<p>I'm a current High School Junior.
4.0 Unweighted GPA (every year)
2240 SAT Score
800 Math 2 Subject Test
Valedictorian with very high probability</p>
<p>By Senior Year, I will have taken:
- AP World History
- AP United States History
- AP Calculus BC
- AP Language and Composition
- AP Physics B
- AP Physics C - Mechanics (self-study)
- AP Physics C - Electricity and Magnetism (self-study)
- AP Macroeconomics (self-study)
- AP Microeconomics (self-study)
- AP Statistics
- AP Psychology (self-study)
- AP Environmental Science (self-study)
- AP Literature and Composition
- AP Chemistry
- AP Government
- AP Computer Science
I also finished all of my school's math courses and am currently enrolled in college level Linear Algebra and Multi-Variable Calculus online.</p>
<p>Extracurricular Activities Include:
- President of FIRST Robotics Team (we have won numerous awards including winning various regional competitions)
- Eagle Scout
- Varsity Swimming (4 years - I was elected Captain for next year)
- President of NHS
- Started the first FLL (middle school robotics team) in my area and mentored for more than 200 hours
- First chair in my school's top band
- President of my school's band council
- Attended HCSSiM (an exclusive six-week summer math program)</p>
<p>Will it be worth applying to the likes of MIT, Stanford, and Ivy League schools? Is there any area in which I'm particularly week that I should focus on for my Senior year?</p>
<p>I’m no expert, but from my older siblings/relatives/friends experience I think you should be able to get into at least a few of these top tier schools. Your GPA and SAT scores are very good; there are a few perfect SAT scores out there but a 2240 is still great and your GPA should make up for that. You seem to be focused in robotics (from your ECs) and STEM in general (although you have also taken a considerable about of humanity APs). I think that since your ECs seem to align more with the STEM personally, don’t let my sole opinion sway you too much, I would focus on those. This will put you in a really good position for MIT, CalTech, Cornell, Princeton, Stanford, Harvard (depending on what exactly you’re doing- their engineering program for example isn’t as up to speed as all the other Ivys) and UPenn all the while keeping you competitive for the others like Brown, Dartmouth and Yale.</p>
<p>@Wi11sF:
Sorry about that. It looks like it’s too late to edit it now, so there’s not much I can do. Hopefully that isn’t the most important part of my post.</p>
<p>@Pleaseandthanks:
You’re quite right that I’m interested in STEM; I took so many Humanity APs since I ran out of Math and Science APs to take (Biology isn’t held at my School and I’ve heard is quite difficult to self-study). When you say “really good position,” approximately what percentage do I have? Roughly the acceptance rate? Thanks for the analysis.</p>
<p>The mistake is in your last sentence of your original post. </p>
<p>You are a very strong candidate for all of those schools. As you know, they are insanely selective. However, if they don’t pick you I don’t know who they would pick. </p>
<p>For all those schools, most have a sub 10% rate. I would put you at 30-50% chance for each of them (maybe even higher if your essays and letters of recommendation are kickass). If you apply to all of the Ivys and MIT/Cal Tech/Stanford, I think you’ll get into 4-5 of them no problem. I wouldn’t be surprised if you got accepted to most of them. Also, you’ll have some options as opposed to some people who only get accepted to 1/10.</p>
<p>@hobbithopeful:
Thanks for pointing out the mistake and for giving a helpful analysis. It looks like it’s too late to edit my post, so I can’t do too much now. I’m encouraged by the high chances, andI’ll focus on my essay and recommendations. I’d chance you back, but I don’t think I have the knowledge nor the experience to give anyone an accurate idea of their chances. Thanks again for the help.</p>
<p>@jaredmot:
You’re quite accurate in the break-down of my SAT score. As for “self-study,” perhaps I should have been more specific; I thought it was a popularly understood term, but I must have been mistaken. It means that I took the AP test and passed it (with a 5, so far) or that I am currently signed up to take it. I did this because the course either was not offered at my school or there wasn’t room in my schedule. Is you’re assessment of “not much” based exclusively on my SAT, or is it because of something else I should also focus on improving?</p>
<p>the only thing that really stands out to me (as being good) as opposed to the thousands of other of qualified applicants are the amount of AP tests you took. Obviously though, if you received several 3s on them, then they could actually hurt you. It’s better to take less and get 5s than a ton and get 3s. Plus, the commonapp only allows you to put 10 APs, so unless you have another way to report them, the colleges won’t even know you took all of them.</p>
<p>What points out to being bad is your SAT score (many have 2300+) and your subjects (you only tell us math, what’s your other one? Many of the top schools require more than 1). A lot of schools don’t like people being lopsided also.</p>
<p>I’d say you’d get into 1 or 2 of the Ivies/MIT/CalTech.</p>
<p>@satman1111:
As a Junior, I have only actually taken the Math 2 test, but I plan to take more. As for the SAT, I am confident I can get above 2300 before I apply, but I’m sure it will be challenging. I am quite sure I can get an 800 on the Physics Subject Test, but it’s good to know that I’ll need two. I’m afraid there isn’t much I can do about being lopsided; I can try taking more Subject Tests in other areas, but my scores will not be perfect on most. So far, I’ve gotten a 5 on all of my AP exams, and I’m hoping I can keep that record. Thanks for the advice.</p>
<p>@jaredmot:
I actually got a perfect score on the math in the SAT 1, so my other scores were really suffering. Is this going to make my chances decline significantly on account of lack of well-roundedness? Thanks for the thoughtful reply.</p>
<p>@jaredmot:
I guess the answer depends on what the angle is a reference from. If it is a reference from the force of gravity, then the answer is already written in my post. Each word in the first sentence is a one and each word in the second is a tenth.</p>
<p>Hate to break up the physics lesson here, but realize that although your scores may be “average”, the Ivys in particular look for so much more. My older brother only got three As in STEM classes, had a 2250 on the SAT, is white/not legacy/not first generation/not financial aid (in other words: no hooks) but he did a few unusual internships so he was unique so he was accepted to every Engineering program (except wait-listed at Princeton) and went with Cornell’s. I guess “pretty good” is highly dependent on how you present yourself. You HAVE to be unique to get into an Ivy League/Top tier school, and your scores are good enough to get you into them (Harvard and Princeton will be a huge stretch though, but they’re a stretch for every applicant so that’s not saying much).</p>
<p>You are a great candidate. I would say that you have a chance at other Ivy-caliber schools, but not necessarily MIT(given the intense competition). Write stellar essays. 2240 is great. Make other parts of your application shine, and you will have satisfactory results.</p>
<p>Sheesh, it’s 6.3 m/s/s parallel to the plane of the ground… But in your post, do we count the parentheses for the word count? If we don’t count the 4.0 as a word, there is no chance of it being 3. You are very loose with the definition of a word to get the .3.</p>
<p>Keep up the good work and you’ll probably get in a few Ivy’s no problem. Try taking part in things like science bowls. Do more community service/ volunteer work.</p>