<p>Phil, I work for an elite. These schools care very much about the person, but can choose them from among the top performers. It’s not always fair, but it’s the nature of the competition. They need to know the kids are prepared for the challenges they’ll face, will thrive. </p>
<p>We don’t know enough about your current record, OP. Do you have a high level of responsibilities and impact in activities in and out of school? Were you stellar after freshman year, with rigor? And you’ll need to dig into whether these target schools look at freshman year.</p>