Do I have any chance at all?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Yale University
1

<p>I want to know if I have any sort of chance at Yale. Please be honest.
I'm a junior at an extremely competitive high school.</p>

<p>Citizenship: German (my first language is German, my second language is English)</p>

<p>GPA:
3.93 unweighted.
My school does not rank, but I would be in the top 10%.</p>

<p>Rigor of classes:
Toughest curriculum possible at my school. We have a minimal number of honors and AP classes offered (last year in my history class we got 3 hours of homework a night and that wasn't even honors). We also can't take APs before junior year. But regardless. Honors: Chemistry, Latin IV, American Literature. AP: US History, Calculus AB. PLanned courses for next year: AP Latin V, Honors World Literature, AP Biology, class at Princeton University in history (I need to apply, but usually all applicants from my school get in)</p>

<p>Test scores:
PSAT: 207 (69 critical reading, 68 math, 70 writing)
SAT II: 760 in German
I plan to take the SAT II in Writing, Math II, and US History.
I plan to take the ACT. I got a 30 on my first practice test, and the class is supposed to improve your score by 4 points, so I'm hoping for a 32-34.</p>

<p>Academic Honors:
New Jersey Governor's School nominee (haven't gotten results back yet)
National Latin Exam- 3 time gold-medalist
Red-Ribbon Certificate (akin to Honor Roll) received at end of the year- both 9th and 10th grade
Certificate of Outstanding Academic Achievement: Algebra II, Latin II, Biology, Latin III, English 10 (British Literature), Modern European History
Certificate of High Achievement for National Science Olympiad in Biology
Science Bowl- semifinalists in New Jersey in 2006 competition
We also get many more honors at the end of the year, as my school awards different university and subject awards, and I should get some of those.</p>

<p>Sports:
Tennis- 3 years on junior varsity team, including 2 as number 1 singles and doubles. "Most Improved Player Award" in 10th grade.
Tae Kwon Do- 1st Degree Black Belt.
Skiing- 13 years.</p>

<p>Music:
Clarinet- 6 years.</p>

<p>School Clubs:
Model UN
Red Cross Club (vice-president)
Science Bowl
Summer Reading Committee (co-chair)
Young Democrats</p>

<p>Academic Activities:
Academic Summer Associates Oxford Session (1)- 1 month program at Oxford, classes taken in Western Civilization and International Relations (transcript included)</p>

<p>Community Service:
Volunteer at Mercer County Geriatric Center- 2 summers (total of about 80 hours)
Volunteer at Summer Stars (outreach program that works with young children)- 2 summers (total of about 60 hours)
Volunteer at Loaves and Fishes (soup kitchen)
Volunteer at StuArts (program that works with young children)- 2 summers (total of about 50 hours)
Walked and raised money for New Jersey Alzheimer?s Walk</p>

<p>Financial Aid:
Not planning to apply.</p>

2

<p>Ok, seriously, can someone reply? 49 people have viewed. I don't care if you tell me that it would be the apocalypse before I were admitted. </p>

<p>I would like to mention that my school is seriously insanely competitive- this year so far out of 40 girls in the graduating class (Catholic all-girls school) about 10 have gotten into Ivies or similar (2 to Yale, 2 to Penn, 1 to Cornell, 1 to Dartmouth, 1 to Georgetown, 1 to Williams, 1 to Johns Hopkins, and some more that I forget). The majority of these girls have worse records than me, at least academically, I don't know everything that they are involved in extracurricularly. Also, because we have only 160 people in our high school, clubs are scarce and there are not many opportunities for leadership positions.</p>

3

<p>105 views and no replies? Seriously, please, someone respond. You can tell me anything you want, I just want advice (aside from getting my standardized test scores up, I know that one). Please?</p>

4

<p>get some patience and change ur attitude</p>

5

<p>I'm sorry. Truly, I am. I reread what I said, and I realize that I came across rather harshly. So I apologize for that. I'm an extremely impatient person. I'm just frustrated because I put this up last night and when 105 people view, I assume the only reason they didn't write anything is because they didn't want to crush my dreams. And I'm a realist, and would rather have people be upfront about it if they think I have no chance at all, rather than not reply.</p>

6

<p>i wasnt too serious lol</p>

7

<p>Of course you have a chance. Alot will depend on how your essays are crafted and take all the opportunities you can now to show your interest in Yale, or any other school you become interested in. Get them to get to know the person behind the application!</p>

8

<p>You have the desire, the willingness to work hard, and your EC's sound interesting. You have a shot-Good Luck</p>

9

<p>You don't have any stand-out extracurricular activities. You've done a lot of stuff, but it doesn't seem you've taken anything to a really high level (by Yale standards, not by normal standards). You look like you'd be in the middle of the pack in the Yale applicant pool.</p>

