<p>Here are my son's stats:
GPA -- 4.34, school doesn't officially rank but he's top 5% (probably top 10 students out of 270). Most challenging classes at prestigious college prep school that usually places well at Ivies.
SAT -- 2310 -- CR-800, Math-740, W-770 (12 essay)
SAT II -- Taking Bio and USH this weekend. Latin - 770, Math IIC-740 (Not a math guy -- but is in APCalcBC as a Junior)
ECs -- All involving one national organization (shouldn't name it to keep some anonymity). Founded and runs his school's chapter, state officer last year, state president this year, honor society, gold medals, perfect papers, captain of academic team, blah blah. Best middle school academic, best high school academic in the state. Third, fourth and fifth place finishes at Nationals (due to do better this summer since one and two graduated last year). Took a college class in the subject as a rising 9th grader (got an A-), took another class on teaching in this subject as a 10th grader (the rest of the seminar was taken by teachers) and got continuing education credit. He's taken his team to many events and they've won best school -- without teacher involvement or help. The head of the state organization (also on national board) will write a letter of rec for him about how great he's been devoting himself to the organization, leading his chapter, running statewide elections, handling constitutional changes, etc.. But that's it. No other ECs. He did debate last year and did well in the state, but didn't go to nationals. Dropped debate when he was elected officer of the other organization to devote his time to that organization. Should he do something else this summer not related to this one EC, or can you get in with a passion in just one area?</p>
<p>Isn't this what college's are looking for? Kids with a passion, who goes far in the thing that they want to do? And assuming the state is california, it is not like he was state president for some small backwater-state organization.</p>
<p>Wow, wow and wow. He is so in.</p>
<p>I don't understand 'chances' threads like this. The guy's clearly smart and successful enough to at least try for Harvard, no matter what people here will say. So all that typing achieves nothing.</p>
<p>i hate it when parents try to brag about their kids."Not a math guy -- but is in APCalcBC as a Junior)"...why dont you let ur son ask us if he really is that great and "self motivated,"</p>
<p>He is definitely a desirable candidate at the very least. Typically kids with one extracurricular activity are taking a risk, since they have to be damn good at that one activity, but I think it's paid off for your son. He definitely has a shot.</p>
<p>What does he WANT to do this summer?</p>
<p>@kyzan </p>
<p>why do you hate it when parents brag about their kids? parents are just proud of their kids man. no need to hate.</p>
<p>@burnthis</p>
<p>your son is pretty typical. avg changes.</p>
<p>I'm not really sure what this program is...</p>
<p>How difficult is it to receive these awards, and how competitive are these leadership positions? It really depends. Many EA applicants have intense leadership and demonstrate character, so it really depends on the prestige of this program (?) and how much respect the admissions officers develop for it.</p>
<p>The reason for the original question is when I read other profiles I see kids with so many varied ECs that I wonder what the adcom at Harvard will think of someone who has only one (albeit one they've done since seventh grade and has taken on leadership positions). I understand when the one EC is starring in a movie or winning an Olympic gold medal, but what do they think of national student driven organizations. Heck, didn't some Olympic guy just get rejected by Harvard? Anyway, no one can consider their kid a lock, not with all the posts about how impossible it is to get into Harvard. Unfortunately, Harvard's his first choice (after visiting and sitting in on a class) as best for his major. Since you only get one Early Admission, I don't want it wasted if he doesn't stand a chance in h*ll. Oh, and my son doesn't know about or post on this site -- this is for me to ask questions, learn, vent and otherwise deal with the stress of college app process WITHOUT letting my fears and concerns become his problem.</p>
<p>Clearly, he does have a chance, if his grades and scores are high and he comes from a well-known feeder school. EA may well be the tip he needs and it really is not a case of it being "wasted" even if it doesn't work out with an acceptance. I say this because you can't predict what one adcom will be looking for in any given application year. He has very strong credentials and a passion to boot and if this is his dream school and HE decides that EA is the way to give himself the best shot, then go for it. It's only a waste if he was so far off the mark that he shouldn't even apply to Harvard in the first place. Think about the situation in reverse -- that he decides to go EA or ED somewhere else and gets in and then spends years wondering if he would have gotten in to his first choice if he'd taken that chance. (That is, if he is deadset on Harvard as his no. 1 choice.) It's more of a dilemma if he is torn between several top schools. If the EA strategy works, he's won big time. If it doesn't, at least he knows he gave it the best shot he could and he will come to be thrilled with one of the other great colleges that definitely will accept him.</p>
