<p>I see so many people with tons of ECs... a lot of them of offered at my school (clubs etc) but I cant really see myself getting so many when I'm competing with some 4000 other students. At my school Beta Club, NHS, and Key Club are all pretty selective (you have to apply to all of them, and only a certain number of kids get in) same with student council (you have to be voted on just to be a member). Anyways I'll probably get into all of those things, and possibly play a sport or two (swim and track maybe?) throughout the rest of high school but thats nothing in comparison to some of the ECs I see. </p>
<p>Anyways, with a few good ECs like I mentioned and something like a 4.0 unweighted GPA, and like a 5.2-3/6.0 GPA get me into some really competitive colleges (standford, carnegie mellon, princeton, UNC)? I know a few people at my school (who graduated last year) who got into Harvard and Stanford and MIT, but... :</p>
<p>Anyways, I feel like it’s been said a billion times before to the point of it sounding cliche, but it’s quality, not quantity. There are ways to get involved without joining all of these fancy-sounding clubs you’re talking about (uh wth is a beta club). </p>
<p>Maybe find/join a club that is something that interests you but you have no experience in? Or, even better, make your own club.</p>
<p>Joining clubs is cliche. Students these days think that colleges like it when they can list a dozen clubs on their application. Here’s the truth: quality over quantity. Colleges would rather you devote yourself to a few clubs/activities and attain positions of leadership and responsibility. You know that kid who joins every club he can get his filthy hands on? He’s not getting into an Ivy. Ivies prefer that you show passion for an activity or area and joining a dozen clubs just conveys the opposite. And this is from personal experience.</p>
<p>You should still have a chance, as far as I know. Your school weights GPA differently than mine, but a 5.2 seems like it should be top 5% or higher. Add in some good ACT/SAT/SAT II scores and the sports/clubs and your app looks competitive.</p>
<p>Haha, @Elleya, beta club is basically like NHS just not a national honor society; you need a certain GPA do be invited to join, and then you have to apply for a spot. And yeah I get what you’re saying, thanks.</p>
<p>@ptontiger16 I dont plan on joining a ton of clubs, and I know the whole leadership thing, what I was saying was while competing with so many students, getting leadership positions seems really unlikely, a lot of people say dont even bother adding clubs you aren’t in some sort of leadership position in. But, I guess if students that go to my school get into the tier of schools I’m looking at, if I try hard, I’ll have a chance too.</p>
<p>@aqsewfqq, yeah, my school system seems to be way different from a lot of others. But at the rate I’m going I’ll probably be valedictorian or salutatorian, I’m currently ranked #1, but I took/am taking more APs earlier in the game then a lot of my classmates so they’ll probably catch up a little junior and senior year. And I really have to work on my SAT scores, I’ve taken them twice already (7th and 9th grade) and raised a 1330 to an 1820 with hardly any studying. I’m pretty confident with my math scores (as in, I think I can get 700+ with not too much trouble) but I’ll really have to work on cr and writing. Thanks really appreciate this answer :)</p>