Are My Grades Good Enough for the Ivy League TKG

Are My Grades Good Enough for the Ivy League Ah! The Ivy League! There are thousands of colleges and universities in the United States, hundreds of which are highly respected, and dozens of which are completely outstanding. And yet, there are eight schools that capture the imagination more than almost any others - the Ivy League. Just the fact that you can refer them as a singular unit says something. There are children who are raised from birth to go to an Ivy League school, but wanting to get into one of the top (and most popular) schools in the country isn’t enough to get you that acceptance letter. You also actually have to be qualified.And what does qualified mean when you’re shooting for admission to an Ivy League school? It means top grades, top scores, and being an overall standout.As a rule, top schools don’t publish ‘minimums’ that applicants need to meet to be considered, but looking at the profiles of their recent classes can give us an idea of where you need to be to make applying to an Ivy League school even worth the effort. Below we’ve broken down the most recent median scores, class rankings, and GPA’s (often as percentiles) for accepted students for each Ivy League school.A few things to keep in mind before diving in:Many schools like to use ranges and percentiles rather than giving precise numbers. This is as annoying for us as it is for you, but we still like these numbers better than the sketchily compiled numbers that are too often posted online as if they are strict fact.We’re all doing our best to estimate something with the information available, and we don’t have all of the answers. In fact, no one does except for the schools and they like to be tight-lipped, so be skeptical of anyone who says “if you hit these numbers, you will get in.” Why? Because they are full of it.We are in a very annoying transition period with the SAT. Some schools are kind enough to translate old SAT score averages into the new SAT equivalents, but not everywhere is that accommodati ng.Most importantly, remember that you aren’t just your grades or your scores. You need to see the numbers to understand the whole picture, but if you’re in the 25th-50th percentile it’ll be your essays that get you in. We’ll get back to this at the end of this post, but you should definitely check out our essay resources.The NumbersBrown University The way Brown lays out their application statistics is a little confusing and dense (something that will be a theme moving forward), but there is some interesting and helpful information.Acceptance rate: ~9%Grades of Accepted Applicants for the Class of 2020*of the schools that report class rank19% of Valedictorians who applied were accepted14% of Salutatorians who applied were acceptedOnly 2% of students in the bottom 90% of their class were accepted. SAT/ACT Scores of Accepted Students for the Class of 2020Old SATSAT Critical Reading:Almost half of accepted applicants scored 700 or higher.38% scored 750-79023% scored a perfect 800SAT Math:41% of accepted applicants scored 700 or higher.30% scored 750-79016% scored 800SAT Writing:46% of accepted applicants scored 700 or higher.35% scored 750-79020% scored 800ACT39% of accepted applicants scored 33 or higher.28% scored a 36.Note: This shows a focus on writing and critical reading scores. If your math scores are a little lower, you can get by, but your humanities work needs to be really good.Source: https://www.brown.edu/admission/undergraduate/explore/admission-facts  Columbia UniversityColumbia offers a concise admissions profile with less data to pull from. Their main focus is on where the middle 50% of accepted applicants scored, but don’t let that fool you. You don’t want to be in the middle 50%. You need to be in the top 75%, or the 75th percentile if you want a good chance of getting in.  Acceptance Rate: 6%Grades of Accepted Applicants for the Class of 2020Over 90% of accepted students were in the top 10% of their graduating class as of May 2016 SAT/ACT Scores of Accepted Students for the Class of 2020SATOld SAT: The middle 50% of admitted applicants score 2180-2340.New SAT: This is equivalent to 1510-1580 on the new SAT.ACTMiddle 50% of admitted applicants score 32-35.Source: http://undergrad.admissions.columbia.edu/classprofile/2020Cornell UniversityCornell may have a higher acceptance rate than the other Ivies, but their emphasis on high math scores can trip some people up.Acceptance Rate: 14%Grades of Accepted Applicants for the Class of 2020Of the schools that report class rank, 89.9% of admitted students were in the top 10% of their class. SAT/ACT Scores of Accepted Students for the Class of 2020Old SATSAT Critical Reading:75th percentile: 75025th percentile, meaning that 25% scored lower than you: 650SAT Math:25th percentile: 68075th percentile: 780ACT:75th percentile: 3425th percentile: 31*To fall into the 75th percentile, meaning that you scored higher than 75% of previously accepted applicants who enrolled in the class of 2020, you need a score of 750+ on the old SAT Critical Reading portion.Source: https://admissions.cornell.edu/sites/admissions.cornell.edu/files/Class%20Profile%202020.pdfDartmouth CollegeDartmouth expects high ACT’s and high SAT’s across the board.Acceptance Rate: 