Disabled Student Looking Above and Beyond . . Ivy League Chances?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>I know that I am probably the 1000th person to ask this, but I would like to get an honest opinion on my chances of getting into Ivy League schools like Yale or Harvard. Although I am currently a sophomore, I have decent test scores already showing up that I can provide as well as character information. Any assistance, recommendations, anything really would help! Thanks again!</p>

<p>Gender: M
Race: White
School: Suburban Illinois Public School (Very competitive, quite prestigious)</p>

<p>Academics:
Rank: 4/360
GPA: 3.9 (UW), 4.5 (W) [after Soph year with only 1 AP class to contribute to weight so far]
ACT (Current, looking for one more point!): 35
SAT (Probably not going to submit...): 2250
AP's (rest of classes Honors):
-Completed: European History (5)
-Planned: US History, Physics, Lang/Comp, Spanish, Calc AB, Chemistry, Psychology, Lit/Comp, Music Theory
Summer Chemistry courses at Northwestern University</p>

<p>Extracurriculars:
-Choir: Highest Honors Choir for 10/11/12th grade (section leader for 11th/12th)
-Illinois Music Educators Association All State Honors Choral Performer
-Madrigals: Elite chamber ensemble (Will be leader senior year)
-Speech Team: Already captain, Soph. State Qualifier, looking for championship next year
-Spanish National Honors Society
-Freshmen Mentoring
-Fall Play, Musical, Spring Play (Leads in each since Soph. year)
-Part time job at Potbelly's</p>

<p>Essays/Recs:
-Highest grades in English classes, commended writing ability
-Passion for writing about how my life has been influenced (actually looking forward to college essays!)
-GREAT relationships with teachers/counselors, who are all distinguished professionals</p>

<p>Why I may stand out:
-I have a rare visual/physical disability called Albinism which makes me legally blind and extremely pale. Despite the visual and physical preventions/stigmas that have been presented to me, I have thrived both in academic and extracurricular environments and have garnered respect from peers and educators alike.
-I have a motivation to LEARN about the world around me (currently want to major in Poli-Sci) and I want to learn at one of the greatest educational institutions in the world! I am able to balance amazing extracurricular success with solid academics in a tough environment.
-Charm in interviews (Don't worry, I'm not a cocky jerk!)</p>

<p>Please let me know, I'd really appreciate it!</p>

2

<p>Keep doing whatever it is that makes you do this stuff and you’ll get into somewhere great (not necessarily Harvard or Yale because these schools are just too random, but they’re graspable). Besides, there are so many incredible schools, but since you’re a sophomore, I don’t expect you know all of them :). Keep your class rank that high. You have already scored a 35 on your ACT, so don’t worry about that 1 extra point (no one cares once you have reached that score). SAT subjects are the only thing you have to deal with test-wise, but I’m sure you already know that. Here is a list of some of the schools that I think you should consider applying to besides Y and H:
LACs: Pomona (I’m biased to this school), Amherst, Williams,
Universities: Brown, Duke, Stanford, Princeton, Northwestern
Don’t forget safeties (state schools and lower tier privates would suffice)</p>

<p>If you really like one of the schools on your list, consider applying early. Early makes great sense in your case since you already have done most of your testing. Best of luck mate!</p>