r/chanceme

I'm an international applicant from a remote Indian village where my family income is about $2,000/year, which means I'd need full financial aid to be able to study there.

Major:

Computer Science / Robotics

Profile:

- SAT: 1560

- 95% in board exams

Activities:

- Studied Statistics on Harvard MOOC

- Self-taught programming and created a flashcard/Spaced Repetition learning application

- Launched a STEM/technology club in my school

- Taught other students basic coding and technology skills

- Worked as a visual/social media designer for Ayurvedic clinic (located in Fremont, California)

- Interested in human-centered AI, UX systems, UI Design

- Took part in debates and public speaking competitions

- Stand-up comedy performances in school

Awards/ Honors:

- Selected for NYAS Summer Program

- District level Elocution Competition winner

- District level Essay Competition Winner

Background:

Even though I come from a small town with poor resources, I've been fascinated by engineering, design, and technology since early childhood. Almost everything I know about technology comes from MOOCs.

Applying To:

All Ivies

Stanford

NYU (ED)

I know these schools are extremely competitive, especially for international students needing full aid. Realistically, what are my chances, and what parts of my profile should I improve most before applying?

I’m in my junior year (2027) and I am undoubtedly going to fail AP precalculus, my total grade for the class will be somewhere around a 65-67, so I will have just barely failed. I could possibly retake the class in the summer for credit, but that might genuinely be the death of me. I’d rather do a credit by examination for a simple class like financial math just so that I can get the fourth math credit which my high school requires for graduation.

USC is my dream school. I don’t plan on majoring in STEM, my ideal major is political science. I’ve always been mid at math and science but excelled significantly in humanities. I’ll be taking AP stats next year (hopefully that goes well, I seem to enjoy the coursework much more than pre-calc as it’s less rigid in math).

Do I still have a chance of getting into USC? If I got an amazing SAT score (1580+) and had a crazy extracurricular resumé, would that be enough for admissions to at least look past my F in AP Pre-calc?

I’m honestly more nervous as to what my parents will say about the grade. However, I should obviously be nervous about how it will affect my college admissions as well, so I just need to know that I’m not completely cooked (even if it brings my odds down significantly).

If you’re a current or former student at USC (or any elite university) and you failed a class in high school, please just let me know that you exist lol.

Update: I PASSED THE CLASS

To sum everything in a Reddit post: Was an excellent student in middle school (doesn’t matter but context). Got to high school, struggled first semester freshman year (~3.6), emotional/mentally was in a terrible spot. Bad relationship with my dad, always fighting with him, I hated school, starting coping with weed (ik I’m a dumbass). Second semester freshman year was like a 3.3 or something. Then, I started sophomore year. Started better but then my friend was murdered in gang violence. Destroyed me mentally and went back to weed. Sophomore year was like a 3.32 and a 3.33. I know, not great. A lot of reflecting over the summer, started junior taking pretty good classes at least for what my high school offered (Calculus, AP Physics, APES), but also can’t stack a ton of APs because my school caps the amount you take, you have to take a religion class (Jesuit school) and there’s very few APs available to juniors. Just finished this year off with a 4.0 first semester and a 4.0 second semester so pretty decent GPA trend. Idk what any of my weighted GPAs are because my school doesn’t weigh honors and idk if they do for APs either. My essay covers everything and I’ve spent a ridiculous amount of time on it so I’m happy with it but am I just screwed because of my sophomore year?
Other stuff that you might want to know is pretty decent extra curricular and I can also drop my school list or extra curricular list if needed.
SAT is a 1480 but I’m studying over the summer to get it above 1500.
Thanks!

