Ok…I’m not a serious ivy league applicant or anything (too expensive…), but I am curious about a few things:
Harvard wants national or even international achievements- but do they mention in any particular subject, or activity? For instance, will an IPhO silver medalist be prefered over a person who has won an international essay writing competition, if other aspects of their application are similar?
Or… Intel finalist or (inter)national poetry awardee?
Since everyone will have different talents and unique abilities, no one award will top over the other. Granted, international awards are more valuable than your local poetry contest, but how can one compare different awards from different fields with a boxed criteria?
So no matter what you decide to pursue – engineering or poetry – the best will be recognized with appropriate awards nationally or globally.
Also to point out your “I-can’t-go-to-an-ivy-because-it’s-too-expensive” misconception, Ivies have the best financial aid programs in the entire world. I encourage you to look into every school’s policies of financial aid.