I agree and it’s too bad it can be a dance. Teachers, if you can’t write a strong LoR for a kid, just say no.…don’t make a HSer read between the lines. My example from above which is fresh in my mind because I just read it the other day is likely to deep six that kids’ app at every highly rejective school they applied to, maybe some selective ones too. And that applicant was strong.
Now OP has some good direction on how to ask/what to listen for 
Regarding balancing classes by major… any college wants to avoid having too many students in a major than it has instructional capacity for. Whether this is done in frosh admission or later with secondary admission to major depends on the school and major.
I have really good relationships with all my teachers, and have already asked a few to write some for my summer program applications. I know my teachers + counselor pretty well, so I’m not too concerned about receiving a bad letter of rec. they have been enthusiastic about writing my letters, which I’m sincerely grateful for
whatever this ranking is, is almost certainly meaningless to consider 27 vs 100 vs 2 and I bet nobody outside of HS students look at it…
Take BC calc (not stats) as senior if offered at your school. AP BC is considered much more rigorous by these schools and will be the norm for applicants. Taking AP stats will be considered a step down and a potential strike against you when everyone is SO qualified. I would drop one of the courses altogether in favor of it, truthfully. (Psych or AA - you don’t need that many social science/history classes in one year). That is SO many classes…I hate your school even allows that (wouldn’t be allowed at my kids PS, or those around them, not even close and we have lots of ivy-bounds kids).
I think you have a chance at any of them (particularly if you do BC calc in lieu of one) but as someone else said, I could see you getting into many of them, or none, there are just so many qualified students!
Work on your essays, for sure, and get solid Letters from teachers…which I am sure you know.
Honestly not being STEM focused seems advantageous at this point to me (non scientific comment)…I do alum interviews for an ivy, and I am now starting to be refreshed when someone wants to do a social science or humanaties major. This isn’t hard data on applicants, but so so many hard sciences/engineering now.
This is great advice.
Thank you all for the advice!! This has rlly helped out. Right now, i am going to focus on my summer program apps, as well as continue trying for research, and working on my project. Beyond this, do you know anything that applicants like me have done, or any examples of what my profile is compared with an exceptional profile? I would really like the best chance of getting in to these top colleges. Please let me know if there is anything I can do, aside from teacher recs and grades. Thank you so much!
I understand, I am currently self studying BC and will take the AP test this April. I am simply taking the AB class because the BC teachers at my school are all extremely strict, so I thought I would be able to learn more by self studying. I am expecting at the very least, 4 or above.
Yes- they get jobs. Regular, plain vanilla jobs. Answering phones, scooping ice cream, delivering pizza, folding sweaters and stocking shelves. They show up early or on time for their shift, they get named “employee of the month” due to their work ethic, they learn how to deal with cranky customers and short-tempered bosses.
I already have a job lol. I’m asking abt extracurriculars that are connected to my profile. And im sorry if im asking for too much, but I seriously don’t know what i am missing. I would appreciate it if there is anything I could improve, or a lacking that I cannot find.
I think the point being:
a job - a regular job - grocery store, fast food, office…wherever - is great - and these kids go to those schools.
You mention interning for a US representative - if you have tenure and accomplishment, great.
Sounds like you do a lot with model UN - great.
You want to go to very competitive schools - and you have done a great job setting yourself up for it.
But there is no magic pill - and that’s what you are asking for.
If you’ve got a job and you’ve done several activities with tenure and depth - and your academic rigor is there and your gpa and test are there…you’ve done all you can.
Yes, essays and LORs matter.
But there is no reason to torture yourself over this.
You’ve done all you can.
If they don’t accept you or you can’t go for whatever reason if they do, then it’s their loss and someone else’s gain.
They need you (if they want you) more than you need them.
Please don’t forget that.
Taking the class and getting an A will actually be more impressive. Do something more interesting with your time than self-studying. You may well have to take calc again in college and you will REALLY want to know it frontwards and backwards before skipping a level at college level.
Schools do not want academic drones.
What math class are you taking senior year?
Ah, I did not realize you were taking CALC AB instead of BC because the BC teachers are strict. I do not think that was a wise decision for the tippy tops. And , in general, gives me some pause regarding your chances at the ivy-plus types. It is not a deal breaker, but I bet it will give AOs pause too, that BC is offered but you chose AB.
I recommend you take BC next year . Self studying for a test for which there is a course offered in the HS that you opted not to take is not a great look.
This combined with your statements asking about how hard Duke and other schools are makes me consider the real possibility that these schools may be a bad fit. They are chock full of kids who enjoyed pushing themselves in HS, care about learning more than the grades, love a challenge, and thrive in that type of environment. Is that truly what you want?
Good reasons to self study AB instead of taking BC at your HS-
The class conflicts with a regular medical procedure for a chronic condition
The class conflicts with rehearsals with the symphony orchestra you perform with
The class conflicts with your volunteer work translating in housing court for immigrants who are about to be evicted
Etc. Avoiding a class because a teacher is strict? What’s up with this???
colleges, even top ones, like kids with “regular” jobs - you sound like you are trying to project some sort of perfect image and they want real kids with varied interests and high levels of responsibility and independence. Regular jobs show the latter 2 very well. You messing up ice cream at a stand hurts some small business owners bottom line, that is a real responsibility (unlike a school-based EC). Being a camp counselor in charge of kids well being? a big deal. Generally HS interns are given things they can’t mess up or don’t really matter, remember. (may not be your case, but is often true). Do not dismiss benefit of being employed.
As an interviewer, kids who seem like they are “box checking” and not passionate or engaged in learning deeply for its own sake (vs checking a box) stand out, and not in a good way. [edit: You may not be doing this at all! make sure it doesn’t seem like you are, though:) ]
Look, my mom did not allow me to take BC because she did not want me to mess up my gpa. Nothing can be done now, and I am already self studying. I don’t appreciate you implying that I’m a “bad” student. I work extremely hard in all of my classes. I have worked to remedy not taking BC. I have worked incredibly hard for all of my extracurriculars, and I enjoy learning. I just have to sacrifice this enjoyment for working even harder on my ecs.
You are a WONDERFUL student. I am not in any way impugning your academic strengths.
I’m pointing out that in your effort to be the “perfect” college applicant, some stuff is falling through the cracks. Stop trying to be perfect, try to be the best YOU that you can be, and trust me, you will enjoy being a HS student much, much more.
Ah, that explains a lot…grades obviously matter a lot, though so does rigor (particularly for these schools) and balancing them is very hard…And GPA matters even more if your school has public rank or public GPA deciles.
None of this means you are a bad student. You are obviously an excellent one.
You asked for opinions and gaps you might have.
That is a real gap.
Don’t attack those trying to help you.
You shouldn’t self study for tests, especially when the class is avail.
When they look at rigor, they don’t see the why - they just see what was or wasn’t taken.
That said - you’ll be desired by many schools.
Like all, have a balanced list.