Can I get into Ivy Leagues with my A Levels?

History.

Could I still major in Psychology with that though?

Hi!

So my dream is to go to Princeton University to study History/Psychology and then study Law. However, I'm concerned that my A Levels are too unrelated/ not academic enough.

I am currently taking:
French, where I'm predicted an A*
Spanish, predicted A
History OR Psychology, predicted around a B in both, I could acheive higher.

I have taken a few months off school, and they are now giving me a choice between Psych or History. Which do you think would be more beneficial to ultimately get me into Law?
Also whats a rough idea of my GPA?

Thanks! x

Hi!

So my dream is to go to Princeton University to study History/Psychology and then study Law. However, I'm concerned that my A Levels are too unrelated/ not academic enough.

I am currently taking:
French, where I'm predicted an A*
Spanish, predicted A
History OR Psychology, predicted around a B in both, I could acheive higher.

I have taken a few months off school, and they are now giving me a choice between Psych or History. Which do you think would be more beneficial to ultimately get me into Law?
Also whats a rough idea of my GPA?

Thanks! x

1. You're going to have to apply to every Ivy League to have a reasonable chance, because honestly, your chances of getting into Princeton are slim - your grade predictions would matter and as of now they wouldn't be competitive for Oxbridge, let alone an Ivy League as International

2. Get 1500> SAT to have any reasonable chance

3. Have a god send of extracurriculars

4. Have great references and a great college essay

Hi!

So my dream is to go to Princeton University to study History/Psychology and then study Law. However, I'm concerned that my A Levels are too unrelated/ not academic enough.

I am currently taking:
French, where I'm predicted an A*
Spanish, predicted A
History OR Psychology, predicted around a B in both, I could acheive higher.

I have taken a few months off school, and they are now giving me a choice between Psych or History. Which do you think would be more beneficial to ultimately get me into Law?
Also whats a rough idea of my GPA?

Thanks! x

I think both your course choices and their grades are fine, don't worry about them!

Ivy leagues emphasize well-roundedness (very important!), so make sure you demonstrate that through an array of extra curriculars and the essays/supplements you write as part of your application.

Also, make sure you do well on standardized testing (SAT/ACT and most likely SAT subject tests since we're talking about ivy leagues). A perfect score won't give you a leg up on other applicants, but you do need to aim for the average of the school's application pool (which for Princeton is probably near perfect) as to not stick out negatively

what grades would I need? Also are there any extracurriculars yu'd recommend?

to be honest, I do really struggle to understand it. Care to explains bit more? Are you saying I’ll be able to study Psycholoy even without any A Level study? Thanks so much..

Take Harvard:

- A maximum of 40% of your degree must be your 'major' (which you only declare at the end of your second year)

- 30% must be 'electives' - i.e. other subjects than maths

- 30% must be General Education. and if you think this just means a core of english, maths and sciences you are wrong. it is the silliest, most wishy-washy type nonsense you could imagine, little more than studying modules like Interpretative Dance in Impoverished Vegan Cultures .

Thank you so much!! You’re the first person to actually give me any information haha. Can I ask what extracurriculars you’d suggest? I currently mentor some kids who struggle with French once a week, and I help teach at my dance school, where I compete on an International level. Do you think those are a good start? I’m also thinking of starting a Psychology research blog? I am very interested in my subjects, which I think would show if I used them as an extracurricular. Also, I’m **** at maths, and forget a lot of maths easily. Do you think I should focus only SAT more than on my French A Level, where I am almost guaranteed an A*?
Lastly, is taking French as a subject test still ok if it’s my first language?

Your current extracurriculars sound great! There is no "checklist" because it's not necessarily about what/how many extracurriculars you do, but more about how you engage with them and what you gain from them. So the schools will want to see you demonstrate qualities like leadership, teamwork, perseverance, time management, etc. They should basically just be activities that you genuinely enjoy participating in outside of the classroom - don't go joining 10 different clubs you don't really care about this year, an admissions officer will see straight through that. I think it's great that you want to start a psychology research blog - it shows passion, initiative, commitment, motivation, so many things!

As for SATs, it's scored out of 1600 and half of that comes from the math sections (the other half is english reading & language). I would aim for a total score of 1500 at least, so sharpening your math skills is important. It's really be up to you how you prepare for it/how much time you spend preparing, because you know your skills better than I do. You can buy a textbook that usually has tips and tons of practice questions, as well as full practice exams (doing practice exams is a great way to prepare!) If you're confident that your grades will not drop, then by all means, concentrate on preparing for SATs. However, standardized testing is only one part of your application - it is definitely not worth sacrificing your academic grades to prepare. Also, keep in mind that you can take SATs as many times that you like, so you do have a chance for a do-over if you're not satisfied with your score the first time around. I don't think there's an actual limit, but you will probably not want to take it more than three times... it's a long and brutal test... You can also look into taking the ACT, which has four sections (language, math, reading, and "science" which is really just data analysis)

You can definitely take French as a subject test! A subject test is just meant to demonstrate your proficiency in a specific field, and it's completely up to your choice as to which ones you will take (you'll probably need at least two tests though, and some schools have specific requirements for subjects depending on the course you're applying to, so look into that)

One more thing, applying to Ivy leagues is a long and costly process, between standardized tests, and all the essays. It takes more effort than UK schools. I'm guessing that you'll be applying for 2019 fall entry, and it seems far away, but you don't have that much time. The application deadline will be beginning November 2018 (for Early decision) and beginning January 2019 (for Regular decision)

Thanks again. So, I just applied to take my SAT in March, the only date that is available right now. Does that mean I'll only be able to take the test once again, in Autumn? Or are there any other dates between the two? I practice a lot, and the English is quite easy, but the Maths is awful. It's just so different to in England where you can get 70/80% and be considered an amazing grade, but here you need practically 90 to even be considered.
Also is it worth sending all of my test scores to the schools, or only the best one?