10.6%Grades of Accepted and Enrolled Applicants for the Class of 202093% of enrolled students for the class of 2020 who provided class rank were in the top 10% of their class. SAT/ACT Scores of Accepted and Enrolled Students for the Class of 2020SATSAT Critical Reading: Mean 717, Mid 50% range: 670-780SAT Math: Mean 723, Mid 50% range: 680-780ACTMean 32, Mid 50% range: 30-34Source: https://admissions.dartmouth.edu/facts-advice/facts/admissions-statisticsHarvard University Harvard has a notoriously low admissions rate and is kind enough to not share very much about the grades of their incoming classes.Acceptance Rate: 5.2% for class of 2021Grades: Not shared by HarvardSAT/ACT Scores of Accepted and Enrolled S tudents for the Class of 2020SAT75th percentile: 235025th percentile: 2100ACTScores of accepted students are estimated to range from 32 to 35The University of PennsylvaniaLike Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania doesn’t share much as far as grades are concerned, but they do emphasize that stellar grades are the most important factor in an application. They do not require the writing portion of the ACT or the essay portion of the new SAT, but they have very high median scores for the ACT.Acceptance Rate: 9%Grades: “Performance in high school is the single most important factor in the student selection process at Penn.  However, because grading and ranking policies are different around the country and the globe, it is difficult to pinpoint one metric for a student's success in the classroom.  The most competitive applicants have pursued a rigorous program of study and achieved top grades in the context of their school.”Scores of Accepted Applicants for the Class of 2020Old SAT (2016)SAT Critical Reading: The middle 50% of admitted students scored: 690-790.SAT Math: The middle 50% of admitted students scored: 710-800SAT Writing: The middle 50% of admitted students scored: 700-790ACTThe middle 50% of admitted students scored: 32-35Source: http://www.admissions.upenn.edu/apply/whatpennlooksfor/incoming-class-profilePrinceton UniversityPrinceton is nice to us who like numbers. We like how they break it down because it shows how the likelihood of acceptance drops in relationship to grades and scores.Acceptance Rate: 6.4% for Class of 2021Grades of Accepted Applicants for the Class of 20219.4% of applicants with a GPA of 4.0 or higher were accepted7.5% of applicants with a GPA of 3.90-3.99 were acceptedOnly 4.6% of applicants with a GPA of 3.80-3.89 were acceptedAfter 3.80, you’re below a 3% acceptance rate. You better be the most magical and unexpected applicant of all time to get into that 3%.Scores of Accepted Applicants for the Class of 2021New SAT8. 2% of applicants with a 1500-1600 were accepted5.0% of applicants with a 1380-1490 were acceptedACT7.8% of applicants with a 32-36 were accepted5.3% of applicants with a 27-31 were acceptedSource: https://admission.princeton.edu/how-apply/admission-statisticsYale UniversityUnsurprisingly, Yale and Harvard are in lockstep when it comes to sharing the grades of their accepted applicants.Acceptance Rate: about 7%Grades: “The single most important document in your application is your high school transcript...While there is no hard and fast rule, it is safe to say that performance in school is more important than testing. A very strong performance in a demanding college preparatory program may compensate for modest standardized test scores, but it is unlikely that high standardized test scores will persuade the admissions committee to disregard an undistinguished secondary-school record.”95% of enrolled students for the class of 2020 whose schools report class rank were in the top 10 % of their class.Scores of Accepted and Enrolled Students for the Class of 2020Old SAT48% of enrolled freshmen scored 760-800 in Critical Reading55% of enrolled freshmen scored 760-800 in Math53%  of enrolled freshmen scored 760-800 in WritingACT78% of enrolled freshmen scored a 32-36Sources: https://admissions.yale.edu/what-yale-looks-for, https://admissions.yale.edu/sites/default/files/files/class_profile_2020_8-29.pdfWhat To Do NowNow you know the grades and scores to aim for, or what you hopefully have been aiming for over the past three years, there are a few things you can do. If you’re dead set on an Ivy League school but you’ve had trouble with either the math or reading/writing sections of the SAT (but not both), it may be a good idea to focus on the schools where what you are good at is valued highest. For example, you may be able to get into Cornell with scores that you wouldn’t be able to get into Brown with just because Cornell has a track record of prioritizing math scores over reading/writing scores.If you’re falling into the 25th-50th percentile for the school of your dreams, there is honestly no reason that you should be applying to an Ivy League school. But, if you have a seed of hope,  you’re really going to have to nail the essay and supplements. Recently, we had a student who, statistically, wasn’t a super strong candidate for Harvard, but it’s her essay that got her in (and you can read it here).If you’re in a position where your essay is going to make or break your application, you should consider working with a pro. Essays are what we do, so get in touch.