<p>@picktails and everyone what advice would you give for those of us just beginning to apply? If you had to do it over again what would you stick to and what would you change? </p>
<p>Wow! Glad this is over
DD accepted Binghamton, UMass Amherst CHC, Goucher, Smith, Bryn Mawr, Rutgers, Montclair State honors, Simmons College. Waitlisted Wellesley, Denied Vassar</p>
<p>Sent the deposit to Simmons this weekend. I think it is the right fit.</p>
<p>@cupcake sorry it took so long to get back to you. The last two weeks before deadline are crazy.
I don’t know that I would do things differently but</p>
<p>Don’t count on need based aid alone. The guy at Swarthmore told us that your idea of need is not their idea of need</p>
<p>Split your search into categories like “state flagship” or “smaller state” or “small private” rural or city. Wherever your dream school falls, have another alternative or 2 in that box.</p>
<p>Know your tolerance for essay writing. I heard a student say that she wrote one essay and used versions for all the apps. I’m skeptical. A lot of our non-state schools required multiple essays on top of the common app one. And DD got hand written notes from two admissions offices about her common app essay. They are reading those things so put individual thought into them</p>
<p>If you can, find out how much your parents are willing to pay, not the EFC</p>
<p>If you can, visit. There were a couple of schools that were on my list as parent that DD refused to even apply to ( Harvard and GWU and Swarthmore and Tufts for example). I learned a lot about DD just from having her explain why she wouldn’t fit there and in the long run, it helped her decide what was important. Also there were two schools on our list that we did not visit before decision. One gave the best fin aid but I do not think they were on the table at all in her mind.</p>
<p>All I can think of for now but I have a freshman in HS so I will be rethinking this in another year. Good luck</p>
<p>@cupcake,- apologies, been spending time on the UPenn board! Hmmm - definitely do your research regarding fit. Make sure you have enough safeties - cannot stress that enough. The ivies really discourage ED UNLESS you are an EXTREMELY strong candidate, so you are correct. Make sure you know why you want to attend somewhere, and look into aspects besides academics. Write your essays honestly, from the heart; as they say, be yourself. Good luck!</p>
<p>We just finished the admissions process. Its been long & laborious as we started it at the beginning of DDs freshman year. Her results have been wonderful, there was a plan and never deviated.</p>
<p>Some advice-</p>
<p>Get and stay organized. A huge calendar is great. We picked one up from Walmart. Add all of your deadlines. Even the obvious ones, it will allow you to see what you have accomplished as you cross things off. DD used pencil & crossed off in red.</p>
<p>Ask your teachers for LORs now, nothing worse than asking last minute…and follow up with a thank you letter for their willingness to assist in your college admissions process. Also ask the teachers for several copies of LORs, you will need LOTS of them for different scholarships that you will apply for. This allows you to have the LORs in a file & you don’t want to bug the teacher over & over in the fall/winter. DD applied for 35 or so scholarships. It pays to have lots of copies. </p>
<p>Know each schools testing requirements. When you figure that out, go to college board/ACT websites and know which dates you will sit for the tests. Sign up early. The dates will fill up for the seniors who are testing for the first time & those retesting.</p>
<p>Look at the CA now if you can, there is usually a preview in the spring. Print it and take a look. Each colleges supplementals are also there. Look at them, they usually don’t change. This will allow you to know what you are up against. DD wrote about 35 or so essays. From scratch. Yes, she could have reused them, but adcoms know when essays have been recycled. They read hundreds of essays each year, they can spot a phony in their sleep. Unless the prompt is exactly the same, tread lightly. It will bite you in the butt if you get lazy. DD would often ask me to read her essays, I could always tell the ones that had been used before and she reworked it. Could smell a reused essay a mile away…And I’m an amateur. She did reuse many college essays for the scholarships apps.</p>
<p>Start your scholarship search now. Many deadlines are in the early to late fall. Ron Brown, Coca Cola, are just a couple. Add those deadlines to your calendar as well. You may need a seperate calendar for scholarships. </p>
<p>Back to being organized, get a few cheap plastic file boxes/folders. Label the folders LORs, Scholarships, Awards, FAFSA/CSS, et al… Again, get and stay organized.</p>
