Stanford is my absolute DREAM SCHOOL. What are my chances?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

I am a junior in a college prepatory high school in Indiana. Here is my course load so far:

Freshman:
English 9
Adv. Geometry
Adv. Algebra II
Band
Human Anatomy and Physiology
Adv. Biology
World History
Spanish I
Block classes

Sophomore:
AP U.S. History
Microbiology
Adv. Chemistry
Adv. Pre-Calculus
Spanish II
English 10
Honors Band
Block classes

Junior:
AP Biology
AP Statistics
AP Calculus AB
Spanish III
Honors Band
English 11
Economics
Government

Senior Year:
AP Calculus BC
AP Literature
AP World History
AP Chemistry
Honors Band
Malone Class-Human Genetics
Adv. Physics

Unweighted GPA: 4.00
Weighted GPA: right now I have a 4.33 for junior year, will have around 4.4 when I apply

AP Tests:
AP U.S. History-5
I took AP Statistics, AP Calclulus, AP Biology, self-studied for AP Composition-scores come out July

Standardized Tests:
ACT-first time I took I got a 33, planning to take once more in October
PSAT: 1460 on new PSAT (220 on old PSAT)
PSAT: 2
I took SAT II in Math 2, Biology, and U.S. History-scores come out late July

Extracurriculars:
4-year Girls’ golf varsity letter
Started first high school Pre-Med Club
Summer UC Irvine Pre-Med Program (junior)
Summer Stanford Cardiothoracic Surgical Skills Summer Internship (senior)
Member of Fort Wayne Mayor’s Youth Engagement Council-council’s secretary
Key Club 4-year member
School newspaper 4-year member
Band 4-year member
Science Olympiad for 3 years and qualified for state
Science Bowl for 3 years and got 4th at regionals junior year
Participated in Local North Korean Refugees Golf Fundraiser Tournamnent (every year since 8th grade)
Did some golf tournaments over summer throughout high school and placed like 3rd or 4th in them

Community Service:
200+ hours at local hospital
Other hours at school volunteer opportunities, Johnny Appleseed Festival, etc.

Leadership:
Co-captain of golf team
President of Key Club
Newspaper Editor-in-Chief
Founder and president of Pre-Med Club
Organized high school scarf donation to local nursing home through Pre-Med Club
Organized holiday band performance for local nursing home

Research:
Year-long independent research project: Can Consuming More Seafood Serve as a Prophylactic Measure against the Pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s Disease? (20-page paper presented in front of panel of experts)

Awards:
Academic Athletic Award
National Spanish Exam Gold Place (Levels I, II, and III)-First place in Indiana for Level I
Highest Achievement Award (all through junior year)
Headmaster’s List (all through junior year)
High School Science Dept. Biology Book Award
Faculty Prize
Dean’s Award Commendation
Faculty Award Commendation
Cum Laude Inductee
High School Girls’ Golf Determination and Grit Award
High School Girls’ Golf Best Round Award (37 for 9 holes)

Mom developed paralysis waist down during junior year so that was a struggle I had balancing out work load of school and extracurriculars that year. :frowning:

Please by honest and please help me out. Thank you very much, I really appreciate your time.

2

I can guess that you are Asian and obviously out of state. You already know that getting to top tier colleges for asians is so much harder than others. So you have a lot of competitors! And also can u afford oos?
I would say you need a +34 ACT score.
Again you are a competitive applicant but not sure about Stanford. Choose some safety schools, write some awsome essays, apply, and hope for the best!

3

Did you try entering your research project into science fairs? Major science awards like Intel can significantly boost your chances. Judging by the name of your project, it seems like you can do well in these competitions.

4

So do only Asians participate in fundraisers to benefit Koreans?

5

Then if you’re not asian(urm?), you have a better chance.
In CC we are fellows just trying help each other. Plz don’t get offended by anything! Our only intention is to HELP.
Good Luck!

6

Holy crap that’s a stellar application. The only fault I can find in it is your ACT score. Bump it up to a 34+ score, and I’m pretty sure you’ll get in as long as you have stellar essays and recs. Good luck. I wanna go to stanford but my credentials are not even close to yours.

7

^ It’s not an application, it’s the collection of bullets of what OP did. Now, it’s up to her to present that in a well done CA and supp, one that shows her thinking, her match, her potential contribution. Shows, not just tells.

8

Thank you very much to everyone who has taken the time to respond.

9

I forgot to add some information! I don’t know if this is even relevant but I also shadowed two local plastic surgeons over the summer of junior year for over 40 hours combined and received the 50 hours and 100 hours awards for volunteering at the local hospital. There’s is other information that I am forgetting but don’t remember. Anyways, thank you.

10

4.5% for 2017 admit year.

11

You meet a lot of the stats that Stanford expects to have, except for the ACT score. There’s no actual chance for you because Stanford regularly combs through perfect applicants 4.0, 36 ACT, 800 on Sat II.
There’s around a 4.5% percent admit rate and most of the applicants that apply have stats better than you or around the same.
Factors to consider, costs 55k to attend Stanford and 70% of students qualified for FA but be prepared to pay full. Prepare for the stress because midterms are two weeks in, along with recieving Bs and Cs due to the rigority of the classes provided. If you cannot handle stress of a lower GPA than what you got in HS than I highly recommend not attending this school because you will tear your hair out.
In conclusion, you have a shot if you make your essays stellar and unique.

12

She could get in with a 33. “Good essays” goes without saying. But kids need to know what a tippy top is looking for. That’s more than a laundry list, even a long one. Adcoms won’t put it together for you. You have to do this. Just being “unique” isn’t it.

13

There is a chance. It is a small chance just like it is for anyone else applying to Standord. Don’t let statements like this discourage you.

14

I meant like there’s no percentage of chance that can be given. Sorry if that was misleading.

15

A 33 is certainly qualified. If you can improve, go ahead, but the 33 instead of a 34 will not be a big factor. You have to collect your accomplishments in the last 4 years ( and before if relevant ) to a authentic, compelling character that Stanford thinks will contribute to its community and improve its college. You have a 17-18 year long story. Only 4 hours or so of that is shown in your ACT score. Those saying that a higher score will make the difference are most likely incorrect. Of course this is up for debate. Again, if you can improve, a better score is objectively better, but there are probably more efficient ways to boost your chances.

16

ECs appear to be solid, especially the research paper. I do agree with the other comments that the ACT should be a little higher, preferably a 35+. But I think you stand as good a chance as anyone if you get that

17

You have a chance, but - like 95% of applicants - the odds are very much against you. They will reject thousands of students who are just as talented, motivated, accomplished, and enthusiastic as you.
I hope that you don’t have your heart too firmly set on Stanford. Apply, by all means, but then ask what it is that attracts you to Stanford. If it’s merely the prestigious “brand name,” then you probably are not as intellectually mature as they’d like you to be.
It’s time to formulate a list of realistic matches and safeties that you would be satisfied attending.

18

Other than improving the ACT (I’m planning to study all summer and take it in September and if necessary October), are there any other things I should do to boost my chances? Other things I should work on?

19

This is a thread about a single school. It is like everyone wants to be giving you advice about whether you should buy a lottery ticket or not since there is nothing in your resume that is going to be different from at least 20,000 other applicants to Stanford for 2000 admissions.

What are your other options in terms of safeties and matches?

20

UC Berkeley, UCLA, USC, Pomona, Johns Hopkins, Harvard, Cornell, Princeton, Columbia, Northwestern, Purdue, and Yale. Probs other schools