College apps are due in 4 more days, so chance me now!

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>All right, I've done this in the past, but I only asked chances for my #1 college, Harvard. Please chance me for these colleges, indicate which ones would be matches or reaches, and be as frank as you want. Hit me with what you've got...</p>

<p>Indian Male from Illinois (Chicagoland area)</p>

<p>SAT: 2310--800 V 710 M 800 W (one sitting)
SAT II: 800 Math IIc, 770 Biology M, 730 US History, 640 French Reading (I hate french, w/e)
ACT: 36
AP scores: 5's in Euro History, Physics B, Biology, Calc BC, US History, Microeconomics, 4 in English Language</p>

<p>Senior Class Load (all honors/AP classes):
Calculus III (multivariable)
Advanced Linear Algebra
AP Chemistry
AP English Literature
AP Government
AP Psychology
Philosophy
Honor Band (3rd Chair trumpet in top band out of 5 school bands)</p>

<p>Grades: All As except for 2 B+s in 1st semester of my Junior Year (French IV and AP English Language)</p>

<p>GPA: 4.667/4.85 (Weighted, 4.85 is highest GPA that a student has), 3.95/4.00 (Unweighted)</p>

<p>top 5% in a class with 1150 students (probably more like top 1%, but my school doesn't rank and the highest thing it shows colleges is top 5%)</p>

<p>EC's:
• Band (9-12); Executive Board Member; 5 hrs/wk; 42 wks/yr
• Scholastic Bowl (9-12); Varsity Captain; 2 hrs/wk; 32 wks/yr
• National Honor Society (11-12); 1 hr/wk; 42 wks/yr
• Math Team (9-10); 5 hrs/wk; 39 wks/yr
• Penwasciz (Condell Hospital Internship) (12); 2 hrs/wk; 30 wks/yr
• Jazz Band (12); 2 hrs/wk; 35 wk/yr
• Pit Orchestra (12); 2.5 hrs/wk; 12 wks/yr
• Chinmaya (Hindu Religious Organization) (9-12); 2 hrs/wk; 25 wks/yr
• Truthseekers (10-12); 2 hrs/wk; 30 wks/yr
• Science Olympiad (9-10), founding member at high school, 2 hr/wk; 25 wks/yr
• World’s Fair (School Cultural Program) (10-12); 5 hrs/wk; 2 wks/yr
• Give-A-Thon (Community Service Project sponsored by NHS, provides gifts, food, and baby supplies to impoverished members of Lake County community during the winter holiday season) (11); 2 hrs/wk; 12 wks/yr
• Intramural Flag Football (11); 3 hrs/wk; 6 wks/yr
• Math Tutoring (10); 2 hrs/wk; 16 wks/year</p>

<p>Awards:
• National Merit Scholarship Semifinalist (12)
• AP Scholar with Distinction (12)
• Ambassador Award Recipient (12, Highest Honor given by Adlai E. Stevenson High School for getting 36 on ACT exam)
• Honorable Mention of Literary Prose by Illinois Association of the Teachers of English (11)
• Gold Honor Roll (9-11, 12th grade Honor Roll not decided yet)
• Outstanding Junior Social Studies Artisan (11)
• Outstanding Junior English Student (11)
• Outstanding Junior Biology Student (11)
• Science Scholar (11, for receiving all 'A's in AP Biology)
• Illinois NAQT National Qualifying Scholastic Bowl Tournament Champion (11)
• Member of the school band which received the Best Concert Band award in the Music in the Parks competition in Six Flags Great America in Gurnee, Illinois (11)
• 1st Place at Wheaton North Falcon Classic Scholastic Bowl Tournament (10)
• Scholastic Bowl MVP Awards: Richards Invitational Tournament (12), Wheaton North Falcon Classic Scholastic Bowl Tournament, Von Steuben Scholastic Bowl Tournament (9), Fremd High School Scholastic Bowl Tournament (9)
• American Invitational Mathematics Examination Qualifier/Participant (10)
• French Honor Society Inductee (10)
• National Honor Society Inductee (10)
• Math Scholar (10, for receiving all 'A's in Precalculus Honors)
• 4th Place Geometry Team in Illinois Council of Teachers of Mathematics (ICTM) State Math Competition (10)
• 2nd Place Overall Math Team in ICTM State Math Competition (10)
• 5th Place Algebra I Team in ICTM State Math Competition (9)
• 7th Place Relay Team in ICTM State Math Competition (9)
• 3rd Place Overall Math Team in ICTM State Math Competition (9)
• Most Improved Freshman in Band Award (9)
• 1st Place in North Suburban Regional Spelling Bee (7)
• 5th Place in 2001 Tampa Bay Regional Spelling Bee (Winner was sent to the Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee) (6)</p>

