<p>Sophomore from a very, very small town in Georgia.</p>
<p>My dream is to go to MIT, Caltech, or somewhere like those. But I’m just not sure if I should even try since I look horrible compared to other applicants.</p>
<p>Both with no prep; just taking to gauge myself:</p>
<p>1970 SAT (720M, 640CR, 610W)</p>
<p>32 ACT (can’t remember the specifics, but I do remember 35 in Language/English)</p>
<p>1st in my class, but it’s ony around 110 kids. So that’s no big deal. Extremely small school. The ony thing we’ve ever had related to the Ivies is a kid who got to the interview process.</p>
<p>I try to participate in ECs, but we don’t really have that much here. No major awards like USAMO or whatever. I’m taking my first AP this year (European History) because my schools has just let me start taking them.</p>
<p>We’re certainly not wealthy either, so financial aid is a must. Just another thing going against me.</p>
<p>Are these schools even realistic for me? Should I just resign to going to a lesser school?</p>
<p>Thanks in advance.</p>
<p>I’m also in a similar situation haha.</p>
<p>Your SAT/ACT scores are low, but since you’re still a sophomore you have plenty of time to prepare and improve. I’m a sophomore as well, and I got a 190 on my last PSAT( yuck) so I’m planning to study really hard over summer vacation so I can get 2300+</p>
<p>And if there are no ECs, why not try making one? My school is only big on sports, and so there is barely anything else. I have a few friends that share the same interests as me though, so I decided to found two clubs based on my interests. Or even better, since you live in a very very small town, you could start an organization/club in your community, not just in your school.</p>
<p>What’s your intended major/career path?</p>
<p>A huge problem is the culture here. It’s likely that any club having anything to do with anything academic would fail miserably.</p>
<p>Something in math or science. I’m not really sure yet.</p>
<p>As for PSAT, I got a 202 IIRC.</p>
<p>Ohhh. I see.
Well, you could still try though. Try to find people interested in math/science/etc, and form a club. Even if it’s small, it will do. For example, my friend started a club to make teens more aware about politics, but it only has 5 members, who are all friends. The club runs perfectly well though, and they have very thorough and active discussions. A club doesn’t have to be big to be successful.</p>
<p>And you can always think of ways. Like through research, I found a ton of places that have opportunities for scientific research internships, math summer programs, etc. Or, if you know a bit about webdesign, you might be able to start a successful website revolving around your interests? I dunno. xD Or if it’s possible you could try moving to a bigger, more active place?</p>
<p>It’s likely that next year I’ll be attending a local university (completing my 2 remaining HS years and then moving out of there), so I’m hoping I can find something to do there.</p>
<p>They told me they had a kid get into MIT last year from this program XD</p>
<p>I’m actually hoping to get involved in some research at the university. </p>
<p>Here’s what I’m wondering: how much would actually attending a university full time (living on campus, the whole deal) improve my chances and set me apart from the other applicants? A lot? A little? Not at all?</p>
<p>The program is specifically designed for us to transfer out, so it’s not really like I’m dedicated to this uni, but I’ll still be taking all of the classes, etc.</p>