10

<p>Thanks everyone!
Oh, I should mention that I want to study history. Thus wanting to take a history course at Princeton next year in addition to International Relations (my school is being stupid and isn't offering AP Euro)
I know I don't have the highest level of extracurriculars. I'll briefly explain what I do in these extracurriculars, to try to make more sense of them.
Tennis, Tae Kwon Do, and skiing are pretty self explanatory. So moving on:
Model UN: prepare for and attend Rutgers Model United Nations and Rutgers Model Congress events. The preparation includes researching a country or state and it's views on a particular topic (I've at this point had nuclear weapons, landmines, extraordinary rendition, and transparency of the budget). It's hard to win awards there as you only get them for getting the most resolutions passed. While I have helped write some resolutions, I've had bad luck in my country and state for the two times I've attended (other things such as college trips have conflicted the other two times)- Syria for the nuclear weapons and landmines, and New Hampshire (a Republican state) in a committee dominated by Democrats. Thus, there was not really an opportunity to distinguish myself there.
Red Cross- I teach first aid to young children, am on the fundraising committee of the Youth Council, help raise awareness for the club in my school by putting up signs and talking to people, am my school's representative for this year's Dance-A-Thon (the New Jersey youth council's biggest event), and help coordinate numerous other smaller events.
Science Bowl- I practice for the Science Bowl competition, make notes for my fellow teammates on special topics to prepare for the competition, and participate
Summer Reading Committee- put together the entire high school summer reading list, research each book, categorize each book, write anotations, come up with summer reading projects, and presented the new book list to the high school last year.
Young Democrats- this is my new club this year, and we really haven't done much- we discuss current political issues, and we had all these protests and vigils and so on planned, but somehow they haven't materialized yet. The president is my best friend, and I hate to be mean, but she is more of the person who does things that look great on the surface (such as being president) but then never actually does much beneath the surface.
Mercer County Geriatric Center- I can get a great recommendation here. I talk to the residents (I've even skipped my own lunch hour on many occasions to talk to the residents and comfort them), feed Alzheimer's patients, play games, lead them in aerobic exercises, lead Mass and prayer services and even do the sermon on occasion, and I'm currently planning a clarinet concert for the residents.
Summer Stars- I taught young children from Trenton math, reading, science, art, clarinet, etc.
StuArts- assist teachers in teaching young children art, music, drama, tennis, etc.
I think the others are pretty self-explanatory. I just found out today that we won the "Most Spirited Team Award" on the Alzheimer's Walk.</p>

11

<p>there is no SAT II writing just to let you know...</p>

12

<p>I know, I meant Literature, but by the time I realized that I had typed the wrong thing it was too late to let me edit it.</p>

13

<p>Honestly, the best way to gauge your chances is to look at the people who've been accepted to Yale from your school and those who will be applying with you. That way, you know the ballpark range of the people who are getting in there, as well as your "competition" per se. At my school- a top boarding prep school in Massachusetts- that's how the counselor estimates our chances. It's usually pretty accurate. Of course, everyone's different so you never really know; but it does give you a better idea.</p>

14

<p>That makes sense. Thank you.</p>

15

<p>Laura, what unefleursauvage said is correct. I know you want solid answers, but none of us have them. You have a fine record and have done well in school to this point. Do you have a chance to get into Yale? Yes. Is it a sure thing? No way. And it isn't a sure thing for anyone. There is a large element of chance in admissions to any highly selective school--too many factors that are completely out of your control. </p>

<p>These discussion boards are filled with well-qualified kids who have their heart set on one school and then are sorely disappointed when admissions decisions come out. I hope you have applied to a variety of schools. The good news is that these things have a way of working out in the end. </p>

<p>If you get to go to Yale, that's great. I spent a few good years there, myself. If you don't get to go there, you should have no regrets. You've done your best, your application is in, and now you wait. If you are accepted, that doesn't mean you are God's gift to the human race. If you are rejected, that does not mean that you are any less valuable as a student or a person. Enjoy, as best you can, your friends and activities and your final few months of high school.</p>

16

<p>Are one's chances severely undermined when nobody from his or her high school...ever...has gotten into Yale?</p>

17

<p>^^Thank you. I know it's not a sure thing for anyone, at all, so simply saying that I have a chance already makes me feel better. Well, actually, I am a junior, so it's also a thread of "what can I do to improve my chances". But I will keep this advice in mind next year after I've applied, if I do apply. Thanks. :)</p>

18

<p>Any more advice (aside from improving test scores)? Please?</p>

19

<p>If your first language is German, shouldn't the SAT II for it be an easy 800? Don't get me wrong, 760 is a great score, but I see way too many Asian applicants with 800 Korean or Chinese scores on these boards.</p>

20

<p>I was sick on test day and made some very stupid mistakes. Also I haven't learned grammar formally since 3rd grade. I read in German at the same level I read English (I just read Faust), and have no problems speaking, but stuff that comes very naturally in speaking turns out to be wrong grammatically (the same is true in English). Either way, I'll probably retake it.</p>