<p>Take it from me…get your sleep in HS, Ivy/Ivy-caliber’s not worth the late nights. :)</p>
<p>But seriously. People on this website seem to so often forget that there is much more to life than your education. There is your personal health, your impact on the lives of others, your personal accomplishments, fun (?). I haven’t ever heard of someone who wanted to go to an Ivy League school (and ended up somewhere else) who felt limited in the pursuit of his/her ambition by the lack of that coveted Ivy degree. Ivy League is just a petty little high schooler dream, a passing fad if you will. If you get in, great! You will probably be a bit better off (depending on your major). If you don’t, is that going to make any difference in who you are and who you want to be? Absolutely not. </p>
<pre><code> And, don’t think a state school necessarily pales by some significant margin to an Ivy. I’ve done a research internship at Rutgers U and met some amazing people: undergrads, grads, and post-grads. Some of them were more than qualified to attend an Ivy but, for whatever reason, chose not to. For some it was a financial decision; for others, they compared the strengths of an Ivy (or “Ivy”) education to the strengths of an education at Rutgers and found Rutgers the more practical/suitable option. I know one premed student who chose Rutgers over Princeton not only b/c of the money saved, but also because she found no immediate fault with the quality of research facilities at Rutgers. I met many successful people while I was there and they were all very intelligent and very motivated to succeed. People who think an Ivy education is the only way to set themselves up for life are delusional. Your school does not make you who you are: that’s your job. Don’t forget it!
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<p>And, am I going to be hypocritical and say I’m not aiming for a good school like many others on this website? No, of course not! My argument is more like: Even if you reach for the stars and fall a little bit short, well, you’ll carry on just fine anyway. I for one don’t intend to change my personal goals nor my interests based on the outcome of college admissions. That’s just one step on a very long road.</p>