<p>Heyy guys, i know there are so many posts out there like this but i rly need everyones help if you dont mind!</p>
<p>Ok so i like really wanna get into columbia so ill tell you my basics:</p>
<p>GPA: 4.0 ( valedictorian of my class)
SAT: 1280 ( rly blows i know)
SAT II: 600 (Bio M), planning on taking math 2 and chem
ACT: 28 ( also blows)
Background: Pakistani
Activies: doing Harvard Summer School Gen Chem thing this summer, model un, high school tennis team, multicultural club, World Affairs COunsel, newspaper, literay magazine, etc
Extracurriculars: volunteer old age home, cancer center, etc
Awards: Harvard Book Prize, poetry awards etc
I have alot of other activies and awards and clubs and sports but i dont rly wanna list them all</p>
<p>Sooo i guess the big question is if i have any chances of getting into columbia or any other ivy leauges. I plan on retaking the sats and acts and maybe the sat 2 bio and also take the other sat 2s that i need to take in october/ septmber</p>
<p>THANKS for anyone who helps. i know its just a broad and hard question to answer but i just want peoples general opinion</p>
<p>YEah am also as curious as Lavender, what is the harvard book prize? U definitely need to retake ur tests. GPA is real good. Taking my SAT the same time you're taking yours. </p>
<p>Once u improve in you SATs, ur ECs are real good, and the essays....a blast, then you'll be up for it.</p>
<p>hey guys i rly appreciate you guys commenting i know its getting really annoying of all these chances threads so again thanks!</p>
<p>the harvard book prize is like an academic award i think, i think you have to be nominated by a teacher.couselor and you get lkie this actaul book about harvard...i think its a prety elite prize but im no totally sure</p>
<p>and yes im SO horrible with standarized testing. my high school is like number 1 in pa and its so hard to get a 4.0 and it sucks beacuse my sats are soo bad heres my breaksdown
math 640
verbal 640
writing 650</p>
<p>its soo bad and i have tried soo hard to study and prepare but im still nto getting the score i want....i mean i did kaplan then private tutoring and then stuyding on my own getting books and stuff and nothing seemed t help my scres raised only 100 poitns in total alot of programs that im looking at require 1400 so it majorly blows....anyone have any help for me? again thanks to anyone who replies!</p>
<p>This is a link from the parent's forum. I haven't read it through, but I've heard people rave about the "xiggi" method. You might want to check it out for ideas as to how to improve your scores. Good luck.</p>
<p>yea i dont rly know what theyre talking about with that method....urgh im just so annoyed with this whole college process its like youre never good enough it really sucks i mean college admissions is basicaly a game of luck....you have to be in the right place at the right time..URGh soo annoyed right nowww</p>
<p>given your GPA and ECs, you could be a very competitve applcant. The fact that you're Pakistani is also helpful, but like ppl are saying, you HAVE to get your test scores up. The best way for me is to PRACTICE books. I bought like 3 different books and just studied different types of problems...went up from 1350/1600 to 2220/2400. So it is definitely possible. But the valedictorian/low SAT scores is gonna raise eyebrows. Good luck.</p>
<p>
[quote]
the harvard book prize is like an academic award i think, i think you have to be nominated by a teacher.couselor and you get lkie this actaul book about harvard...i think its a prety elite prize but im no totally sure
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Actually, it's a pretty meaningless "award," just like pretty much every other arbitrary/popularity-contest/kiss-up/inflated school award turns into.</p>
<p>Actually, it's a pretty meaningless "award," just like pretty much every other arbitrary/popularity-contest/kiss-up/inflated school award turns into.</p>
<p>is it seriosuly meaningless....i mean it cant totally meaningless like you cant be a 2.0 gpa student troublemakes and get the harvard book award. i mean iw as teh only junior in my whole school to get it and my class is about 400 kids...and what do you mean that the valedictorian/low gpa is going to raise eyebrows? </p>
<p>they'r going to think you got by some other way than by actually doing some hard work and will raise some concern. </p>
<p>whether the award is BS or not is not really an issue....you MUST have better SATs than that to have a chance....it doesnt even look like you are making up for the SAT I score with SAT IIs.</p>
<p>sharaf thanks for making me feel better haha</p>
<p>umm yeah so i know my sat/sat 11/ act scores are a real concern with my app as a whole but i have a feeling that its only going to be in the high 1300s when i get don and maybe a 30 or 31 for the acts....hopeflly better though...but what do you think abotu those scores i mean i know theyre not competitive but i just want the general thoughts of people</p>
<p>spend less time concerning yourself over what others think, for no one here can tell you with absolute certainty. glance through old admit threads and observe the type of students that get admitted. There is no cut and dry method to admissions.</p>
<p>that being said,</p>
<p>i think your situation won't keep you out, but definitely won't shoo you in either.</p>
<p>i got in with a 1350 SAT score (in 2003) so i know very well that it is only one part of your app. but it needs to look somewhat decent and the reason I said you arent making up for it with SAT 2s is because despite my low SAT score my SAT 2 scores were strong (all above 700...writing, bio M, math IIC)....</p>
<p>and yes, true, none of us can tell you for sure what your chances are, i think its better than looking at stats of random ppl who got in cause they are usually the ppl who are trying to show off.</p>
<p>
[quote]
is it seriosuly meaningless....i mean it cant totally meaningless like you cant be a 2.0 gpa student troublemakes and get the harvard book award. i mean iw as teh only junior in my whole school to get it and my class is about 400 kids...and what do you mean that the valedictorian/low gpa is going to raise eyebrows?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Well, 2.0 gpa troublemakers aren't applying to Columbia. Most people applying to Columbia have resumes full of meaningless high school awards. These silly book awards serve no purpose other than to impress people who don't know what they really are -- a pile of nothing. The Harvard book award has nothing to do with Harvard... Harvard doesn't choose you for it... you don't have any better chance to get into Harvard if you get one. Hell, there are probably 3,000 kids walking around who each got a Harvard book award from their high schools. And, there's probably another 3,000 kids with Yale book awards. And so on.</p>
<p>kinda of the topic of my chances....is columbia as hard to get into as like harvard yale or princeton? just wondering i mean i know this whole admission process is a game of chance and it might be harder for one person to get into columbia than harvard....but just like the overal gist of what school is more competitive to get into</p>