Chance, please! Top Universities

Currently a junior.

SAT: 2130 (CR 750, Math 700, Writing 680)- I intend to retake and get 2250 with a 750 on each section. No SAT II yet
GPA: 4.25 weighted, 4.0 unweighted
Class rank: 1/600

Academics:
School does not allow APs before junior year, during my freshman and sophomore years I “doubled up” in three subjects and took summer classes (including language classes from Middlebury) to advance myself.
Junior year- College-level philosophy, Chorus, Honors Chem, AP Calc AB (anticipated 4), AP Comp Gov (anticipated 5), AP Lit (anticipated 5), German 4, plan to take an additional college level math class over the summer
Senior year (anticipated)- Chorus, AP Physics B, AP Statistics, AP Lang, AP US Gov, College Econ (no AP offered, 2nd level college Philosophy

ECs:
-National Honors Society, 11-12 (Vice President)
-Tolerance Club, 11-12
-Mock Trial, 10-12 (President)
-Speech and Debate, 9-12 (President)
-Chime Choir Director, 11-12 (President and founder)
-Model United Nations, 10-12 (President)
-Girl Scouts
-Youth Group and Footsteps, a youth retreat
-Best Buddies (President, 2nd in the club’s history)
-Chorus Accompanist, 10-12
-Jr. Philharmonic, 10-12
-Key Club, 9-10
-Honors College, 9-12
-Campaign for a Presidential Youth Council District Manager, 11-12
-Piano, 7 hrs/week

Achievements:
-Mock Trial team district semifinalist
-Accepted to Summer Piano Institute at Ithaca College
-Anticipated state finalist in debate
-Anticipated position paper/best delegate award for MUN

Volunteer/Community service: 20 hours required for our school’s Honors College and NHS, participation in Tolerance Club and Key Club but not heavily, Girl Scout Silver Award in 8th, intend on getting my Gold Award by the time I graduate but it will not have been completed by the time I apply

Anticipated supplements:
Essays: Anticipate being very good, multiple English teachers have described me as the best writer they have taught
Teacher Recommendation: 2 anticipated very good recs
Additional Rec: The judge who coaches my mock trial teams adores me as does my Forensics coach

Anticipated Major: Economics, PoliSci, Public Policy, Anthro

Other notes:
-Middle level high school in PA
-will not be eligible for need-based financial aid
-it is very important to me to be able to go somewhere that there is a possibility for me to pursue music aside my major
-I am most paranoid about not being a National Merit Scholarship, not taking AP Chem or a higher level science before my senior year, and not having a significant amount of volunteer service so far. How will these things effect my application?
-I believe my strongest points (and the things I am most passionate about) are my ECs. How far will these get me?
-Besides higher SATs, what else can I do to substantially improve chances? I understand that competitive schools are essentially a lottery as long as you are a qualified student, but what can I do to earn myself a spot in that “lottery”?

Schools:
Yale
UChicago
Duke
Bowdoin
Notre Dame
Vassar
-What other schools should I be looking into, keeping in mind that I need to have a strong music department?

-I have matches in mind that I have not listed, only reaches are listed

Thank you!!

You definitely need to get your SAT score up, but assuming you get it to at least 2200 and write good essays I’d say that you’ve got about as good of a shot as one can have to get accepted to all of those. If you do those things then you’re in the “lottery.”

The things that you listed as weaknesses won’t hurt your application much. You have no major weaknesses as long as you get a solid SAT or ACT score, so I advise that you start studying for and taking those tests and that you continue to maintain excellence in school and at your extracurriculars. If you do all of that I’d say that you’d have about a 30-40% chance of admission to top universities, which is about as good as it gets without a major hook. Keep in mind though that that estimate is really rough and that I’m not an expert by any means.

Sadly your standardized tests scores will probably end up mattering more than your ECs, but your ECs are strong and will certainly help give you an edge over applicants with similar stats.