Demographics: Asian male, California, small public early college high school (~70 students in grade)

Intended majors: Applied Math or Mechanical Engineering (unsure)

Stats:

• GPA: 4.0 UW / 4.8 W
• SAT: 1570
• School doesn’t rank officially but probably 1 or 2

Coursework:

• AP Calc BC (5)
• AP CSA (5)
• AP Precalc (5)
• AP Music Theory (5)
• Took AP Physics C E&M, AP Lang, APUSH this year (predicting 5s)
• For context half of these are self-studied, I maxed rigor at my school
• Dual Enrollment: Linear Algebra, Multivariable Calculus, Differential Equations, Mechanics

ECs:

• Concertmaster at a highly selective Bay Area youth orchestra
• Violinist in an elite chamber music program
• Accepted to selective summer music programs/festivals
• National youth orchestra participant this summer
• Participated in a UC summer program focused on music + technology
• Leader at a volunteer organization that performs concerts at senior centers
• Math club president: organize meetings + free local competitions for younger students
• Soloed with local community orchestra
• Tutoring at school, help with wide array of subjects

Awards:

• 2x AIME qualifier
• AMC 10 Honor Roll
• AP Scholar-type awards

Context:
My school is pretty small/non-competitive compared to a lot of Bay Area schools, so I’m not sure how admissions will evaluate my profile relative to applicants from stronger STEM schools. We barely send anyone to Ivies (not a single Yale or Harvard admit!) I feel like I have a stronger music profile than most engineering applicants but weaker math competition results than the usual applicants. Also I'm a bit younger (16 when graduating) than most applicants? Planning on submitting a music portfolio if possible.

Also although I'm technically in the Bay Area my town is literally mostly farmland and farmers instead of tech dudes (it's literally a 2 hour drive to SF...)

Current thoughts:

• Berkeley
• UCLA
• UCSD
• Stanford
• CMU
• MIT (zero chance but might as well, my sister went but sadly MIT doesn't have legacy)

Would appreciate honest feedback + suggestions for reaches/matches/safeties.

Demographics
Gender: Male

Race/Ethnicity: SE Asian

Residence: 

Income Bracket: Lower Middle Class (~$60K)

Type of School: Large Public School

Hooks: First-generation college student, geographic diversity, underrepresented ethnicity

Intended Major: Undergrad: English / Psyhcb then Law School

Academics
GPA: 4.0 UW / 4.2 W

Rank: Est. top 3–5% (large public school, ~1,000 students)

APs completed: AP World History, AP Seminar (4s & 5s)

Junior Course Load: AP Lang, APUSH, AP Biology, AP Research, AP Psych, Adv. Pre-Calc/Trig, Debate

Standardized Testing
SAT: 

ACT: taking in the summer, target at least 33

AP Scores: APWH, AP Seminar 

Extracurricular / Activities
Varsity Debate — Co-Captain | 9th–10th grade | ~10 hrs/week Competed in DEX at the state level, ranking in the Top 16 of 100+ competitors to qualify for state. Served as Co-Captain, mentoring younger members and leading weekly practice sessions. 

Church Creative Team — Social Media Director | 10th grade–ongoing | ~3 hrs/week Lead the social media presence for a community outreach organization, creating content strategy and managing a growing online audience. Developed skills in digital communication, branding, and community engagement.

Church Community Outreach / Sunday School — Youth Mentor | Ongoing | ~25 hrs/month Mentored PreK–elementary aged children in language preservation, games, and life skills. 

TikTok Content Creator | Ongoing | ~3 hrs/week Grew an audience to 5,000+ followers producing original content. Demonstrates self-directed creativity, consistency, and an understanding of digital media and audience engagement.

Etsy Small Business Owner | Since age 12 | Ongoing Founded and operated an independent clothing resale business on Etsy starting at age 12. Grew the store from 2.5 stars to a perfect 5-star rating and generated over $1,000 in revenue through strategic pricing, customer service, and inventory management.

Mock Trial / Model UN — Competitor | 10th grade–ongoing | ~5 hrs/week Competed in regional and state Mock Trial tournaments, applying legal reasoning and courtroom argumentation skills. Combined with debate, represents a sustained commitment to advocacy and the law. (Was sorta just a member)

Key Club — Member | 10th grade | ~2 hrs/week Volunteered at school events and outside opportunities

Part-Time Job -| 10th grade–ongoing | ~10 hrs/week Balanced part-time work while maintaining a 4.0 GPA and a full AP course load, demonstrating time management, work ethic, and financial responsibility.

