Chances for Stanford & Berkeley at 15 yrs old? Help!

Applying to College
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<p>QDD –</p>

<p>Why do you want to leave high school after one year? Are you so far ahead in your academic subjects that you will be taking the most advanced classes your hs has to offer that year? Will you have calculus and bio/chemistry/physics behind you? Will you be ready to succeed in AP exams in history/English/language by that time? To me, the threshold question is whether you will be ready for a rigorous program at a top university in terms of your academic background. I can’t imagine facing chemistry for the first time at a school like Stanford, for example, no matter how brilliant a student. If you will be prepared academically, the question turns to how you will do socially and emotionally. If your high school can meet your needs for another year or so, you might be in a much better position to interact socially with 18 year olds, and have a more enjoyable college experience if you would wait a bit.</p>

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<p>My daughter is starting college full-time this fall at 16. A bit older, granted, than the OP. She is a homeschooler, but has also taken classes part-time at the high school for the last couple years and the community college last year.</p>

<p>She’s not old enough to leave home, in my opinion, so she’ll start at the regional public U. next fall and live at home… but I don’t disparage her choice to move ahead and get a start on college. It suits her and her long-term plans.</p>

<p>I do expect that socially it will be a misfit at first, but since she’ll still be at home she’ll have her current friends to hang out with, she’ll just be taking classes at a different place, which she pretty much always has anyway.</p>

<p>After one year here, she’ll transfer to the Flagship State U. honors college. She’ll be a 17 year old sophomore then, and while still a year younger than the incoming freshmen, it’s close enough. Mostly, though, this is just what she wants to do, and knowing her as I do, I know she’s made a good choice. In fact, everyone who knows her agrees.</p>

<p>She also knows that by moving on to college now, so young, that she is eliminating the possibility of going to a top-tier-brand-name-super-school. If she wanted to do that, she’d best do two more years of college prep and build the perfect transcript and all that. But it’s not what she wants. She just wants to get on with college, and she’s ready. The local univ is happy to have her, put her in the honors program, and she’s scheduled to register for classes next week.</p>

<p>She most certainly doesn’t think she’s better than anyone, but what she wants is different, that’s all.</p>

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<p>I’d say going off the test scores you have, without any idea of what classwork you have completed, your chances at Stanford and Berkeley aren’t very good. Even with a SAT I score of 2300- 2400 you are up against folks with that and GPAs of above 4.0 with lots of AP or IB classes and many, many more ECs than you have. Being young doesn’t gain you any points in admission at those schools. Perhaps you have many college courses under your belt that you didn’t mention?</p>

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<p>I see nothing wrong with going to college early. It’s 100% true that there are a lot of people who would benefit from it. I was in a similar situation a couple of years ago, but I decided that I wanted to go to a top university (simply because I thought I’d enjoy my four years in college more that way), so I took advantage of a couple of high school programs while I still could, got really involved in my ECs, and boosted my transcript a bit. For other people, college is the better choice, but I’m really happy with the choices I’ve made in the last couple of years.</p>

<p>@ OP
If this is a serious thread, you really need to look at your motivation for applying early to university. Have you exhausted all of your academic options in high school? Are you mature enough for college? If the choice was between a less prestigious school and staying in high school for an extra year, would you still want to leave high school? </p>

<p>Stanford is a very hard school to get into, and there is a very good chance you won’t be admitted this year (being younger isn’t going to give you any bonus points). If you are serious about leaving high school early, ‘rentof2 has some great advice. If not, look into opportunities outside of you high school that you can take advantage of over the next few years, and apply when you are more prepared. This should definitely include dual enrolment in your local community college, if that’s possible. Also, if you are ahead academically, take the opportunity to spend more time doing other things you love (get involved in research, volunteer in the community, do something meaningful). This will not only allow you to enjoy your high school years a lot more, but it will also increase your chances of being admitted to a top school when you are ready.</p>

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<p>I deleted several posts that basically take the form of laughing at the the OP or accusing the OP of being a ■■■■■–a matter that is still open to more evidence–to favor the replies that deal with the substantive issues here. </p>

<p>After edit: As an example of a substantive comment, I will note that all of the most competitive colleges in the United States admit sixteen-year-olds (students who have only just passed their sixteenth birthday as of the day first-year classes begin) every year. It is unremarkable to do that, and most cases of admitting academically ready sixteen-year-olds are quite successful. It is very much less likely to be admitted to a highly competitive college (such as the two mentioned by the OP) so that the student’s age at entry is fourteen, but it is also reasonably common for a fourteen-year-old to be curious about what is involved in making a successful application. So we can discuss any of those issues here without name-calling or feeling offended.</p>

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<p>My apologies, I just didn’t read the whole post carefully. Um, I was saying more of, “Would you really want to go to a university like Stanford at such a young age?” this is a big decision.</p>

<p>Your chances seem good, but I’m not sure how universities like Stanford look at precocious students. Anyone know or guess if they might look at these students with something like admiration at their level or perhaps suspicion; etc?</p>

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<p>I think maybe you should wait a year. Entering a university at 16 is A LOT different than entering at 15. Seriously, that one year will help you socially tremendously.</p>

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<p>I had the choice of going to college at 16 at a reasonably good (public & state) university, but I didn’t want to leave home + friends just yet. 2 years longer really won’t make a difference in the long run, but in the short term, it can affect everything that happens to you. I know for certain that I wouldn’t have been able to fit in.</p>

<p>That said, I know someone who did go to college at age 16, and she’s doing spectacularly well. You should really think about all of the factors involved in such a decision…more information would probably help in trying to ascertain your chances and probably cut down on negative feedback.</p>

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<p>There are kids who go to college early. I don’t know if either Stanford or Berkeley have programs for younger kids. I know JHU and CMU did at one time. You can apply anytime at any age, but unless there are specific programs geared for younger kids, you will have to undergo the same standards as everyone else. The schools are not going to give you a break for your age. Your current SATs are not of the calibre of either school, but very much in line for programs like the JHU Gifted and Talented program for high schoolers.</p>

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<p>I know of a few 16, almost 17 year olds who have started at Stanford, however they all had their high school diplomas. Some schools do have dual programs so the student can finish high school while begining college but Stanford does not. I would think OP, if wedded to Stanford or Cal, should try to finish high school credits in the next year or two. Perhaps there are dual enrollment course OP can take in order to meet her accelerated academic needs until then.</p>