<p>I am a top student and I have a decent SAT (>2300) and a fair assortment of extracurriculars; however, I am unsure if it would even be worth the money to apply to top-tier Ivies: in particular, Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and Stanford. Given that admissions are becoming more and more arbitrary ("holistic"), I am worried that it would simply be a waste of my time and of the application fee. Would it be a good idea to give it a try anyway, or am I just wasting my time?</p>
<p>I have a decent application but it is not especially strong in any one regard. My test scores and grades are alright when compared to the rest of the Ivy admission pool, and I do have a summer research internship with a nationally renowned professor at a top public university along with a tutoring/college prep company I started as extracurriculars (along with the usual: piano, various clubs, etc.) but nothing major and no awards at a national or international level (save for the unimportant CollegeBoard AP awards). Based on College Confidential results threads for those universities, it would basically be a complete gamble--there is hardly any discernible rhyme or reason to admissions these days. People similar to me have been accepted, waitlisted, and rejected. It could just be a total waste of time, especially when I admittedly do have other perfectly fine options for college.</p>
<p>Results threads seem random because they don’t tell you everything. Essays and recommendations are extremely important (interviews too, but less so) in differentiating students at the HYPS level, yet all you see are the applicants’ self evaluations of these subjective factors. Go for it if you think your essays and recs are strong.</p>
<p>Please expound on these extracurriculars in terms of what they are, how many years you have been involved, and the degree of awards/honors you have achieved in them (school, local, regional, state, national, international). If you don’t have these ECs on point, don’t bother because solely having high GPA, ranking, and test scores don’t mean anything for HYPS. Especially if you’re Asian—particularly East Asian—which I assume you are, from your username.</p>
<p>I say apply. I’m applying to Brown even though I know I’ll never get in, and (according to your stats) you actually stand a chance at your choices. Go for it.</p>
<p>It’s what, like $60-70 each for something that you actually have a shot at and could alter your pathway. You’ll most likely be paying thousands if not tens of thousands more on college education expenses anyways.</p>