<p>Hey guys! I know "Ivies are a reach for everyone", but Cornell is my super dream school, closely followed by USC (southern cali), so if you guys could do a chance for me for both of them that'll be great! :D I promise I'll chance back (when I have time)!</p>
<p>Stats:
Junior
Illinois
White Male
UW GPA: 3.98
W GPA: 4.28
ACT: 33 ( 34 / 36 / 31 / 32 )
ACT writing: 11
Class rank: N/A (though I think it's top 10%)</p>
<p>Intended Major: Either Physics or International Relations (Yeah, I'm kinda torn :/)
Minor: Either Mathematics or Chinese</p>
<p>Next year classes:
AP Calculus BC
AP Physics 1
AP Chinese Language & Literature
Honors Senior Rhetoric
International Business</p>
<p>ECs:
President - National Honor Society (2 yrs)
National Chinese Honor Society (3 yrs)
Varsity Track & Field (4 yrs) (Ranked as a State Elite)
USA T&F Junior Olympics (3 yrs)
Chemistry Club (2 yrs)
Rock Climbing Club (1 yr)
Academic Peer Tutor (2 yrs)
PE Leader (2 yrs)
Fermilab Saturday Morning Physics
Over 800 hours of service
Organized many, many service projects (via NHS)
Single-handedly organized a food drive for a local food pantry
Chosen as a Kiwanis Key Leader</p>
<p>Awards:
Scholarship to Study in Taiwan for 2 months
Gold Medal - Midwest Chinese Competition
1st Place - Valparaiso Chinese Competition
Continental Math League
Foreign Language Award (2012 & 2014)
Academic Achievement Award (2012 & 2013 & 2014)
Outstanding Art Achievement</p>
<p>Thanks, guys! I really would appreciate a chance for Cornell & USC :DDDDDD</p>
<p>I just got into both this year, so speaking from my experience…
Cornell: low reach (was for me too)
USC: match</p>
<p>If you want to major in Physics, then why didn’t you take Physics junior year and take Physics C senior year?</p>
<p>As of now, it’s a 50/50 chance. Get ACT up and get more leadership in your EC’s. </p>
<p>If you need any advice or help feel free to PM</p>
<p>@Hawkace Freshman year I had made the mistake of taking an unweighted science course (that was before my passion for science had been sparked), and I got 116% without studying 
so sophomore year I quickly jumped on the honors track, and I’ve been playing catch-up ever since. I wish I could take physics 1 over the summer so I could take at least AP Phys 2 (or C, of course), but my school doesn’t offer that.</p>
<p>Could you list your science classes by grade so I know your situation. I’m still kinda confused. </p>
<p>@Hawkace yea, sure:
9th: Dynamic Earth Systems (UW)
10th: Honors Chemistry (W)
11th: Honors Molecular Biology (W)
12th (projected) : AP Physics 1</p>
<p>Normally, Weighted track goes as follows:
H Chem
H Bio
AP Phys 1
AP Phys 2 & AP Phys C</p>
<p>or they skip bio and take Phys 2 junior year,</p>
<p>@outwest88 Oh, ok. That makes sense. Most schools teach Earth Science in middle school, but I guess not. You could have doubled up on sciences, but now, that’s too late. </p>
<p>I would say that Cornell is a mid reach and USC is a low reach. </p>
<p>Cornell: low reach
USC: match</p>
<p>I think you have a good chance at both of those schools. In my opinion, both are low reaches/high matches. </p>
<p>Wow, thanks! I have a lot more confidence in applying now :)</p>
<p>Do not base your confidence based on what you hear here only. Do some research yourself (like looking at the university’s Common Data Set) so you know which advise here is actually applicable. For example, I disagree with @stephli saying that both universities are matches. They are never matches unless you have breathtaking extracurricular activities. </p>
<p>@wannabefeynman Well, I wasn’t specifically referring to stephli’s comment; rather, I was commenting on the responses as a whole. I was just happy to see no “high reach” for Cornell, and I was relieved to see mostly “match” for USC. </p>
<p>And yeah, obvi I’m not going to solely select the schools I’m applying to based on some online message board. I do oodles of research. It’s just nice to hear opinions from real people sometimes.</p>