Chances for a confused person??

<p>My stats
act=29 (1st time, but will retake hoping for 30 or above)
satII us history(700) chemistry (730)
10 ap (Most rigorous possible) (scored mostly 4 and a few 5)by end of senior year (mostly A and A-) AP scholar with distinction
GPA=4.15/4.0
no class rank, but would be top 3% out of 700 students.
cello player since 4ht grade, amnesty international (10,11,12), math team(11, 12) nhs (11,12) volunteer at hospital(11,12) tutor children(10,11,12), led a mandatory class of about 20 students (only leadership)
first generation college person (mom dropped out of high school), biracial (asian caucasion), disadvantaged (low income, parent at mental hospital, divorced, sibling dropped out of high school, all happened during high school but managed to keep up my grades)</p>

<p>Expecting good recs and excellent essay. I displayed tremendous improvement since 9th grade. I didn't grow up in an academic atmosphere. Never really exposed to books or anything. Decided to challenge myself with ap and started to do well in school. (ACT score jumped from 19-29 in one year)</p>

<p>Do I have a chance??</p>

<p>Sure, you have a chance. Will you be the first in your family to go to college?</p>

<p>yes i'm the first to go to college in my family. how much of a chance? like super reach, reach, or slight reach?? isn't 29 really low for harvard though?</p>

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<p>Reach, but Harvard is a reach for most people who get in. If you can bring your ACT score up, by all means, try to do so, but for a student in your circumstances, a 29 is not a deal-breaker. You might try the SAT I, also, just to see if it comes more naturally to you.</p>

<p>Have you had to spend time on work or family responsibilities?</p>

<p>this summer kind of sucks. She is out of the mental hospital, but My mom doesn't do anything. hasn't cooked cleaned, so i'm basically doing that stuff. my mom, brother, and I just rely on alimony/child support from my dad. Throughout my junior year when my mom went to the mental hospital, my dad came and lived with my brother and me, but i still cooked and visited my mom most days.</p>

<p>i already tried the sat. my act score is better. I am going to retake the act and sat this fall. Last spring was the first time i took the tests, so i am hoping to raise my score.</p>

<p>If you have to spend time looking after the household and basically taking a parental role in the family, make sure the schools you apply to know about it. It is, for lack of a better term, a well-respected EC.</p>

<p>you can really put that as an ec?</p>

<p>You can and you should. Don't just list it, though -- either talk about it in your essay, or send a secondary essay talking about the family struggles you've had (probably the best option), or if one of your recommenders has been helping you handle these responsibilities over the last few years, you could have the recommender talk about it.</p>

<p>If you choose to write about these obstacles in your essay, make sure you focus not on the struggles themselves but how you overcame these obstacles. It seems like you have done very well, and coming as far as you have come is a great accomplishment. Best of luck!</p>

<p>Everything looks really good thus far... Try to bring up those test scores. I'd say because of your low income, first generation college, and the issues within your family, that Harvard is a slight reach for you. You're obviously very well motivated, so find a way to express it in your essay. Best of luck.</p>

<p>I would say that Harvard is a big reach because it appears that you have no awards whatsoever, low test scores, average grades for Harvard, and slightly below average EC's. Also, I don't think biracial (caucasian-asian) will help you because neither race is under-represented. You should apply to a couple matches and safeties.</p>

<p>"you have no awards whatsoever,", "and slightly below average EC's" --
This is true. However, he or she has had to take care of the household and put up with a bunch of other "family" problems that could explain this lack... If you're from a rural area, yogurt123, this could also explain the awards issue, because 99.9% of awards given in like Wyoming and Montana, for example, are sport ones... There isn't really much academic competition or academically related ecs to participate in. Your ecs, I think, are fine, just make sure you put commitment into all of them and try to advance in your position within. </p>

<p>The things that I would do if I were you is re-take your ACT again (your improvement, by the way, was extremely impressive) or take the SAT (I would do this b/c there are more prep materials for this test from what I've observed), keep working hard in school, continue working with your ecs and try to become like an officer of a club or something, if not president of it, and finally, relax... Because of your low income and your harsh conditions at home, you must have a lot of motivation from within... Try to write your essay for your college apps about that, but, like NorthStarMom says, don't just write, "I'm a victim, poor me." With the way you're going, I'm sure you'll get into at least one of the top colleges... Again, good luck. I know how hard it is.</p>

<p>"If you have to spend time looking after the household and basically taking a parental role in the family, make sure the schools you apply to know about it. It is, for lack of a better term, a well-respected EC."</p>

<p>This is very true. It's regarded by the colleges the same way that they regard ECs. </p>

<p>Either write an essay about it or have your GC write about it in their recommendation. It is a big deal -- shows responsibility, maturity and the ability to rise above challenges. </p>

<p>Yes, you have a chance for Harvard. Yes, as is the case for virtually everyone, it's a reach. </p>

<p>Make sure that you also apply to other top 25 colleges because you definitely have a chance to get in at least one.</p>

<p>I also suggest Princeton since it has excellent financial aid for low income people. Rice is another top college to consider since it has had a longtime mission to educate low income and first generation college students.</p>

<p>Since $ is a consideration, make sure that when you apply to colleges you apply to colleges where you're likely to get good aid. You can learn about the colleges' financial aid policies by checking their web sites and contacting financial aid officers directly.</p>

<p>One big tip: Give your parents advanced warning about the paperwork for financial aid because they will have to supply tax records, and also should also submit their income tax forms for this year next Jan. The forms aren't something to spring on busy/stressed parents at the last second.</p>