Where should I go from here if I want to make it into top 10s, major in psychology, and become a lawyer?Answered
Hello!
I have watched videos on stats to make it into the top 10s, and I’m a little overwhelmed and curious about the results. My two dream schools are Columbia and Harvard, and I’d love to make it into either, but I haven’t done much during my freshman and sophomore years. My grades were pretty bad my freshman year, but my sophomore year, I've managed to maintain a 3.8! I am going out for some clubs like Varsity Tech Theatre, Yearbook, volleyball, and more community service. I don’t know if that’s enough for my junior year since I'm also only doing 2 AP classes (only ones offered).
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2 answers
Congrats on the GPA improvement! In general, admissions officers are relatively understanding of lowish freshman year grades provided the student does much better for the rest of high school. That said, a single C or lower can often ruin your chances of acceptance at schools like Harvard and Columbia, unless the rest of your application is truly extraordinary and/or you have a very clear reason for one bad grade. If you're curious about your chances, I'd recommend inputting your information in your profile here and checking out our chancing engine under the "Schools" tab above.
Regarding your course load, I'd recommend taking the most rigorous courses you can and doing as well in them as possible (if you really want to target Columbia and Harvard). If your school only offers two AP courses, do make sure you take both of them! It can also help to supplement your course load with dual enrollment (if you can take college-level courses at a local community college, for example).
Regarding your extracurriculars, I'd try to obtain some leadership positions in clubs, work on some self-driven projects, and/or enter some competitions. I'd also look to have some extracurriculars that are relevant to your intended major and career (for example, science bowl or a research assistantship for psychology and mock trial or speech or debate for law).
Finally, I just want to say that Columbia and Harvard are not the be all end all! Whether or not you get into these schools, you can still have an exciting, fulfilling, and transformative college experience. It's okay to have a dream school, but having your heart completely set on attending of the most exclusive schools in the world is never entirely advisable!
Definitely make sure to keep your GPA up! Also, make sure to have leadership positions in extracurriculars, like being the president of a club, or founder of an organization. You also want to make sure that you demonstrate a “spike”. For example, you said you wanted to major in psychology, so you should create a “spike” and show your interest in psychology. This means that a large portion of your extracurriculars should be related to psychology, and Ivy League admissions officers love to see students demonstrate a “spike”. Some ideas for you could be maybe interning for a psychology professor at a university, or creating a psychology related blog. Good luck!! Columbia is my dream school too, and I can relate a lot to you because I’m also a sophomore who didn’t do that much my freshman year.
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Thank you so much! And I hope you make it as well!