Should I go Ivy League?

College Search & Selection
1

Hey everyone,
I’ve been thinking about it the past few months and really want to apply to an Ivy League school, but wonder what the likelihood of my getting into an Ivy institution or school of similar quality is. The non-ivy schools I’m interested in are Bowdoin College, UCLA, UC Berkley, University of Virginia, Johns Hopkins, and Washington University in St. Louis.
School Type: Private
Grade:10th, sophomore
Race: Hispanic
Gender: Male
GPA: 3.8 (I don’t know my weighted GPA)
SAT/ACT: My school didn’t offer the SAT to sophomores this year because of the reformatting of the test, so I don’t have an SAT score currently.
Advanced Courses: AP US History
Anatomy
Sociology
EC: Football, will be 4 years Senior year
Swimming, will be 3 years Senior year
Track and Field, will be 3 years Senior year
Part of the core group for my school’s performing arts program, have acted in one performance
Published in a local literary magazine
Currently writing a book with the assistance of my English teacher that is roughly 90 pages long currently (first draft). I’m not sure how long it will be when completed.
Will take General Chemistry 1 and Writing Fiction at Virginia Commonwealth University in June/July, earning 2 college credits, and will be volunteering every day part time at New York Presbyterian in August, for what I would estimate around 90-110 hours of community service.
You should know: This year (sophomore year) is the first year I’ve passed more classes than failed. I’ve struggled consistently to work with schools, and was kicked out of my middle school, and dropped out of high school my freshman year, resulting in my having to repeat freshman year. I was struggling a lot emotionally, and because of this my current high school has said they’d be willing to let me do summer school and re take my freshman year courses.
Neither of my parents completed high school, and both struggled with addiction/depression during their adolescence and early adulthood.
A big part of my failure to pass classes during my childhood was because of my personal struggle with depression that I’ve only recently overcome in the beginning of this year.
I plan to write my college essays about this topic, as well as how I learned how to be a functional and well-balanced student.
I plan to take 4 AP classes next year
I am starting a school newspaper that I will write weekly with one or two other students.

So, do you think any Ivies would be interested in me as a potential student? How about the other schools mentioned above? Thanks!

2

Worth a shot just keep your GPA up and study your butt of for the SAT. Do some more community service and take more AP’s. You’ll have a shot especially for Cornell, Collombia Darmouth.

3

How did you fail classes and end up with a 3.8??

4

I have straight A’s and I’m barely clinging to a 3.9 :-/

5

My bad, I meant to say that my GPA this year is a 3.8. Last year my GPA was atrocious, I honestly don’t even want to know what it was.

6

If you can stay consistent for the next two years and kill the sat, I don’t see why you wouldnt have a chance. we all make mistakes but it’s how you bounce back that counts and you have done that very well

7

Thanks. I do really want to go Ivy but more than that just want to get into a college with the best pre-med program I can get, like one of the ones listed above. Worst case scenario is that I go to a really good school for my undergraduate and transfer to an Ivy or similar quality school after working my butt off during my undergrad. Realistically, not the end of the world. Still, a guy can dream, can’t he?

8

Why would anyone apply to both Bowdoin and UCLA?

9

Most of my family lives in California and I have legacy from UCLA, but I go to school in Maine and my school has a pretty good relationship with Bowdoin

10

Nobody can chance you right now, given your turbulent history and lack of standardized test scores. You are obviously bright and accomplished, but junior grades and scores will be critical. Bowdoin is test-optional, but the other schools are not, and some (e.g. WashU) are notorious for their attention to test scores. Most four-year colleges will provide the necessary classes for medical school admissions. I advise you not to become overly invested in the prestigious “brand-name” colleges, especially if you cannot maintain such a high GPA next year or your test scores aren’t what you hoped for. There are thousands of colleges you can go to, and it is self-defeating to focus excessively on the ones that routinely reject thousands of applicants with near-perfect grades and scores.

11

If you are low income, then you will need to apply to schools that meet full need or where you can get a merit scholarship. Depending on your SAT/ACT scores, these schools can be more or less selective. Keep working hard, and you should have some good options.