Hypothetically speaking, what class rank (in percentiles) would I have to get to be in the “okay range” just for grades to get into Georgetown and Duke (my top two), for someone with mediocre extracurriculars? I’m currently in the top 14% of my class (75th out of 513) with a 3.93 UW/4.2 W and with the APs I’m taking, I think I can get it up to <4% by the end of junior year. Is this good enough?
These colleges have “holistic” admissions and many factors are “very important” in their admissions. With that said, 95% of Duke freshman were in the top 10% of their class and 85% at Georgetown. Applying to Duke ED will give you the best shot (21%) at admissions if you can afford it. Georgetown has a lot of students apply EA and the acceptance rate is only 12% (15% overall). You have time to boost your ECs, so I would think about improving in that area. Strong LORs and personal essays telling the story of what you want to accomplish and how you will make their college a better place, will be important.
Good luck!
Top 10%
How many students from your HS generally get into that level of college? Outside of Texas Publics, rank isn’t generally really meaningful except in the way that LORs are written.