@lilyflower3241, you asked what people thought about your chances and it appears you don’t like some of the answers.
“I did not ask for an analysis of my schedule.” Your schedule matters, a lot. If you are pursuing something in the sciences, want to do that at a very selective school, had the opportunity to take Calc BC but did not, then that may matter.
Good luck to you.
@suzy100 Yeah I don’t like some of the answers because they don’t answer the question. Math and science are not the same thing. I am sure that taking a slightly easier math class so that I could put most of my focus into the 4 periods of advanced sciences classes I was taking at the same time is fine for someone who wants to pursue something in the sciences.
MODERATOR’S NOTE:
Well, on this site, here are your options:
• Accept the advice
• Ignore the advice
That’s it. Notice that I did not say telling people what they can and cannot post is an option - it’s not. You asked the question, so expect answers that you may not like. Additionally, although a user asks a question, it does not always mean that s/he is asking the right questions, and more experienced users may suggest additional questions which should be asked. Good luck.
This is not accurate. For science, your math background is very important. You are asking about extremely competitive schools; choosing the easier math path may decrease the already-naturally-low chances. If you were asking about less-competitive schools, the answer might be different.
Whether it is worth the money to apply anyway is a more difficult question to answer. Get your scores up a bit as you are hoping to do. Consider BC instead of stats senior year, not just for admissions purposes, but so that you don’t forget what you’ve learned taking a year off after your first calc course, because you will need to take more calculus courses in college.
@evergreen5 lmao I already made clear the fact that I can not take Calc BC next year. It is not an option. We are not given a choice on what math class we want to take senior year. In our school after Calc AB you take Stats. It’s not something I can consider changing. In fact, even if I had the choice to change it, I would not.
@skieurope I’m not telling people what they can and can not post. I am replying to the answers they give me. They can say/do whatever I want, I don’t care. But this is the internet, and I can post what I like as well. I am not being rude in any way, I am just stating my opinion.
MODERATOR’S NOTE:
Actually to be clear, no you can’t, at least on this site. You can post what you like as long as they do not violate the forum rules.
@skieurope Yes well luckily “what I like” to post abides by the forum rules 
For Caltech specifically, I suspect that the student who purposely chooses not to take BC when there was an opportunity (albeit apparently as a junior) will face reduced chances for admission compared to the competition (note the admissions rate of 8% with calc already a requirement) and I further suspect may not be a great fit for that school. If there’s an application fee that might be considered a waste, I’d start with that one.
However, as you look toward schools with acceptance rates higher than that, like Emory, with slightly lower score ranges, this may not matter at all, let alone as obviously as it might for the level of Caltech. It’s hard to say without knowing your final application test scores, but Emory would be a much more reasonable reach than Caltech.
First, let’s pull up the latest Common Data Sets for Cornell, Dartmouth and Caltech.You should do this for the other schools on your list as well to see how your objective stat’s stack up. http://irp.dpb.cornell.edu/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/CDS_2017-2018.pdf; http://www.dartmouth.edu/~oir/pdfs/cds_2017-2018.pdf; http://finance.caltech.edu/documents/479-cds2017.pdf
Parsing through the info you shared:
GPA/Rank. You say your rank is around the top 10%. Do you have an idea if you are closer to the top 10% or the top 5%? If we look at Cornell, 86% of the matriculated students were in the top 10%, 93% for Dartmouth and 97% for Caltech. For Cornell, this data includes all undergrad colleges, but I suspect the College of Arts and Sciences, which is what you would likely choose as a premed, has higher stats as a subgroup (also for test scores). For Cornell and Dartmouth, also remember there are about 200 recruited athletes, many of whom will have lower stats.
Courses taken. Colleges do look at overall course rigor, including senior year classes. Will your counselor note that you have taken the most rigorous courses offered? I know there has been some back and forth on Calculus AB vs BC, and if Stats is your only option so be it, but you would be seriously at a disadvantage if Calc is not fresh in your mind and you are a STEM major. I’d suggest taking a summer refresher course or work with a private tutor before heading into college.
Test scores. With a 32 ACT you are just above the 25th percentile for Cornell and Dartmouth (but note my comments on athletic recruits and Cornell College of Arts and Sciences) and well below for the 25th percentile for Caltech. Do you have SAT2 scores yet? They will be required or at least recommended for most of the highly selective schools.
EC’s. The top schools admit both “round” and “spikey” kids. I disagree with the posts that say your EC’s need to be consistent with your intended major. I do agree that what matters for EC’s is depth and quality of participation and achievements, not the length of the list. The successful candidates present a consistent story about themselves through their classes, LoR’s, essays and EC’s that portrays someone who will make the most of the institution at hand and who will be a contributor to that community.
Finally, the list you presented are of some very different schools. The only common thread is that they are highly selective. Cornell is huge and rural. Dartmouth is small and rural. Caltech is frankly for science geniuses. UC is in a major urban center. They all have different emphasis and campus culture. Do you fit these schools and vice versa are critical questions.
Bottom line, your current stat’s put you in the ball game, except for Caltech IMO, I’d definitely try to get the test scores up. But more importantly, if you want to take a “shot”, shoot at schools that fit you and vice versa.
I think this is good advice from @BKSquared. It looks like good reaches for your list might be Dartmouth, JHU, Emory, and possibly Cornell. If you really want to add another Ivy, have you thought about Brown? In any case, look at the environments of the schools to see if they are a good fit as a place you would like to spend 4 years.
Taking SAT Subject Tests this year is a good suggestion. Since you are taking AP Chem this year, you might take the Chemistry subject test at the end of the year along with the Math level 2 test. Take the official practice tests first to see how you are likely to score.
Good luck!
Right, but you didn’t mention any awards in your original post… As long as you know you have something to stand out from other applicants then that’s all that matters. Think of it like this: SAT and GPA are just things to get you even considered as a competitive applicant (and for Ivy league they need to be really, really good). Without awards and achievements (or a killer essay) you just simply won’t stand out from the other applicants with high scores.
@lilyflower3241 Right, but you didn’t mention that in the thread so there’s no way I could have known. Anyways, make sure those achievements are something notable (such as winning a state/national competition). Just having good GPA and good SAT isn’t enough. Think of it as necessary things to even get considered for acceptance. You need other things to stand out from the pool of competitive applicants that already have strong test scores. That thing could be a killer essay, talented at sports, founder of some club that impacted your community, etc.
With a 32 ACT you are already at a disadvantage when applying for Ivy leagues as you fall between the 25 and 50 percentiles. So if you want to have a shot, you’re really gonna need to stand out with something else.
@lilyflower3241 I think you should try applying to a couple Ivy league schools, as well as several matches and safeties. Raising your ACT would help your chances (only on CC is a 32 considered “average”) for any ivies. Because you are from KS, you might have a “location hook” because fewer midwest students go to Ivies.
I disagree with whoever said colleges don’t care about volunteering. Especially if you volunteer in a hospital since you’re premed or at the same place, regularly, for years, volunteering shows dedication and care. Ivies want people who care about their community; your Bronze PVSA award shows that you aren’t only focused on yourself and your grades. Any shadowing opportunities or medical related internships are also great.
Work hard on your essays and good luck!
If you truly are pursuing med school, go to a school where you would be the happiest where can get the highest GPA. Since undergrad is not the final destination, you may have to swallow some pride and go to a school that may not be the best one you get into. Med schools value GPA over the institution you come from. Furthermore, med programs are notoriously difficult to get into, like >5%. So if you know this is what you want to do, find programs at schools that feed you directly into med school after graduation.