<p>Oh I see. Hmom, sorry for coming off as so aggressive. As a recent college applicant who went through a ridiculous amount of stress during the process, I felt really disheartened when CC downplayed my capabilities. Ultimately, I thank CC for all the help it provided me in terms of test prep etc. but I really think these chances posts shouldnt be as negative as majority of them come off.</p>
<p>My problem is either.</p>
<ol>
<li>Naive teenagers chance one another without any clue of how the application process works and thus build up the ego of someone who may not really stand much of a chance. </li>
</ol>
<p>or</p>
<ol>
<li>Applicants become increasingly stressed by their “lack” of strength, especially when things like grades cant be corrected when you’re already a junior.</li>
</ol>
<p>That be said, I think the OP has received plenty of advice, but shouldn’t assume the worst and choose not to apply. There is really no disadvantage from applying outside of cost, and I feel as though most CC posters are not really in that dire of straights financially. Good luck to the OP on SAT/ACT, and make sure not to ignore the intangibles such as essays, recommendations etc.</p>
<p>I agree that most replies to chances threads are useless. There are a few knowledgeable posters though, you just have to know who they are.</p>
<p>This is why I suggest really studying the facts. There is not as much of a mystery going on in college admissions as some would lead you to believe. The ivies can be pretty random, but they only become random when the applicant has the stats they’re looking for.</p>
<p>Looking at the common data sets and factoring in that 40% are hooked, whether your state is over or under represented, the competition from your high school and area and just a few other factors can begin to give you an excellent read on where your stand. What you can’t account for are essays and recs, which once again, are critical only once you have the stats.</p>
<p>So when we understand that 40% of a class is hooked and that standards are lowered for many with hooks, we start to understand we need to look at the 75th percentile SAT scores to understand what’s probably necessary for the unhooked to have a fighting chance.</p>
<p>Colleges also publish very useful info in their press releases announcing freshmen class stats. They often give you the number of vals and sals. That alone tells us how important having a very high rank is at certain schools. So when we see that the number was 40% at Dartmouth last year, we get a birds eye view into what they’re looking for. There are always exceptions, but by definition, exceptions are few.</p>
<p>Most what are my chances posters’ time would be much better spent just Goggling the facts.</p>