What to do in highschool to get into good college?

Pre-College Topics High School Cafe
1

Hi, I am a freshman in highschool currently taking the the following classes
English 1 (H)
French 2 (H)
World History (AP)
Algebra2/Trig (H)
Freshman Gym (CP)
Concert Band (CP but taking as a pass/fail)
PLTW intro to engineering (H)

I just discovered this website today and I was glancing through and saw that in addition to taking rigorous classes I need to be in a lot of good extra curriculars. At the moment I am only in marching band, which is required for all band students regardless of cp honors or ap level, and French club, which is only for the extra credit. I made the mistake of quitting soccer thinking I wouldn’t have time. I plan on joining the gymnastics team in the spring. I read on other threads that for an engineering school, I need to participate in math and science extra curriculars so I plan on asking the mathletes coach if it is too late to join. I currently have a 4.0 unweighted GPA but this can change due to it only being one month into the semester.

I also am wondering how much legacy affects college applications. Both of my parents and my sister went to Princeton, and according to my parents, colleges like to accept people within the same family because it increases the chance of donations or something. My father also is a professor at University of Chicago and he said he could write a letter of recommendation for me when the time comes, but how much help would that actually be?

I really am clueless on what to do. My initial plan for this year was to just maintain straight As while I still can due to the rumors of French 3 and pre-calculus being difficult at my school. But now I don’t know what extra curriculars to do or what summer programs I should attend. As of next summer I am going to a computer/technology camp for 2 weeks to learn a coding language (I think Java or c#) and two other “courses” that give me a basic knowledge of the subject I take, and have fun. Now I think this may be an unproductive use of my time but I looked up the RSI and TASP and those I believe are for juniors, not freshman.
My current dream schools would be MIT or Princeton but I’m still looking to see what other colleges pique my interest
Advice would be great.

2

I forgot to mention, I took honors biology over the summer and got an A in the course, and I am currently in a program called the Gifted Academy which leads into IB junior year. It locks me into a schedule of classes I have to take, making me two electives art/music, so band for me, and a foreign language, French. The only reason I don’t have Honors chemistry this year is because I wanted to make sure engineering was something I wanted to pursue and the PLTW seemed to be a good way to determine it, and summer school opened up the slot for me.

3

Marching band. Yikes. Marching band.

At my school, marching band is about 10-15 hours a week. So yikes.
I think you’re on the right track. You’re not wasting your summer. IB is great. Just be sure to take a science class every year of high school from now on. As for ECs, only do the ones you like. If you join then decide that you hate mathletes, drop it. Gymnastics as a sport looks great. You still have 3.85 ish years of high school, so you have time to get involved in what interests you.

And check out the Class of 2019 forum!

4

You are what is referred to as a “Legacy” at Princeton and your dad being a professor gives you a similar boost at U Chicago. This means when/if you apply to either college in future your application may get an additional read and you will have a distinct advantage assuming you are otherwise qualified. Yes, ECs are important but it’s less about having a long list of them than it is about depth - participation for four years, president of clubs, state championships, major competitions. One clear difference between applicants who are successful and those who aren’t is how they spend their summers. If you live in Chicago, U Chicago has a superb STEM summer program for gifted students. Fill your summers with academic enrichment programs, take college classes, volunteer as a docent at the Art Institute