kleibo

I think getting a 2400 on the sat is a tremendous accomplishment. But again - it is just one small part of an entire application. But it is still a great accomplishment.

MomofWildChild

If arrogance disqualified you from the Ivy League, there would be some pretty empty campuses (including my son's)!

Vine_archer

I think a 2400 is an accomplishment, for the individual, but not otherwise. I know so many people who have trouble with it because of time constraints. The main problem is that it doesn't judge a person well, and thoguh, in general, one must be intelligent or at least quick on their feet to do so well, someone with a lower score might be just as smart, but less apt at SATs. I know I struggled with it.

My cousin applied to Yale, and a few other schools back when it was out of 1600 and she barely breached 1400. Good score, I know, but below average on the IVY scale. However, she got in with a full scholarship. OS point is, you can get in if you ave a decent score and strong credentials. However, it is a bit arbitrary when almost all valedictorians apply to one place. Not everyone can be chosen.

Oh, and that Asian thing... they are a tough applicant pool. It's true, so they do have a tougher time against each other. Although many can get in, such a concentration of a minority group bodes ill for admissions.

jenx1234

The girl ranked #3 in my school got into Harvard with a 1990 SAT. (Great essays I guess.) I know this is rare, but I'm always really hesitant to believe it when people say this. No one give up hope!

CountingDown

Not everyone who applies to an Ivy applies to all of them. Not everyone wants to attend an Ivy, even if he or she has the credentials to do so. There are no guarantees, folks. Even students who bring home national awards that CCers recognize get rejection letters. Apply widely and well.

An excellent score will likely earn you the admission committee's attention. From there, you have to demonstrate what else you bring to that table. But even with a "golden ticket" there are still many, many other applicants who bring other winning tickets.

Hunt

It's easy. One thinks that 2100=2400, and the other doesn't.

waitingforcal

Our valedictorian had a 4.0 UW, three years of JV Volleyball, and almost 1000 volunteer hours...but barely any other extracurricular activities and only a 1650 SAT.
She got a full ride to Berkeley but was rejected from Stanford, which was her first choice.

Yale11

This is typically untrue. Looking at Collegeboard's normal distribution there are roughly 650 non-superscored 2400s in a given year. All but a few will have their choice of schools. The one's who do not will either have some black mark (arrest, etc.) or will demonstrate a lack of character or a shallowness of interests on their applications.

For people who want a greater understanding of the college application process, as well as clarification about all of the rumors such as this, a great book is "The Gatekeepers". It is written by a former Wesleyan admissions officer, and it discusses the various decisions and dilemmas that come up in the process, as well as the origins of many rumors and false axioms regarding admissions. A few things are clear, and one of them is that admissions are only a "crapshoot" for the thousands of identical applicants. For those who stand out, the process is a science.

Hunt

Several of the posts above, and other things I've read here, make me think again that in most cases, if a student with perfect grades and super-high scores does not get into any highly selective school, it's most likely because he didn't construct a reasonable list, and applied to too few, or the wrong, schools. The other possibility is that such a student has a black mark that can't be observed, such as a very bad recommendation.

rb9109

I agree wholeheartedly that a 2400, 4.0, etc are not everything. But last year, as an applicant with a 2400, perfect scores on subject tests, and a 4.0, I always felt a little discouraged reading these threads, because while scores are only one part of the whole application, I think the number of threads on CC belittling good scores is too much. I don't think my 2400 or my 4.0 got me in, but I had both, and I am attending Harvard in the fall. My message for future applicants with perfect scores: you should feel good about what you have achieved, and your scores should boost your confidence in ever-more competitive admission processes. But don't become overconfident and slack off elsewhere. Everything is important.

Anon_Person_1

CC made me think I couldn't get into college. Then I got into my all schools...so....
On a less personal note, I feel like a lot of people who get great scores on the SAT might not work on their applications as much as other things, and that could show. Like, one of my friends got a superscored 36 on the ACT but decided to blow off essays until the last moment...

fireandrain

I'd like to know how someone can know "many 2400 4.0 valedictorians." No matter how wide your circle of friends, acquaintances and relatives, the chances that you know more than one such a person is unlikely.

People hear a story about one 2400 4.0 val and extrapolate that to "many." The lesson, to me, is be wary of anecdotal evidence.

ChaoticOrder

Don't get me wrong, a 2400 is a nice accomplishment, but i would hope that it wouldn't be the pinnacle of one's achievements. In regards to the above post, i've known only 1 person who got a perfect score on the SAT, 1600/1600. It wasn't all that surprising since he received a 1590/1600 in the 6th grade and was being reeled in by Duke through their middle school scholar SAT thing (he eventually went there with a full ride).

monstor344

1590/1600 in 6th grade? And he chose Duke? Not to belittle Duke, which is an excellent school, but that score for a 6th grader indicates a genius. I would think that he'd attend HYPSM and be amongst the top of his class there...

Also, part of the reason I made this thread is because at my high school there are a healthy number of seniors (7-9) attending Cornell next year. And my high school does have an amazing reputation, but most of these students have 3.7 GPAs, ~2150-2200 SATs, and unremarkable ECs. I just feel that there is no justice when a 4.0 2400 candidate gets rejected from the lower-tiered ivies and these lesser-qualified students are accepted.

DwightEisenhower

Someone that intelligent will prosper regardless of where he goes.