Does anyone have experience with a student that was admitted to Harvard or a similar school from Lawrenceville with no hooks? Can someone tell me what GPA I should aim for?
My goal was to hit 92/100, but I don’t know if I’m aiming too high or low.
I’m not sure if I will attend there, but it’s definitely a school I’m interested in. I know that grades aren’t everything, but can someone tell me what a general GPA I would need to be competitive?
Your College Counselor will have this information.
But be aware that Harvard (and its peers) routinely reject applicants with 4.0/36/1600 stats while accepting others with lower stats. GPA is just one piece of the puzzle.
Even with perfect scores 4.0 and perfect SAT, you are most likely to be rejected. What you really need are outstanding extracurriculars that are at least national in scope, some amazing life experience ( I know at 18 hard to get) and or some way to make yourself outstanding in an outstanding pool. Even then, no guarantees.
And no guarantees that even any particular, exclusive BS will get you to any tippy top. GCs at those are very savvy at matching. And the peer group at many is highly competitive.
Heed skieurope - kids with perfect stats get rejected all the time. With such a small admit rate there is a lot of chance involved and no one can explain why to you. Apply to a range of colleges and love some that aren’t harvard.
And just for the record kids with perfect scores get rejected all the time for entrance to top boarding schools as well. You must fit into one of the buckets they are looking for and they must believe you are likely to attend. All you can really do is apply with your best self and go from there. Rejection is a part of life. You will not get every job, dream or merit you want. It’s totally fine to know there are many paths to a great life ( and not all go thru Harvard Yard).
No one answered my question. Yes, I know that kids with perfect stats get rejected all the time. However, I want to be at least COMPETITIVE. What is a competitive GPA at Lawrenceville, Deerfield, St. Paul’s, etc. to have a chance at the ultra-elite colleges?
You need to be at the top of your class or have some uber donor connection. Or be an athletic recruit.
And a lot more than top stats. It’s a futile question because tippy tops don’t go on stats alone. The GC can be a gatekeeper, steer you elsewhere. And teachers are adept at conveying any concerns without it being obvious to you.
Every section of the Common App matters. Your major, prep in that and the right balance of ECs. Your writing. How you “know” the college, what they look for, and show that.
And you want all that distilled into a gpa?
Actually, I did. “Your College Counselor will have this information.” Nobody here is going to have a more complete set of data, at least for Lawrenceville. And nobody here will have data for DA, SPS, etc. Instead, what you can expect here are anecdotes, and the plural of anecdote is not data.
I agree that your GC is going to have the best insight. S/he knows what makes an unhooked applicant competitive to an elite college. Lawrenceville sends significantly more students to Princeton than Harvard, for example, but only your GC knows whether how many of them are hooked. We don’t.
The reason we didn’t answer your question is that if kids with 1600/4.5 stats get rejected no one here knows what you’d have to get to be competitive. Saying you need perfect stats and could still get rejected doesn’t seem correct. So we say “no one knows.”
Why the obsession with Harvard? It may or may not offer the best undergraduate experience depending on your major or needs.