I just finished my sophomore year and I am so freaking lost about the college application process. My parents are really pushing for a top college (especially ND) and I was just looking for feedback on what I should be working on in order to have a competitive application my senior year.
Other
Intended Major: Political Science
State: Georgia
Ethnicity: Black/ African- American
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: Its up there… dad played in NFL
Hook: Legacy (dad went)
*Do I qualify for legacy if my dad doesn’t donate to ND (he does seem pretty popular when we go back though)?
9th Grade:
Lit/Comp 9- A-
Spanish 1- A+ (moved to another district so they started me over)
Civics/Econ A-
Adv Physics- A-
Accel Geometry/ Adv Algebra 2- B+
Health- A+
Intro to Culinary- A-
10th Grade:
Adv. Amer. Lit- A-
Spanish 2- A-
AP US History- B+
AP Chem- B+
Accel. Pre-Calc- A-
Digital Tech- A+
Culinary- A-
11th and 12th Grade:
Doing the full IB diploma program (all IB classes)
ECs:
JV Lacrosse : 9th-
Key Club(volunteer club) : 9th-
Mock Trial: (captain next year) 9th-
Robotics (state champs) 10th-
FCCLA: 10th-
Culinary Comp. Team: 10th-
Girlpreneurs
mentor to middle schoolers
Extra:
Over 200+ volunteer hours
Presidential Service Award
school ambassador
Started an online clothing and candle boutique
spent month in Peru teaching English
volunteer every summer helping victims of domestic violence learn to cope through yoga and meditation
summer job at daycare
*I haven’t taken the SAT or ACT yet which I know are major parts of the application process.
*I also haven’t received AP test scores yet.
*I didn’t mention them here but just to the certain I shouldn’t mention things I was only apart of for 1 year right.
ALL FEEDBACK WELCOME 
Your grades so far and your ECs are good for ND. But you have no test scores yet or junior year grades. Just do well this year. Your definitely on track for ND being a possibility although its no guarantee for anyone.
What do you estimate your SAT scores to be?
Wow, all of your ECs and achievements so far seem really cool Like @blueguy99 above said, I can’t really “chance” you without test scores or junior GPA. But, I think if you keep up with the dedication you showed in 9th and 10th grade, as well as work hard for good test scores, you’ll have a pretty competitive chance!
(I can’t speak much about merit aid because, financially, I’m in a similar situation, and I know that merit scholarships at the top level are extremely competitive.)
*Side note: I also want to encourage you to look into colleges that really fit YOU and not necessarily what your parents want, whether that be a top tier university or not They may be the ones paying ultimately, but it’s YOUR future they’re investing in. I think as long as they feel that you’re happy and that your future is secure, at the end of the day, they won’t mind if you attend a school that’s a bit lower than Top 40 on US News 
Just a total stranger’s $0.02!
Every time someone tells me to look at colleges that fit me it makes this whole process a little more real. Especially since my twin sister and I having almost the exact same resume, the chances of BOTH of us getting in is sounding more and more surral with NDs applicant pool getting more competitive every year.
In terms of estimates for the SAT, I really have no clue. My PSAT scores weren’t that good to be honest but I’ve been doing a lot of practice on the topics that I didn’t do so well with. I should be taking a practice test soon so i’ll let you know then.
Hey, none of the “fit” stuff is to say that ND isn’t a good for for you or your twin sister. It may be perfect! I only brought it up because of the line “My parents are really pushing for a top college (especially ND)…” I just wanted to make sure you knew to choose somewhere that would make you happy, not just somewhere with prestige!
My PSAT scores weren’t very good either, but there was a pretty significant increase between those scores and what I actually made on the test. Just be sure to prep well! (I’m still working on my own :)) )