Too laundry list-y? How should I maximize what I have?

[unihopeful11]

<p>Chances for: Yale, UC Berkeley, UCLA, Emory, Duke, Princeton, Brown, Penn // Columbia, Harvard, Stanford, UChicago // MIT, Cornell
(FYI broken up into 3 groups-will apply, might apply, might not apply)</p>

<p>What should I not include in my application? What should I "add in"? A chancer told me to focus more on "here and now" community service rather than long-term ones that I have. Any more advice?</p>

<p>Stats:
• SAT I (breakdown): 2270 (770 M, 750 CR, 750 W)
• SAT II: 800 Math II, 740 Lit, 730 USH (670 first time), 710 Physics (700 first time)
• Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
• Weight GPA: 4.7ish
• Rank: 2/700ish
• AP: Physics C Mech (4), Art History (4), US History (5) // self-studies: English Lang (5), Chinese Lang (5), Calc BC (5), Human Geo (5), Psychology (5)
• Senior Year Course Load: all six APs</p>

<p>Awards/Achievements:
• National AP Scholar Award
• Future Business Leaders of America State Finalist (6 regional awards, 1 state award)
• Science Olympiad State Finalist, 6-time County Medalist
• Academic Decathlon Regional Awards</p>

<p>Extracurriculars:
• FBLA (Member, 4 years, Secretary, 1 year, President, 2 years) –led chapter from near inactivity to top 15% of California
• Academic Decathlon (Team Member, 2 years)
• Science Olympiad (Varsity Member, 3 years, Varsity Captain, 1 year)
• French Honor Society (Member, 2 years, Secretary, 1 year) –not a BS club, though it may seem
• Swim Team (Member, 2 yrs)
• National Honor Society (Member, 4 years, Community Service Chair, 1 year)
• Newspaper (Staff Writer & Copy Editor, 1 year)
• Environmental Club (Co-founder)</p>

<p>Volunteering/Community Service
• Volunteer Tutoring Program (40-50 hours)
• National Multiple Sclerosis Society Volunteer
• American Cancer Society Relay for Life Volunteer
• March of Dimes Volunteer
• Key Club/Interact/NHS events
• City Volunteer</p>

<p>Job/Work Experience:
• Internship with Senator (Junior Summer + Senior Year)
• Paid School Tutor</p>

<p>Other:
• Intended major: Undecided
• State: CA
• School Type: Public, noncompetitive (an academic Ivy every couple years)
• Ethnicity: Asian
• Gender: Female
• Income Bracket: ~90-100k, need FA</p>

[rnmontgomery92]

<p>Think of the common app, I listed my volunteering opportunities on a resume as well and was told that if you can't list if for hours/ week and weeks/ year without it's looking illegitimate to keep it off. Ex: I volunteer at the down syndrome organization buddy walk every year for ten hours but I could only put that for one week per year. If your march of dimes etc is a continuing effort through the year, leave it on but if not take it off and include it in an essay. That is what I did with things like buddy walk, st Vincent depaul, etc</p>

[unihopeful11]

<p>^Thanks! That's a great tip. </p>

<p>Any more advice/comments from others?</p>

[decrescendo]

<p>You're an Asian from California; that's going to hurt. There are many outstanding Asian applicants who get routinely turned away from all of the schools you listed, and California is one of the most applied-from states to top schools nationwide. So you're really going to need to stick out.</p>

<p>You have a solid chance at any school, I don't think you need a chance thread to tell you that. Your academic record is solid, your extracurriculars are solid. But solid won't cut it for most of these schools. So you need to ask yoursef: What sets me apart?. The best way to separate yourself from the norm is through your essays, where you'll really need to write impressive work that captures you as a person and reveals something about your character, aspirations, and/or goals.</p>

<p>These are my predictions. (Absolutely NONE of the schools on your list are guaranteed for admission. So don't expect to be admitted to any. Since you're applying to so many though, you'll probably get into at least a few of them as long as the rest of your application checks out.)</p>

<p>Yale: Mid-reach
UC Berkeley: Low-reach
UCLA: Low-reach
Emory: Low-reach
Duke: Mid-reach
Princeton: Mid-reach
Brown: Mid-reach
Penn: Low-reach
Columbia: Mid-reach
Harvard: Mid-reach
Stanford: Mid-reach
UChicago: No idea (UChicago is impossible to predict with admissions).
MIT: Mid-reach
Cornell: Low-reach</p>

<p>Your best bets are UC Berkeley, UCLA, and Cornell. Everything else is a definite reach, although Penn is also likely. Good luck! :)</p>