Chances at UPenn?

Question

Dear World,
I am a US citizen currently residing in Mexico.
My SAT I score was a 2050
I have a 4.0 g.p.a.
Student Council President
Yearbook Staff
Newspaper founder and editor
ESL teacher at a local orphanage
500+ volunteer hours
Piano (won first standing in two festivals)
Drama
Church Choir
Trilingual
rank: 1/12 (small int'l school)

What are some other schools that I should consider?

Most thankfully, Gina

Answer 1

First the good news -- you have great credentials and will certainly get into a good school.

Now the bad news -- over 75% of those accepted at Penn have higher SAT scores than you do. That means you could get in -- but you really need to make yourself stand out in order to do that. You have an interesting story -- and need to tell it in your admissions essay.

You have a shot at Penn -- so you should apply there. But you have a great shot at schools ranked slightly lower than Penn -- schools like Emory, NYU or some of the better state universities would be good places to look.

If you want to find schools that are a good fit, Princeton Review's web site has a tool where you can enter information about your background and interests. It will spit out a list of schools that are good for you.