<p>Hey before I begin I'm going to say that I want you to be as harsh as you can be. You won't hurt my feelings by saying that I have no chance at all of getting into the schools I'm applying to. I'm going to list the schools I'm thinking of applying to and if you want to suggest any other schools that might work for me, that would be helpful.
Schools I'm applying thinking about applying to:
Middlesex (day student)
Concord Academy (day student)
Phillips Andover (boarder)
Phillips Exeter (boarder)
Taft (boarder)
Kent (boarder)
The Governor's Academy (boarder)
Choate (boarder)</p>
<p>Now to my stats:
BASIC STUFF:
White male living in Massachusetts
Rising eighth grader
I will apply for FA.
My family makes between $70k and $90k. (I know specifically how much, I'm not going to post it publicly though.)
I go to a music school. It's extremely selective and the time you spend on music takes a lot out of your day. </p>
<p>GRADES AND SCHTUFF:
In sixth grade I had got B+s and A-s.
In seventh grade I got As and A-s
Last term of seventh grade my GPA was 3.9
I took the SSAT last spring and I got a 93 on it. Will retake again in the fall
I love to read. I just finished reading Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder
I also love to write. In the summer of fifth grade I wrote a 30 page novella
I know that my recs were good. One of my teachers told me that she wrote "best student that I ever taught" and my math teacher actually showed me the rec I got from her. It was really good</p>
<p>ECS:
I have been singing since first grade
I have been playing the piano since third grade
I have been playing the trumpet since fourth grade
I have been playing the recorder seriously since fifth grade
I am a member of my school's advanced bell choir
I like to run. I've been running casually since fifth grade and I recently participated in an outside of school track program. I intend to do Cross Country this fall
I've been doing karate since first grade. I have a black belt in karate
At my local YMCA I love to work out on the rowing machine. I love the water and I really want to try crew in high school
In seventh grade I participated in the Harvard Youth Leadership Initiative
Next Saturday I'm going to a homeless shelter to do volunteer work and I will continue to volunteer their</p>
<p>So, do I have a chance? I think that Exeter, Andover, and Choate are reaches for me, but I'm not sure. I have already visited Middlesex. Will that help me in the admissions process? Thanks and please respond.</p>
<p>(: Your grades, ssat, and recs look good. It’s good that you like to read and write (I read that book as well a month ago, really thought provoking lit.) and it’s something you could bring up in the interview, along with the novella. </p>
<p>Your interests are fine. Do you have any achievements in them you can bring up? Schools like those need something to set you apart from others with the same interests (esp. musically.) The sports are fine, and the Harvard youth Leadership initiative sounds impressive, though I have no clue what that is.</p>
<p>Please be honest with this answer–are you going to do the volunteer work just to be able to put that on your app? Because schools can easily tell if you’re doing the community service just for the sake of doing something, and it may look like that to them since you’re starting this late. However, if you’re truly passionate about community service (which you may be), it’s a great thing to do and will look good to top boarding schools. :)</p>
<p>I think you might have a shot…Be sure to ace the essay & interview and use it to bring out what makes you unique. I wish you good luck–I’m applying too, so I’m not exactly totally qualified to give an answer, but I hope I helped. ^__^</p>
<p>Thanks a lot intrinsically! I have been waiting for someone to answer this thread.
To answer your questions I have some pretty notable achievements musically. I have actually sung with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. (I know the Assistant Director) But I’m not sure if I should put that down because I’m not to sure how the prep school world feels about Mormons. (btw I’m not a Mormon)
As for community service I wouldn’t do that just to put on my app. If I wanted to do something just to put on my app I would have volunteered at something like a library which technically is community service. That is something that would be easy for me since I spend a lot of time their I could just sort books and read and still get some hours in.
The Harvard Youth Leadership thing did also involve community service which is kinda how I got interested in community service.
btw where are you applying to? Good luck wherever you’re applying!</p>
<p>That sounds good. ^^ It might be a safe move not to put the choir down, I suppose, just to be safe.</p>
<p>Thank you! I’m still not sure exactly where I’m applying just yet, probably Andover, Exeter, Lawrenceville, Deerfield, as well as some safety schools.</p>
<p>Nice I saw your chances thread. Lol your much more qualified than I am. You probably could get into wherever you apply. What’s your first choice?</p>