<p>Hello CC and fellow anxious college applicants!
I'm probably one or two years younger than yall; Im a paranoid sophomore.
I was hoping you guys would steer me in the right direction to attend schools: Stanford (I can dream), Duke, Cornell, Columbia, U Chicago and the likes.
I attend one of the top 10 private boarding schools in the U.S.
Race: Asian (greencard holder; might become a citizen because I've been living in the US for 7 years)
Freshman courses: Honors Geometry, Honors Algebra 2, english, Physics, Chinese I
Btw honors is the same as AP.
Grades:
A-
A-
A
B+
B
Sophomore year: honors precalc, honors chemistry, Chinese 2, english, history
Grades:
A-
A-
A-
A-
B+
EC:
Wrestling (v squad), soccer (jv) both sice frosh
Write for school newspaper, and newspaper for asians
Asian society member
Investment club member
Going to create a current events club.
Summer activities: Columbia frosh
Ivy Scholars sophomore
I might also go around Asia doing community service projects this summer.
Im going to join debate team and MUN.
I want to work for UN when i grow up. Im very worldly.
What should I work on if i want to get into these schools? I know i have to get my grades up (taking the hardest courses available) but what else?
Thank you!!!</p>
<p>Ask your college counselor .They know you better .</p>
<p>You dont get college counseolors until Junior year.</p>
<p>Dude
You are a sophomore. You have plenty of time.
Raise your GPA as much as you can.
Get good scores from SAT (2300+) or ACT (34+) and high 700s or 800s on your SAT IIs.
Focus on few meaningful ECs because you do not need 20000 ECs.</p>
<p>Does being Korean (not international student) affect my chances?</p>
<p>If you search the threads, you will find plenty of information about the answers to your questions, as well as examples of students of your ethnic background and immigration status and what they have achieved. You are still a sophomore, so you have plenty of free time to search and find the information on your own. Plus, it will provide you with the opportunity to learn about the process and how to become a better candidate to a top school, as well as whether you have the necessary credentials to be admitted.</p>
<p>I want to major in political science. Do you think this list of EC (newspaper journalist, travel around world, debate, current events club, etc.) will convince colleges that I want to be a politician?</p>
<p>Words of a wise one: Don’t act with a “get into college” mindset, act out of interest and you’ll go far places. I’ve learned that recently, because that’s all my brother did and he got into Yale and Dartmouth. He ended up choosing Yale (who wouldn’t), but you have to stop worrying… You’re only a sophomore and you have time, just change your mindset.</p>
<p>Btw for all you smart ***es that tell me private universities haven’t come out yet, he graduated in 2011.</p>
<p>Although it may look like the sole reason for my EC is college, I really do care about the world. Like I repeated so many times, I want to work for governments, and I think that a good college education is key in achieving this goal. Although these ECs are ones that I want to do, I was wondering if it’s too scattered.</p>
<p>Scattered isn’t bad, but just remember to stay consistent. That’s how you truly show that you’re passionate about something, and that’s exactly what they want to see… Honestly though, a top 10 boarding school= 35%+ ivy matticulation LOL… Don’t even worty about it, if it’s not an Ivy, it’ll be somewhere worth your while… A friend of mine went to Harvard-Westlake, he failed a couple classes, bottom of his class, etc… And he still got into NYU and Emory. It’s not THAT bad considering his stats.</p>
<p>What is the best university for a major in political science?</p>
<p>So many A-'s!!! At least the minus part doesn’t affect your GPA… However, try and raise them for transcript purposes. Stay dedicated to EC’s and try and find an interest in a unique topic. From that interest, perhaps use it to benefit a community, experiment with your interest, and maybe write a research paper on your discoveries. For example: I am currently undergoing a research project about a local river that is very polluted and is also full of scum, algae, and other unpleasant bacteria. I will be testing the water and algae using chemistry test tubes and will be analyzing them to the fullest extent. From there, I may or may not host a public “river clean-up” and raise awareness in my town of how disgusting our river has become. After my research, I will write a paper about my discoveries and will have it published in a science journal. My advice to you is only think as big as your community, but if you are planning on community service in Korea then that is perfectly fine! Basically, find an issue that you have the capabilities of solving, and research the topic until you are an expert. Then try and help the issue become stable again. Besides this, you will need the grades, SAT or ACT scores, and basic passion or learning to get in!</p>
<p>
great advice ^</p>
<p>
if they are things you enjoy doing then keep doing them; don’t worry about convincing colleges. </p>
<p>if your wanting suggestions:
consider internship/volunteer at a work place of interest.<br>
top 10% of class.
great SAT</p>
<p>MIT: thanks for that. Similar to you, I want to literally chase my dreams so im going to go doing community services.
The reason why i have so many a- is because I always have shaky starts. Saying that, im hoping to have a gpa of 3.8+ jr year
What internship can you suggest for me if i want to do gov’t stuff</p>
<p>No problem. You’re the opposite of me actually. You start off shaky, but I usually end a little shaky when I start to get bored with a certain topic. As to dream chasing, you are just like me. For an internship in government, you may want to talk to a government teacher at your school, your counselor, or your career center because I have little to no interest in government. I want to be an engineer or a similar math or science job, but good luck to your dreamy ventures!</p>
<p>By the way, 3.8+ GPA is perfectly fine for most colleges! I assume you mean unweighted.</p>
<p>Eh, a 3.8 is only fine if you have stuff to back it up… But which private school do you attend? My sister attended Harvard-Westlake, the #6 private high school in the nation, had a crappy GPA, and got into almost every college lol… My only regret is that I chose public school, because you definitely have hook ups w/ top private schools.</p>
<p>Agreed. But an unweighted 4.0 won’t get you in either unless you have stuff to back it up. Therefore, 3.8 is great! Colleges don’t only look at GPA you know.</p>
<p>Well I’m a bit uncomfortable telling you what school I go to because that would slightly take away the “confidential” from college confidential. Anyway, I can tell you that it’s in the ISL league and is considered the top 3-4 school. It also has an Ivy rate of around 20% and HYPS rate of ~11%.
You could probably figure the school out if you researched, but whatever haha.</p>
<p>Wow you are quite lucky to go to a high school such as that. I go to a measly high school that probably has less than one percent of its graduates go to an ivy league. If you seriously enroll in that type of school, then a 3.8 is more than enough to give you great chances (not necessarily get you in).</p>