i'm worried i'm too average - what are my chances at top schools like ivies?

One way to get poetry published is to sing it with a heavy metal guitar :slight_smile: Either way you’re doing great. These schools have a 5% admissions rate. It’s worth an application, but it’s nothing to stress over. If you manage to get in, there’s also the question mark of affordability. You can’t rely on generous financial aid to pay for tuition. If a school wrote off 200k for every student that couldn’t afford it, they’d be bankrupt in a single semester. These schools cater to the wealthy, not the brilliant.