<p>Here are the colleges I have applied to:</p>

<p>Harvard (I applied EA, got deferred)
Princeton
Brown Univ
Johns Hopkins University
Northwestern University
Swarthmore College
University of Virginia (Jefferson Scholarship nominee from my school)
Pennsylvania State University (only for the direct med program)
University of Illinois Urbana/Champaign (don't need chances for this, I already got in)</p>

<p>So, if you would be so kind, chance me!</p>

2

<p>I bet you get into everywhere but Princeton. Yes, I think you'll get into Harvard but don't get your hopes up because some lunatic on CC chanced you lol.</p>

3

<p>I think you're set.</p>

4

<p>holy S hit, you're a superstar. I'm shocked you were deferred with a 36 and those ridiculous SAT scores, not to mention your galactic EC's. Any college that doesn't take you is foolish (assuming everything you said was true). What high school, if I may ask, did you attend?</p>

5

<p>hehe, thanks. I'm from Stevenson High School.</p>

6

<p>c'mon, don't stop there! gimme some more chances!</p>

7

<p>I hope you are kidding. You are a phenomenal applicant! I assume you are worried due to the deferral. When you apply to the kind of schools you applied to, you have to be ready for rejection. It is such a roll of the dice.</p>

<p>You cannot possibly have done more to prepare, and you are sure to be accepted by at least one of your top choices. But the ONLY ones who can say for sure whether or not you will get in are the admissions officers at those schools. So, RELAX, enjoy your senior year, and know that you have done your best. In the end, that is what matters most.</p>

8

<p>ew, Stevenson? just kidding. but we'll be playing your academic bowl team soon, I think (maybe? I don't know if we played Stevenson last year...) - bring it on! :D I'm co-captain, so we'll be facing off. what a small world. if not in the regular season, I'll see you in conference, probably. </p>

<p>I think you have a good chance, but just remember that it's a crap shoot for anyone.</p>

9

<p>i don't know what the other "chancers" are smoking, but i care to offer a different opinion</p>

<p>first, ever considered why harvard deferred you? well, it's probably because you are lacking somewhere. your scores are fine. your grades are ok (3.95 probably won't hurt you, but it's not going to help you either). your ECs are just lackluster. i see a bunch of one-year commitments that show questionable depth. few leaderships. nothing spectacular. </p>

<p>reject from harvard/princeton. in at the rest</p>

10

<p>Yeah, thanks for your candor innocentstalker. The thing is, most of the things I did for 1 year were only offered to me in my senior year or junior year. Believe me, I've thought long and hard about why Harvard deferred me, and it's probably because of my relatively average ECs, although I didn't show several of my ECs or my awards when I initially applied (i didn't think that they were that special (stuff like AIME), but after looking on CC, i see that some are pretty significant). Also, it could be because they want to see my semester grades. I know the extent of what I can do to reverse my deferral, and believe me, I intend to do everything that I can to do just that.</p>

11

<p>good for you. at least you don't get super defensive when people give you constructive criticism</p>

<p>make sure you show that maturity in your essays</p>

12

<p>Yeah, well thanks. Congrats to you on getting into Harvard! Do you have an idea of what exactly it was that got you in?</p>

13

<p>good numbers with in depth ECs that include leadership</p>