<p>Hello all,
I'm new to the forums and was wondering if any current students or alumni at prestigious universities (HYPS, Ivy League, etc) would tell me if I am on the right path for college. </p>
<p>White/Male/Freshman
New high school in SoCal (first grad class was last year :)</p>
<p>Classes: Biology H = A+
Ancient Civilizations H = A
Algebra 2 H = A-
Spanish 2 = A
English 1 H = A</p>
<p>Sport: JV golf (moving to varsity next year)</p>
<p>E.C. = starting a non-profit on my own, California Scholarship Federation (running for freshman representative), volunteer hours at Habitat for Humanity</p>
<p>Awards = scholar athlete, honor roll (lol. amazing, right?) not much so far but hopefully there will be later on</p>
<p>GPA = 4.8 W, 4.0 NW</p>
<p>SAT = i took the SAT the first month of HS just to get a feel for it. I did not prepare for it at all and scored 1900. Obviously I will improve this in the next 2 or so years.</p>
<p>Any comments/advice/concerns are greatly appreciated. Thanks :)</p>
<p>For YOUR best path to an Ivy League, I’d consult Google Maps or even Mapquest. </p>
<p>You’re a Freshman… Not much anyone could tell you. Retake SAT, take SAT II, get A’s, Do more extracurriculars, don’t do drugs, don’t do MMORPGs… you know the standard advice…</p>
<p>Your interests may change. And the Ivy League is an old sporting league… See if the place is really for you… For example, I’d never go to Dartmouth or Columbia. (Wilderness and costs respectively)</p>
<p>Path for ivy league though? Get off of this site for about 2 years. In the meantime, just do well in school and participate in activities you enjoy.</p>
<p>Okay, first of all, there is no ‘path’ that will guarantee that you will get into the Ivy League. Second, the Ivy League is a name for a past football league of colleges. They’re not necessarily the best schools in the country, and the best school in the country is really the best school for you. The schools that you should apply to are the ones that fit your desires and needs in college. I thought long and hard about what I wanted in college and didn’t appl to a single Ivy League school, because I concluded that some schools were better for me. In the end I found that Swarthmore was the best choice for me, and that’s where I’m going.</p>
<p>That’s how much of the college process should go.</p>
<p>If you were a college admissions officer, you’d want to admit people who were genuine and genuinely interested in learning and who were active and energetic and let their energy out in positive ways, for example by participating in a sport or volunteering or working or learning a new language. You’d want to admit people who are both academically capable and are capable of pursuing their own goals and take the initiative to do so. And you wouldn’t want ‘posers.’ </p>
<p>Try not to think about college so much. You’re still a freshman. And try not to ‘pose’–you know what I mean. Think about your interests and how you can pursue them. It shouldn’t take the fear of getting into the Ivy League to get you to do that. </p>
<p>Try to be interesting, but do it for you and you alone, not to please colleges. After all, the only person you’re going to be stuck with your whole life is you, so you’d better become as interesting as you can.</p>
<p>With that thought, good luck, get off this site until junior year, go out, play soccer, do well in school, think about getting a job, and relax.</p>