<p>Senior I meant!</p>
<p>I’m very doubtful about this though.</p>
<p>lol, bunnysue</p>
<p>“”"
I have recently realized that I have wanted to go to harvard to be a doctor, since I was a kid.
“”"</p>
<p>Huh?</p>
<p>What I meant was that since I was like 4 I have had this dream.</p>
<p>Your english/writing is rubbish… Harvard is unlikely.</p>
<p>
- If you are not from there, move to MA or to one of the New England states
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/harvard-university/1099795-regional-quotas-harvard-2.html#28[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/harvard-university/1099795-regional-quotas-harvard-2.html#28</a></p>
<p>This actually did help me, thank you all. I’m a ninth grader and everyone tells me to “calm down, I have plenty of time to figure this out” when, in reality, (which, apparently, they are NOT living in) I don’t. I really want to go to Harvard and, if not that, another Ivy League–living in SoCal has not helped my being able to actually visit the campuses. Yes, I’ll admit it, I initially wanted to go to Harvard because it is pretty much the most prestigious school in the country xD But, lately, I’ve come to find that the matching game doesn’t really apply to colleges. Meaning that, just because I’m number one in my class does not necessarily mean I have to go to Harvard. I know I’m doing a lot, but… it just feels like it’s not enough. People say that there’s no “formula” for getting in, and I believe that. But, I feel that they’re certainly looking for SOMETHING more than amazing academics and incredible extracurricular!
I mean, I’ve definitely pondered on taking the evil and insidious way out, haha. Buuuut that would probably come back to bite me in the butt. x)
I think that they may be looking for those few rare kids who already know what they want to do in life, and, quite frankly, I don’t know if I’m one of them. If this is true, how do you think I can find out what I want to do in life? I guess that’s a pretty intense question… 
But, there’s only so much you can do as a thirteen-year-old freshman, heehee ;)</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice! I hope I have time. I’m a Sophomore in High School.</p>
<p>I have a question, by the way. Does Harvard care if you don’t have PERFECT grades? Like a 4.2? I’ve had a 3.8.</p>
<p>A common misconception about Harvard is that you have to have done something extraordinary to get in. This is not true. Most of the admitted students I know (including myself) are just intelligent, well-rounded students with plenty of extracurriculars and unique interests, but very few are the published novelists or composers people often talk about. Harvard can recognize if you have potential, even if you haven’t achieved your life’s goals by the age of seventeen.</p>
<p>How to get into Harvard: do what you are passionate about-- with depth and determination.</p>
<p>pls describe the harvard environment,(am black) and should i think of being admitted before thinking of financial aid?</p>
<p>Don’t worry about financial aid- Harvard has a large endowment and makes sure tuition will be affordable for everyone. In fact, if your family makes less than $60,000 per year, tuition is free! Even if your family makes more, you will still receive all the financial aid you need.
As a matter of fact, my parents called the Harvard Financial Aid Office two days ago to see if they could give us more aid- the financial aid they offered us was enough to make it affordable but my parents wanted to see if we could reduce it a little. My parents sent them my aid letter from Oberlin, which offered me more money, and they responded today informing us that they had reduced my yearly tuition by $8100! The funny thing is, the Ivies actually tend to be pretty affordable because they can be so generous with financial aid.
Definitely just worry about applying right now- if you are admitted, it is very unlikely that you will be unable to afford it.
In terms of environment, I’m not a freshman yet, but I am from the area and Cambridge is an awesome college town. There’s so much to do there (and in Boston) and it is probably among the best college locations in the country. There are plenty of black students on campus (about 10%, I think) and there are also a number of organizations for black students. If you want to go to Harvard, work hard and apply!</p>
<p>Does it look bad, (do the adcoms ignore or don’t put as much weight), if you don’t do anything extraordinary for most of high school - mostly average ECs and activities, but something above average or amazing (like USABO semifinalist, or qualifying for AIME, or something like that) during senior year or before college decisions come out (i.e. february/march)?</p>
<p>If you don’t have anything perfunctory during your first three years, then I’m not sure if something like AIME or USABO semi will do anything. It’s not that impressive, frankly.
And once you send in your app, you can’t update it unless you get waitlisted.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>JoonBug812 is misinformed!</p>
<p>Felix, I think it’s true that there is no way to update a submitted app until decision day, barring an extremely grave error on Harvard’s part. Also, I can’t be sure what exactly the USABO semi or AIME will do, because for Harvard, each case is holistic.
I’m not 100% sure in anything I am not personally involved with, but if I am “misinformed” please detail how.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I like to be mysterious, JoonBug812. That’s how I get girls. </p>
<p>…And it feels good to act slightly pretentious once in a while.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>You are incorrect, I’m afraid. There is a an email address on the applicant status page through which you can update your file. Any email you send to it is printed and added to your file. :)</p>