<p>Lilygraces, you're competing against them.... and thousands of other people. And most of those thousands of people won't have been motivated/intense enough to have found CC and posted on it.</p>
<p>On the other hand, I hope you've learned CC's Number One Lesson and Mantra:
LOVE THY SAFETY </p>
<p>Find a safety where YOUR class rank and test scores should assure you admission. Preferably find more than one. And be sure you have some schools you can afford, without massive "merit" aid (regular financial aid is ok). </p>
<p>By reading CC, you now know how tough at least some of the competition really is. And you're not under the sad delusion that just because someone is valedictorian with high SAT's and good EC's that they are a "shoo-in at any Ivy League school." Schools with 10% admission rates are reaches for E-V-E-R-Y-O-N-E. </p>
<p>But most colleges in the US admit more than half of their applicants. There IS a place for everyone, and not just at the 50 schools that CC posters are obsessed with!</p>