<p>Hi guys, I know is hard chancing students who apply for Ivies or other highly selective colleges, but I have some particular questions. I am going to apply to Harvard next year under early decision (for regular decision, I will apply for Princeton, UC Berkeley and NYU). </p>
<p>First, my GPA is not that high (3.1, what in my school is above the average) and I would like to know if this is a BIG problem. </p>
<p>Second, I recently found out that I have attention deficit disorder (I would like to know if this can help, since I could keep good grades without the medication most patients take). </p>
<p>Third, I started two different business during high school: selling sell candies and chocolates for the seniors after the school adopted healthy snacks, and selling national team jerseys during the world cup (I made a good money on both of them and expanded for other schools by hiring friends). </p>
<p>As extracurricular activities I have attended several MUNs (such as the Harvard MUN); I volunteer on a institution that helps poor children with cancer and in a senior house, and I teach English for public school children. I have worked on McDonald's, during the World Cup I worked as a translator, and I have joined internships on a local newspaper and at a Law office. I am also writing a novel, for which I already have an interested (local) publisher.</p>
<p>It's also important to say that I am not from USA, but from South America.</p>
<p>As I mentioned, I am not waiting for an accurate answer. Therefore, any comment regarding any topic of my application will be welcome.</p>
<p>same as @mnm111. What on your application will catch Harvard’s attention? I can tell you right now your stats won’t. And that’s about half of your application right there. Unless you get super SAT scores and start taking full IB or AP course load and get a 4.0, that half of your application is doomed. From there you would need incredible essays or experiences which I don’t see. </p>
<p>Firstly, thank you for your help @mnm111 and @Bailkun . My SAT score is 2200 and the subject scores are 790 (english) and 800 (world history). My school does not offer IB and AP courses. The closest I have is a program that will give me an American high school diploma (in which I have good grades). Compared to other applicants in my homeland, I can tell I am not in a bad position. However, I know that, as you mentionated, I am far from good. I appreciate your help and would be even more grateful if you could share some more advice.</p>
<p>SAT is okay for harvard but it’s still a high reach, and I don’t think that your 2 “selling points” are compelling enough to make up for your other areas</p>
<p>Also, when you say your “not from the USA” does that mean you are an international applicant? or just that your ethnicity isn’t white? This will make a huge difference. If you are an international applicant, in my personal opinion you have very very little chance of getting in.</p>
<p>Next, with this additional information, a 2200 SAT is average for Harvard, and your Subject tests scores are slightly above average, but fairly common. It is unfortunate your school doesn’t offer AP/IB but not your fault and you won’t be penalized for something you weren’t offered. However, a low GPA of 3.1 makes your overall stats still below average.</p>
<p>Your ADD story plus being a translator and having an international exposure and experience will be useful and very important to highlight in your essays. Your entrepreneurial spirit is something you could also briefly mention in your essays but should not be a focus as what you have done is not extraordinary.</p>
<p>One more thing, it seems that you have worked many jobs perhaps because of a stressed financial situation with your family. All of these things tied together will give you a chance of admittance. </p>
<p>Overall, as you know already Harvard is a reach regardless of how good you are, but in your case is just below a fantasy. You still have a shot, and you can still be the wonder kid who gets admitted against all odds. There are plenty of people with lower stats than you who are now legends of collegeconfidential with their dumbfounding scores of 1800 coupled with Harvard acceptances. You may prove everyone wrong, but keep in mind that despite the chance that it is possible, your chances are lower than most who were accepted. I would say you are slightly below average for those accepted to Harvard.</p>
<p>@Bailkun , when I said “not from USA” I meant that I am a mixed race (latino and arabic) international applicant. How can this situation negatively impact on my application? Besides this,I think is important to mention that I did not have the need to work during high school, I did it for the experience (and because I wanted to have my own money). Does this makes my application anyhow better?
Thank you </p>
<p>Are you paying full tuition ? if yes I think you have a decent shot. People like to believe that only 2300+ students are admitted, and that internationals have it harder etc… but it’s just not true.
The 5% admission rate includes all the average students that apply knowing they will be rejected, once all that is gone, the rate is much higher. And anyways, you don’t have an american GPA, did not follow the same program etc… So it cannot be compared with the average american GPA.</p>
<p>@Fram94: Perhaps you need to do a little “homework;” Harvard does not have Early Decision, it has Restrictive Early Action. There are substantial differences, this isn’t only a “semantic nuance.” </p>
<p>I’m also an international student who’s in the midst of the process of applying and I may have a different perspective than Americans in this.</p>
<p>First off, when everyone points out that internationals are at a distinct disadvantage in the application process, they are most likely referring to South Koreans, Indians, and the Chinese. Being that you are from Brazil, the warnings from CCers are mostly exaggerated. The adcoms compare your application to those of other South Americans. However, they do not have a set amount of spots reserved for each demographic, so being the best applicant within a certain geographical area does not ensure admission.</p>
<p>I know (though not personally) people from my country (Sweden) who have been accepted with SATs as low as 2040. However, those applicants usually have great ECs. For instance, the 2040-guy in particular was the president of a large European youth organisation that contained thousands of members. Additionally, ALL cases of accepted Swedish applicants that I have heard of had grades that would most definitely grant them acceptance to any Nordic university. </p>
<p>So with that out of the way, your GPA is what definitely holds you down. Again, it will be weighed against GPAs in comparable school systems, but “above average” as you stated will hardly cut it for Harvard. For example, a 1700 SAT is technically “above average” but definitely not Harvard-worthy. Your ECs are ok, but make sure to try to find areas in which you can excel and be able to demonstrate leadership capabilities.</p>
<p>A final question, are the SATs projected or are those official results? If official, your English subject test is really impressive.</p>
<p>Believe in yourself and do your best with the year you have left, regardless of what people here say. Remember, your chance of acceptance drops to 0 if you don’t apply.</p>
<p>@aalewis , thank you for your concern. I completely agree with what you said, specially about the chance of being admitted when not applying (it may seem obvious, but many people forget). Answering to your question, yes, 800 is my official English result. The one for World History is a projected, based on prep tests.</p>
<p>@Fram94- While your test scores are competitive for Harvard and other top schools, grades are more important, and yours are not competitive for these schools, especially as an international.</p>
<p>To put it in perspective, in the Harvard Class of 2018 survey (to which 70% of incoming freshman responded) the lowest reported unweighted GPA was 3.3, and only a handful reported GPAs under 3.7 - and it’s likely they were all recruited athletes or had very strong hooks,</p>
<p>@aalewis I agree to an extent. As a Chinese/Indian, etc it is considerably more difficult. However, as any kind of international applicant you will still have a hard time. There is an exact number of international applicants they accept. Depending on the school usually about 10%. I think being Brazilian is unique, but if there is anyone else in brazil who is more qualified than you, chances are you won’t be admitted. Whereas in the United States, typically from each state they will accept 10 students or so, in an entire country like Brazil they might admit 5 people. </p>
<p>It is DEFINITELY harder to get in as an international student.</p>
<p>Big public schools like UCLA easily let in internationals when they pay full tuition. I talked with an admission officer and it’s the truth, but people don’t want to hear it. With private schools it’s different, but most private schools are Ivies or Top schools like MIT, stanford etc… And the pool of internationals that are admitted to these schools is a minority.</p>