<p>Before you read, note that I'm only a sophomore and information is very limited. Even more so considering how empty my current application is. </p>
<p>Is Ivy League even in the realm of consideration for me as a student? How about U of Chi, Stanford, Duke, any top 20 colleges? I haven't taken the SAT or the ACT yet, my accumulated GPA from my 1 and 3/4ths of high school so far is around a 3.7 or a 3.8. I also haven't taken any AP classes yet, as AP classes are only allowed in Junior year (besides AP Global History which I wasn't eligible for). Also, my school allows 5 AP classes at the very maximum per year, so the most amount of AP's possible at my school is 11, but I'm going to be well below that, I can only end probably taking around 5 or 6. I'm looking for advice as well as realistic projections. </p>
<p>Gender: Male</p>
<p>Location: NYC</p>
<p>Ethnicity: Asian-American</p>
<p>Grade: Sophomore</p>
<p>GPA: 3.7/3.8 (4 point scale) - My GPA will most likely improve, especially when I bombed Freshmen year and the first term of my Sophomore year. </p>
<p>Major: Undecided</p>
<p>Clubs/Sports Teams: None - There's no point in posting any clubs unless I'm an officer, but I'm not in any clubs or sports teams period. </p>
<p>Activities: None</p>
<p>Community Service: None</p>
<p>Extracurriculars: None</p>
<p>Rank: Unknown</p>
<p>Awards: None</p>
<p>Other: Worked w/ my dad at his Pediatric office in the summer, writes articles for a music website</p>
<p>If there's any other information you would like to me include, I'll much oblige. I'm distraught because what I posted really looks pathetic. My biggest plus-side is that I can write a killer essay, and one that could (potentially) stand out from the pool. What do I need to improve on? What can I do? Is the Ivy League or a top 20 university a realistic goal for me?</p>
<p>It’s seems like you started late, but If you’re confident in your abilities you could try asking your counselor if the school could bend the rules for you and allow more APs. If not just make sure your counselour mentions the limitation on AP courses in your Application.</p>
<p>Also focus on your SAT/ACT scores they can partially make up for your low grades or weaker courseload.</p>
<p>Start looking to found a club/organization, volunteering, gaining leadership in a club and making a difference.</p>
<p>Look for scholarships, Awards, and programs that are prestigious; try some essay competitions</p>
<p>Start now! You have a chance just begin now.
Also don’t worry about your Ivy chances just get you portfolio ready.</p>
<p>I would say that, only because you have no extracurriculars or activities at all, the Ivies are not likely. Sorry to be so blunt, but I don’t think that you should get your hopes up. These days, so many students are smart, but the most competitive schools are looking for well rounded students.</p>
<p>The school can bend the rules to allow you for more AP classes if you consult your counselor. The AP selection process mainly focuses on your average, and the maximum # of AP’s you can take for an 100+ average is 5. Considering its unlikely that my average would skyrocket to that amount with only 2 marking periods left, my average only allows me to take 2. I’m planning on talking to the counselor and trying to boost the number of that to 3. </p>
<p>Thanks for your reply. </p>
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<p>The thing is though, all the extracurriculars and stuff, I can do right now. Believe me, I’m “well-rounded”, it just doesn’t show on my application. I’m just too lazy to join clubs and do all that <em>shrug</em></p>
<p>So what do you do with your free time? Activities outside of school count too yknow, find a hobby and build on it. You still have roughly 1.5 years… Strong GPA is only a small portion of what top ranked universities are looking for.</p>