At elite colleges, there’s no way to stand out because everyone else has the same stats and similar accomplishments.
You’re either average or rejected. The GPA is average for UPenn, but the SAT score is 200 points below the average. Ivy leagues are highly overrated anyway. In fact, over the last 15 years or so, most of the big state flagships have surpassed them, especially in engineering and technology. They have a larger student body and they have the benefit of state grants, which gives them money to pay for high tech research…and huge football programs!