Do I have any chance?

Eiffel
Thu, 17 Sep 2009 19:13:16 +0000

Thanks, jack1232! I actually am applying to USC, and it is one of my top choices. :)

And thank you, bluewhitebulldog, for your feedback! Do you suggest I leave out extracurriculars that I only did for one year, even if they were substantial? For instance, last year, I did 200+ hours of community service volunteering at an elementary school. I think it’s significant, but I only did it for one year…

Also, I definitely did not start thinking about college in 11th grade :P, but I also did not take the very most rigorous course load available at my school. I took 5 out of 9 AP classes offered, and the rest have all been honors classes; what would Yale think of this? Not rigorous enough? The reason I did not take AP math or science classes, however, is because I knew that I would not be able to perform very well in them and they do not suit my strengths/interests/major. So, how would Yale view this? Would they immediately reject me because I didn’t take math/science AP classes?

Something that might be helpful is the fact that I took AP English Literature during my sophomore year and was the only sophomore admitted to this class (only offered to seniors except in very special circumstances like mine). This might show that I took the initiative to challenge myself academically and take on rigorous classes while most were not even thinking about/capable of taking AP classes?