Right now I’m a sophomore and I just want to know what kinds of colleges I should be aiming for/looking at/applying to.
Extracurriculars:
I play singles on our tennis team. #4 this year. Should be #2 next year and senior year too.
I play first violin in orchestra (so upper half of the violins)
FBLA
Model UN
Academics:
I am class rank #1 right now but that could drop a little. Definitely top 5 out of ~256 kids. I have a very competitive grade…If I was up a grade or down a grade I am fairly certain that I would be #1.
9th grade: Orchestra, all honors classes, AP Stats. Unweighted GPA was somewhere around 98. I don’t remember the exact number. Got a 5 on the stats exam.
10th grade: Honors classes, AP Calc AB, AP Euro, AP Psych. Unweighted GPA should be around 97.25. Should get 5 on calc, 3/4 on euro, and 4/5 on psych
11th grade projected: honors + Ap chem, ap micro, ap us history, ap calc bc, ap lang. GPA might drop a little but still should be pretty good.
12 grade projected: honors + ap physics B, ap gov’t politics, AP lit, some other AP, plus maybe a math course but I’m not sure because my school doesn’t offer anything beyond calc BC.
My essay should be pretty good. Not the best out of everyone, but pretty good.
Interests:
Obsessed with politics
investing in stocks
Do I have a good shot at top-notch schools?
Thanks for your opinions and help!
Without test scores, it’s hard to tell. Take the SATs and ACTs either in June or September and see where you fall. At this point, try to narrow down a general list of things you want in a school. Consider:
-Do you want a small school or large school?
-Where do you want the school to be located? How far from home are you willing to go?
-What kind of surrounding area do you want? Do you want a city? A suburb? Rural?
-Are sports important? Do you want a championship-winning football team or is it irrelevant?
-What kind of life do you want outside of school? Do you want a big party school or a more laid-back school?
-Major?
Once you’ve done that, go onto collegeboard, or naviance, and search their colleges for what you want. Make a preliminary list of ~25 schools you think match well, with a lot of diversity (let’s say you want a bigger school. Maybe you’ll have Penn, Harvard, Vanderbilt, UCLA, NYU and Baylor on there. They all have different things they can offer until you take standardized testing). Since you’re only a sophomore, focus on finding out what you really want from a school, maybe visit schools that are really close to you and see if you want a big school (i.e. your state university) or small school. Most importantly, don’t stress. You have a very rigorous course load, so focus on keeping your top class rank. If you keep up the good work, you have a strong chance of getting into a lot of schools. Best of luck in your search!
I believe you have what it takes but remember there are kids that have similar resumes as you out there, they also want the top ivy’s
Thank you for the responses.
I don’t really know where I want to go except just the best place I get into for the most part.
How do I best differentiate myself from other candidates?
You seem very studious and prestigious as a sophomore’s resume. I can see this information go far at Cornell and honestly Wharton if you like stocks. Be yourself to differentiate from other candidates. I think you will go far 
Thank you! I’m not really a super studier, I just mostly play my cards smart.
Also, just wondering, would it be ok to talk about politics in a college admission essay?
I got a 1500 on a SAT practice test on Khan academy. Does that give a better idea of the best colleges I could get into?