<p>GPA: 3.86 UW comprised of ~50% Honors Classes and ~50% AP Classes (no regular classes)
Somewhere around 4.6 Weighted if that matters</p>
<p>School Profile Basics:
4.0+ is top 5% 3.67+ is top 10-15%
Top 50 Public School Nationally</p>
<p>TESTS:
AP Grades: all 5s
SAT score: 2350
SAT IIs: 800s on World History, Chemistry, and Math II</p>
<p>ECs:
Varsity Track/Cross Country Since 8th Grade, 1 year captain (I'm not a recruit level athlete but I'm good enough to walk on at most schools. I've won multiple performance based awards including all-state for small schools)
Model UN (4 year member-1 year President)
Math Team (3 year member)
Boy Scouts (Troop Leader and Eagle Scout)
One of the Founding Members of School Meditation Club
Habitat for Humanity
French Exchange</p>
<p>Top college choices:
Stanford
Yale
Penn
Harvard
Villanova
USC</p>
<p>So, what are my chances?</p>
<p>(Note: I am currently a Junior, just finished with first semester. Some EC commitments are extrapolated and GPA is my current GPA as of 2.5 high school semesters. My grades have been getting gradually better every year, so I could have about a 3.9 by the time I start to apply)</p>
<p>You’ll need to write some compelling essays and have a focused representation of yourself to get into HYPS. Your ECs are certainly below average for those schools.
HYS- high reaches
Penn- reach
Villanova, USC - matches</p>
<p>I may have undersold myself on track & cross country. I have a good chance of qualifying for and doing well at states and qualifying for nationals. My cross country team is the returning favorite for the state championship next year. The reason I don’t consider myself as a recruit level athlete is that I know the caliber of the runners that get recruited to D1 schools such as the ones that I’ve listed, but I’d still put my level of commitment and achievement in running as comparable to some outstanding ECs by HYPS applicants, such as music or community organization. Also, what about UCs such as Berkeley and UCLA?</p>
<p>To call USC and Villanova reaches would mean you have a 50-50 shot at getting into them. I would be shocked if you did not get into those schools.</p>
<p>I agree with above post. Your stats are stellar, but the EC’s need to convey depth. The cross country awards are strong, but you already mentioned that you are not at the level where you would be recruited. It is impossible to chance anyone for many schools, specifically the top schools is the country. But the one common theme is that these schools do not look for the diverse student; they look for the diverse class. So you need to bring something different to the table. The difficult part is finding out what that is.</p>
<p>Here is my knowledge about track & cross country:</p>
<ul>
<li>My times would put me in the top 3 for my main events on most D1 track teams</li>
<li>I would definitely have a place on the team my first year and I would possibly be scholarship worthy by my senior year of college at a non-Ivy D1 school (the scholarship system for running is annoying)</li>
<li>I come from a good high school track program so I know many people who have gone on to run in college. From what I have learned from them, many were not recruited because their academics alone were on par with the schools they were applying to and did not need the boost from being officially recruited. My academics and track performances are stronger than the people I’m talking about, many of whom run at Ivies now. </li>
</ul>
<p>I am basically at the level where I would get a bump from the coach wherever I apply, but I would not be an official recruit the way it is defined by the NCAA, which is where someone is signed on to run at a college and they apply as a formality.</p>
<p>The bottom line is, HYPS reject around 80% of valedictorians. Unless if you are a URM athlete, those schools would be reaches. Their combined entering undergrad freshmen is smaller than LA+Cal, and there are far too many applicants with better stats than you, unfortunately. </p>
<p>ECs are too weak for any school in the top 15-20 unless you get recruited in the next few months for athletics; rest may be achievable. Good luck!</p>
<p>Okay, so at the more reach-y schools, I’ve gotten in contact with the coaches and they seems like they would want me to run (but they’re not bending over backwards to try to get me to go there). Also, I just got an internship to work at a refugee camp in New York City this summer. How would you consider my chances now? Better?</p>