How to get into a top college in US if you are not Mexican/Jewish/Black/Asian or a woman...?
Have a rich daddy.
>>16442494
>straight As since kindergarden
>amazing portfolio of random shit you do to look impressive (jobs, sports, community service, etc)
>amazing adversity essay about how you got your olympic medal by saving a bus of school children from driving off a cliff
basically making yourself look amazingly impressive to have
>>16442506
this
unless you've been groomed for it, you probably won't make it
lol these people are retarded
yes you need to earn A's (if you can't do this you're probably retarded) and have good SAT/SAT II scores (you can retake a shitload of times)
you also just have to not be a boring shithead during the interviews and have something beyond a school life, it doesn't have to be a lot but maybe you play an instrument extremely well or speak a lot of languages or run a small business, it doesn't even have to be that club garbage
the people on here don't know a fucking thing about top ranked schools because they're either underage, go to community college part time, or have already dropped out due to muh anxiety
what won't get you in is that retarded attitude, that everything is outside your control and that group X is to blame and these minorities have it so easy blah blah
what I would ask you is what possible value would going out of state to take on huge debt would give you? there are people making six figures out of their own public state flagship school and there are people from ivy league sucking dick and foaming latte milk
First off, you have to accept that the overwhelming majority of students accepted to top-tier universities are legacy. That really is why they get in: because someone else in the family already attended.
Once you come to terms that your odds were just cut by a factor of 97.5% (75% legacy, 10% of general applicants accepted) and you heap the demographic issue on top of that, you realize that there's no "how to get into." It's simply "how to roll the dice."
You roll by essentially jumping the gun. You have to treat high school as though you were already in college. You have to take high level courses, do productive work, accomplish stuff through side projects, etc. You have to already be what you think an opportunity like an Ivy League university would make you into.
Again, that's not how you get in. That's how you even start maybe possibly having a remote chance of even being allowed to try.
>>16443256
Ivy League schools have such huge endowments that their in-house financial aid is stellar. Once you're in, you are not allowed to leave simply because your family can't afford it. You're of "their material" and they'll gladly cover 100% tuition to have you graduate.
>>16443256
You sound like a privileged kike piece of shit senpai
>>16443274
true, the cost of moving out to, living near, and attending the school could be a massive number
full rides really are rare, and even if the school covers 95% of the bill, the rest could easily be equivalent or higher than what you could get at your local state school after financial aid
basically if you're good enough to get into ivies you'll be a "big fish in a small pond" elsewhere and will still get a huge merit/need financial aid package
>>16443283
you sound like a frogposter
go wash your face
>>16442494
white male ivy league grad here
go to a top school and be in the top of the class there
otherwise forget it unless you're a soloist with the london symphony at age 15 or something
Is the school you attend really this big of a deal in the US?
Remember OP top school isn't just ivy. In fact there is a huge drop off (especially if your looking to get employed in the west coast) after Harvard and Yale in the Ivy League.
Ohhh and professional schools don't give a fuck about your undergrad
>>16442494
In the check boxes on the application just check native American and Mexican, then say you are trans something or other.
If they try and call you out show up with half your hair buzzed and call them shit lords. That should get you a free ride pretty much anywhere.
>>16442494
>asian
>implying affirmative action doesn't fuck us over
>>16443745
it absolutely is not
supply and demand is king
and that's why major and accreditation is the only thing that matters
>>16443802
That's what I always figured based on my cousin deciding which school to go to, but I constantly see people on /adv/ worrying about their school. It's much less complicated when there are literally fewer than 10 universities in your whole country
Dont waste your time trying to get into a 'top' school, to get into one you'd need to work 100% hard throughout your school career starting with high school and fuck that. Social life > school but still be responsible. You dont need to get into the best school around to be successful and happy, you just gotta put in a little effort and do what makes you happy
I have the same problem. I really want to go to Columbia.
