I’m a caucasian junior currently attending a well regarded public high school in Upstate New York. Plan on majoring in philosophy before moving on to law school.
My essay and recommendations will be, as far as I know, impeccable.
My SAT scores were quite good in my opinion (2220 Total: 800CR 700M 720W) and I believe that I can raise my superscore at least 100 points.
I have decent extracurriculars, having been published in a local paper numerous times and having multiple years organizing local food drives ($10,000+ in donations to date).
The thing holding me back is definitely my grades. My GPA is around a 3.6 unweighted and I am only in the top 20% of my class. The poor ranking and grades are a result of the rigor of my schedule when combined with the fact that my school does not use weighted average in class rank. I have taken 4 AP classes so far and plan on taking 4 more next year, along with a total of 8 Honors classes. I’m currently taking AP Physics 1+2, which is a combination of both AP physics courses in a single year, although it’s having a negative effect on my GPA (B-B+).
How screwed am I for college? I’m considering Cornell to be my dream school/reach, but I’m not sure what other options I’ll have after my inevitable ED rejection. Do I have a chance at any of the “Tier 1” schools? I have no idea what kinds of colleges I have a chance at, due to the deep disconnect between my grades and everything else.
thanks for the consideration
Your SAT score is excellent. Even if the grades do hold you back, don’t think you can’t get into a quality school. That SAT score and quality resume will take you places. I’m afraid you are right when you say Cornell is a reach (as it is for most people). Applying to it by Early Admissions will help your odds a little, but you definitely need a backup plan. What is it that you look for in a college? Does location matter to you? A couple of the first schools that pop up in my mind that might be in your range are Boston College (#31) and New York University (#32). They aren’t quite Cornell (#16), but it is definitely respectable and ranked highly. Tufts (#27) and USC (#25) are ranked a little higher. You could shoot for those too.
Thank you for the suggestions! I’m making a college trek this summer and I’ll be sure to visit everything you suggested, seeing as how they seem to be highly esteemed universities
