Hey CC,
I’m finalizing my college list at the moment. Stanford has always been on there as a dream school, but I am now wondering if I should even bother applying. I’m aware that I can get into many highly selective, top schools, but Stanford and the Ivies are on another level. You can see my stats and ECs in other threads, but I will give you all a quick rundown if you aren’t willing to check.
32 on ACT (will retake and actually study, should get 33, maybe 34)
4.6 W
4.0 UW
Eagle Scout
Lots of theatre with major roles
Academic League Captain and MVP with two school records
Track, Water Polo, and Swim - played on all of them for different amounts of time, competed at CIF (I’m especially good at track, but not enough to be recruited)
No big state or national awards. High test score, but not spectacular. Should I even bother applying? I could use the extra time for applications to schools I have a better chance of getting accepted to.
You should at least try applying. Test scores are not everything. I had perfect scores and got rejected from Stanford. If you write extraordinary essays and have good recs you have a shot
Um, yeah. It’s a reach for a reason. I can tell by your replies that you are VERY pessimistic. Every comment seems to be negative. Don’t be so hard on everyone (including yourself).
You can’t get in if you don’t try.
Stanford is an outstanding school. Being the top Ivy-equivalent on the West Coast, and given how so many kids want to go to school in California, it gets so very many applications and is, thus, so very selective.
But they do seem to be pretty holistic: at least as holistic as most other top schools, moreso than others. So take a shot.
Make sure you also apply to other reaches (if you desire a reach school) and multiple matches and safeties as solid backup. Be sure that you like, and could afford, all of the schools to which you apply.
The worst that can happen is they say no (rejection), the best that can happen is you get into your dream school.
At least apply, just don’t get set on one school so you aren’t too disappointed if it doesn’t happen.
Current Princeton student here with quite a few friends in Stanford.
- Grades: Seems based off your grades, you’re probably in the top 10% of your class and have definitely challenged yourself with APs. You’d pass the grades filter
- Test scores: Your ACT isn’t great but it’s not bad either. You’d probably pass the test scores filter, although the retake would definitely help you
- Persona: Your persona is the most important part of the app and will differentiate you from the others. What are your portraying yourself as? Essays & how your craft your extracurricular/award story are key here.
So I’d say that overall, your application really depends on number 3. I had a friend who nobody thought would get into Stanford, but she really crafted her persona as musically oriented and she got in. So if you’re serious about Stanford, you will have to spend a decent amount of time on (3).
I’m helping out students on CC for an entrepreneurship class project and giving out complimentary analysis of your app, so if you need more help, feel free to message me.
Do you have a potential major in mind? It’ll give you a leg up if you took a few classes (especially AP’s) or did an EC based off your major. That was a mistake I made on my application that I believe knocked me down quite a bit.
I say why not. No one is an easy in to a school like Stanford. Very few people apply assuming they’ll get in. You’re on par with everyone else. Give it a go.
Don’t apply until you really know what the college values, what they look for in candidates. Otherwise it’s spinning your wheels and superficial. Drives me nuts when the auto answer is you won’t know unless you try. Better advice is: you won’t know if your shot is realistic until you put in the effort to learn more about how you match. (That is NOT all about stats and having some hs activities or even titles. It’s about your attributes, might, thinking, and more.) And this effort actually reflects the sort of kids they do want, kids who can put some brain cells into their decisions.
And yes, you need to tell what your possible major is. Expectations vary based on what direction a kid thinks he’ll take.
If you feel the college is a match for you (vibe, students, location, price, etc “not prestige”) then apply. Your test scores are below the average accepted student, but probably above average as far as applicants. If you look at the common data set for Stanford, you will see that it is not that useful 
(i’m talking about the c7 section specifically, the rest is quite useful) because so many things are marked “Very important”. Regardless, standardized test scores are only one of those things ( along with course rigor, rank, essay, gpa, recs,…). Give it a shot. I don’t think the admissions officers will say " well this student is a great fit and has really challenged himself and shows tremendous passion for “insert whatever you are passionate about”, buuuuuut he has a 32 on the act so we cant take him" Like @lookingforward and others have said, It’s probably about the personal qualities. (which Stanford has ranked “very important”)
I mean it’s probably worth it. If you have a strong application but not a super-standout one the best way to get into elite schools is to apply to as many elite schools. Now, many people probably disagree and think that you won’t find the best fit that way but with the competition of admissions today it is necessary. You didn’t provide much on ECs so it’s hard to say. I’m in the same boat as you with testing, but I have strong EC and essay. If you do that as well it is worth it.