<p>Have stamps, paper clips handy for sending out scholarship apps along with a bunch of brightly colored 9x12 sized envelopes. Be neat with your presentation when you mail them out, adults care about neatness & attention to detail. Have nice resume stock paper for printing of your resume to add with the sch. apps. It’s probably $8.00 or less for a box at Walmart/Staples. Some will ask for a photo. Find a nice professional one, use Walgreens app to send it and they will print it for you pretty cheaply. Many sch. apps want the GCs LOR & signature. Again, give him/her enough time, always ask a month in advance. DD would email her GC, then follow up 2 weeks out if it wasn’t done. They are extremely busy & like the reminders. </p>
<p>Ask for a copy of your transcript NOW, to see if there are any mistakes. If they tell you no, ask your parent to ask for it. They do make mistakes and you need to address it now. Be proactive. This is your future. Have copies handy, many scholarship apps require them. You will save your GC some time if you are organized and not requesting copies all through this process. </p>
<p>Back to thank you notes. Have plenty on hand. Use them. Teachers and others need to know you appreciate them. A hand written note of gratitude goes a very long way. Even for those who don’t write LORs. Place them in their mailboxes. Showing your appreciation is another one of those attention to detail things. Adults love them. Especially in the age of emails & texts. DD has probably gone through at least10 boxes since freshman year.</p>
<p>Always plan accordingly and if the deadline is 11/30/14, give yourself a deadline of 11/27/14. Especially if you are a procrastinator. DD is a notorious procrastinator and has caused lots of angst because of it. </p>
<p>Always print 2 scholarship apps because I found that DD would make an error & have to start all over. She always printed at school. Keep copies of what you send if you can. They will often want to interview you 4-5 months after the app has been submitted.</p>
<p>I’m done for now! </p>
<p>I will add more later if I think of anything. </p>
<p>One last thing, if you plan on applying to fly in weekend events, the apps will be available soon. Know the deadlines and requirements. Many deadlines are in June and August. They also want essays, LORs and a copy of your transcript. Search those out now so you know what to expect. I know DD missed Amhersts deadline by 15 minutes. They didn’t accept her app.</p>
<p>Every time you use @cupcake I get a notification - but I am nothing to do with this thread! I think you will ave to use @TheCupcakeSpy</p>
<p>Sorry</p>
<p>lol, my bad.</p>
<p>@thecupcakespy. Look at this post. It has some good advice. <a href=“Advice to 2019 Parents from a 2018 Parent survivor - Parents Forum - College Confidential Forums”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/1656255-advice-to-2019-parents-from-a-2018-parent-survivor-p1.html</a> </p>
<p>Good luck. </p>
<p>@Demonz Just realized this is the 8 Ivy League kid LOL</p>
Kwasi is Demonz!
Okay so i’m currently a junior in high school. My weighted GPA is a 4.5 i believe. My most recent semester grades are as follows:
AP Biology - A
AP Psychology - B 
Hon. English 11 - A
Hon. Government -A
Pre- Calc -A
and i added Hon Health to this semester which will probably be an A
I just took my SAT and i’m taking my ACT in two weeks. I don’t know either score yet.
Varsity Soccer, Varisty track
Club President of - Black Student Alliance, International Student Alliance, Political Activists, Furture Buiness Leaders
Some awards here and there, nothing serious
I plan on doing Model UN and Science Honors Society
But here’s the catch,
My sophomore year i spent my entire time living and schooling in Lagos Nigeria. I did not do it through one of those expensive Study Abroad programs. I literally got dropped off in a boarding school on the outskirts of the biggest city in Africa by myself. I experienced things such as
harsh discipline (getting caned/flogged for minor acts),
extreme pollution (smog, exhaust from many oil companies, trash burning, etc.),
terrible diseases ( typhoid, malaria, small pox, lacer fever, etc.),
strict education ( 10 hour school days),
wild animals/ insects ( i was bitten by stray dogs, cockroaches in my bed, rats in my room),
very little electricity (there was no electricity from the time we went to bed and when we woke up, extremely hot nights),
limited running water (there was no warm running water to shower with and the shower water was not drinkable, i had to trek
to get clean water sometimes, no electronics (even if there was internet which there wasnt, electronics were not allowed,
terrorism: My schools was actually threatened by Boko Haram and we had to up security
even “witch craft”: my teachers would curse students and weird stuff like that, messed up I know
and a totally different lifestyle all together
etc- there’s a lot more, i could go on forever
However, i did make friends, better my study habits, better my soccer skills haha and so much more. The fruits from such an experience are countless. I still have very good friends there and i really miss my roommates who helped me so much.
