<p>Hello Everyone :)</p>
<p>I'm an Indian, senior student studying the CBSE curriculum in Dubai, UAE.
I plan to apply to US universities for undergraduate degree in Computer Science.
I have been choosing which universities to apply to for a while now and I have decided a few but if I have to be honest with myself, I personally don't feel eligible to get into any of these. So, I need some honest opinions from you guys. </p>
<p>The colleges I'm applying to are pretty good for Computer Science and naturally, they are very competitive. :/ </p>
<ul>
<li>Carnegie Mellon University</li>
<li>Cornell University (1 long shot)</li>
<li>University of Illinois - Urbana Champaign</li>
<li>UCB, UCLA and UC San Diego </li>
<li>University of Texas at Austin</li>
<li>Purdue University</li>
<li>University of Washington (Considering)</li>
</ul>
<p>SAT I - 1650/2400 [That's horrible, I know. It was my first try and I hadn't prepared much. I'm trying again in October and I hope to improve as much as I can]
SAT II - I'll be giving it in November. (I'm planning to give Math Level 2 & Chemistry)
TOEFL - I just gave my test today :$</p>
<p>Cummulative Grade Point Average for Grade 9 & 10 : 10/10
Final Percentage at the end of Grade 11 : 69.4%
Grade 12 Mid-Term Percentage : 83.2%</p>
<p>Grade 11 was a pretty bad year for me academically and I have never secured such bad scores and I was just generally disappointed in myself. So, I made a really sincere effort in grade 12 to improve my scores and I think I did pretty well and I don't know if that counts for something? :/</p>
<p>ECs - </p>
<p>Activities in School (Computer related) </p>
<ol>
<li>In-charge of visuals at talent contest (2010)</li>
<li>Editor of class-magazine (2010)</li>
<li>Head of audio-visuals team at school drama (2012)</li>
<li>Co-director of the documentary for Young Womens Leadership Summit. (2012)</li>
<li>Video presentation for Community Development Leadership Summit (2012)</li>
<li>Participated & shortlisted in logo-designing contest for the school council (2013)</li>
</ol>
<p>Other Participations & Achievements </p>
<ol>
<li>Elected Deputy School Prefect in Class 11 (2012)</li>
<li>Participation in Createch, Talent Contest (2012)</li>
<li>Harvard Model Congress (2013)</li>
<li>World Scholars Cup <a href="2013">Received honorable mentions</a></li>
</ol>
<p>Achievements outside school
1. Self-taught graphic and web-designer.
2. Secured IQ score of 126 in career discovery test by Meccademia in 2011.
3. Volunteered to promote green technologies at the Future Green Exhibition 2012 presented by Goumbook</p>
<p>Also, so far in the essays I've written - I have mentioned how I have been web designing and graphic designing since I was 13 and I learnt it by myself with the help of some tutorials, etc. </p>
<p>I am honestly passionate about Computers but I know my application doesn't exactly reflect that. Atleast, not enough. </p>
<p>Do you guys think I have a shot at any of these universities?
Are there any other universities that I should consider? Especially any safety schools?
The thing is, I don't want to compromise on the quality of education as well. I would prefer a school with a really strong Computer Science course. </p>
<p>Also, I won't require any financial aid. </p>
<p>And, I'm planning a BS degree in CS. </p>
<p>I don't know if that information is enough, but I hope it is. (I know I still haven't given the SAT & TOEFL scores which are super important) But as of now, which colleges should be on my mind? </p>
<p>Wow, that's a lot of reading. Sorry.
& Thank you :)</p>