I’m a sophomore in highschool and I am planning on taking the SAT I soon (this June). But I am low on ECs because our school doesn’t offer the least of opportunities; not in sports, not in clubs, etc…
To put it in other words, the education system in our country is corrupted, and all the advice on the Internet says we should take the initiative to improve it. But the ugly truth is that we can’t do ANYTHING without good “connections” with the government. My lifetime dream is to go to MIT for my higher education, and it is not for prestige, but for the purpose of learning from the best especially in the domain of technology, which is what I see myself immersed in everyday of my life. In our country, the only way to survive your highschool and college careers is to study nonstop, and that is not something I want to undergo. I’m afraid I shouldn’t hope for getting accepted, because it is made clear that what the admission should show is your true self through your work, and not only your academic work. I don’t think I will impress the admissions office with only my standardized testing scores and highschool grades, which are by the way not that outstanding in the subjects that I’m not interested in (economy, sociology, etc…). What I am asking is should I still aim for MIT by improving my academics and SAT scores even though I don’t have much ECs up my sleeve?