<p>BurnThis:</p>
<p>The Olympic champ in question is 26 years old, not 18. Harvard felt it had good reasons to deny admissions to someone who had been out of school for so long.</p>
<p>As to your S's prospects, let me repeat something a Stanford adrep said in response to a question regarding lack of multiple ECs. The adrep suggested that adcoms understand students' lacking time to do many ECs and do them well; at the same time, they value commitment ("passion"). Someone who was deeply interested in music could tick off several categories of ECs by taking music lessons outside school, performing concerts, and tutoring other students in music.</p>
<p>My S did get admitted to Stanford; his EC was essentially the Science Team. The Stanford adcom must have realized that, given the extra courses he was taking, there was not much time to do anything else.</p>
<p>Throughtout the first post, the tone I got was bragging, but nonetheless, I think your son has a chance. But Harvard is still a reach for everyone so try to keep more options open</p>
<p>He certainly stands a chance - but no one can predict what will happen. If Harvard is his first choice he should go for it. My D was accepted early, with no expectation of being accepted. We agreed that she would get as many applications done early as possible, and have them waiting to be sent if she was rejected or deferred. She got a pleasant surprise in December but was ready to move on with other great possiblities had that not been the case. </p>
<p>I'd suggest that your son apply and then move on ... there are many terrific schools out there. You'd be surprised at how many kids change their minds as to what is "perfect" between junior and senior years of HS - and then between December and May of senior year!</p>
<p>Your son has the credentials to get into Harvard. An early application there would not be a waste, but it wouldn't guarantee results either. If your son is set on Harvard, he should apply there early. Say, for example, he applies to Penn or Brown ED for a bit more of an edge and gets in. If I were him, I would be wondering if I would've made the cut at Harvard. He might regret that and he might not, but if he wants to apply to Harvard early set him loose.</p>
<p>"Passion" really has been the buzz word of late, and your son seems to exemplify it very well. However, it does seem that most students are still involved in other activities at their high school. Whether or not this is coincidence or something admissions reps look for, I can't say. It does seem that admissions is getting tougher, such that they are seeking out kids that are well-rounded AND passionate. That being said, the point of this game is to stand out. And your son's application should do that - so roll the dice. :)</p>
<p>On that topic, your son should be involved in this summer whatever he wants to be involved in. No superficial involvement in minor activities will have any impact on his application at this point, but further achievements in his organization may serve him well.</p>
<p>Just be fully aware that a GOOD chance at Harvard is about 15%. That's a 50% increase in the odds of the average applicant.</p>
<p>"Just be fully aware that a GOOD chance at Harvard is about 15%. That's a 50% increase in the odds of the average applicant."</p>
<p>That is just plain untrue. Her son has at least a 20-25% chance of getting in to Harvard EA purely based on the fact that the EA admissions rate hovers around that number. If her son applied RD your numbers would be more correct, but don't ignore the fact that EA admissions offer a serious advantage. If your son is interested in Harvard then he should definitely apply EA as it increases his chances about 4x from 5-8% for a typical RD applicant to the 20-25% for EA applicants.</p>
<p>Your son has a decent chance at Harvard. Who can really say if he'll get in or not? If Harvard is his first choice school, let him apply SCEA. Everyone knows that there are no guarantees in the college admissions process. It's a well known risk that applicants may be "let down," so there's no point in trying to shield him from it, as he is obviously qualified to apply.</p>
<p>Go read the EA admissions thread from 15 Dec on this board.
SCEA admits: 892 (09) - 902 (08)
SCEA admit rate: 21.2% (09) - 23.2% (08)
SCEA applicants deferred: 3,187 (09) - 2,788 (08)</p>
<p>This includes most of the athletes (a large percentage at Harvard), most of the legacies, most of the highly ranked URMs, and most of the other hooks. If you don't fit in these categories, the admit rate is much closer to the 6.5% RD admit rate.</p>