<p>There's no magic bullet for getting into top schools, but they're certainly not all about test scores. Test scores are simply one component of the college admissions process -- a bad score can keep you out, but a good score <em>won't get you in</em>. After a certain threshold, the difference between high scorers pans out and colleges turn to other categories of merit, which explains the large variance in the test scores between Ivy League university students:</p>
<p>1) Grade point average. Grade point average is still the best predictor of college success, and universities are might be more interested in Student A with a 2200 but a 3.8 from a well-regarded high school than Student B with a 2300 but a 3.5 from the same high school. The difference between a 2200 and a 2300 is much smaller than the difference between a 3.5 and a 3.8. (That's not to say this is universally the case -- sometimes both of those students get in, sometimes it's the other way around and sometimes it's neither).</p>
<p>2) Extracurricular activities. Colleges and universities want to admit students who will contribute to a well-rounded, vibrant, and active student body. One of the best indicators of whether students will get involved at the college level is whether they're involved at the high school level. Students who are passionate about volunteering in a soup kitchen in high school are more likely to seek out a soup kitchen in college. Students who have been equestrians since age 5 are not likely to give it up completely in college. Students who have a history of social justice movements are likely to continue that trend in college. College want their student bodies to make a name for themselves in different ways, and sometimes it may be more important for them to recruit Susie Q -- who is a good student, with maybe a 2100, but who has a history of community service and commitment to student groups -- than John S, who is an excellent student with near-perfect scores but did virtually nothing outside of school in high school.</p>
<p>3) Underrepresented minority status: I hate to bring this up because I KNOW people are going to take this the wrong way, but the truth of the matter is that students in underrepresented minority groups ON AVERAGE get lower test scores than students in well represented groups. It's not because they are not as intelligent or anything ridiculous like that, but ON AVERAGE they have more cultural barriers and are more likely to not have access to opportunities to increase their scores or better understand the test like some of their peers. To control for this factor (a result of our inherently unequal society), colleges sometimes adjust their test-score standards for otherwise excellent, outstanding underrepresented students that they believe would succeed at their schools.</p>
<p>4) Letters of recommendation. John S who got that 2300 may be an obstinate student, withdrawn and prone to not commenting in class, confrontational, have problems with authority, etc. What your teachers say about you is an outside indication of your academic style and your personality and gives a glimpse of what your future professors will have to deal with. No one wants to admit a student who teachers say is "smart, but obnoxious"!</p>
<p>There are plenty of other reasons, too (like I didn't talk about essays, which at some schools can have a huge impact on your admissions). On average, test scores aren't very high predictors of college success, and even when they are correlated they are only correlated with first-year grades. That's why colleges don't rely on them solely to make their decisions.</p>
<p>It's also possible that you just have impossible perceptions of top schools' admissions standards, as most students do. Have some confidence in yourself and realistically evaluate the package that you have to present to your colleges. Other than your grades and test scores, what else do you have to offer? Ask a friend or counselor to help you think about it if you need it. We are taught to be modest, but college applications (along with job interviews, salary negotiations, grad school applications, and other times) are a time when you shouldn't be modest and really sell yourself :)</p>