Freshman year I did horrible. I got a D, lots of C’s, and a few B’s. Ever since I was little I always thought I could have a chance at going to Harvard. I would always watch videos of people who go into Harvard on YouTube. In freshman year I got really depressed and procrastinated. My parents would fight and my self-esteem was brought down at my school. After freshman year I got decent grades. Most of my grades were A’s with the exception of 2 B’s. I was thinking of going to community college to get into Harvard but I don’t think that they would accept me as they only accept about 10-13 transfer students out of about a thousand. What makes me sad is that it’s basically a lost opportunity and I don’t know what to do anymore.
There are literally hundreds of other colleges to choose from with your stats for undergrad. Go to Harvard for grad school 
Harvard admissions are holistic in the extreme. David Hogg was shutout on his OOS UC school applications, but then was admitted to Harvard after taking a gap year. The myth is that Ivy league schools focus primarily on “stats”, but that’s really not the case.
Aside from the fact that David Hogg is a bit of an anomaly, the shutout statement is about as accurate as the threads that pop up here in April where the user says he was rejected everywhere, but later admits to having been accepted to several schools not in T20. He was supposedly accepted to UCI, but opted not to attend.
That said, there are plenty of options for the OP that are not Harvard.
Most people don’t go to Harvard and have a great life anyway. There are lots of amazing colleges out there that are easier to get into than Harvard. You’ll find your spot.
W.r.t. Harvard admissions? David Hogg is a prominent leader of the gun control movement and Harvard claims that they are looking for leaders. At least on the surface, there doesn’t seem to be any irony that he was accepted to Harvard.
I think everyone can safely assume that no one really knows where someone was accepted or not. David Hogg made several public statements about his college applications, e.g.
The point of the David Hogg reference was that he was someone who was recently admitted to Harvard with less than top stats. The OP still has a chance, but he may have to do something dramatic, a la Hogg.
Time to expand your college horizons past Harvard.
Its OK. There are a bunch of terrific state schools that are super affordable and give you a great education.
I think it’s better to think of it as “you better be David Hogg if you have a 1270 sat and want to go Harvard. “
It’s a great school OP. So are hundreds of others. It will be ok. I wanted to play for the Patriots and it didn’t work out. And a race car driver. And a pro golfer. Then a pro on the senior tour. We always have ambitions and dreams. But really it doesn’t have an impact on your life. Just pick yourself up off the floor, dust yourself off and focus on the very next set of important tasks at school this week. Do your absolute best. Then rinse and repeat. Whatever school you choose do the same. Control what you can. And the only thing you can control is your efforts and decisions. Chin up —it will work out if you put the work in.
What made you fall in love with Harvard when you were little? At that age, you couldn’t possibly have had a realistic understanding of what people do in college or of what it would take to be admitted to college. Who told you about Harvard? What images did you see of Harvard? What did you imagine you would do after Harvard?
There is nothing, except a framed Harvard diploma, that you can’t get or achieve if you study somewhere else. Get some help dealing with your depression and your sad thoughts of worthlessness, and then go find yourself a new and even better goal for your education and your life.
Go to Harvard Extension.
I’m not sure what OP’s question is. Or what year in hs. Or whether he applied yet. Or is being dramatic. What is certain to affect chances is: if he has no idea what H does look for, so isn’t ready or ripened, is just idly dreaming, that’s the big mistake, the showstopper.
And agree you can’t know as a little kid what colleges to aim for.
So OP, you need to face your record, learn what it takes, in full, and decide if you’ll pick up the pieces and move forward.
“. Ever since I was little I always thought I could have a chance at going to Harvard. I would always watch videos of people who go into Harvard on YouTube.”
I wonder how many young people suffer from this kind of “dream.” I cannot imagine why a little child would be thinking about going to Harvard. Did your parents take you there at some point? Did one of them go there? Is it the only college you have heard of? Why would you watch YouTube videos of Harvard? (How about watching something fun!)
Try to enjoy high school without thinking too much about college. Work hard, make friends, learn how to be a good person, explore interests, and you will end up in the right place.
Community colleges are being used increasingly by relatively talented students to save money. They can be a great option as a first step. Many have direct transfer agreements with state universities with various benefits.
That said, there are so many schools out there. Check out the Colleges that Change Lives website for examples.
NOONE should get fixated on Harvard or any other school. Chance of admission is too low. Often it is just a sign that you need to learn more about what else is out there. The fixation on Harvard should not be allowed to cause stress during high school for you.
Be yourself and find a school that fits you, don’t try to fit a school
@compmom is spot on. She nailed it. Listen to her sage advice.
Even with a perfect GPA, there are no guarantees. Many really intelligent students work hard and achieve high from first day of KG to last day of 12th grade but doesn’t get accepted at Harvard. Many are mediocre or slack off but still get in. It’s a lottery. There are so many other factors which matter and many of them are out of an applicant’s control. For example race, financial status, geography, connections, size of high school, competency of guidance counsellors etc.
It’s not a “lottery” though
^Agreed @compmom , nor is this correct from Riversider, “Many are mediocre or slack off but still get in.”
Some that don’t get it in are great and qualified but don’t diminish those that do get in. That is what’s often referred to commonly as sour grapes. Most often expressed by those that get denied a spot and have never spent time on an Ivy campus. I have said it before, you are not a victim of bad luck or favoritism if you don’t get into your school of choice. Someone else just stood out more relative to the school’s desired community.
OP hit and run.
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Closing thread for the above reason.