Taken from a website, having the following below will have a high guarantee of acceptance into Harvard or Yale.
Academics and Character:
Top 1-2% of high school class
Most challenging courseload of AP courses
SAT/ACT and SAT II scores in the 99th percentile
Glowing letters of recommendation indicating that student is best out of applicants from past several years from his/her high school
Intense love of learning, as evidenced by academic research outside the classroom with a college professor leading to publication in a journal
Potential to be leader in academic field in future
Along with these extracurriculars/awards:
Published author
Intel STS Finalist (top 40 in country)
Olympic medalist
Soloist at Carnegie Hall
US Math Olympiad Qualifier (USAMO)
Awards at the national level
Patent pending (without parental involvement)
But again, it’s all a lottery even if you are extremely qualified. Definitely look into other schools and ignore the rankings or “brand name” schools for just a bit and you’ll find tens of other outstanding colleges and universities with strong academics just like the ivies.