<p>How much does doing research in a lab and getting published in a journal help admissions to IVIES/top 20 schools?</p>
<p>very much.
in fact, I think it’s the best thing you can do outside of school to raise your chance for top schools</p>
<p>What about is the research is done but not published in a scientific journal? A significant paper/lab write-up is produced and entered in contests, but not published.</p>
<p>So as long as you have a publication, how much would you say (in terms of %) would it increase your chances at an IVY?</p>