Do I still have a shot at getting into an IVY?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

Im currently a sophomore and I am certain that I will finish this semester with a C in Honors Alg 2, and a B in Chemistry, I will have A’s in all of my other classes. I’m hoping to have all A’s next semester, but I’m not sure about math.

I had a 3.8 uw gpa (3.9 w) during freshmen year.

I know that it’s still a little early to tell considering that I’m still in my first semester of being a sophomore, but are my chances of getting accepted into an Ivy low because of that C? If I were to get a 4.0 in both my junior and senior year, would colleges look at that C as an outlier?

My top choices would of course be Harvard, which I know is a very high reach, and I’m interested in Dartmouth and Brown, but other than the IVY schools I’m interested in University of Michigan because they offer a pretty strong journalism program (which is what I’m hoping to major in) and I’m also interested in UCLA, Berkeley, Duke, I currently take 1 AP course (European History) and other than that one AP I will be taking two honors courses this year in total.

This probably won’t affect anything but extra curricular activities wise I completed over 150 hours of community service, I am involved in Youth Action Team, NHS,I teach children who aren’t in the greatest financial situations how to play violin for free, I tutor, and I am the president of our school’s National History Day Club, which is a national/international competition, I have made it to the state level two years in a row, and I will be competing again this year.

This also probably won’t help but my family is also not in the greatest financial situation right now because my father was unable to work for two years because he had this extremely rare condition (we went to several doctors but no one was able to diagnose the condition) so money is pretty tight and my mother recently injured her back and required surgery.

I haven’t exactly been myself since school started, and this might sound cliche but I currently struggle with depression which is why my grades aren’t what they should be. A lot of drama happened and I’m just not happy. I had a test in math today which I was certain that I would ace, but I had a panic attack in the middle of class and I couldn’t remember any of the formulas. I find myself having more panic and anxiety attacks day by day, but it’s probably because I get 1-3 hours of sleep per day. It doesn’t exactly help that my parents had VERY high expectations of me but now they think that I’m on a one way road to failure, which in all honesty, is partially true. I try to tell them about how I’m literally struggling to be happy let alone work hard during school, but they just interrupt me and say that I’ll feel better if I just concentrate on school.

Would colleges consider me a bit more if they learn about challenges that I faced?

I apologize that this is so long, but I just want to know if I have a “good” chance of getting into the schools that I mentioned. I really want to bring my grades up and have something to look forward to, in this case it would be going to a notable school.

Thank you so much :slight_smile:

2

You have a LOT to look forward to - whether or not you get into an Ivy League School.

A little tip - you will be much happier if you start researching a MUCH wider list of schools.

There are some AMAZING schools out there - schools that would love to have you and schools you would get a great education from.

If you could refocus away from your top choice being a school that admits only 4-5% of ALL applicants - you will find your high school life MUCH less stressful.

Build out a good, interesting list of schools.

Keep a reach or two in the list just for fun (if your family can afford them) and relax.

You are working hard, doing interesting things. Enjoy HS, do your best, focus.

Best of luck!

3

Tbh your chances at getting in a true Ivy are low, very low. I know kids who claim they were rejected because of just having a couple of Bs. At elite colleges with high application rates, the school is looking for anyway to eliminate students. One such way is having a C. I think you still can get in great colleges, especially liberal arts that do true wholistic review. Keep your head up, it’s not where you go, but what you do :slight_smile:

Chance me: http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1946391-emory-emory-oxford-wake-forest-davidson-nyu-holy-cross-gw.html#latest

4

This does not look like a sustainable path. Your plan is to get perfect grades for the next 2.5 years- but your anxiety attacks are already getting in your way academically. If your school has a counselor go visit them asap; otherwise find a supportive adult who can listen and offer practical advice. Figure out what the root of the attacks is, figure out how you get enough sleep on a regular basis, evaluate how and where you are spending your time so that it gets you headed in a direction that works for you.

To get you started, read [url=http://mitadmissions.org/blogs/entry/applying_sideways]this[/url]. It’s from the MIT admissions office, but it applies to any highly selective school.

5

thank you all for your replies :slight_smile:

6

Listen to me and read this carefully. I am currently visiting my cousin at Yale and I have been here for 2 days so far. She has taken me to all her classes and everywhere with her; in the time that I have been here, I have learned a lot just by listening, asking questions and talking to literally every student and dean or officer I meet about the college application process. I’ve talked to students who currently go to Harvard and Dartmouth and they told me their experiences and everything. I will tell you what they all told me and that is your GPA, class rank, test score are only one part of the application. They told me if the admission officers only looked at their GPA and class rank then none of them would have been accepted. MOST IMPORTANTLY, every application is different. Admission officers look at a students entire profile to determine whether hey are accepted or not. What I mean by “entire profile” is literally everything from their Socioeconomic background, school type, they compare you to kids from your school, your background, everything you can think of then they make a decision. I am not saying that GPA and class rank are not important because they are but there is this stigma that if you don’t have a 4.0 then you will not get in. Having perfect scores and a perfect GPA will not guarantee you a spot, there have been valedictorians with all perfect scores and GPA’s who have gotten rejected. My only advice is continue working hard, work even harder than the day before, challenge yourself with more AP classes, take leadership roles in clubs and extracurricular and make sure you are passionate about what you do. If you are not interested in chemistry then don’t do chemistry club, because later on Colleges will ask you why you did this or that club and you will not have a reason. Admission officers know what they are doing, they know what they want and they know when they see a phony or someone who just does a bunch of extracurricular for no reason. Do what you like and enjoy and make sure their is a reason. Finally REMEMBER THIS: DO NOT OVERWHELM YOURSELF!!! This looks just as bad as not even challenging yourself, colleges will see right through you and not want you. You have to do well in these rigorous courses so do not overwhelm yourself.

Bonus: Keep studying, research other colleges you may want to attend and remember don’t stress to much about this, what college you go to will not matter in 8 years as long as it is right for you, you like it and you make the most of your time. Good luck!

7

Don’t listen to this person, what they are telling you is lies. Colleges want to accept you and I highly doubt that the student was rejected just because of a few B’s.