<p>Ok, here we go. I'm only a freshman in high school so I still have plenty of time. I'm already looking at and weighing colleges, but I thought this thread would be appropriate so I know how to plan my courses in the upcoming years.</p>
<p>If you view my profile you should see my stats. If you're too lazy to do that (:p) then here's a basic lowdown. I obviously haven't taken the SATs which is an obvious factor but here:</p>
<p>GPA unweighted: 3.85
GPA weighted: over 4.0</p>
<p>I've taken 3 honors classes this year (AP not available). Next year I will take AP European History which is the only AP Class available to sophomores. I feel like I'm on a good track to get into JHU (or any other prestigious college) but I'm not sure.</p>
<p>As for Extracurriculars go:</p>
<p>Debate team
Key Club
Volunteer at Hospital
Volunteer at SPCA</p>
<p>No sports.</p>
<p>Any advice, tips, recommendations, etc. will be greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>There is really nothing magical about it. All good colleges are looking for students who: (1) challenge themselves and meet the challege; (2) show leadership qualities; (3) are nice people; (4) are interesting people; and (5) are passionate about something. That said, you should strive to take the most challeging courses you can [note: that does not necessarily mean AP courses; it is not uncommon for honors courses to be more challeging and yet not qualify for AP credit. Find some area that you are really passionate about and excel in it. Don’t just load up on extracurriculars–instead pick one, two or three things that you are truly interested in and become a leader in those. If possible, at least one of those activities should be community oriented or otherwise involve doing things for others. That shows you are a nice person. Bottom line: what you do or take is less important than being passionate about whatever it is you are doing.</p>