<p>First off, thank you for helping me out. My dream school is Columbia, but I'm very aware of the randomness and selectivity of the college admissions process.</p>
<p>I am currently ranked 26/700 (Top 4%) in my public, average high school. My school is NOT competitive or well-known, so we only send about five of students to Top 10 schools every year.</p>
<p>I have an unweighted 4.0, yet my rank is low because the tippy top students have taken 10+ APs, but I've only taken 6 so far. </p>
<p>However, I scored 2380 on the January SAT, and I've gotten 800s on the Math II, Biology E, and World History subject tests. </p>
<p>Will my test scores compensate for my miserable class rank? </p>
<p>I'm aiming for Columbia, but after reading the decisions threads, I've realized the danger of having a "dream school". Thank you for your advice!</p>
<p>I think you’re underestimating yourself a bit. 4% isn’t bad, and your high school seems competitive enough if 25 people are beating you with a 4.0 (if not grade inflation).</p>
<p>In short, your class rank isn’t miserable, and your test scores are very good. You have a shot at Columbia. What you really need to do is write an amazing essay to stand out.</p>
<p>I’m going to diverge from the group consensus and agree with you: for an unknown high school, the rank is fairly low. Many applicants and acceptees to top schools will be val or sal or at least in the top1-2% of their class. Your best bet is to apply ED.</p>
<p>Scores do not ever “compensate” for a shortfall in GPA. Nothing “compensates” for a shortfall in GPA other than some epic excuse about psychological disorders/medical issues/emotional turmoil. No matter great a profile is, a lame GPA brings it down a notch- it doesn’t just disappear. GPA simply measures things NO other stat or activity does- essentially, your success in the classroom, and your ability as a student. GPA is so important because it’s an incredible predictor of success in college.</p>
<p>That being said, while 26/700 at an unknown isn’t impressive in the Ivy League, you certainly still have a shot at Columbia. If you take a look at the accepted/rejected thread for Columbia (as well as Ivies) you’ll notice numerous 2250+ top 3% students getting rejected. Those who were accepted did well in GPA/scores, but more importantly, did interesting things. They won awards, they were in prestigious in competitions, they did research, they did internships. They had more than just scores and GPA to validate their ability. </p>
<p>Summary, do something interesting. Don’t be like a lot of applicants and think joining 8 clubs around school and being the president of 3 of them is what these schools want to see.</p>
<p>glassesarechic - ED would not be optimal for my situation because I will need lots of financial aid. Are there any other options that will help mitigate my class rank?</p>
<p>And thank you to everyone who offered advice. I an amateur to college admissions, and I appreciate having your help!</p>
<p>If you get accepted ED and your fin aid package is bad, you will be released from the ED agreement. However, I sincerely doubt Columbia would give you insufficient aid.</p>
<p>The ED acceptance rate is also something you should consider.</p>
<p>My question, if I were an adcom, would be why haven’t you taken more APs? Rigor of curriculum is important and the fact is that your weighted rank is lower due to the fact that despite getting all As, you haven’t taken the most difficult classes your school offers. My D attends a public HS where this is the norm. She is a top 10 student for weighted rank and top 25% unweighted. MANY students take easy classes so they can get As and our school has a dual ranking system so they feel good about their unweighted rank. Highly selective schools will always look at whether or not you challenged yourself in high school, as that is a good indicator of success in college.</p>
<p>^This is true, but taking 6APs by the end of junior year is not unimpressive. I really don’t think an admissions officer will question his rigor, assuming he takes at least a good 3+ APs next year, and assuming the APs are mostly non-cheese APs.</p>
<p>Taking 10+ APs by junior year is unheard of, at my school at least. In fact I don’t think it’s even possible here. I believe our valedictorian was at 7/8/9, CERTAINLY NOT 10+, by the end of junior year. The #2 at the time had 6/7 APs. I was ranked #3 at the time with 6 APs (now ranked #2 with 12, it’s been a loong senior year).</p>