Harvard, Yale

Chance Me / Match Me
1

<p>chance me mainly for Harvard and Yale, since those are my reaches. also consider U Chicago for merit scholarship, and Duke</p>

<p>R800, M780, W750
SAT II: Bio790, US History690, MathLevelII800</p>

<p>4.0 uw ranked #1 (most challenging courseload etc)</p>

<p>excellent essays
fricking awesome teacher recs
mediocre counselor rec </p>

<p>EC’s:::::</p>

<p>HOBY (Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership), came back as junior facilitator, help orgniaze program
ARML National math contest
pianist at local coffee shop
choir accompanist
Math Club VP
Chess Club pres, founder
Science club pres
NHS treasurer
Key Club vp
Volunteer for Melissa Stanley’s campaign (candidate for state legislature) (12)
Teen Leadership Troy (12)
Student Government (10, 11)
Senior leader (12)
Special Olympics – volunteer, recruiter (10, 11)
Wilson memorial Hospital volunteer</p>

<p>Awards:
winner of local essay contest
published in state-wide publication
National Merit
top scorer on OCTM Ohio math contest, qualify for OHMIO</p>

<p>other:
passion for calculator programming (wrote a good essay about it)</p>

<p>I’m going to chance myself and see if you agree:
I did just about everything “right” but nothing seriously extraordinary. well rounded. That US History sucks (I didn’t retake becuase before I hadn’t been planning on HY so the other 2 would have been enough for other schools), but it won’t be devastating. My biggest things are ARML and HOBY, and maybe programming will make my application stand out just a tiny bit. leadership pretty good. recs and essays I think will surely add to my chances. basically I think I have a chance but it’s mostly up to luck as I’m sure there are much more “catchy” applicants than me.</p>

<p>Do you agree/disagree, any comments appreciated.</p>

2

<p>What made you decide to apply to Harvard and Yale?</p>

3

<p>I don’t think the U.S. History will necessarily count against you, the scores seem to be counting less and less.</p>

<p>But if you’re confident that your essays are stellar and your leadership is fine, you definitely have a chance. The one thing that might hurt you is your counselor rec, but there isn’t much you can do about that at this point, so good luck.</p>

<p>Harvard and Yale will always be reaches, and because of the sheer quality and quantity of the applicants it’s impossible to say with 100% certainty who will get in. The rec will hurt, but just hope for the best.</p>

<p>Ah, and if you’re applying to Duke, focus hard on the Why Duke essay. It’s pretty big for that school.</p>

4

<p>oh and I tutor little kids every week. I have a rec from the teacher (good but it’s kinda on the short side) in charge and I’m debating whether it’s worth sending an extra rec from her</p>

5

<p>np99sky thanks for the duke tip. I already sent it in, but I did put some good effort into that “why duke”</p>

<p>i say the counselor rec is mediocre, but if I asked any average classmate, they would say it is really good. basically, the rec mostly says something like “john is a humble person who has good character…” (she read it aloud to me so that’s what I mainly picked up on)</p>