TikTok Content Creator | Ongoing | ~3 hrs/week Grew an audience to 5,000+ followers producing original content. Demonstrates self-directed creativity, consistency, and an understanding of digital media and audience engagement.

Awards / Honors
State Qualifier & Top 16 Finish — DEX Debate — Ranked in the top 16 of 100+ competitors statewide; one of few sophomore-year state qualifiers

Superintendent's Honor Roll (4 semesters, 9th + 10th grade) — Maintained highest academic distinction

I understand this is kinda weak for a school like NYU however I would like to mention that I am a first gen immigrant form a country that has been plagued w/ civil wars for decades. Additionally I live in a city that is not quite so favorable of “immigrants” especially one winch population is growing fast. Which is why I’m hoping to write my essays about being in a niche asian subgroup and somehow tie that to me 🤷‍♂️. If anyone has any tips to help me stand out, please lmk.

Context: My school has no connections, programs, or prestige. The kids here are just way too smart and it makes me look bad. Everything I have done is on my own merit, but idk if it’s enough compared to kids at my school.

Demographics: Male, Asian, Southern State, Public School, No Hooks

Intended Major(s): Biomedical Engineering, Electrical Engineering

SAT: 1560 (800M, 760R)

UW/W GPA and Rank: 3.96/4.51 (Top 6% out of 1000+ students)

Coursework: 10 APs & 4 IBs (all 5’s on APs and IB scores are yet to come)

Notable Courses: Calc III, AP Calc BC, AP Physics I & II, IB Biology, IB English (taking Linear Algebra and Discrete Math next year)

Awards:
- US Naval Award (Science)
- TSA Mathematical Modeling Nationals
- IEEE Prosthetics Research Paper
- IEEE Biosensing Research Paper
- Eagle Scout

Extracurriculars:
- Introduced science fair & research to district, growing participation by 200% and creating first district-wide symposium
- Worked with amputees at a large veteran’s clinic
- Helped medical nonprofits create cloud platforms as an intern @ Microsoft
- Built Brain Computer Interface training modules as an intern @ National Center for Adaptive Neurotechnologies
- Research Intern @ UTSW with upcoming research paper
- Built a platform to fix a major problem in my city (commended by mayor and platform is in use, I live in a small suburb)
- Taught communication at National Youth Leadership Training
- Built nonprofit teaching emotional intelligence and leadership through religious study and scaled to 9 cultural centers
- ASPL for Boy Scouts - Backpacked 200+ miles
- All Region Flute Player & Marching Band

Essays/LORs/Other:
- Really strong AP Calc BC rec about technical skills and intelligence
- Really strong IB Biology rec about character and leadership

Schools: UPenn ED, Princeton RD, Cornell, Gatech, UT EA, TAMU EA, idk what else to apply to

My application is really good in my opinion, but a lot of kids at my school are that much better. Our school doesn’t provide anything, so I’m not sure if I’m being compared to my peers or circumstances by colleges.

Hey everyone! I wanted to come on here and let everyone know that they will be alright going into this upcoming cycle. I wasn’t the best in academics at my school having scored 3/4’s on some of my ap exams, and I remember thinking I was cooked. Then September rolled around and I scored 1500+ on my SAT and had a sigh of relief. Got into my state schools with < 1 week submissions (which my counselor said was a record for the speed at which I got it). All this is going to say that you will be fine, and I’m happy to share that I got into Northeastern EA w/88K scholarship + honors at Boston campus, Cornell, Duke, Georgia Tech, UT Austin, UW Madison, and TAMU. If anyone needs any advice/counseling then please feel free to shoot me a dm, I’ll be more than happy to help and alleviate some of the concerns that some of you guys may be having.

