Sophomore Chances - Early Grad?

Chance Me / Match Me!
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Here’s my academic profile, I’m a sophomore that is looking at competitive colleges such as UChicago, Stanford, Dartmouth, Georgia Tech, UCLA, Vassar, Williams, Claremont McKenna, Cornell and UCBerkeley.

Dual Enrollment: English Composition I and II, Psychology, Sociology, Algebra(incl. trigonometry), World History, Oral Communications, Computer Networking, Criminal Justice, and a Visual Basic class. I also took their math placement test and placed into ODE/out of Calculus 2, they don’t even offer calculus tho so I’m stuck with online courses.

GPA in college: 4.0 GPA outside of college unweighted: 4.0 Weighted GPA(all classes besides college are on a 4.0 scale and college/AP is on 5.0): 4.8

ACT: 31.0/31.5 (30(32 for SS) English, 33 Math, 28 Science, and 33 Reading) I plan to raise this because its abysmal but I’m not sure about when to start and I think test prep is a massive waste of time. SAT: 2100(210 PSAT, I hate the test and will only use for NM.)

Subjective:
EdX/Coursera/Udemy/Online Courses(only the ones that I have certificates or college credit for): ContractsX(Law, Harvard), The Science of Happiness(Neuroscience, UCBerkeley), Exoplanets, Greatest Unsolved Mysteries of the Universe, The Violent Universe(All Astrophysics, ANU), Introduction to Linux(Computer Science, Linux Foundation), Relational Algebra, and Computer Science 101, SQL(All Computer Science, Stanford).

Current/Waiting on Certificate EdX/Coursera/Udemy/Online Courses: Introduction to Environmental Science(Environmental Science, Dartmouth), Introduction to Differential Equations(Mathematics, Boston University), Applications of Linear Algebra Part 1(Mathematics, Davidson), Central Challenges of American National Security, Strategy, and the Press(Political Science, Harvard), and Chinese History(History, Harvard).

Worked at the local food bank for tons. I’ve logged over 500 hours.
Tutored at the local after school program to help kids struggling with math and science. Helped to organize an entirely new way to tutor children with less income that uses older books to lower the financial burden on underprivileged children.
Youth leader/worker.
Helped coach my younger brothers’ sports teams.
Umpired softball for the past 3 years for 25 hours a week durin the summer.
Worked repairing computers and implementing networks on a somewhat consistent basis since I was 10.
Started an online learning initiative at my college, 50-100 people have gone through it. That is part of the reason for all of my online courses.

Total community service totals up to 2,000 or so hours logged hours since 8th grade.

Honors/Awards/Recognition Stuff:
Phi Theta Kappa.
Mu Eta Sigma.
Various other math and science awards(AMC 10/12 high scores, AIME once(6), never USAMO tho. Lots of simple research/science fair stuff.)

Random stuff/Sorta hooks:
I’m from rural Arkansas and a city that is normally placed in the top few worst cities in america.
Ireally love literature.
Our income is $130,000 per year
Started 2-3 college classes per semester at 13 and have taken the highest of every course available besides very specialized ones.

What do y’all think? I know some schools like HYP are known to discriminate against homeschoolers but I was goping id atleast have a shot at thosr caliber of schools.

Thanks in advance,
Shelly.

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Although it’s nice that you’ve become so prepared as a sophomore, you really don’t need to be using CC until maybe late junior/senior year. That being said, you seem to be on the absolute right track to getting into all of your schools, especially being someone from Arkansas where there usually aren’t too many qualified applicants (correct me if I’m wrong).

Just keep up the good grades and test scores, focus on a few set passions (like your coaching, repairing computers, online initiative) that will help you write authentic and personalized essays, and you’re set. Good luck!

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Great list of ECs and good ACT score. However, for schools like Vassar and Williams, try and bump up that ACT score a little bit so you can have an above average score (as your current score is on the edge for these schools).

Have you taken any AP classes? If so, what were your scores? And will you be taking any next year?

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I don’t see why I would take the AP tests? They are college classes. Most are even at a top university. I always thought AP tests were to verify that it was really college level… taking it at a top college seems like it would do that. I guess I could go back and take AP tests for all of them… but is it neccisary? Also, there are no AP tests for quiet a few of them. @FutureDoctor2028‌

Thanks for the advice @IntrovertinTexas‌ and @FutureDoctor2028‌ !

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I’ve also taken my fair share of dual-enrollment courses, and, from my experience, you wouldn’t really be expected to take an AP exam after you’ve taken the corresponding dual-enrollment course.

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You should be aware that no one’s chances will be accurate for highly selective colleges, read the pinned thread at the top of the forum. Just like you, a sophomore with no experience, is giving chances as if you know something, so are other people giving them to you, equally clueless.

You should not, of course, take any AP class where you have taken college equivalent through dual enrollment. That’s ridic. I find a lot of your college classes are electives and not necessarily rigorous academic classes. I would stay away from classes like CJ which doesn’t map to any degree program at these colleges either.

I’m afraid the online classes won’t count for much, it is not considered equivalent to enrolled classes at that university for your transcript. They are more like reading a good book, which you wouldn’t put on your college application, necessarily. However, if they serve a purpose for an EC project then that is part of the story you tell when you make your application.

I have not heard than those colleges discriminate against home schooled students. I wonder why that might be, they can surely have no reason for that. However they would certainly want to be assured that your program of study has prepared you well and that if you don’t follow the recommended academic preparation they recommend on their websites that there is a good reason why. So they will be looking for the evidence of your 4 years math, 4 years science (3 labs), 4 English, 2/3 history/gov, 3/4 foreign language, and whatever arts and electives interest you. I’m sure they will be looking for intellectual depth. So you create and maintain your transcripts and course records to show this. And the testing that you do submit will have weight.

You might like to visit the home school forum and find good tips from past applicants.

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@BrownParent‌ A few of those are true online courses e.g. college transcripts(HES, local schools with online programs, etc.), and the rest have proof verified so they are not just just “oh I aid I did”'s. The CJ does map to my degree. Although it is an easy classes, they are also transferrable to my state school, and every other school I’ve checked with, anyway(not the one I took them at ofc,not technical courses tho).
Since I’ve already done all of Calculus, Biology, and Chemistry, I could take the AP tests, but none of the schools here will allow homeschoolers to take them.

As I mentioned I’ve maxed out in all of the Gen Ed classes(English, social sciences, math, etc.) The college that I take a few of them at(closer to my home and I cant drive to the other one everyday of the week)
doesn’t offer calculus or any higher level math, nor any physics or chemistry. I’ve “maxed out” their curriculum.

P.S. I should have included it, but my current courseload in college is Botany, Organizational Management, Computer Algorithms, and Business Management.

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Can you register with CTY or AoPS for math?

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@MYOS1634‌ My parents refuse to let me do online courses(that cost lots anyway). Would it be worth my time to just graduate early and do state school?

Thanks for all of yalls help!

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