Yes, from an academic perspective. What the poster upthread left out about Malala Yousafzai is that she also had 3 A’s at A-level (and exceptional GCSE’s)- in other words, she had the academic requirements for Oxford and all those other things. For universities, like Harvard and Columbia that accept 5-7% of their applicants, the and is critical…
Overcoming a challenge is one thing, but the purpose of going to university is education. What do you want from a college education? that matters. All of the ‘non-traditional’ student routes will want to know. If you have a good reason for why you want the education that the university offers, and some test scores to go with it - go for it.