1)

1. Basic profile
2. Current grade: rising senior

State of residence: California

Citizenship: US Citizen

Gender: Male

Intended engineering major: aerospace / mechanical

2. School rigor + GPA
   Unweighted GPA: 3.95

Weighted GPA: 4.4

Class rank: school doesnt rank, but I know I’m at least top 40 in my class of 550, probably around top 20-25 if I had to guess

School competitiveness: ultra competitive (among the top public high schools in California )

Total AP/IB/Honors/Dual Enrollment courses by graduation: 13 APs

12th grade courseload: ap stats, ap physics 1&2 (self study physics c mech and e&m), ap U.S. gov, ap macroecon, ap comp sci a, English, honors French 4, DE multivariable calculus and linear algebra

3. Test scores
   SAT: 1540

Reading/Writing: 750

Math: 790

AP exam scores (predicting my scores for the exams I took this year):
5: Calc BC, Chem, APUSH, AP Precalc, AP Lang, AP Psych
4: AP CSP

4. Extracurriculars- Listing them in no particular order (I’m scared this section will drag me down because I have absolutely no leadership positions 😭)

1.⁠Space competition Club- ⁠first place in regional space competition, qualified for international space competition and placed well

2. ⁠UC COSMOS- ⁠Did cool astronomy research, won’t go into depth so i don’t get doxed

3. ⁠Orchestra- violinist in school orchestra, concertmaster in 9th and 11th grade

4. ⁠Astrophotography-⁠photographed many night sky objects as well as DSOs. Photographed the moon, widescreen shots of the milky way, as well as DSOs like the Orion Nebula, Andromeda Galaxy, etc. I also made a social media account to share my astrophotography photos, accumulating 500 likes and fifty followers (ik it’s very little 😭)

5. Hobby Stargazing

6. Volunteering - Worked in a variety of workplaces, including working with the special needs population, setting up city-wide events, as well as cultural festivals.

7. Volunteer Tutor- Worked with a variety of school-ages, from elementary school to high school kids in subjects such as math and chemistry.

8. Research- doing research regarding astronomy, still don’t know full details of what the research will involve as I’m still doing it right now

5. Awards/honors
   First place in regional Space Competition

Top 3 in international Space Competition

National Merit Commended (1480 PSAT, 760 math 720 RW)

AP Scholar with Distinction

Le Grand Concours Bronze

Foreign Language Excellence Award

Magna Cum Laude (9-12th grade)

8. Additional context:

My GPA was brought down significantly due to achieving 3 B’s in sophomore year because I frequently got sick during sophomore year and missed school a ton

My current list (I don’t think I’ll be applying to ALL of these, but this is just the list of colleges I’ve made that im at least somewhat interested in):

Cornell, Stanford, MIT, UIUC, UMich, Georgia Tech, USC, Boston University, UT Austin, CMU, Duke, Northwestern , Caltech, CU Boulder, Purdue, UW, Virginia tech, UCLA, UCB, UCSD, UCI, Cal poly SLO, UCSB, UCD

Demographics
∙ Black female, low income
∙ Texas resident
∙ Intended major: Nursing (UT Austin)
Academics
∙ SAT: 1600
∙ UW GPA: 3.8 / W GPA: 4.86
∙ Class rank: Top 10%
∙ AP Bio: 5 | AP Stat: 5
Awards
∙ USABO Semifinalist
Extracurriculars
∙ HOSA
∙ Certified Clinical Medical Assistant (CCMA)
∙ Hospital volunteer
∙ Part-time job: Taco Bell
Essays/LORs: TBD
Looking for honest chances at UT Austin Nursing thanks!

