So …here’s the thing, yes you are competitive (especially would be as a domestic applicant), but so are many people who apply to these colleges with limited space. You just have to browse the last week or two on these forums to see many very qualified and competitive applicants who still got rejected or deferred. I think your list is reach heavy, but if you get an admit that is affordable and you are happy to attend (would Pitt or Temple be one?) then being reach heavy is ok. If you are disappointed and take a gap year then bear in mind (1) spend it doing something to strengthen your application- you seem to be planning this already. I am not sure what visa you are on, but be careful that until you get a green card you may not be able to work at the type of jobs/internships you potentially have in mind - some dependent visas allow work but most don’t (2) you cannot (usually) defer a safety and intend to apply elsewhere so if you take a gap year then it has to be knowing that (3) applying to these highly competitive schools might mean you still have a disappointing outcome in a year’s time, so please give very careful consideration to match and safety schools on the next list too. Generally a strong applicant will get into one or two reaches out of a list like that, but it also sometimes happen that they don’t.
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