<p>Hi, I'm currently in Grade 8 and I have made a goal to get into one of these great colleges. I want some advice pertaining to what I should do throughout high school in order to have a likely shot at being admitted into a great college like Harvard, Yale, Princeton or Stanford.</p>
<p>I hear a lot of things about taking a lot of AP courses or IB courses in high school, the problem is that I live in Canada and the high school I will be going into does not offer AP or IB courses. There are only Academic or Applied courses throughout grade 9-10 (academic is the "harder" course, I have selected for my courses to be all academic already), and in grade 11-12 they offer College/University Prep, College/University, College, and University courses.</p>
<p>I am sort of confused in terms of EC's, I have heard people say to not have a laundry-list of EC's but only to have a small amount of EC's in which you contribute and dedicate a lot of time and passion to those particular EC's. But then when I read some of the threads in What Are My Chances? I see people with huge lists of EC's that to me appear extremely good and almost too long and then I read some of the responses and people are saying that they need to work on their EC's or whatever. I am not very good at sports, but I am interested in trying out for the high school football team. I am also very dedicated to Band and plan on joining all of the bands they have at the high school I'm going to.</p>
<p>Also, I was wondering if the SAT/ACT will be the same in Canada as it is in the U.S., and any other advice you have regarding high school. Please do not respond if you're going to tell me to stop worrying right now and wait later, I've heard it already.</p>
<p>With the way acceptances went this year. Work your butt off in HS, take the hardest classes possible, and do some internships you feel passionate about. HOWEVER, do you know why you want to go to these schools right now other than prestige?</p>
<p>I know a guy who got into HYPS this year, not only did he have the hardest schedule possible, he did some internship with a brain surgeon in Japan, as well as playing sports, class president, and almost a perfect SAT score.</p>
<p>But listen to me closely here, do not get your heart set on any of these schools. Why? Because one, you're going to be spending four years focusing on these schools and more often than not, missing out on a fun HS experience (although on here thats a paradox). And two, if you don't get in, you'll probably be heart broken and turn out like one of those dumbasses who kill themselves over it.</p>
<p>i agree. seriously consider WHY you want to go to these schools before you set your heart on them. everybody and their mother has a harvard sweatshirt in their bottom drawer, but why? it's a great school, sure, but there are hundreds of good schools and dozens of great schools to choose from. as the time draws closer, look into other schools as well.</p>
<p>take the hardest classes available, maybe self-study some aps. try a lot of ec's at first and try to find ones you're really interested in and develop them. really look for cool opportunities that actually interest you, not just that look good on a college app. there's so many internships/camps/random opportunities out there, find them.</p>
<p>do what you want to do, you'll end up somewhere great if you put your heart into what you do, even if it's not hyps brand name.</p>
<p>lmao just picturing HYPS admission officers having some ups guy be like "package for HYPS" they open it, and it's a dozen loves of bread.
ahahah</p>
<p>There's a misconception that if you just start really early, you will be able to "get into" one of these colleges. Although being diligent about studying and being aware of your options is important, you cannot "get into" HYPS and Ivies by starting to freak out about it as a middle schooler. Admissions are a crapshoot, so planning your HS years around getting into a prestigious college isn't going to significantly boost your chances, and you will probably end up bitter if it doesn't work out. That being said, while you shouldn't make an inflexible "Get Into An Ivy Plan", there are some things to look out for. Decide around when you want to take your SATIIs, see what courses your HS offers. Join all of the clubs that sound interesting, and then drop the ones you don't like and pursue leadership positions in the ones that you do.</p>
<p>Having lots of ECs isn't good because you will only get a few spaces to list your extracurricular activites on your application. The laundry lists will simply not fit. And more importantly, you should be putting effort into these activities, so that you can talk about all the fabulous work that you have done for them on your application. And some apps ask you the number of hours per week you spend on each activity. If you spend one hour a week on each, it won't impress anyone.</p>
<p>Most importantly, you should be focusing on getting a good education. You spend just as much time in HS as you do in college. It is important to have a good educational foundation. Many "college focused" people see HS as simply a stepping stone to college, but this is ridiculous. HS is an important time to gain a strong background in different subjects in order to prepare you for higher education and beyond. HS is not simply an opportunity to build a resume.</p>
<p>I'm sure that you will do very well in HS and at whatever college you go to. Just be careful not to ruin your HS years for a chance to get into an Ivy.</p>
<p>Good advice on this thread: 1) self question: why HYPS? Why does the "prestige" of these schools entice you? 2) enjoy your classes and ECs for themselves and not how they'll appear to an admissions officer 3) explore seriously a wider range of schools. All good stuff.</p>
<p>The ultra-selective schools are just that -- ridiculously difficult to enter because of the sheer nos. of apps. I interview for one of them. In the last three years, I interviewed 16 kids and only had two get accepted. And in my group of alumni interviewers, having two was pretty abnormal. My school has had under 10% admits each of the last three years. Of the 16 kids I met, I'd say confidently that all 16 were qualified to attend my alma mater. However the adcom found that there were others that were more attractive in their minds. It's an incredible crapshoot. And some of these 16 were VERY strong, too -- more impressive than me when I was a HS senior!</p>
<p>Good luck to you. But listen to the advice given so far. Expand your school choices. If you're good at math, apply the facts to yourself objectively.</p>