SAT:1580( eng:780 m:800)
GPA:5.00
National Chemistry Olympiad top 30
National English Olympiad winner(1500+ participants)
National winner of silver award among all private schools in terms of chemistry(3 times and 2 times bronze) among the 100+ best students of my country
Republic math Olympiad top(30)
International Bellorusian Olympiad top 30 around the world.
The captain of debate team(4 languages) on the national level
NChB(the international Olympiad for chemistry students around the world which was taking place in Almaty) 125 teams(600+) top(5)
Top 1% in my school(it’s highly competitive school in my country even the best)
Was doing chemistry preparation in presedantal school
Ec:
A co founder of volunteering project for Olympiad students across Kyrgyzstan
Writing stories in episode(5 stories for more than 3000 readers each)
Doing some drawing with channels on instagram
My own chemistry club with two special students(150 hours)
Teaching the homeless children English and math(150 hours)
Making my own hacathon (50 participants)
Financial organisation in Greenland (it’s kind of volunteering organisation among the private schools)
Founder of art competitions among the children(200 participants)
Now I’m planning to make an app with AI for elderly people(cuz I want to protect them as my grandad dead because of it)
Top 5 of national hachaton (30+ participants)
I’m also planning to do some researches with professors(in mechanical chemistry)

But I want to pass to Uchicago cuz I feel that atmosphere, that pizzas about which my dad used to tell, how many interesting things can I do there, large campus and etc, but the most interesting place for it’s their life at dorm with close ones.

I'm a sophomore, and I'll be transferring to a college prep boarding school next year.

Demographics:

White

High Income

Rural area

4.0 UW GPA (my current school doesn't do a weighted GPA but the school I'm going to next year will.)

SAT:

Composite - 1440 (750 RW, 690 Math/700 RW 740 Math) got the same composite score twice

Superscore - 1490 (740 RW 740 Math)

Chick-fil-A Team Leader, 15 hrs/week freshman and sophomore year

Texas Roadhouse host - 25 hrs/week Sophomore year and hopefully the summers of my junior and senior year

42 Dual Enrollment credits with my community college

4x Honor roll student

Class rank: 1/380ish

BPA (2 years)

BPA chapter treasurer

BPA state president

2nd Place Payroll Accounting - BPA Nationals

3rd place fundamental accounting - BPA State

3rd place business management marketing and human resource concepts - BPA state

1st place payroll accounting - BPA state

Banking and Finance finalist - BPA state

DECA - 1 year

2nd place Financial services team - DECA state (partner didn't want to go to ICDC)

Speech and debate - 1 year, Varsity

District Debate Champion - Lincoln Douglas Debate

District Speech Champion - Panel Discussion

Business student of the year (school award)

Challenge coin recipient for professionalism (School award from my school and local police department)

Rotary exceptional student of the month

2 APs (bio and lang)

Mental health volunteer with a local non profit that pays for mental health therapy for the less fortunate (2 years)

As for the future here are my plans:

I will be joining Mock Trial, Model UN, and a business club at my school next year (weren't offered at my local school)

My new school is very competitive and offers about half of the APs and many Advanced Topic classes, but I'll be capped to a total of 9 AP and/or advanced topic classes

Also note my new school doesn't provide student rankings, and the only comparison colleges will have from me to other students is in the school profile where they provide the middle 50% of weighted GPAs

I'll be running for BPA National Executive Council next year

I will be the founder and president of my BPA chapter next year

Title

GPA: 94 / 97 (UW / W)

APs: 12 by end of senior year

Test scores: SAT 1480 (goal is 1600, been getting that on practices so I think it's gonna happen)

ECs:

• President of Robotics Club
  • Qualified for the State competition
  • Raised 5K in funding via. sponsorships (hasn't happened yet, but will)
• Internship at a tech startup, did programming for them
• Organized an online hackathon for this summer, expecting ~500 participants
• Built a physics-based simulation for VEX Robotics with the ability to run the user's code (~100 users currently, day 5 of release)
• In district orchestra (district-wide auditions for spots)
• NYSSMA Level 6 for Viola, got ~95
• Volunteer at local fire department
• Created a framework for reducing input token usage (cost to run) by coding agents by ~87% while the agent searches for relevant files.
• Creating a startup this summer through LaunchX

Essays: I have access to essay reviewers, so I think this part is going to be perfect

I am trying to build my college list. I don't think this is competitive, but I wanted to get more opinions. What schools would I be a good fit for?

