Ivy League or Stanford?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>I am close to finishing my junior year in high school (11th grade) and am trying to aim for admission into an ivy league school or Stanford. As of now these are my grades/accomplishments going into my senior year (12th grade):</p>

<p>Weighted GPA: 4.36
Class Rank: 25/1100
PSAT Score: Math- 80, Reading- 74, Writing- 64; Total: 218
SAT Score: Math-780, Reading-720, Writing-720; Total: 2220
U.S. History Subject Test: 800
Math Level 2 Subject Test: 780
Physics Subject Test: 770
Ethnicity: White</p>

<p>Before Freshman Year:
Spanish 1
Algebra 1
Honors/Pre-AP Geometry</p>

<p>Freshman Classes:
Honors/Pre-AP English
Honors/Pre-AP Biology
Honors/Pre-AP Algebra 2
Honors/Pre-AP Spanish 2
Human Geography AP
Debate/Comm Apps
Orchestra</p>

<p>Sophomore Year:
Honors/Pre-AP English 2
Honors/Pre-AP Chemistry
Honors/Pre-AP Pre-calculus
Honors/Pre-AP Spanish 3
World History AP
European History AP
Orchestra</p>

<p>Junior Year:
English 3 AP
Calculus (AB) AP
Spanish 4 AP
U.S. History AP
Environmental Science AP
Honors/Pre-AP Physics
Orchestra H</p>

<p>Senior Year:
English 4 AP
Government/Economics AP
Chemistry AP
Biology AP
Physics B AP</p>

<p>Clubs:</p>

<p>Freshman:
National Junior Honor Society
LASER (Science Fair)</p>

<p>Sophomore:
National Honor Society
LASER (Science Fair)
STAND
President of Key Club</p>

<p>Junior:
National Honor Society
Spanish Honor Society
Key Club</p>

<p>Extracurriculars:
Have been playing golf for 4 years (Handicap ~16)
Have been playing cello for 7 years (Principal (1st Chair) for 2 years)
Volunteer often at a local nursing home (Currently spent ~110 hours)</p>

<p>Accomplishments:
2nd Place School Science Fair Winner 9th Grade
1st Place School Science Fair Winner 10th Grade
(I have won 1st place at district and regional competitions many times in elementary and middle school but that probably won't matter to colleges)</p>

<p>*Have excellent letters of recommendation from a couple teachers</p>

<p>**Received a U.S. Patent for a Solar/Wind clean energy invention in Nov. 2008</p>

<p>Overall, I possibly still have my first semester of senior year which will involve me focusing more on science based courses, however my gpa and rank will probably not change.I also come from a school that is ranked in the top 1% of best highschools in America if that makes a difference. I realize that valedictorians with perfect SAT scores get rejected, but I'm trying to be optimistic. My dad went to Stanford and he also really wants me to get into a top school. I realize that I probably don't stick out much or excel in any one area in particular, but I hope that by some miracle I might be accepted into Stanford or an Ivy League School. Any feedback would be appreciated!</p>

2

<p>Okay, so at Stanford, you definitely have the legacy thing in your favor, and your SAT II scores are very good. In the Fall of senior year, you might consider retaking the SAT to improve your reading and writing scores, and if you can up math, that’s great, but 780 is just fine.</p>

<p>You’re correct that elementary and middle school awards don’t matter at all to colleges. In fact, though you may have accomplished great things freshmen or sophomore year, colleges tend to focus on junior and senior year activities, grades, and achievements because they most closely reflect the person you will be when you enter college.</p>

<p>For your science fair involvement, when you fill out college apps, you can submit abstracts of your projects as a science supplement. However, as all your science awards come from 8th or 9th grade, you should definitely try to enter a fair or research competition senior year. (ex=Siemens, Intel, state science fair)</p>

<p>Depending on your AP scores and essay writing skills, I’d definitely say that you have a good chance at getting into an Ivy, if you put yourself into the mindset that’s it’s not just “by some miracle” that you’ll get in. So apply, you have nothing to lose, just make sure to have a safety school and a few “mediums” on your app list as well.</p>

3

<p>You have good academics, but because of your ECs, the schools you mentioned are all high reaches. Keep in mind that the Ivy League is not the be-all end-all; there are many schools that are as good and better than them.</p>

4

<p>Thanks for the info guys! Anyone else have suggestions/advice? It’s definitely appreciated!</p>

5

<p>Emphasize the patent/invention powerfully and you’re in. You have the right scores.</p>

6

<p>You need to take your EC accomplishments beyond the school/district level. That s what these schools focus on once you have the grDes and scores. What are you doing this summer? Hopefully research or a competitive science program.</p>

<p>Consider retaking the SAT for higher CR and writing. Stanford does not give much of a legacy boost.</p>