Lower scores but unique

I am an IB Diploma candidate in my junior year, and so far my IB points are around 35 points. My SAT is 2130 and Im going to take SAT II French, Math I and US History soon ( all of which i test at between 750 and 800). I have lived abroad my whole life and travelled back and forth, I also have a multicultural background. I speak three languages fluently and 2 languages at communicating level. I am on the debate team (11), varsity basketball team (9, 10, 11), theatre productions (9, 10, 11), leader of the charities division in student council (10, 11), school newspaper club president (11), piano (9, 10, 11), taekwondo (11). I’ve also been on a service trip to Tanzania in which I was the team accountant. I’ve always done an internship at a prestigious law firm. Do I have any remote chances at getting into any ivy league schools?

Sure, but consider thinking beyond the ivies. They’re not the only good schools out there. And while your background is interesting, I hate to tell you how many kids are extremely similar. to you; I’ve seen some who I’d have thought would be a shoe-in across the board and probably would have been 20 years ago – e.g. a lifetime abroad, super involved, smart, multilingual, great resume, etc – get their share of rejections. (I bet you know a few yourself, eh?)

Anyhow, sure, your stats and ECs look great; reach for ivies if they appeal to you. But you’ll want to make the same kind of list as anyone else – safeties, matches, reaches – with a focus on fit. And remember that being abroad probably means you have no in-state financial safety, so do aim for some schools that would give you merit aid :slight_smile: Good luck!!!

thanks for the help, but I’ve discussed my stats with a college counselor and she said that my background was unique and appealing to universities. Any who, I guess there’s no harm in trying.

gpa?

@highschoolIB, what is your real question? You asked “Do I have any remote chances at getting into any ivy league schools?” When @MomOnALaptop gave you a direct, relevant and knowledgeable answer you dismissed it with 'well my GC disagrees and says I’m good". A bit rude. So, is this just a feel-good, tell me how awesome I am thread?

@MomOnALaptop told you that your background is not as unique as you think it is, and I will tell you the same. Does that mean you will or won’t get into any given school? nope. But if you and your college counselor think that your background makes you such a rare bird that it will tip you over into the yes column, you are both mistaken. In my D’s secondary school class (100 students per year) there are at least half a dozen kids with similar backgrounds (including mine). That’s one grade in one small school. Are some of those kids going to tippy top schools? yes. and did some of those kids- with comparable grades/scores/rigor/ECs- get shut out of tippy top schools and have to settle for plain old top schools? yes.

As Mom said, of course you have a chance. But with acceptances in the 5-9% range your chances- and everybody elses!- are very small, and your background is not unique enough to be a hook. So apply- but don’t count on your background it to carry you. Write essays that show the maturity / depth that comes from how you have responded to the benefits and challenges of your upbringing.

ps, be aware that service trips are seen by the tippy top schools as expensive adventures for privileged kids- if it doesn’t link convincingly to some other part of you / your story, it will be seen at best as a neutral. Similarly, if you have “always done an internship at a prestigious law firm” the assumption is that mummy or daddy is associated somehow with the firm and arranged it for you- again, more a mark of privilege than accomplishment (b/c they know that top law firms do not typically have 15/16 year olds for internships- those are competitive for college students).

It is fine to apply to a couple of reach schools, but you need to spend some time to select your safety school. Best of luck.

And time on your match schools. Odds are much higher that you will be at a match or safety school in the end, so start your search there. Anyone can find reaches, but a well crafted list of matches and safeties takes elbow grease. And anyone generically asking for “any Ivy League school” has given little thought to their search.

What are your CR and M SAT scores? The Writing score is sometimes not considered as important (particularly since the new SAT made it optional). I’ve also noticed that many of the selective schools only provide score ranges on the first two – also suggesting that a very high writing score will not necessarily make up for lower M and CR scores. Assuming a 710 on each for you, that would put you at the median for CR and below the median for M in the most recent data from Cornell. I checked Cornell because it is the Ivy with the largest freshman class (there are no “lower tier” Ivys – but more spaces means more acceptances).

At Yale, the 25% was 710 for CR and 700 for M, which would likely place you at best somewhere in the bottom third of admitted students. Remember that many of the “lower-scored” admissions are students who have a reason for low scores (low SES, poor urban or rural schools, ESL), that probably doesn’t exist for a kid in an IB program.

Your background is certainly a plus, but the test scores are marginal for the top 20 schools. If this is really important to you, take the SAT again.