Preferences: Urban, big school, political lean doesn't matter. I haven't visited any colleges yet, but a school with a big social atmosphere would be good.

I got a B+ and C freshman year and 2 B+s sophomore year, but have a really good SAT. Do my bad grades (all math) close the doors to any top schools?

&#x200B;

hey guys would really appreciate your help here. please dont doxx me

no financial aid required at alll

Demographics: Male, Indian, International (India), CBSE Curriculum, Rising Senior

Intended Majors: Finance, Economics, Business, Applied Mathematics anything above would be cool cuz I wanna go in investment banking

\\---

Academics

Gpa : Cbse 93 ,converted to us gpa is a 3.95 top 10% of class all subjects - Physics comp science math chem and eng my school didnt offer aps , dual enrollments or anything

Testing

SAT: 1530

Academic Interests

\\\* Economics

\\\* Finance

\\\* Quantitative analysis

\\\* Technology & AI

\\\* Entrepreneurship

Awards & Honors

1. State-Level Karate Gold Medalist

2. International-Level Debater

3. Silicon Valley Finalist - WhiteHat Jr National Coding Competition(26 selected out of 100k kids)

4. Multiple Olympiad distinctions and national/international ranks(top 20 in the country bois)

5. World Literacy Foundation recognition(student ambassador did fundraise money)

6. Trinity Guitar Grade 5 Certification playing guitar since 11years

7. Research papers published/submitted on SSRN

8. Debate and leadership recognitions across competitions and school activities

Extracurricular Activities

Entrepreneurship & Business

Co-Founder, SMMA

\\\* Co-founded and operated a social media marketing agency delivering data-driven growth strategies for businesses

\\\* Led 100+ outbound outreaches and managed multi-channel acquisition campaigns

\\\* Improved conversion metrics and optimized funnels through analytics-driven strategies

\\\* Tracked and analyzed CTR, CAC, ROAS, and campaign performance metrics

\\\* Worked on scalable client acquisition and retention systems

Internships

Investment Banking / Finance Internship

\\\* Gained exposure to financial analysis, valuation concepts, market research, and business strategy

\\\* Assisted with analytical and research-oriented tasks related to finance and investment evaluation

Technology / Startup Internship

\\\* Worked on technology, operations, and business development-related projects

\\\* Contributed to workflow optimization, digital systems, and execution across multiple functions

Research

Independent Researcher

\\\* Authored/co-authored 2 research papers published/submitted on SSRN

\\\* Research interests include economics, finance, AI, and quantitative systems

\\\* Conducted independent analytical research and long-form writing projects

Leadership

President, Economics Club

\\\* Led meetings, workshops, and discussions on economics, markets, and global finance

\\\* Organized educational sessions and collaborative activities for members

President, Finance Club

\\\* Conducted finance and investing workshops

\\\* Introduced students to financial markets, investing concepts, and business strategy

Debate & Public Speaking

International-Level Debater

\\\* Competed in high-level debate competitions

\\\* Taught debate and public speaking to 500+ students in person

\\\* Mentored 100+ students through Orbis, a debate-focused passion project

\\\* Helped train junior debaters in argumentation, public speaking, and policy discussion

\\\* Participated extensively in MUNs and competitive debate environments

Technology

Programming & Development

\\\* Coding since elementary school

\\\* Built websites, applications, and digital systems

\\\* Interested in fintech, AI, and scalable technology-driven ventures

Music

Guitarist

\\\* Playing guitar since age 6

\\\* Trinity Grade 5 guitarist

\\\* Performed in large-scale 1000 plus people concerts and music events

Athletics

Karate & Combat Sports

\\\* State-level karate gold medalist

\\\* Multi-year athletic training and competition experience

Community Service

Animal Welfare Volunteer

\\\* Completed 200+ hours of community service at a dog NGO

\\\* Assisted with animal care, volunteering initiatives, and support activities

Community & Mentorship

\\\* Mentored peers academically and in debate/public speaking

\\\* Organized workshops, discussions, and student-led initiatives

\\\* Involved in leadership and collaborative community projects

Im pretty sure my essays are going to be phenomenal

.

