<p>My sons went to an independent school where kids got into some of the ivies and top 25 schools even being in the second quintile. Also, my son got into some surprising stretches and got lots of merit aid with a 3.0 (average at his school) and a near perfect SAT, all but one AP test being 5s. So it depends upon the school. </p>
<p>Mathmom brings up a lot of factors that come into play other than just class rank. But, yes, if your kid is at an "average’ high school, being in the top 3-5 students, not percent, but students is what’s needed many times for getting into the most selective schools.</p>