You don’t need to get all A’s…..but you should be very close to it. You should aim for a minimum of a 3.8 GPA unweighted. In addition to these grades, you should take the most challenging courses your school offers. They want you to show them that you are ready for college and the barometer that they use are AP/IB classes and the exam grades. In addition to good grades, the schools will look at your class rank…..after all, they are not going to be impressed if you get a 3.9 GPA but rank in the top 30% of your school….smells like grade inflation.

I agree that you must do a fair amount of volunteering and get high scores on your SAT 1 and 2’s (or the ACT). You should aim for at least a 2100 on your SAT 1 and 700+ on your SAT 2’s.

You don;t need to do ALL sports and ALL clubs…..however you should pick some activities and stick with them for a few years. Try to be in a leadership role in one or two of these clubs. Schools like to see long term commitment and passion….they will see through joining all clubs/sports as window dressing for your application.

Your Essay should let the reader know something about yourself that will not be seen anywhere else on your application.

Schools look for scholars who will do well in their classrooms….however, they also want young adults who will add something to their campus. This is not easy to quantify….but it had been a recurring message that I heard when I went on college tours with my son a few years ago…

Lastly…..the cost of an Ivy League education does not come cheap however……….

The cost of Ivy League tuition is not out of line with most top 100 (excluding state schools). For example tuition room and board at Princeton runs approx. $44,000 per year. This compares to

Boston University: $46,000+

Boston College: $46,000+

Syracuse University: $42,500

Rice University: $39,000+

Duke University: $45,500

George Washington University: $50,000

Vanderbilt University: $46,700

And they are even competitive with some of the top state schools for out of state students:

UC Berkeley: $40,700

University of Michigan: $39,000

University of Virginia: $ 35,000

Lastly, all Ivy League schools offer need based financial aid….so, if they determine that you cannot afford the tuition, they will give you a grant to close the gap (this is not a loan).

by good i mean ALL A’S

2. tons of money —they are goign to be expensive

3. do tons of extra out side class activities

be very well rounded

do all sports

join all student body organizations

4. volunteer a lot

5. study hard for sat and act depends on whichever one it is required by the school of your choice