Need college advice

[chuckey]

Hello Escapist members I apologize in advance for the tl;dr,

This is my first time posting a thread on here so I just wanted to say hi.

Okay, so I am a senior at my high school and like all seniors I have been busy with college apps. The thing is I only stared them two weeks ago. I was in the mindset of, "Oh, I still got time I don't need to worry..." All the while I would hear my friends on facebook and at school saying, "Yes, I got into [insert college here]." Well, I grew up recently and realized that my time in high school is short and I need to start getting ready for the real world. So my question to you all is do I have what it takes to get into an Ivy league or any other prestigious university?

Well, I am a procrastinator but by no means a slacker. I mostly get A's and a few B's. I participated in Football: grades 11-12 (our season ended already), Track: grades 10-12 (joining again in the spring), Boxing for 1 year, Orchestra from 9th-10th grade, and have currently been playing guitar for 2 and half years. Along with extracurricular activities, I studied Spanish from 7th to 11th grade, volunteered for a day at a nursing home for mentally disabled adults ( planning on looking for more volunteer work), and am tutoring this year at my school.

Academics wise, as stated before, I usually get A's with a few B's. My junior year though I got straight A's. While my grades sound nice, my work ethic for academics is very poor. You see, I was the kid who never needed to do the work and still got A's and B's on the tests. While it was awesome having to do nothing and still passing classes, this year I have not been doing well in my Honors Precalc and AP Bio class. My lack of responsibility in homework and studying have caused my grades to falter in those classes. While some of you might think that it is ridiculous to be struggling in two classes, please realize that as someone who got by by doing nothing, this is a new experience for me. Now that I grew up and realized that I need to work hard, I have been improving my work ethic.

Now as for my question stated in the beginning, I received a 26 on my ACT and am planning on retaking it later, will elite universities look past my ACT scores based on my academics and extra curricular activities and the fact I am a minority (Indian) who is the first in my family to go to college?

-------------- TL;DR

-Need college advice
-Did lots of extracurricular activities and volunteer work
-Got 26 on ACT (planning on retaking)
-Wondering if elite universities will accept me based on my background, ethnicity, and the fact I'm the first to go to college in my family

 

[Imp Poster]

I went with a major first then researed the top colleges for that major. That is where I would start so do you have something you are interested in majoring?

 

[DuctTapeJedi]

snip

The advice that I'd give to anyone applying to school, put in as many applications as you can. It sounds like you'd be able to get into a lot of different schools, so put your application out there, and just sit back and wait to pick from all of the accepted letters.

 

[chuckey]

I went with a major first then researed the top colleges for that major. That is where I would start so do you have something you are interested in majoring?

Well, I'm still sort of stuck. My mom wants me to get into a medical field, but I would really enjoy being in business or engineering.

 

[MissPixxie]

Well, I'm still sort of stuck. My mom wants me to get into a medical field, but I would really enjoy being in business or engineering.

Make sure you do it for you, and no one else. Only choose to study what you are genuinely interested in, else you'll be stuck before you know it.

 

[Naheal]

I went with a major first then researed the top colleges for that major. That is where I would start so do you have something you are interested in majoring?

Well, I'm still sort of stuck. My mom wants me to get into a medical field, but I would really enjoy being in business or engineering.

Business, while useful, is fairly common in today's day and age. Engineering might be the better bet. Are your parents paying for your college?

 

[Daveman]

I went with a major first then researed the top colleges for that major. That is where I would start so do you have something you are interested in majoring?

Well, I'm still sort of stuck. My mom wants me to get into a medical field, but I would really enjoy being in business or engineering.

Do that then. I'm doing engineering in the UK... it's awesome, except for actually having a shit-ton of lectures. There is absolutely no point in aiming for medicine if you don't 100% want it. It's very competitive and hard to get in at all. Plus it really narrows you down in terms of what you actually want to do with your life.

If you like physics and maths then do engineering because it is just that with enough business skills to get you by as well.

Don't know how useful my advice is speaking as a foreigner but good luck with whatever you decide.

 

[chuckey]

I went with a major first then researed the top colleges for that major. That is where I would start so do you have something you are interested in majoring?

Well, I'm still sort of stuck. My mom wants me to get into a medical field, but I would really enjoy being in business or engineering.

Business, while useful, is fairly common in today's day and age. Engineering might be the better bet. Are your parents paying for your college?

Well, It's just my mom. (parents are divorced) Anyway, yes she is paying but I am looking for a job to help out as well. Most likely I will apply for financial aid.

Make sure you do it for you, and no one else. Only choose to study what you are genuinely interested in, else you'll be stuck before you know it.

I guess the reason my mom wants me to go into the medical field is because she knows it is a stable area job wise.

 

[Rednog]

I'd try to kick up the ACT score, while other factors do play a part in your admission, the somewhat "average" score kinda looks like a gaping wound, I was in a similar set of circumstances, lots of extra curriculars, A's and B's little slipping towards last year of highschool and my counselor pretty much said it was a long shot when I had a 27, I kicked it up to a 31 and she said I had a good shot to get into the college I wanted. And I did get in. Though ivy league wasn't as great as I expected it to be, and actually kind of regretted it in the end. Go to a school based on it's programs, sure an ivy league name looks great on an application but not all the ivy league's have great curriculums in all their programs.

