Please help :)

Colleges and Universities A-Z Cornell University
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<p>Hi everyone!</p>

<p>Like many students out there, I am a keen individual who has big dreams to attend an elite college. My top choices include Stanford, Columbia, Cornell, UPenn and Harvard. But, as usual, it is a tough process. </p>

<p>I am currently a junior in high school and as much as i know that this is a much despised thread in the CC community, could you please give me some feedback on what you think my chances are at these universities? your time and efforts are much appreciated :)</p>

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<p>Freshman:
honours french 10, honours pre calculus 10, honours mandarin 10</p>

<p>Sophomore:
honours french 11, honours pre calculus 11, challenge 10 (outdoor leadership and education program; must be appointed and selected by the staff)</p>

<p>Junior:
honours precalculus 12 (pre ap), honours french 12 (pre ap), honours chemistry (pre ap), honours english 12 (pre ap), physics 11 (pre ap)</p>

<p>Senior:
AP Calculus, AP Lang, AP French, AP World History, AP Physics</p>

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<p>BC Children's Hospital Youth Ambassador: (4 years)
- fundraised over $15,000 to help build a new oncology unit at the hospital
- achieved elite ambassador recognition and gold level commitment
- three time recipient of a national service award from the house of parliament</p>

<p>India Service Trip, 2012
Kenya Service Trip, 2013
-- i know service trips are not very valued by admission committees (especially at elite colleges) but these were the reason why i decided to start my own non profit organization</p>

<p>Also volunteered at several other places including the Red Cross, my local aquarium, local food banks, an ecology association and my community centre</p>

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<p>THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH AND I LOOK FORWARD TO ANY REPLIES! :)</p>

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<p>bump bump bump!</p>

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<p>That is…rather competitive and admirable …</p>

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<p>You definitely are very competitive, but I hate to say it but your application screams privilege.</p>

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<p>Hmmm… is it bad for it to be screaming privilege? :
Is there anything I can do to make it more competitive? Do you have tips for writing essays? I’m so anxious! :S</p>

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<p>It’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it certainly won’t help you. Your SATs and rank are impressive, as are your ECs, but as much as I hate nutjobs who go around cursing people’s “privilege”, ny4chelsea may have a point here. Your stats, and extracurriculars in particular, seem to point towards someone who has been very fortunate in life (particularly through your lack of having what would be considered a “normal” job - ie something you took for money, not to benefit your college application). If the adcom picks up on this, it may have a slightly negative impact on your application, although I don’t think it will be a deal-breaker. Also, I hate to say it, but being an Asian with ECs in badminton and piano doesn’t really help either. Although you seem to be female, and are majoring in science, which will be a HUGE benefit.</p>

<p>That said, the quickest and easiest way to ensure that you don’t come off as “privileged” (ugh I hate that word) is through your essays. Don’t come off as elitist, or make it seem like you have a very high opinion of yourself. Show off your good qualities, certainly, but don’t come off as condescending or overly certain of yourself. Just as an example, using phrases like “college preparatory” to describe your high school is probably a no-no (someone can correct me on this if I’m wrong). I’m not saying don’t use big words, certainly try to write a deep, meaningful, and well-worded essay, just try to make sure someone reading it won’t think you’re arrogant and spoiled. If you nail this, I don’t think anyone will care if your EC activities come off as a bit elitist.</p>

<p>If you don’t completely tank the essay, and you’re teachers write good recommendations, I think you’ll have no problem getting into Cornell, and I’d probably say UPenn and Columbia as well. Harvard and Stanford are crapshoots, but you’d probably have a decent shot there too. As I said before, your grades, standardized test scores, and extracurriculars are fantastic. You just have to convince them that you did all that out of your own motivation, passion, and enjoyment, and not because someone told you it would look good on a college application.</p>

<p>I’m no expert, though. I’m just some high school senior who was bored enough at 11:30 at night to write a wall of text for some random topic on collegeconfidential. Good luck!</p>

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<p>@firecy: wow that was an awesome response! thanks so much! :slight_smile: it’s always nice to get more opinions. i will definitely keep that in mind !</p>

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<p>howd ya end up pulling that off? that’s pretty awesome</p>