Down to the wire... chances?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>I foolishly didn't apply anywhere ED or EA, and now I'm looking at my college list and wondering whether I have a legitimate chance at getting into any of the schools I'm applying to. It's very... top-heavy, and for some of the schools (i.e. most of the Ivys) I don't really know if its even worth it. Can anyone offer any insights? I would love to hear from anyone who could give me a realistic look at what my chances are.</p>

<p>My intended career probably has something to do with law, and fortunately my ECs align with that somewhat. Major is undecided or history, not really sure what to put.</p>

<p>Schools: Chicago, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Georgetown, Villanova, NYU, Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Penn</p>

<p>+++Personal/School+++
White Male, lower/middle class, New York
School- Private, Catholic, NJ- sends several students to upper-tier schools each year. This year, 5 ea to Georgetown, 1 to Yale, 1 to Penn, more likely to come RD.
GPA- ~98.7 unweighted, ~106.4 weighted
Rank- I don't know how my school reports rank, but I'd be #1 or #2 out of about 200 students</p>

<p>+++Stats+++
SAT- 2330 (800 CR, 740 M, 790 WR)... 1 sitting if it matters
SAT IIs- 800 US History, 790 Literature, 750 Math II
AP- US History, 5</p>

<p>+++Classes+++
-Most rigorous offered over 4 years, which isn't very much. The harder classes aren't really available until senior year, so I'm taking them now.
-Senior Schedule- AP Calc BC, AP Biology, AP English Literature, AP Government, AP Latin Literature, assorted other non-APs</p>

<p>+++Extracurriculars+++
Issues...
-Cross Country- 1 year freshman, 2 JV, varsity next year
-Track- 2 JV, 2 varsity (including next year)
-Youth Court (local alternative sentencing program)- 3 years, member steering committee
-Young Republicans (cursed with conservative leanings)- President
-Math/Science tutoring in-school
-Class representative for school activities club- ran several events for local middle schoolers
-Organized countywide seminar on teen depression, media coverage, essay topic
-Worked summer 2007 & 2008 for a lawyer- did research for a few federal cases, interesting enough to write about in an essay
-Assorted volunteering locally, including work at a food pantry
-Eucharistic minister at high school (might help for Georgetown/Villanova?)</p>

<p>+++Awards+++
Not really a section.
-National Merit Semifinalist
-NHS, Latin Honor Society
-Attended Boys State (American Legion thing)
-Quite a few school achievement awards (first in merit, etc.)
Nothing special.</p>

<p>So. My high school career, reduced to a lot of numbers. As far as essays and recommendations go, my recommendations should be awesome, with the counselor slightly less so. The essays are the down to the wire of the title... I haven't finished them all, meaning I haven't finished my applications. They should be fairly good. Any and all comments would be much appreciated.</p>

2

<p>You are probably in at all of you non-Ivy League Schools. You have a good chance at the Ivys but it is always hard to tell because they are so unpredictable. </p>

<p>Chance me back???
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/614298-chances-updated-i-will-chance-back.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/614298-chances-updated-i-will-chance-back.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

3

<p>if you have good essays and stuff you have a good chance everywhere</p>

4

<p>what’s your tentative college list??</p>

5

<p>My list: Chicago, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Georgetown, Villanova, NYU, Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Penn</p>

<p>I understand the Ivies are very unpredictable, but I’d appreciate anyone’s opinion on whether I even have a shot. Georgetown has a very strong relationship with my school- they typically accept 6 students or so a year, and 4 were admitted EA (I have higher metrics than the 4). Villanova’s my safety- I’m over their range, I’m a legacy. Everything else, no idea…</p>

6

<p>Ivies - Who knows? Maybe one or two, but Don’t count on them, ha ha.</p>

<p>Chicago, Georgetown, NYU - good chance, at least two I would guess.</p>

<p>Villanova - In</p>

<p>If you’re feeling really, really, nervous maybe try American or something. IDK. I think you’ll be fine though with the schools you have.</p>

<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/616800-chance-me.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/616800-chance-me.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

7

<p>You’re in at University of Chicago, Cornell, Villanova, and NYU. The other universities will be more of a challenge, but you have the record to actually compete. Have you considered the University of Southern California, you might match up will with their top academic scholarship. You should also consider Duke, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The National Merit scholar denotation will benefit you greatly. Will you be a first generation college student? If so, you should craft your personal statement around that particular area of focus.</p>

8

<p>Unfortunately, I’m not a first-generation, although my parents both went to community-college like schools. Also, I can’t really apply to more schools, as my transcripts wont get in on time. Does the National Merit really help that much?</p>

9

<p>you have a great academic record and your EC’s are decent</p>

<p>Chicago- high match
Columbia- reach
Cornell- high match
Dartmouth- high match/low reach
Georgetown- match
Villanova- in
NYU- in
Harvard- reach (for everyone)
Princeton- reach (for everyone)
Yale- reach (same reason)
Penn- reach</p>