Harvard

Applying to College
1

<p>im only going to be a junior but i would like to know what everyone thinks. </p>

<p>Grade 9 Grades:
History: A
H English: B+
H Algebra 2: B+
Business: A
French 2: B
German 1: A+
H Biology: B+
Gym and Health: A</p>

<p>Grade 10 Grades:
History: B
H English: A
Civil/Mechanical Engineering: B
Spanish 2: B
Gym and Health: A</p>

<p>County College Grades:
Introductory Psychology: B
Statistics 1: B+
Statistics 2: A
Macroeconomics: A</p>

<p>Rutgers University Grades:
Physics: Mechanics: B
Physics: Electricity and Magnetism: A
Astronomy and Cosmology: A </p>

<p>I am taking the highest level courses available at my school. I changed schools between 9th and 10th and my new school is a magnet school for engineering. It also doesnt have such grades as B+ or A-, instead you just recieve a B or A respectively. Also, because it is a small school they work on block scheduling and since i took biology and algebra 2 in my freshman year, i had to take courses at teh county college to take the place of my classes i missed this year. I have taken the courses at Rutgers seperatly because i am trying to get into a summer program at Caltech next year that requires physics before you apply. Next year, i am planning on taking more classes, such as a class called introduction to bioterrorism, public speaking, science fiction literature, and calculus at either Rutgers or the county college. those will be in addition to my full high school curriculum. </p>

<p>SAT 1: ( i took it when i was 13 so im going to post that score) 1330
SAT 2, Math Level 1: 670 but i am going to take level 2 because i need that for certain schools
I have not taken the rest of the SAT's i need or the SAT 1. I am also planning to take the ACTS to supplement my SAT's. </p>

<p>Extracurriculars:
Lacrosse JV: 9th grade
Varsity Soccer Manager: 10, 11, and most likely 12
Junior Statesman of America: 9, 10, president in 11, and 12
I can play French Horn, and the piano and have been recognized by various leaders during band competitions for my solo performances.
Math League: 10, 11, 12
Astronomy Club: 10, 11, most likely 12
Rocketry Club: 9, 10, 11, most likely 12
I am a ham radio operator and have been for 2 years now.
I am incharge of the multimedia room in my school which contains over 30 iMacs and several tens of thousands of dollars of other equipment.
LEGO Roborocks competition: 10, 11 and hopefully 12
Community Service: I have about 20 hours for my local church and i have, no lie, about 1500 hours at my community library. </p>

<p>The only thing is that i have basically no connections, and im not the most rich person on the planet. I know that these are major criteria for getting into a college such as Harvard, but i know there is a small chance for us less fortunate. How do you think i stand and what should i do to increase my chances of acceptance?</p>

2

<p>THE Bs HURT MY EYES...</p>

<p>Seriously, Harvard isn't going to accept someone with so many Bs, and with those ECs (or lack thereof)</p>

<p>You also don't have a "hook"</p>

3

<p>Can't tell what type of rank that translates into, but nonetheless, would say very unlikely. For Harvard, you have to be pretty close to perfect, have a very specific reason why they would want you (sports, legacy, URM) and then be lucky because there's five more just like you and they can only take one.</p>

4

<p>What a dumass. Two people got into Harvard from my school this past year. One had an 89 average and the other a 93. Neither was a minority, legacy, or recruited athlete. Simply put, there is deflation at my H.S. since both were in the top 10 in the class of 458.</p>

<p>Grades are a STUPID way to evaluate someone.</p>

5

<p>Don't know if that was directed to me or OP, but that's why I stated in the beginning that you can't look at grades in a vacuum without rank. At least, 10/458 would be in the top 2%, which would qualify for my very close to perfect. I went to a very grade deflated hs where the val had 4 Bs and I was #3 with 6 Bs, so appreciate what you're saying, but that many Bs only halfway through seems unlikely to me that it would qualify for the top 2-3%.</p>

6

<p>well I think it's too soon to tell since you're just a junior now.
I'd say work on your grades in junior year.
wow tonight's filled with people who are really harsh...</p>

7

<p>I meant go-vibe was dumb.</p>

<p>Grades are relative--THERE IS NO ABSOLUTE SCALE!!</p>

<p>Even AP tests aren't good indicators.</p>

8

<p>Hey buddy,</p>

<p>No matter what community college and high school is never that hard. It's not like teachers will only give 1 A in each class. I've taken the "hardest" courses at my school and some of the "harder" ones at community colleges and they were a breeze. The fact remains that high school grading is not a test of brains. It just tests basic understanding of basic concepts. It gets a bit tricky in college, but even that is still not very hard.</p>

9

<p>well I'm sorry if I was "dumb" to you... But its the ****ing truth...</p>

<p>I know plenty of kids that have gone to harvard, and none of them more Bs than As! If you work hard enough and are smart enough, you should be able to get all As, which is required for harvard...</p>

<p>Harvard looks for nearly perfect people... Yo ma'am are not!</p>

10

<p>Although this seems harsh, what go-vibe said is the harsh truth. Unless you're a URM, you have almost no chance at harvard.</p>

11

<p>I have to agree . . . Harvard likes looking at A's, and there are several B's there. Listing a rank or GPA would help a little more.</p>