I am currently a Junior. Seeing as how school is going this year, I should be able to end Junior year with a 3.7 gpa.
I slacked off and didn’t try enough freshman and sophomore year even though I easily could have. Freshman Year I got a 3.6, Sophomore year i got a 3.5 :(, and Junior year I should be able to get a 4.0 no problem. (These grades are all unweighted and I have never taken anything except Honors/AP classes besides Gym/Health) I go to a decently sized public school that is very competitive (I’ve never attended other high schools so i’m basing this off of my guidance counselor)
I hope to apply to colleges in the Ivies and those as selective as the Ivies. Is my GPA too low? (assuming all the other parts of the application are pretty good)
As you probably already know, admissions to Ivy League schools is extremely fierce today and involves a holistic approach that involves much more than simply GPA. These type of schools will look very carefully at your transcript and analyze your course rigor (within the context of what opportunities your school provides, of course), whether you took the hardest courses available to you and how well you performed in them, which courses you earned your lower grades in, how your course selection and performance compares to your intended major or broad field of study, etc.
That being said, many colleges may ignore your freshman grades but none will ignore your sophomore grades. If you continue your upward trend in performance and course rigor, I believe you will be fine. If at all possible, I would aim to end your first semester of high school with a 3.8 GPA. Come Fall, however, you will have to decide whether or not you will play the early admissions game. If you decide to apply EA/ED anywhere, colleges will be forced to reach a decision based only on grades up to your junior year.
To answer your fundamental question, however, I believe you should still apply to Ivy League schools as long as your GPA does not dip any lower and if you have the rest of the “package” (test scores that fall within the 25th/75th percentiles, solid EC’s, etc.). You have an advantage if you happen to have a “hook” that you have not yet specifiec (legacy, recruited athlete, URM, etc.). The admissions process at elite colleges can often appear random and unpredictable, so no matter what anyone may tell you, if you truly believe that you are a good fit for an Ivy, just apply.
what do you mean by selective? To be honest, there can be very big differences between two applicant with identiacal gpas when looking at their other parts
Honor’s classes are specifically designed to challenge students with appropriated college coursework. A 3.7 is fine. The rest of your essay is really what matters beyond that point of academic landing.
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