I've tons days on days of research about getting into the top schools, and here's what I've found:
>No, you don't have to be some sort of genius playing Mozart at age 13.
>The school is looking for the best of the best, the ones who are the best both academically and extracurricularly. They're looking to diversify their student body as much as possible with students from all walks of life and mindsets. This includes affirmative action shit but you can get into an ivy league being a white male.
>They're looking at things from an alumni standpoint also; they need to see a SUCCESSFUL student in you. This also corresponds with a better student body.
So here's what you should have:
>A high GPA (3.8+)
>Rigorous academic curriculum (possibly more important than the high GPA If you're still making above a 3.2). This shows motivation which = successful student
>High test scores (people still get into ivy leagues with lower test scores, but that's because they have high grades in rigorous courses)
>They're looking for extracurricular activities as well, this is very important, as it shows you will contribute something to the campus and something later in life. HOWEVER, you need to have a central theme. Don't join tons of clubs because it'll look good. Join one or two that you really care about, and stick with them for a while. This shows commitment and intrinsic motivation.
>MOST OF ALL, they're looking for a UNIQUELY QUALIFIED, INTELLECTUAL, LIKABLE student. Someone with a talent in some area along with these other qualities listed above will be admitted, while the study bot will be denied because they didn't focus on becoming PERSON, they focused on becoming a GPA.
Have a central theme. If you love art, focus your admissions resume on art. Join an arts coalition, or some sort of humanities club. If you love science, do some research in your spare time, or join a science fair or science club.
>>16444648
2/2
Above all, be a human. Don't be a study bot. Harvard receives apps from thousands upon thousands of students with perfect scores on everything-- why should they accept you?
Be an intelligent, likable, high-performing human. Have a love for learning, and have a sense of community. Think differently, and be different.
Also, learn to write. Seriously. Your essay is the most important part of your application.
>>16444653
And if your shit sucked in high school, GO TO COMMUNITY COLLEGE. Seriously. It's like a second chance. Make A's there (which is relatively easy), join a club or two, study for the SAT/ACT (whichever you want to take) and then get admitted to a great school. It will reflect a lot more on you as a person and as a student since you maintained a very high GPA in contrast to what it was previously, showing personal growth and ability to maximize potential.
>>16442494
It is really sad to see all the bitterness in this thread.
The first thing to point out is that the Ivy League is a football league, and the schools themselves are of very different quality. Yes, Harvard, Yale and Columbia are as good as US colleges can get. But your first-string state university is probably at least as good as Brown or Cornell, and a hell of a lot cheaper.
Meanwhile, how to get in? Yes, of course it helps to be as close to straight-As as possible, but all elite colleges deliberately accept some otherwise-interesting B and even C students if there is something special about them as persons that makes the admissions people feel they'll flourish in the school's special atmosphere or bring something of value to the other students.
That's where clubs or talents or just an impressive essay and interview can swing it.
I went to one of the top Ivys. I belonged to none of the groups you think get special treatment. I had been second in my class at a really lousy high school (no great accomplishment there) but had been president of a school club and done some volunteer work. But evidently something about me caught their eye and they were right - it turned out to be exactly the right college for me and I got a lot out of it.
(And incidentally they do all commit to need-blind admissions - that is, they accept you first and then arrange a package of scholarships, loans and work-study to be sure you can afford it.)
>>16444673
What do you think caught their eye?
>>16444686
Damned if I know. Looking back at myself at that age, I was a typical nerdy kid. Maybe it was the fact that at the time I wanted to be a math major and I had been head of the school magazine, and they liked the odd combo.
>>16444719
Well. I just applied to Bowdoin with a portfolio of experimental art and an essay about how I realized aspects of people and our economic system through the workplace...
With a 3.3 GPA... h-hopefully I get in... (thumbsup)
I got into several top 50 schools last year as an asian male with a mediocre gpa and sat (3.1 / 1800). Just have a good essay and have impressive extracurricular activities