Letters of Recommendation

Physics Teacher 10/10

\\\* Focus on leadership, analytical thinking, and intellectual curiosity. Absolutely Amazing

Debate Mentor/Teacher 100/10 he was a Stanford alumnus and i interned for him tok

\\\* Focus on communication, initiative, and public speaking ability and tournaments and shi

Math/CS Teacher 8/10 kinda mid

\\\* Focus on quantitative reasoning and long-term academic consistency

Reaches (7)

University of Pennsylvania (Wharton)

Harvard University

Princeton University

Columbia University

Yale University

Stanford University

University of Chicago

Targets (5)

New York University (Stern)

University of Michigan (Ross)

University of California, Berkeley (Haas)

University of California, Los Angeles

University of Virginia (McIntire)

Safeties (5)

Indiana University Bloomington (Kelley)

Pennsylvania State University (Smeal)

Arizona State University

University of Texas at Dallas

Ohio State University

So yeah, basically the title. I applied for bacterial genomics, and just got an email that I got off the alternate waitlist. But here's the thing. I'm in a really odd position.

To keep it short, I live in a homestay in the States, and come home to South Korea every summer to meet my family from June to august. Going to SSP would cut this time that I get to spend with my family in half, and would ruin my plans to go to the gym and really better myself. I really don't know what to do in this situation.

On the other side, I know it would still help me with my college application. I have good stats (7/554 rank, 1550SAT), but lack some ECs especially in research, and my dream school is Stanford, so I know this is the most logical choice but still... I do not know what I should do. If I don't do SSP, I'm still doing a short research camp with a professor from a T10 based on a personal project that I am doing, and guaranteed getting a rec letter from him, so its not like I'm not doing anything either..

So my questions for ya'll are:

Do you think it is worth doing SSP in my situation?

How prestigious is SSP still?

Thanks for reading my post.

Demographics: male, Asian, public school in MA

Intended Major(s): pre-med (leaning toward chem/biochem)

SAT: 1550

GPA: 4.0 UW (no weighted, no class rank which is kinda weird)

Coursework: 8 AP by end of junior yr (chem 5, bio 5, Chinese 5, world 5, lang 5,apush, calc bc, ap physics c) prolly gonna do DE/Multivariable next yr idk yet. 10 honors course.

2 post-ap courses

Extracirricular

Volunteering - 150+ hrs, made 70+ hats and other trinkets for cancer patients. (10th, 11th)

volunteering at hospital - (60+ hr) mostly just helping patients with their daily needs + nurses with stocking stuff. (11th)

Summer internship at a t20 med school (without connections) - goal is for a paper, worst case poster/abstract (11th)

Summer internship at UPitt medical center - no paper but had like a poster. (10th)

First author of research published in IF > 3 peer reviewed journal in cancer research (10th, 11th)

summer internship at t20 university on west coast (one of the higher end ucs) @ their med school- likely end up with poster/abstract (11th)

Local Orchestra - violin 1 (9th, 10th, 11th)

president of tutoring program in competition chemistry - teach students across us (150+ kids) competition chem. (9th, 10th, 11th)

AP Chem Tutor - ~30+ hr tutor for school ppl and out of school (11th)

Tutoring for children for under privileged kids in Africa - 11th

Selected for regional orchestra - violin 1, kinda competitive region? (11th)

Science Olympiad Officer - few state medals but nothing too special (11th)

Built app with AI assistance to use AI to help ppl suffering from mental health issues to find music for comfort (11th)

leader of school chem club (11th, 12th)

Awards

USNCO Honors - Top 150

Regional Science Fair - 2nd place

Accepted Research to semi prestigious Conferece for pharmaceutical industry/college ppl (only hs student i think)

2x PVSA Gold

Saint Saens Youth Artist music comp - silver

top placements (within top 10 for each indiv or team) at other chemistry comps (wuct,bct,hmcho)

is it possible for me to hit some t30s or t20s? idk if im very comp for them... any recs to where to apply would be helpful

Demographics / Background
Male, domestic applicant from Maryland. Immigrant / multicultural background with significant time living across multiple countries before settling in the U.S. First language is Arabic, fluent in English. Family has experienced political instability, migration, financial pressure, and medical challenges.

