Harvard College Students ONLY (plz)

Colleges & Universities A-Z Harvard University
1

<p>Hello. I entitled this post "Harvard College Student Only" simply because I want a legitimate answer and nothing is more legit than Harvard College students themselves. Befor you judge me, please try to put yourselves in my shoes.</p>

<p>I really don't know where to start</p>

<p>I dropped out of high school in eleventh grade and received my GED because my life was just so unstable. I have also been chronically homeless for the past 3 years. Bouncing around from homeless shelters, although I recently have my own apartment. My first thought after I received my GED was to take my prereqs and apply at the extension school. I am registered for 2 classes at the extension school in the fall</p>

<p>Expo 15
and
International Political Economy (a harvard college course taught by a harvard professor)</p>

<p>A friend of mine who is a Harvard College student read an essay that I wrote for a scholarship. He started to cry.. and told me how inspiring my essay was and how it shows how resilient and dedicated I am. He told me that I should definitely apply to the College as well. I guess he figured that my chances of being accepted were pretty huge.I am also a minority. (Not sure if he implied that it would be a significant factor)</p>

<p>At first.. I told him that there was NO WAY IN THE WORLD Harvard College would accept me. That's when I started to think how nice it would be to be able to live on dorms and live a traditional student college life ! Having the opportunity to engage in extracurricular activities, have roommates, and not have to worry about wether or not I will be able to pay my bills on time. I know that if I am accepted to Harvard College, my chances of graduating are much higher than it is for me..a struggling 19 year old independent student trying to maintain an apartment and study full time.</p>

<p>Need I mention that I have ABSOLUTELY NO HELP at all from family members ? My Father is incarcerated and well.. my Mother.. she's just irrelevant. </p>

<p>But nonetheless, my friend continued to encourage me to apply for the Fall of '10. </p>

<p>I figured that once I take those prereqs at the extension school and maintained at least a B, and provide examples of my coursework that it would show admission officers that I can handle the rigor of the program.. despite me getting a high school equivalent diploma. I have not taken the SAT's although I will be taking them this year befor I apply. I am working hard everyday to prepare for the test. I know that I am a superb reader and writer, Math has always been my worst enemy though. But I know, from speaking with harvard students that alot of them don't actually have perfect sat scores hence the reason why they must take Expo 10 befor they take Expo 20. So I imagine that if my math scores aren't so high.. they would allow me to take some kind of intermedial course to get me on track. </p>

<p>The harvard college student friend of mine tells me that I should write about my life and how I was able to overcome obstacles in my admissions essay. </p>

<p>I know I don't make a STRONG applicant who is valedictorian, and a traditional high school student with a high GPA. Believe me.. I am well aware that I don't fit the stereotypical profile of a Harvard student. I would just like to believe that there is no harm in trying....
as far as extracuricular activities.. I am a leader in a VERY respected organization. I know that this will help....</p>

<p>What do you all think ? Do you have any suggestions ?
Thank you so much for your time.</p>

<p>and please... now is not the time for non harvard college students to flood this posts with their negative comments. I've been reading over this board and I can tell you that from my experience amongst harvard students..and their opinions and beliefs as opposed to those here on this forum. There is a significant difference. I ask for harvard college students only because I am sure they know what they're talking about from experience.. not by stigmas and speculations.</p>

2

<p>I don’t think anyone can really tell you your admissions chances since your story is so unique.</p>

<p>If you’d like some inspiration, there are some great stories of homeless students who have made it to Harvard. Check out the following articles:
[Liz</a> Murray - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liz_Murray]Liz”>Liz Murray - Wikipedia)
[Homeless</a> to Harvard - Harvard - Los Angeles Times](<a href=“http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-harvard-pictures,1,6297510.photogallery]Homeless”>PHOTOS: Homeless to Harvard)</p>

<p>And some other stories:
[The</a> Harvard Crimson :: News :: Student Finds Home At Harvard Shelter](<a href=“http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=526103]The”>http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=526103)
[Student</a> hopes to go from homeless to Harvard - CNN.com](<a href=“http://www.cnn.com/2009/LIVING/06/24/homeless.to.harvard/]Student”>Student hopes to go from homeless to Harvard - CNN.com)</p>

3

<p>I’m an alum who has interviewed for Harvard and has talked with admissions officers about Harvard’s admissions, and I think that you should broaden those whom you’re willing to read comments from. While Harvard undegrads have useful info for you, so do other people, some of whom even may have more useful info.</p>

<p>Harvard isn’t a lock for anyone. No matter who one is, it is important to also apply to other schools. Realize that Harvard is a longshot for virtually everyone, so apply accordingly, meaning also apply to safety and match schools that you’d love attending and can afford. </p>

<p>Realize that you have to take the SAT and 3 SAT subject tests to apply to Harvard. </p>

<p>From what admissions officers have told me, it’s unlikely that students with scores below 600 for the CR, M part of the SAT will be admitted because they probably lack the academic skills to graduate from Harvard. One doesn’t need perfect scores, however, to be admitted. </p>

<p>Harvard has accepted highly motivated, bright students who have been homeless and have successfully met other major challenges. Googling can help you learn about such students.</p>

<p>Without having any SAT scores from you it’s impossible to know how much of a longshot Harvard would be for you. I strongly suggest that you take the SAT in Oct. to get a baseline, which would let you know what range of colleges would be appropriate for you to apply to. You’d also have time to retake the test to raise your scores. Keep in mind, however, that if you decide to apply to colleges like Harvard, you’ll still need to take 3 SAT II tests, so plan ahead for those, too particularly since you’ll need to study for those tests since they will be on specific subjects.</p>