In terms of grades, test scores, extra curriculars etc… What does the ideal ivy league student have in their apps that make them a shoo-in for schools like Yale and Brown?
With an admission rates in the single digits, there is no such thing as a “shoo-in” for the Ivy schools. You can look at other threads of acceptance and rejections listed by posters. Many times both groups have very similar and equally impressive stats. If you have great academic stats and at the same time have a strong “hook” (such as recruited athlete, URM, less so for legacy), then chances become much better.
You have 4 posts asking about Ivy League schools. If there was a formula for gaining admission to an Ivy League school someone would bottle and sell it.
One suggestion I’d have for you is to work to improve your 1450 SAT score.
Instead of this singular focus on Ivy League schools your time would be better spent expanding your horizons. Get your hands on some good college guide books (ex. Fiske, Princeton Review) which you can probably find at your guidance office or in a library and read up on different colleges. Work to develop a strong college application list that includes reach (including Ivy), match, and safety schools that appear affordable and that you would be happy to attend.
This is actually easy
GPA: 3.75+
SAtT: 1450+
EC: One of the main characters in major movie franchise.
If you have all of them, I can guarantee admittance into at least one Ivy League school.
“Instead of this singular focus on Ivy League schools your time would be better spent expanding your horizons.”
Exactly.
No one is a shoo-in for Yale and Brown.
A human.
At times, a human with a VERY, VERY RICH (and generous) daddy.
Last name: Obama.
GPA: 3.5+ (not saying anything about what Malia’s grades were, just saying this is probably what it would take)
SAT: 1400+
ECs: International diplomacy, etc
…kind of like a winning lottery ticket.
It’s pretty much indistinguishable from one that didn’t win.
A shoo-in for Yale?
If you’ve won a Nobel prize, like Malala, or if you’re an otherwise internationally recognized celebrity (recognized for something meaningful, youtubers vlogging about their sephora haul don’t count) you will probably get in. If you’re a seventh-generation legacy or a Vanderbilt or a Kennedy with a good record and report card to go with it, you will probably get in. Otherwise, you’ll just have to put your name in the lottery and wait, like everyone else.
Why are you so interested in the Ivies? They’re very different schools. I think you need to start with you – who you are and what you want – instead of trying to mold yourself into what you think they want. I don’t believe that what’s right for Yale will necessarily be right for the other Ivies and vice versa anyway, so trying to be something you’re not won’t help you.
You asked about getting aid but are also contemplating a summer mission trip to Paris where you’d volunteer for a total of 40 hours. That averages to just 3.5 hours/week. I don’t know what a summer in Paris costs, but I imagine it’s a lot. If your parents can afford for you to live in Paris for 3 months without you having to work every spare minute, they may make too much for need based aid. Run the Net Price Calculator for each school on your list to get an estimate of costs, then ask your parents if they’ll pay that. If they divorce, you should probably run it twice – once with your mom’s info. and once with your dad’s – then add the totals together. I think that will give you a very rough ballpark estimate of costs.
Have your parents said how much they can pay? Do you have any idea what you’d like to study? Or what type of campus you’d like? If you tell us what you’re looking for, we can suggest realistic options. You can apply to some of the Ivy League schools, but those are all reaches. You need some matches and safeties on your list. I’d pick your safeties first (schools you’re sure to get into, that are affordable, and that you’d be happy to attend), then work on your matches and reaches.
It takes the good sense - and hard work- to figure out what they want. No assuming, no half-baked thinking, certainly not just “dreaming.” They don’t throw darts. Lightning doesn’t just strike.
Top grades and scores aren’t enough. It helps if you have a hook i.e. something the college needs: recruited athlete etc.