<p>You could always try to reincarnate as an URM orphan and prevent world hunger before the age of 17. And get good grades at community colleges, make a few clubs, and win science things. I think that would work.</p>
<p>Just read these forums, Licks!! Especially the stickied thread titled, "How to Impress Adcoms with your ECs". You'll learn a lot. Also, go over to the Harvard forum, and go to the thread entitled, "Official Regular Decisions". You'll see the stats that people had that did/didn't get into Harvard.</p>
<p>but just because people repeat to you this "wise" cliche that HYPS are a crapshoot and there's no way to get yourself a better chance at being admitted, most people miss the point that working TOWARDS it and making a conscious decision to work hard and smart in terms of academics and ECs would still give you a higher chance than those who lack the focus and discipline. </p>
<p>admissions may be a crapshoot, but generally people who get into HYPS do have impressive resumes and have worked hard all their lives. it's stupid to think that hard work is entirely fruitless just because admissions are supposedly a crapshoot - similarly, just because there's a small element of luck in admissions doesn't mean you could hope to count on it to get in without real work. if you want to have a realistic fighting chance against the rest of the equally impressive applicants, you're still gonna have to work. </p>
<p>but even if you have seriously decided that HYPS is truly for you, there's no fixed, one-size-fits-all plan to get into those schools. take a few nights think about what you truly enjoy doing, and do them really well. that'd be a winner to any adcom, especially HYPS.</p>
<p>bottomline is, work hard at what you like doing. without effort, your chances at HYPS are truly zero.</p>
<p>I second the advice everyone has given about carefully thinking about WHY you want to get into these schools, and their not being what you think they are (for instance, Harvard sucks). </p>
<p>That being said, outside of taking the hardest courses and acing them (if you can't get IB/APs, is it possible to register for courses at the university?), which is obvious, my advice would be to focus on ECs.</p>
<p>Yes, you should definitely focus on a few ECs that you feel passionate about instead of doing a ton. Of course, you can also get into HYPS with a laundry list of bullsh-t, resume-padding activities. But the reason not to do it, imo, is that you'll always find someone who will beat you at that game. </p>
<p>My advice would be: start a charity, or a business, or write a book (and get it published). Do one thing, but have it be big, and ace it. A friend of mine who was in this really exclusive, expensive prep school got the school to start a program whereby students in his school mentored kids from underpriviledged schools. He even got a magazine to write an article about that. The program still exists today, and helped many kids who would otherwise not have gone to university go there. That + top grades got him into a top 5 school.</p>
<p>I only applied to one of the HYPSM schools. That was Stanford. I applied because I liked the school. I was almost persuaded to apply to Yale and Princeton, but I didn't because I didn't want to. You should pick a school you enjoy because for 4 years, you live there.</p>
<p>The best advice is to actually FORGET about colleges... Don't think about any certain schools, no HYPSM, Ivy League, none of that. Then find some ECs you like, try to find them freshman year, so you're doing them for 4 years. Do them to the fullest you can. Try to get leadership positions. Keep up your grades. Get good grades in the hardest classes. Try to be the top rank, 4.0, valedictorian, but even if you're not, try to be close.</p>
<p>This way, IF you decide later on that you actually LIKE the HYPSM schools, you at least have a chance to get accepted. And if you decide you like another school ::cough cough:: Penn ::cough cough:: you have a shot there too.</p>
<p>I would also suggest broadening your horizons, because there are plenty of schools that are not in that grouping that are just as good, like Penn, but you're in 8th grade, and this is not something you should be concerned with right now.</p>
<p>So, long story short, a) Forget about specific colleges. b) Find some good ECs and do them 4 years, gain leadership c) Best grades in hardest classes. d) Apply to Penn.</p>
<p>The last step was really just me shamelessly trying to advocate for Penn.</p>
<p>
[quote]
I am sort of confused in terms of EC's, I have heard people say to not have a laundry-list of EC's but only to have a small amount of EC's in which you contribute and dedicate a lot of time and passion to those particular EC's. But then when I read some of the threads in What Are My Chances? I see people with huge lists of EC's that to me appear extremely good and almost too long and then I read some of the responses and people are saying that they need to work on their EC's or whatever. I am not very good at sports, but I am interested in trying out for the high school football team. I am also very dedicated to Band and plan on joining all of the bands they have at the high school I'm going to.
[/quote]
Just a tip - you can't do both football and marching band, since marching band plays at football games. If you are not good at sports I would suggest you go with marching band, since everybody participates in MB and you probably won't get a chance to play on the football team. If you're really determined to do a sport go with track or something.</p>
<p>^ LOL, oh wow, football and marching band... what a paradox, huh? :D</p>
<p>To the OP: Good for you for thinking about college this early. However, more likely than not your college plans will change as you get closer and closer to senior year (and admission time!)</p>
<p>Many of my friends who wanted to get into Harvard or Yale or Standford or _____ have realized as senior year comes steadily towards them that they probably will not get in. They also see college clearer in terms of what it really is: a place to get an education for four years and to (hopefully) have fun rather than an end-all-be-all prize. </p>
<p>It used to be: I'm applying to Stanford!</p>
<p>And now it's more like: I think I'm going to apply to U Chicago because of their economics programs or I think I'm going to U Michigan because I'll probably get a lot of aid.</p>
<p>The point of that whole thing is to illustrate that your plans will probably change, especially because you're not even in high school yet. Do the things that you enjoy doing that's also conductive to society. Don't do it for School X or School Y because chances are, you're not going to be applying to them when the time comes. </p>