Type of high school (or current college for transfers): Public Charter
[My school is a AP-Only school]
Cost Constraints / Budget 10k or under (free hopefully)
GPA, Rank, and Test Scores
Unweighted HS GPA: 3.8
Weighted HS GPA: School doesnt do weighted
Class Rank: No class Rank
ACT/SAT Scores: 1510
List your HS coursework
9th grade: AP Lang (4), AP Bio (4) , AP World (5) , AP Art History (5), AP Pre-Calc (4)
10th grade : AP Chem, AP Macro, AP Lit, AP Calc BC (2 year course), APUSH (2 year course), DE Psychology (earned a A-)
11th grade [Planned]: AP Calc BC, APUSH, AP Physics C, DE Data Science, DE Stats,
Language other than English: No Language Courses
Visual or performing arts: Theatre (x2 years), Photography
Awards
AP Scholar with Distinction
Won Schools STEM excellence award sophomore year
Deans List
Extracurriculars
Economic Research Assistant
Contributed 100+ hours to an economics research project; verified and organized data across 7 NYC property tax datasets in Excel and supported development of a financial report analyzing 2022–2023 NYC Comptroller data.
Intern, Mortgage Company
Managed 15+ loans in folders; introduced new communication software; managed emails from 40+ clients.
President of a Caribbean Culture Club
Administered the first annual Carnival festival; facilitated 45-minute cultural workshops featuring caribbean dance, music & food for 120 members.
Tutor, AP Language and Macro Teaching Assistant
Supported freshman in improving reading comprehension and macro analysis; edited 100+ FRQ’s and guided class discussions
Yearbook Committee Editor in Chief
Edited submissions and designed layouts, helping produce 4 themed yearbooks, each with a unique concept, collaborating with staff
Fellow, YouthBridge Fellowship
Developed leadership and civic engagement skills through discussions on identity, equity, and systemic issues alongside community service and NYC institutional visits.
Volunteer, VISIONS Service Adventures Fellowship - Cajamarca,Peru
Built 3 irrigation canals with Quechua community members in Peru; learned basic Quechua while devoting 20+ hours to improving water access
Participant, UW-Madison Badger Pre-College
Created and developed my own business through case studies and projects; studied entrepreneurship, marketing, finance, and strategy, earned a A+
Essays/LORs/Other
Essays: No clue
LORs: From my macro & Calc teacher, both will probably be strong
This jumps out - many colleges want to see LOTE and some require at least 2 years. Even if not required, it will probably weaken your application vs other applicants. As a rising junior, you still have a chance to take a couple of years of language (though I don’t know how this will work in practice if your school only offers APs.) If your school doesn’t offer languages, do you know if this is in the school profile somewhere? Can you take DE courses? Or do you perhaps happen to speak another language, maybe a heritage language?
Also, studying IR without a foreign language seems a little odd. A number of programs require advanced foreign language/language proficiency as a graduation requirement
Other than that, your application looks pretty strong to me. Do you have any preferences for schools other than location (big, small, Greek life, etc)?
Seconding the World Language issue - at any selective university a future IR major would be expected to have taken all the levels in a foreign language offered at their HS. Even flagships will require Level 2 at a minimum and generally want to see 3+.
Any chance you can take summer courses to remediate this? If Spanish is a heritage language, do you have any sort of external certification?
Other than that your profile is very strong.
Look into Questbridge to see if you’d qualify.
Do you qualify for need based aid? Have your parents run any net price calculators?
Schools in these areas are not known for generous merit awards because they have plenty of highly qualified applicants. Unless you qualify for need-based aid (and even then, schools that meet full need are extremely competitive for admission), you’ll need to look at other regions, particularly the South.
Are you saying that you already took the real SAT and scored 1510…as a HS sophomore?
I would urge you to prepare for the PSAT which you will take fall of your Junior year in high school. A very high score on that might position you for national merit status, which could open up some affordable doors (although not likely in the northeast).
In terms of the west coast, you would need to apply to colleges that guarantee to meet full need for all accepted students or something close to it. what colleges on the west coast were you thinking about?
I have a huge issue with your inconsistent exaggerations. A month ago you posted this information:
It is not August yet so how did you manage to get a 1510.
I know this is just a website and you’re just getting feelers, but when you exaggerate or futz with your history, it can be viewed as being dishonest. People here are legitimately trying to find options for you.
Also, when you start filling out your applications, and you “exaggerate” your information, the college admissions’ committees are very strict and punitive.
They expect that your signature indicates that you are being honest to the best of your ability.
Exaggerating or changing facts isn’t acceptable. You’ll be rejected because there will be inconsistencies that don’t make sense.
If you want some honest opinions about your chancing status, then you need to try to be as thorough as possible because posters, on this site are really trying to help you.
I find this hard to believe because foreign language is a high school graduation requirement in New York. So your entire school has not had any foreign language classes?
How is that possible, is your school not accredited in NYS?
If it isn’t, this could be a problem.
In any case you should really do your utmost to start working on a foreign language or Spanish for Heritage speakers through DE at a CC for instance. Completing two levels at a CC would typically be considered equivalent to level 3 in HS so you’d be okay.
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