Will my 9th and 10th grade grades affect me far too much?

Applying to College
1

<p>My freshman and sophomore year I was extremely unfocused for school. In a top, competitive high school I received a 3.2. Though it is not a bad GPA, it did not reflect my performance. I got mostly Bs and B-s. I took 1 AP and two honors courses in that time period.
During my eleventh grade, i reshifted my priorities. I got a 4.2 gpa last semester, as I got all As and my APs bumped me up.(Took 2)., and it raised my GPA to a 3.5. By the end of this year, I hope to be getting at least a 3.7,3.8 by getting all As this semester. By the end of my first senior year semester, hopefully it shall be a 3.9 or 4.0. I am going to be taking between 3 and 4 APs in the coming year. I'm getting high honors now.
In my extracurriculars, I volunteer twice a week at a public school and work my summers there too. I've been in the model united nations club since 2007, and am currently the VP. I am also the treasurer for environmental awareness club. I'm also in film club.
The first time I took the SAT, I got a 1940. I plan to take it again in October. My goal is to get more than a 2050.
I did an exchange program in Italy, and am going to be going to a writing camp this summer.
I am going to be applying to top liberal arts colleges such as Swarthmore, Haverford, and Amherst. As well, Tufts, Cornell,UVA, Boston College, Holy Cross, and MIT.(A school I absolutely adore and am legacy in.)</p>

<p>My question is; if I continue such a trend in my grades, will my 9th and 10th grade scores affect me far too much?</p>

2

<p>An upward trend in grades is good. Congratulations on turning things around. However, your first two years in high school will have an impact on your overall average, and you will be competing for seats at highly competitive colleges with kids who have almost perfect grades for all four years. I don’t know what you mean by “too much,” but yes, your earlier lower grades will affect your competitiveness at the colleges you’ve listed.</p>

<p>I would recommend that you also look at colleges where your current stats put you in the middle to the top of the class. The colleges on your list are quite hard to get into, even for students with outstanding grades and 2100+ SATs. You need some matches and safeties. </p>

<p>Think about what attracted you to the colleges on your list (programs, locations, vibe) and do some research about other college that might have some similar traits but that aren’t quite as competitive in admissions.</p>

3

<p>Yes, your grades will severely hurt you at many of the schools you have listed. There are thousands of rejected students with no flaws in their GPA’s and similar if not higher scores.</p>