How am I lookin?

<p>GPA:
UW: 3.81
W: 4.25</p>

<p>Class Rank:
60/553 (I think the class got bigger though)</p>

<p>SAT: M 690/ CR 710/ W 720 (Im taking a prep class and i think ill do better)
ACT: 33 Comp./ 34 Eng, 34 Math, 33 Reading, 32 Science
33 Comp./ 35 Eng, 31 Math, 33 Reading, 33 Science
9 on essay
I don't know if combinations make any difference.</p>

<p>Will graduate with 5 APs and 12 Honors Classes (APs only offered Junior and Senior year)</p>

<p>AP Eng. Lang: 4</p>

<p>Varsity Golf 3 Years (2nd in state as a team soph and jun years)
Attended NYSE EYO Camp at the University of Illinois- Engineering (Selective- not just pay your money and go type thing)
4 Years of Key Club
Beta Club
National Honors Society
National Spanish Honors Society
Physics Bowl- 2nd in School
Knowledge Bowl
Model UN this year
Bridge Builders (Selective Leadership Conference)
Nominated for Hugh O'Brian Youth Leadership Forum
Nominated for National Youth Leadership Forum</p>

<p>That's all i can think of for now...</p>

<p>I'd really appreciate any insight you guys have seeing as how you were already accepted! Thanks in advance.</p>

<p>I don't think you're looking very good. Your stats are low, and your EC's don't make you stand out or at least make up for the stats. I guess all you can do is write good essays and hope for the best.</p>

<p>IMHO, what matters a lot is your school. Are there five to ten graduates every year who go to Harvard from your school? Or is there only one student every decade or so that is accepted? (Your school is almost certainly somewhere in between, of course.)</p>

<p>For example, I didn't have the best GPA in my class- I was probably only in the top 10%. But Harvard usually accepts about 5 kids from my school every year (roughly 60 out of 300 end up going to Ivy League schools), so my nearly perfect SAT scores, intense courseload, and other factors helped get me in.</p>

<p>Some schools, though, you have to be the valedictorian, or at least be a VERY outstanding student, to have even a chance. My suggestion would be to look at the statistics of past years to get a better idea of your standings.</p>

<p>A far more important piece of advice, in my opinion, is to take a step back. You'll hear this a thousand times, but Harvard isn't right for everyone, and it's not best at everything. There are dozens of other schools that you should look into, including many that are needlessly overlooked in the rush for the Ivies. Make sure you apply to plenty of schools that you'd be happy to go to.</p>

<p>its not even in my top 5, i was just wondering how i stood- in our last years graduating class, 1 went to harvard, 1 to columbia, 1 to penn, 2 to duke, 3 to vanderbilt, and many other top 20 schools; i attend a public school in memphis tennesee</p>

<p>Lemme guess: White Station High School</p>

<p>nah Houston High School, White Station is our competition in academics around here though... howd you know?</p>

<p>even I knew..</p>

<p>knew what?</p>

<p>your HS (10 char)</p>

<p>are you from the memphis area?</p>

<p>Harvard seems to be quite a reach. Everything you have is below the average at harvard - grades, sat, ECs (you don't seem to be leading anything).</p>

<p>If I were you, I would apply ea to a school like duke, where you would have a realistic shot. I've seen people with worse stats than yours get into H, but it's very uncommon.</p>

<p>who thinks i should apply?</p>

<p>What I dont understand is: does Harvard consider that some schools don't weight grades so it is increasingly difficult to mantain a high rank due to grade inflation from the "lazy" 4.0s? So many ppl say you have to be close to valedictorian but doesnt that largely depend on the context of the school's weighting system?</p>

<p>i hope so because there are a lot of people who are ahead of me in class rank because of taking standard classes and the like in which if the student brings their book to class and colors inside the lines when necessary, they receive a 100</p>

<p>I don't think anyone would deny that the higher your rank the better, but I think the rank needed to be considered competitive varies greatly by school. I don't know if this addresses the point you brought up. If it doesn't, could you try to explain yourself a little better?</p>

<p>My question is: does rank say much when the school does not give 'weights" (extra GPA points) for AP/Honors classes? I've noticed that many ppl who do get in are ranked in the top 5 but thats because their schools weight grades.</p>

<p>the rankings at my school are based on numerical percentages i.e. 95.1</p>

<p>Oh I see. That's a good question. I think it still matters quite a bit, and if the school has a big problem with the lazier kids being at the top of the class, then they can just explain it in the School Report form.</p>