JustOneMom started this off asking for “necessary, if not sufficient” achievements, and listed a set of things. Many folks who managed to have kids accepted to just those schools said their kids didn’t have all of those things, so “necessary” is a meaningless word. There is no BAR, no MINIMUM. As much as many high-achieving kids, and their high-achieving parents would wish it were so, there is no set of check boxes, no list of “if I just do this”. Lots of good advice has been given here, but it seems to be unwanted.