<p>What if... I have excellent recommendations, essays, awards, gpa, rank (top 5%), extracurriular activities, leadership positions (commitment), but only a DECENT testing scores.. (like a 28)... does that diminishes my chances for the top 20 national ranked schools? PLus, I go to a college prep school. Thanks</p>
<p>oh yeah... the reason for my not so great ACT score is mainly due to my lack of concentration after the math test because I get a HUGE backache.. and that's because I have mild scoliosis and never got braces to align my spine back... will colleges understand??? I mean, my english and math scores are in the 30s... but my reading and science is pathetic.... (in the 20s..)</p>
<p>If you have really great GPA/AP scores then the ACT shouldn't hurt you that much. It's just one day, whereas your GPA is your whole high school career. That's what the top-school reps say over and over, in any case ; ) Which top-20 schools are you applying to in particular?</p>
<p>Well, I'm pretty confident Harvard, Yale, and Stanford rely on test scores as a way to weed out candidates. My friend was waitlisted and then accepted at Cornell last year with a 1320 SAT score, so I think you are all right if you have a high GPA, rank, etc.</p>