There’s some holes in your logic 
Dreams are something that converts into fruitful accomplishments later in life. College is just a tool to achieve a dream. It’s not a dream. Being a doctor, lawyer, engineer, etc is a dream. What you’re actually doing is taking your canteen full of water, pouring it on the ground, and hoping what you see in front of you is NOT a mirage. Smart motivated people are successful because they’re smart and motivated, not because they went to Harvard. You got accepted into a great school. Go and get your education!
I mean, what’s wrong with applying? If you don’t apply, you’ll long for what might have been. And if you do apply, you’ll feel like you did what you can…and now you can grow even more in love with the colleges that admitted you.
“35 act, 10 aps mostly 5’s and a few 4’s”
That’s all you think you need to state here? I hope you don’t think that’s all that’s important to a tippy top. It may not have been just about the essay.
Have you committed to attend the college that agreed to allow you a gap year? If so, I think you need to honor that commitment.
The margin of academic superiority that Harvard over ivy and other top 20 schools probably not much. The excessive amore toward Harvard is probably showing some issue here. What about get over the “first love” if the relationship does work out? People who can move on usually find that life is not always a straight path, and it is actually better in this way, so our lives are more like an adventure book than a textbook. Yeah, there is some uptight and too serious here.
? you make it sound as though I’d die if I didn’t get into Harvard. This post was for me to gauge whether or not there’s any point to me even reapplying.
I forgot what it’s called but I believe it’s a letter of intent: however, it’s not binding. I would just forfeit my deposit.
Oh geez okay I admit I wrote out a very rough sketch of my stats because I wish to remain anonymous. I understand there is much, much more factors to the admissions process. However, this is not a chance me post it’s a should-i-even-reapply post so I didn’t feel the need to post more to it.
The highlights: I got a 3.94 gpa unweighted, 4.68 gpa weighted, from california, president of NHS, concertmaster of a competitive charity orchestra, and started a nonprofit related to tutoring inner city children about a month ago.
Yeah that’s what I figured.
In which case, I agree with @BKSquared . If Harvard felt you were not what they wanted for the class of 2022, then unless your application is substantially different, expect no difference in results next year.
Love the school that loves you back.
Unless there is a very specific reason that it’s Harvard or nothing, I wouldn’t waste my time to apply since you’re in very schools anyway. Don’t chase after brand names. Any school in the the top 20, as you mentioned, you’ll get an awesome education and experience.
In my 8 or 9 years on College Confidential, I’ve only heard of one student who reapplied to Harvard after being rejected and was successfully admitted – but that was many years ago, when the applicant pool was half it’s current size. You might want to PM her for advice: @Hanna
Was the Ivy that accepted you Cornell?
I don’t think that you are going to learn anything as an undergrad at Harvard that you couldn’t learn at a different top 20 or Ivy League university.
If you attend any top 50 university, and if you do exceptionally well, then four+ years from now if you are considering graduate school Harvard will still be an option.
On the other hand, if you want to apply there is no harm in trying one more time. Spending a gap year tutoring inner city students does seem to me like a valuable way to spend a gap year, and is likely to make you an even better student when you do get to university.
I think that reapplying is not likely to result in a different outcome, but you will never know for sure unless you do reapply and see what happens.
Whatever this OP decides, he or she needs a clear idea of what H wants to see, how to be competitive. That’s more work than deciding to throw a hat in the ring again or not
Hanna’s website states that she transferred to Harvard from Bryn Mawr. Presumably, it was her record at Bryn Mawr that altered her profile to the extent that she was admitted to Harvard the second time around.
Unless you cure cancer, win a Nobel prize, write a bestselling book, star in a major motion picture or something of that magnitude in your gap year I would not bother re-applying as your application will not be substantially changed. Staying with your parents and doing community service in your area is nice, I can’t imagine it would move the needle on your application. Keep in mind that Harvard accepted less than 5% of applicants in the last cycle.
Time to stop looking behind and start looking ahead to having a great expereince at the school you have accepted a spot at. Love the school that loves you.
I know someone who successfully reapplied three years ago after taking a year off.
nope I didn’t apply there last year
I see everyone’ point. Thanks for taking the time to write out responses!