The reason i did this is because my parents are from Nigeria and are very successful (Mom is a Harvard Med School Grad, current surgeon and Dad is a business man/ owner with Phd)
I’m from a very competitive family, almost all my cousins older than me have gone to schools such as Vanderbilt, Princeton, Duke, Columbia, Harvard, etc.
The school I go to is the top school in my state. People always say that my chances of getting into colleges is better because i’m from a wealthy African family and I have international perspective.
My ideal goal is to get an MBA International Business (If that even makes sense) and a degree in Environmental Sciences and or Sustainability. The reason being so is because I want to go back to Nigeria and help my country. It is so sad that a country with such abundant resources is so corrupt, poor, polluted etc. The first few weeks there, i was legitimately sick from the smog in the air. Being surrounded by oil giants like Exxon really made me think. I want to increase the use of Renewable Energy in Nigeria, and help people there. I doubt oil will run out there but people should not continue living like that. Nigeria just has so many problems. I am very determined to bring sustainability to NIgeria and the rest of Africa. That’s why International business and environmental sciences fit me 
I know this all just sounds like bragging but i’m trying to be as descriptive as possible.
Let’s say i get at least a 2000 on the SAT and/or a 30 on the ACT
Do you think i have a chance at any of the following schools? Consider the fact that i’m an URM that can (probably) pay most of tuition. The reason i’d like to attend such high end schools is that it increases my chances of success. Trust me, I know how to study hard (I learned that from fellow students in a developing country, we were forced to study for at least 4 hours a day). I’m used to hard work. I’m ambitious. I’m also the first child with 3 younger siblings behind me. I must lead them towards the right direction. It is my duty as the first son to show the way for them.
Brown University
UPenn
UC Berkeley
Harvard U
Carnegie Mellon
Columbia
Boston College
UMD
Penn State
UCLA
Stanford? Yale?
NYU
I understand these are pretty much all reach schools. I am also looking into schools outside the US. Please give suggestions if you have any! I am very open to all opinions.
Thanks
Note- I’m Igbo hahah shoutout to all my naja boys out there. never stop eating your fufu oh!
@0br0123 Just letting you know that a 2000SAT/30 ACT is below the 25th percentile at UPENN, Columbia, Brow, Stanford,and Yale. However your ec’s are intriguing which is a plus. You mentioned that " Consider the fact that i’m an URM that can (probably) pay most of tuition " which is completely untrue. Sure being a URM helps some, but at the schools you’ve listed, most of which don’t offer merit aid. All in all, don’t rely on being a URM to get you into these schools. You have a good gpa, and if you can get a high SAT/ACT score compiled with your good ec’s, you’ll be fine. Good luck!
@Gatortristan thanks so much for feedback! I will definitely consider that.
I have been reading this thread throughly, and I congratulate all of you (and your children, if you are parents)!!
One thing I didn’t notice on this thread was a presence of IB kids. I took both AP & IB, and I am a rising senior (with dreams of attending any of the HYP - preferably Princeton). I took 7 APs, got one 3, three 4s, and three 5s. I will be taking an additional 3 APs next year, and will have a total of 8 IB classes completed by the end of my senior year. This in total is 18 AP/IB classes on my part. For all intensive purposes, my GPA is a 4.73 as of now (I have only ever received one B in my HS career and it was in AP Calculus AB — but I made up for it with a 5 on the exam and an A in BC)
My SAT/ACT scores are below par as I have a 2100 SAT and 32 ACT. However, I don’t want to take the exams again as I hope to complete my Subject Tests in October and focus on maintaining a high GPA throughout my senior year. My class rank for my GPA is around the top 2%, and my school is moderately competitive. I have taken the most rigorous class load of any rising senior at my school, and my teachers are well aware of that. Also, I live in Maryland (but idk if geographic diversity here in the east coast places that much of a role in HYP admissions).
What do you guys say are my chances at reaching towards HYP? It has been my dream to attend an Ivy, and I vicariously lived through the joy of your acceptances just by reading them!
Thanks for all your help and support in advance, my fellow AAs!