OnMyWay1707

first of all, im not even in high school yet but i will b a freshman this august, i would really like some help or ideas on what i should in my high school years to stand out in my applications for (my top choices)standford, MIT, Princeton and Harvard,

i know it sounds like i'm aiming really high but i would really wish to get into one of these (specialy standford)

i currently live in Bolivia, but i've lived the past 10 years of my life in the U.S., im entering a private school here that recognized by the american embassy so its pretty much like any public high school in the U.S., i also plan on moving to another city here and entering the IB program (in english) in an international school,

i plan on learning more french (i've already taken 2 years of french in middle school). i was taking advanced math and since 6th grade i was in a humanities and communications magnet program. this won't really matter in my college applications i know, but it'll give me a head start for high school right?

so yeah... I plan on working really hard here because i know it will take a lot to compete with students in the U.S.
i'd like to thank everyone in advance for the help, advice or tips you guy will give me

b@r!um

Don't forget to work on your extracurriculars!

90% of the Harvard applicants are qualified academically to attend. If there's 10 applicants standing in a row, all with top IB scores, and Harvard could accept exactly one of them, why would they pick you and not the person next to you?

Swim18

Stanford*

You're only in 8th grade...

OnMyWay1707

thanks for the advice, i'll be taking horse-back riding, volleyball, and thats all i'm planning for now, what do you think i should do for community service?

OnMyWay1707

yes, i am aware that i am in 8th grade, but i think this is a great to to start planning all of this,

reallifeis

its great that you are just in 8th grade and already planning, but remember what life is about. Don't obsess with school, colleges, ivy league etc etc..Dont forget to live and be human.
Dont over achieve just to, dont take classes you are not interested in, dont volunteer if you are not passionate. Dont act like a robot.

Just for the record, I got into several top 25 LACs and with a great financial aid package, I applied just to try out I wasnt expecting getting in, and I did. My stats are average, my EC's are good enough but based on passion, no regional, national or international awards at all, just passion and a very passionate essay.

I already chose which school Ill be atending this fall and I feel so bad when I hear from someone who got denied or waitlisted at schools I rejected after being admitted, especially since most of them have better sat scores, and a better gpa. But Ive lived probably more than they have, hence I have more life experiences, more human, know what I mean? I am not saying Im better than anyone but I think it is VERY important to not let yourself get lost with all this college obsession. Live for the sake of living not to stak (sp?) a bunch of numbers and letters to PROBABLY get somewhere you don't even know how is like or if it will work for you. Be true to yourself.