP Lit
Extracurriculars:
-Captain of Varsity Swim Team as senior, qualified for states in relay, sectional qualifier since 7th grade
-do club swimming low key
-take lesson through Eastman community music school, play clarinet, a couple NYSSMA competitions (highest level (level 6) - 97/100 last spring)
-a local winter Youth Wind symphony
-played briefly in a clarinet quartet
-Campus ministry board (currently hold leadership position) which fundraises for local and international organizations
-National Honor Society
-lifeguard
-taught swim lesson once
Things that make me stand out:
helped professors on research over summer at local private college that was published by Geological Society of America (with my name coauthored)
-took knowledge and for senior capstone project did sampled for WAVE (Water Assessments by Volunteer Evaluators) a program run by NYS Department of Environmental Conservation to asses stream health
started a Chemistry Club one semester that hosted an even after school to excite/ teach students about chemistry
Other info:
need financial aid but less than other people
female in stem might help
That said, I don’t know your full picture. Outstanding letters of rec and an amazing essay could help. Keep in mind, too, that there is life beyond the Ivies. A bright student like you will have a lot of options if you look for them.
For this reason, Colby and Bowdoin are possibilities. These are not easy schools either, but LACs (I attended an LAC) are bit more forgiving and thus take a few more chances on applicants like you. In fact, if you’re truly open to LACs, I’d look to add more of these. I like your chances at LACs more than at the Ivies. Plus, and these are just my two cents, if your ultimate goal is to get a doctorate, forget the Ivies. Go to a school that is truly focused on undergraduate education. Too many people forget that the Ivies are research universities! (Dartmouth is sort of an exception; it’s the most LAC-like of the bunch.) Get a rigorous LAC education, sans the large lectures and TAs, and then attend an Ivy for grad school. Professors at Ivies have grad students–seldom undergrads–to help with research. At an LAC, you’ll have research opportunities available and be able to work with professors and get to know them personally.
I tend to agree with Hapworth on your chances. Your numbers are very strong, but lets consider the acceptance rate for students with a 1500-1600 on the SAT at Princeton. For the class of 2021, it was 8.2% and without a really strong specialization, which I would say is more important for ivies than being well-rounded, these schools are a stretch. I have no idea how rigorous your high school is, but I came from a fairly large and also strong public high school in California, where the top 4 out of about 700 students would probably struggle to get into some of the institutions you mentioned. If it is a doctorate you’re looking for then I would say you should go to a strong undergrad, but not necessarily an Ivy. If you do well in undergrad, then you can get your doctorate from one, but it isn’t as necessary if you’re going to pursue further education.