Thoughts on my lineup? (junior)

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

Reaches: Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Brown, Penn, Cornell, Dartmouth, Berkeley, Georgetown

Matches: UCLA, UCSB, UCSD

Safeties: UC Davis, UC Santa Cruz

Stats: 2260 SAT (800R, 780W, 680M)
GPA: 3.86UW, 4.0W (all of my Bs have been in math)
SAT subject tests: 800 bio and spanish, 790 lit

APs: Bio (5), Art History (4)

Senior year schedule: AP gov, AP environmental science, AP lang, AP spanish, philosophy, economics

ECs: Red Cross executive, officer, 50+ volunteer hours, prisoner literacy project volunteer 50+ hours, track and field 3 years varsity, football 3 years varsity and team captain, president/founder of Hispanic-Latino student union, class president

Awards: Scholar athlete, teachers award 2x

Ethnicity: Hispanic/Latino

Hooks: Single parent home, international experience, URM

Majors:

  1. Sociology
  2. Political Science
  3. Spanish
2

bump

3

Harvard, Rejected
Yale Rejected
, Princeton, Rejected
Brown, Acceptance
Penn, Waitlist
Cornell, Waitlist
Dartmouth, Acceptance
Berkeley, Acceptance
Georgetown, Acceptance

4

looks about right although gtown berkley cornell and brown probably low reaches whereas the rest of your reaches are probably high reaches. Good luck :slight_smile:

5

Those safeties are very iffy.

Lots of people I know got waitlisted or rejected by UCD with at least a 4.2 UC GPA. UCSC might be a good safety though; but you never know.

6

@lovearcanine‌: UCD and even UCSC will not be safeties. As @ItsHydro stated, many applicants were waitlisted or rejected from both schools with your Stats. If you want a true UC safety, then UCR. Since the UC’s are in such high demand along with an ever increasing number of applicants, the competition is tough. Being a URM will not help at the UC’s since they banned affirmative action. I would rethink your list. Also UCLA/UCB and UCSB would more High matches than definite matches. It is great to have some Reaches but do not aim too high or you will find yourself shutout like many applicants are finding this year.

7

@gumbymom you seriously think UCSB is a high match? that has to be a joke

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@Gumbymom‌ and I really don’t think I’m aiming too high. My stats are right there in the averages for Ivy (aside from math but I’m not going for a major involving math). Why would I rethink my list? Stop propagating the myth around here that you can’t get into an ivy league school without a 2400/5.0

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lovearcanine: check out the threads of current students being rejected or WL at UCs this year. Most have your stats and some even got rejected at UCI, definitely at UCSB and above.
In addition, any university with a 30% or less acceptance rate has to be treated as a reach regardless of stats - even if they’re as good as yours.
In addition, fit matters a lot to elite universities - you need to read the Fiske Guide, Insider’s Guide to the colleges, and Princeton Review’s best colleges to determine what the best fit for you is. You’re unlikely to be a fit both for Brown and Penn, or both for Dartmouth and UCB.
Your list is a recipe for a shut out because of its strategy - prestige-based reach choices + UCs for everything else, when UC admission has become a lottery even for high-stats kids (and keep in mind that URM status will not matter at UCs, only socio-economic status; if you’re lower-income, ie., 65k or less or especially 40k or less, that’ll be a boost, but otherwise it’ll all rest on your essays.) You MAY get into several of your choices, but using only UCs as matches and safeties is the wrong move.
Check out Tulane, UMiami, UMN-Twin Cities, UAlabama Honors (THAT is a safety since you automatically qualify for the presidential full tuition scholarship, honors college, honors dorm, and opportunity to compete for the undergrad research program CBHP or the Stem-MBA program.)

10

@MYOS1634‌ I already looked through the thread, the number of people with a 2200+ that got rejected was like 2 or 3 and plenty of people got in with sub 1900s

11

There are several threads on college selection, college admission, and individual college forums. The fact some get rejected with high scores and some get in with 1900 indicate that you’re wrong to focus exclusively on these, as if they were indicative factors.
Are you lower-income and is your school lower-performing (this is factored in).
Listen to the adults here, who are used to this: having UCs as your sole match and safety schools is a recipe for ending up in community college - which would really be a waste considering the potential you’ve demonstrated so far. In addition, you don’t answer my question about applying to schools as radically opposite (and in my experience, at that level, fit is essential, so that you can’t possibly be a viable candidate for both Brown and Penn, or have the mindset that would make you think Dartmouth and UBC are great fits.)
In short, you wanted to know what we think of your line up, and the answer is that the reach list needs to be revisited to include fits (you can add as many as you subtract) and the match/safeties need a few added.

12

Yeah man haha totally understand sorry I sounded kinda ignorant. Thanks for the advice. @MYOS1634‌

13

@lovearcanine: You are getting alot of good advice and you asked for some opinions. If you disagree that’s fine, but do not take offense since you are the one posting and asking for advice. Heed @MYOS1634’s advice, very knowledgeable poster. I definitely would like to be proven wrong, so post your results next year. Good Luck.