Take pity on a slightly overwhelmed high school sophomore?

<p>Hey everybody! I'm a sophomore in high school, and I can't help thinking that this is definitely too early to be worrying about college admissions. At the same time, I just want to know if I'm on the right track, or if there's anything else I could be doing at this point in time. I rank in the top ten of my class (not exactly sure where), have a 4.0, am taking the hardest courses available and should continue doing so. That will probably result in 7 AP's by the end of Senior year. That's all I can possibly fit into my schedule, because I go to a performing arts high school. I got a 170 on my Sophomore PSATs (I know I need to study for next year's). I volunteer weekly with kids with special needs, write for my school newspaper, volunteer 3-4 hours a week at a bereavement center, I might start working at a retirement home. I have four main questions that I'm hoping some caring soul may be able to help me with. </p>

<ol>
<li><p>Do I need to be logging my community service hours somehow? My school doesn't require them, so I haven't been logging. </p></li>
<li><p>I also perform in shows with different theater troupes around my community. Do those count as ECs? </p></li>
<li><p>These are the schools I'm looking at (I want to major in Sociology):</p></li>
</ol>

<p>Brandeis
Bryn Mawr
Colgate
Wooster
Tulane
University of Minnesota
University of Pittsburgh
University of Wisconsin
(and tentitively)
UPenn
Columbia</p>

<p>I'm aware the Ivies are a litle out of my reach, but do the other schools I've listed seem reasonable? </p>

<ol>
<li>Aside from studying for my PSATs, is there something I should be doing to make myself more attractive to colleges at this time? </li>
</ol>

<p>Thank you so much.
~Jordana</p>

<p>Hi - I don’t think you are starting too soon at all, as long as you don’t obsess about it, which you clearly are not. But it is certainly wise to be planning since it is easy to realize too late what you should have done differently. So, with that in mind…</p>

<ol>
<li><p>I don’t think you really have to do this, but it certainly wouldn’t hurt to keep a notebook devoted to this area and just jot down what you did and about how much time was involved. Most colleges are not looking at this as some sort of contest where the most hours wins. They want to know that you are doing something, that it means something to you, and that the time you put in reflects those feelings.</p></li>
<li><p>Yes, of course those count as EC’s. Extra-curriculars are not just community service, but includes clubs, sports, anything of significance outside of the classroom where you get graded. So performing in your school’s drama department or starring on Broadway (lol) would both count.</p></li>
<li><p>Good list. I do not know much about Wooster, would that be a “safety” for you? I hate that term, but you do need to apply to schools that you are almost certain to get into, just in case everything else goes wrong. Nothing to panic over, just prudent. And if money is an issue, you need financial “safeties” as well. For most kids that is the state school. You will need to get your standardized test scores into a higher range to improve your chances. A 1700 would be on the low side, but of course you will do better than that. With your grades and other activities, a 1900+ will get you in a lot of places, and a 2000+ will open even more doors and give you a decent shot a merit money some places, like Tulane and Pitt.</p></li>
<li><p>You do know the College Board can send you an SAT “question of the day”, right? Definitely sign up for that. As far as making yourself more attractive to any school, you are doing the right things. They love to see good grades, good recs, good test scores, and that you challenged yourself with the more advanced courses. The commmunity service is pretty expected these days, just get across to them that you really do enjoy it, not that you are doing it because you have to. You are obviously quite involved in theater, that’s a good thing. Oh, and take the ACT also, preferably towards the end of your junior year. Most people get relatively equivalent scores to their SAT’s, but some people do much better on one test than the other. It is worth taking at least once. Finally, schools love it when you show you are giving them serious consideration as opposed to just sending in an application to see what happens. So go to some of their local events, and even better visit the campus if you can. This would be good for you anyway, for the 5-8 that you think are at the top of your list. You have to get at least some feel if the environment of that campus is right for you, and have a basis for comparing the different schools. You do have some pretty opposite schools there, such as Wisconsin vs. Bryn Mawr vs. Tulane, just to name three that are very different from each other. The best time to do this is around spring break of your junior year.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>If, after you get your SAT/ACT scores and hopefully have made some visits you decide there is one school you really think is best for you, then you can really let them know you are focused on them by applying ED if they offer it. Many schools do not, but they might offer SCEA or plain EA. To a lesser degree than ED, these also show the school you are serious about going if you get in.</p>

<p>Hope that helped some. FYI, I am a Tulane alum and now a Tulane Dad. I don’t think that influenced my answer, but I like to be clear about it anyway. I also spent a year post-grad at Wisconsin (brrrrr).</p>

<p>We can better assess your chances with concrete scores. Your PSAT is a wildly inaccurate guess of what your SAT will be. MY sophomore PSAT was 186, junior 215, SAT 2350 lol. Definitely sign up for the SAT question of the day and get the College Board prep book with 10 practice tests–I just went through questions while babysitting and learned a lot.</p>

<p>Wow, that is amazing the differences were that great. My kids both were more similar for PSAT/SAT, so I guess as they say YMMV. Although, especially in my D’s case, she started out very high and stayed there, so I guess that isn’t as surprising. Does give one hope though, doesn’t it. Congrats on such a great SAT.</p>

<p>Where did you/are you going to end up. glasses?</p>