Intended Major / Path
Biology / pre-med / medicine-focused track. Interested in health disparities, environmental health, community service, and clinical research.

School Context
Transferred from a small private religious school to a public high school to pursue a more rigorous course load. Previous school had very limited AP/weighted course options, which affected early academic opportunities and weighted GPA. Took dual enrollment at a local community college.

GPA / Rank
3.85 UW GPA, 4.1 W. rank not available.

Testing
Test-optional for SAT/ACT. to almost all schools, 1410 SAT tho

AP Scores
AP English Language: 5
AP Human Geography: 5 (self studied)
AP U.S. History: 4 (Self studied)
AP U.S. Government: 4
AP Psychology: 4 (Self studied)
AP Computer Science Principles: 4

Senior Course Load
AP Bio, AP Chem, AP Calc AB, AP Stats, AP Lit, AP Physics C Mechanics, plus peer tutoring/assistant work.

Honors / Awards
State/regional Model UN award.
State/regional wrestling placement.
Regional chemistry science fair award.
AP Scholar with Distinction.
School-level invention/leadership competition winner.

Major Hooks / Circumstances
Moved between several countries growing up due to family and political circumstances.
Transferred schools to access more rigorous academics.
Self-studied AP exams when AP classes were unavailable or limited.
Significant family caregiving responsibilities for a younger sibling with a severe disability.
Paid internship stipends contributed to household income.
Bilingual / multilingual household responsibilities, including translating/interpreting for family.

Activities

1. Founder / Executive Director, Environmental Service Organization: Founded a community cleanup organization that uses incentives like tutoring/awards to encourage service. Helped collect 100+ bags of trash, built a team, and organized competitions/events.
2. Youth Project Manager Intern, Nonprofit Organization: Led a small youth team in fundraising and engagement projects. Helped raise around five figures in a short campaign and contributed to youth-focused community initiatives.
3. Selective Pre-Med / Health Professions Program: Completed an 8-week medical exposure program. Served as a leader in a health disparities research group and participated in clinical/mentorship workshops.
4. Cardiology Internship Abroad: Observed cardiology operations, assisted with patient-facing tasks, practiced clinical note-taking, and performed supervised ECG-related work.
5. International Volunteering / Teaching + Hospital Service Volunteered abroad for multiple summers. Helped teach a class of younger students and volunteered in a clinical/hospital setting.
6. Founder / President, Debate Club: Founded the first debate club at former school in decades. Recruited 30+ members, ran meetings, organized tournaments, and later joined Model UN after transferring schools.
7. Founder / President, Muslim Student Association Started school MSA, organized fundraisers and sports events, and helped connect students across nearby schools.
8. County Workforce / Student Council Internship Worked on marketing/web design and served on a student council committee focused on health and social issues, contributing to policy-related work.
9. Data Analyst Intern, Nonprofit Analyzed several years of sales data, created reports and presentations, and made recommendations that were adopted by the organization.
10. Varsity Wrestling Started wrestling late but improved quickly. Competed varsity, placed in regional/state-level tournaments, and trained in the offseason.

Colleges:

Princeton
Harvard
Yale
Dartmouth
Duke
Brown
Tufts
NYU
Cornell
Carnie Mellon
Johns hopkins university
UPenn
Swarthmore University
UVA
George Washington University
University of Maryland
University of maryland Baltimore County
Towson University

so basically i didn’t lock in for my second semester of chem im a sophomore rn, last semester i got a b and my final decided my overall grade, i ended up getting a c which was js below what i was supposed to get to sustain my grade. i wanna go into medicine btw.

so is this cooked or can i come back next year if im aiming for at least t50. for bg im also not the strongest in the sciences or math, but im working on it.