Chance Thread for Indian Applicant

SAT I (breakdown): 1990 (CR:550 M:800 W:640) i know this is really bad but i will be retaking the new sat.
SAT II: 800 Math 2, 800 Math 1
Grades: Class 9 CGPA 10/10 in all subjects and overall
Class 10 CGPA 10/10 in all subjects and overall
Class 11 98.6%
Class 12 94.8%
I studied in the CBSE board in India. I was also the topper in every class.
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/40 I think
AP (place score in parenthesis):Calculus BC 5 AB subscore 5
I got to know about AP really late, so I could take only one with a week’s preparation.
Senior Year Course Load: Indian CBSE Board
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): None
[ b]Subjective:**
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Many, but nothing unique. I did almost everything i could. Debates,Singing,Dance and I won many prizes in some local quizzes and debates. I also play badminton and football at the school level.
Was a part of the Junior Red Cross at school.
I have won the district topper medals in some math and science olympiads.
Few more…

Job/Work Experience: None actually. Is this important? How do I improve this? Please let me know
Volunteer/Community service: I have done some volunteering at school and I plan to tutor students in math. I also plan to work with an NGO to help cancer patients.
Summer Activities:I will be attending summer school at Oxford University.
Essays: Good.
Teacher Recommendation: Great.
Counselor Rec: Good.
Applying for Financial Aid?: No
Intended Major: Mathematics with Statistics maybe?
Country (if international applicant): india
School Type: Private
Ethnicity: indian
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: INR 600,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None, I think

Can you chance me for the following universities?
Early Action:
Georgetown University
Georgia Institute of Technology
University of Chicago
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
University of Virginia

Early Decision:
JHU
I also wanna know if taking a gap year hurts my chances. I am trying to be as productive as possible.
Thank you in advance.

Your list of schools looks like it is filled with reaches. The SAT scores you have are quite low and not competitive for any of the schools listed above, especially for international students.

Also considering your parents income is only 6 lakhs per year, it appears you will need financial aid. None of the schools listed above are need blind for international students. This drops your chances even further.

Suggest you lower your target a bit and focus on schools where your grades and SAT scores put you in the upper 75th percentile of all applicants.

Hello
No, I’m not applying to all of these schools. I just wanted to know my chances. Btw, I will be retaking the SAT and the ACT. And I’m not sure about my parents’ income (I really didn’t ask them at all, so it’s just an estimate). But, will applying to need blind schools like Northwestern affect my chances?

Northwestern is need blind, but only for domestic students. Internationals are accepted but need aware. This means that they will only take compelling internationals and give financial aid. For the rest of the international pool they will accept only those who can pay in full.

Before you go any further have a serious talk with your parents. Ask them how much they can pay. Tuition fees books boarding and transport for Northwestern will cost about 45 Lakhs per year. For 4 years this is nearly 2 crores rupees. Do your parents have that kind of money available?

If not then set your sights on a more reasonable target of schools where you can likely get aid.

“For the rest of the international pool they will accept only those who can pay in full.”

This doesn’t mean they will accept all non-compelling internationals who can pay in full, but rather only the ones they want who can pay. In case this was ambiguous. :slight_smile:

Thank you for your comments!!

Yes thanks to @vonlost. Internationals are at a considerable disadvantage unless you are full pay. Even if you are full pay this doesn’t guarantee anything.

There are a handful of schools that are need blind even to internationals. But these schools are incredibly difficult to get into.

Honestly if you can afford it, take the gap year. Get a job, bring the SAT to 1500+/1600, and pad up on ECs!