 

[Naheal]

I went with a major first then researed the top colleges for that major. That is where I would start so do you have something you are interested in majoring?

Well, I'm still sort of stuck. My mom wants me to get into a medical field, but I would really enjoy being in business or engineering.

Business, while useful, is fairly common in today's day and age. Engineering might be the better bet. Are your parents paying for your college?

Well, It's just my mom. (parents are divorced) Anyway, yes she is paying but I am looking for a job to help out as well. Most likely I will apply for financial aid.

Make sure you do it for you, and no one else. Only choose to study what you are genuinely interested in, else you'll be stuck before you know it.

I guess the reason my mom wants me to go into the medical field is because she knows it is a stable area job wise.

You're going to have to apply for financial aid no matter what you do. Your best bet initially would be to take whatever gen-ed courses you'll need, then decide from there. Sit down and talk with your parent on what you're planning on doing and what interests you. If she's understanding, she'll actually pay attention to what you have to say. If not, you might want to look at filing as an independent student later on down the road.

 

[Rednog]

Make sure you do it for you, and no one else. Only choose to study what you are genuinely interested in, else you'll be stuck before you know it.

I guess the reason my mom wants me to go into the medical field is because she knows it is a stable area job wise.

Be careful with choosing stability vs choosing what you enjoy doing.
About halfway through college I really started to dislike biology and the other science courses my school offered and a lot more interested in other courses. Though I decided to stick with a premed path through college because being a doctor is a fairly prestigious/ and there are always tons of jobs. But now that I'm in med school I'm fairly miserable. Seriously it is not a field to go into if you're not truly interested in the material and passionate about the work. Hell I'm in my second year and I'm near the point of burning through all my patience and sanity because I don't enjoy the stuff at all, but I can't really do anything about it because I'm not really qualified/in the position to change fields this late in the game.

Also if you're truly interested in medicine, I'd so go foreign for schools, a lot of european med schools have 6 year programs that start right after highschool, you'll end up saving 2 years off your education, and they are usually fairly cheaper, and go at a more reasonable pace then a normal 4 year medical program, and you get to skip the BS of some elective courses universities make you go through in order to get a diploma.

 

[chuckey]

I'd try to kick up the ACT score, while other factors do play a part in your admission, the somewhat "average" score kinda looks like a gaping wound, I was in a similar set of circumstances, lots of extra curriculars, A's and B's little slipping towards last year of highschool and my counselor pretty much said it was a long shot when I had a 27, I kicked it up to a 31 and she said I had a good shot to get into the college I wanted. And I did get in. Though ivy league wasn't as great as I expected it to be, and actually kind of regretted it in the end. Go to a school based on it's programs, sure an ivy league name looks great on an application but not all the ivy league's have great curriculums in all their programs.

Wow this is some of the best advice I've received. Although I am very grateful for everyone else that responded. Yes, I will get that ACT score up. I will ask my counselor when the next test session is. Any way what college did you get into and why did you sort of regret it if you don't mind me asking?

Edit: sorry didn't see your post until I posted.

 

[Eumersian]

The thing about Ivy Leagues is that you should be accomplished and all that. But what you need to be is interesting. There are thousands of bright, hard-working students out there who do extracurriculars and whatnot. What sets you apart? Have you done something that most people don't do? For example, when you were in orchestra, were you a star performer? Did you make yourself a leader even though you didn't have to?

About your grades. Those are important nonetheless. I got A's and B's throughout my high school career. I got into a decent university. I applied to Harvard, got an interview, did my best, literally filled up the piece of paper she brought to take notes, and didn't get in. I even wore a suit. It's definitely hit-or-miss with that stuff.

I have a friend who currently goes to Harvard. She was 2nd in her class. Good for her. She did all kinds of things outside the school. It's no question why she got in.

Being the first in your family to go to college could either help or hurt you. They could see it as a "risk" if you're from a "less educated" family. I'm not saying that your parents are stupid, but?you know what I mean I hope. They might, on the other hand, be impressed at your status, being great at stuff and what-have-you and being the first to go to college.

What I mean to say is, just try. If you are really committed about making a future for yourself, I'm sure you would do well in an elite university. But that doesn't mean that you will get in. Harvard University only accepts 3,000 freshman per year. Think of all the people that apply to there from America, the UK, Canada, and everywhere else. I know people who go to Yale and Princeton as well. Those universities are very selective, and you probably won't get in unless you've published a symphony or something already, but try your best and see.

 

[Simalacrum]

Universities are legally forbidden from basing their judgement upon whether to accept people or not depending on their gender, ethnicity, background, etc, so you don't need to worry about that factor (theoretically, at least).

Unfortunately I can't really tell you if they will accept you or not. However, what is important is that you try - if you feel that you can go to such a university, then go for it! You only live once after all, and a bit of risk cannot hurt you in the long run.

Also, are those elite universities right for the course that you want to take? Bare in mind that 'elite' universities aren't always right for the course that you wish to take - different universities excel in different subjects, so broadening you're horizons above the universities with good reputations might be something to consider too.