Chances at Yale, Dartmouth, Williams etc.

laur0814 · 07-09-2005, 08:35 PM

Hispanic Female, Junior at NJ Public School

What are my chances at:
Yale
Princeton
Dartmouth
Williams
Brown
Amherst
Middlebury

GPA - 4.25
SAT - 2180 - 760 M, 710 W, 710 V (studying for Oct. SAT anticipate ~2250)
SAT II - Chemistry - 700, Math IIC - 750, Biology 760

Toughest course load available at school, all honors and the following APs: Euro, US, Biology, Statistics
Next year I will also be taking AP Calc BC, and AP Lang.
I have just been selected as Sports Editor for our high school paper.

Extracurriculars:
Soccer - JV 9th grade Varsity 10th, 11th, and 12th. Elected Captain '05 season 2004 Season: All state and all county honors (Also play club all year round) Might have a push as a recruit at D3 and low D1 schools
Lacrosse - Freshman team 9th grade Varsity 10th 11th and 12th (also play club) Voted Captain for 2006 season, 2005 Season: Most Valuable Defensive Player
Basketball - Varsity every year - Captain as a junior
CYO Peer Minister at my church
Assistant Coach of a local youth soccer team
President and Founder of the Young Reader's Club
Member of the Spanish Club, Key Club, and Women Studies Club
School Newspaper (very prestigious)
National Honor Society
National Spanish Honor Society
Commended National Merit Scholar
Co-Founder and Co-President of a local tutoring business

What are my chances? I will probably end up going Pre-Med but I'm still not 100% sure. Any ideas of other schools that might fit my tastes?

zagat · 07-09-2005, 08:37 PM

Great chance, with or without your sport.

atomicfusion · 07-09-2005, 09:01 PM

Good chnace at dartmouth, williams, etc. Yale and Princeton are still a reach though, they are for everyone.

momrath · 07-09-2005, 09:01 PM

laur0814, your profile is good to go for all the colleges on your list. My guess is your dilemma is going to be deciding which one to choose!

There are no guarantees, however, and last year was a brutal year even for excellent students, so please be sure to add a few more solid matches (Middlebury is a reach-y match) and at least one super-safety, especially if financial aid is a factor for your family.

Hamilton, Bowdoin, Bates, Kenyon come to mind as schools with similar ambiences.

Senior06 · 07-09-2005, 09:18 PM

You have a great chance at any of those schools. I suggest doing Early Decision/Action to Yale or Princeton, whichever you like better.

mrphilomath · 07-09-2005, 09:21 PM

Yale and Princeton are very tough to get admission, trust me every single applicant has same record as you, otherwise they wouldn't bother to apply there. These schools look more for personal qualifications in order to distinguish one single student from 15000+ others because in the end everyone should be treated fairly. Special talents will play a key role here else you will just be regarded as one applicant in many. Very slim chances however I would recommend JHU it has very tough medical program, trust me you would be as good as graduating from one of those two schools if you got accepted to JHU or Duke. These two also have become very tough to get into however chances are better.

laur0814 · 07-10-2005, 01:04 PM

bump

Thanks for all of your responses! I wanted to know also if Yale is such a long shot I shouldn't bother applying. I realize it's a reach for me, but just how much of a reach?

RunRinCT · 07-10-2005, 02:21 PM

you seem like a solid student and your test scores and EC's are strong as well. Do you know what your class rank is or at least the percentile you're in? Definitely apply to a bunch of good schools (even Yale). I know someone who applied to 16 schools and got rejected or waitlisted at the majority but still managed to somehow get into the most selective of them all (Cornell). However, I think you should consider some slightly less selective ones that still have great reps just in case. Good luck!

momrath · 07-10-2005, 08:46 PM

Laur, think of it this way, your statistics and background won't keep you out of any of the schools on your list but they won't automatically get you in. There is no guarantee. The superselectives like Y+P have more applicants than they know what to do with. The others focus a lot on the profile of the applicant. If you're what they're looking for, you're all set, but it's difficult to know in advance.

You have a good chance at all these schools, and most likely in April you'll be looking at a fine selection of acceptances. However, it's really important that you take out an insurance policy and apply to a few less selectives as well. You need to be optimistic and pessimestic (or realistic) at the same time.

Also, please take an informed look at your family's financial situation. Nowadays needbased and merit aid is a critical element in many students' application strategies. Be informed on what you need and how you might best get it.

tansytroll · 07-12-2005, 01:34 PM

I know a hispanic girl whose only EC was soccer. She had a somewhat low GPA, and Harvard accepted her because of soccer. So, since that seems to be your hook I think you have a great chance of getting into Yale and Princeton.