Is a 3.6 UW GPA out of the running for top 20 schools?
Took highest level offered in classes taken, 15 APs (rest are honors), highly competitive, top 50 nationally-ranked public school. Assume essays are good, ECs are pretty good, recs are decent.
Thanks.
No, a 3.6 UW is not out of the running if you have taken substantially 100% honors + AP courses at a good quality HS and the rest of your app - test scores essays, ECs, recs and (very important) demonstrated fit - is excellent.
At least that was true last year when my son was applying to colleges. Things change each year, though.
It is definitely on the low end, but close enough to take a shot. Everything else on the application should be top notch, though. “Decent” LORs may not cut it, but unless you’ve read them, you might find they’re better than you expect.
You didn’t mention anything about test scores. 3.6 with say a 1580, you have a fighting chance. 3.6 with a 1400, probably not.
Also it depends on your school. If your school is known for being difficult, then they might look at it differently 
Based on your other thread, aren’t you still a junior in high school?
I think that you should strive to keep ahead in all of your classes and try to get the best grades that you can for this year. Participate in ECs that you are interested in. Have some fun. You should do fine.
Anything in the top 20 is likely to be a reach with a GPA of 3.6. However, you should be fine for top 100 and have a pretty good shot at top 50. A top 20 graduate school is possible if you do very well at a top 100 undergraduate school. As such you still have a lot of opportunities ahead of you.
Top 20 colleges (all competitive holistic colleges) will look at the transcript, see the rigor and look at the grades. If you have less than A in cores- and especially those related to your major- your chances are impacted. Otoh, if it’s some unimportant elective or, say, gym or drivers ed, then a lower grade may be ok.
If you have less than 5 on AP scores (again, mostly those related to the major and then other cores,) it also affects. You need the right ECs, not just whatever. Some should be related to your major, some serious comm service can matter very much, not just random hours through a club, an hour or two. It is NOT founding a club or a nonprofit (you’d get more bang for your buck joining an established local effort, in the local community, working with adults.) Nor starting a business.
We also know that many APs can be a flag of its own, to T20 schools. They plainly state it’s not arn arms race where he wth the most AP gets some special boost.
At this point, I wonder if you understand what makes a good essay. Or whom the colleges suggest should write an LoR. If you’re a junior, start researching colleges now, learn what they look for. It’s not just stats. The right sorts of EC choices matter. Look at the common ap and the supps for various colleges. Try to understand what they want to come through.
If you are a junior, you have time to fine tune. But it all starts with you doing your due diligence on what they look for.