Should I apply early or not?

Tushar1010
Mon, 16 Feb 2015 16:28:53 +0000

I am an Indian studying in the CBSE syllabus. I am currently in the 11th grade preparing for my final exams.

At first I thought I would get 90%+ this year but then I didn’t study regularly as I was concentrating on App Development which was a big mistake which I regret deeply now. So now I am expecting around 80-85%. So now my only chance is to perform very well in 12th.

At first I was planning on applying early to Stanford and regular to others, but my half yearly exam happens only in mid-November and I am confident I can perform well in it. My friends told me to start applying by August as they believe it would increase my chances of getting accepted. So I am in a dilemma whether to apply early or not.

Here are my other stats:

9th grade - CGPA - 9.4/10
10th grade - CGPA - 9.8/10
11th grade (full year) - Expecting 80-85%
11th grade (final exam) - Expecting 85-90%
12th grade - Expecting 95%+

SAT 2 - 2400 (Math, Chem and Physics)
SAT 1 - 2250
AP Computer Science - 5

EC’s are excellent

So should I apply early to the colleges without my 12th half yearly marks or apply in October without my 12th half yearly marks? (Unless there is a way of sending my 12th half yearly marks later separately which would be so helpful)
Here are the colleges I am going to apply to:

1. Stanford

2. MIT

3. UCB

4. Columbia

5. Purdue

6. Georgia Tech

7. Caltech

8. Harvard

Thanks in advance for all the replies.

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