Is it true that all ivy league and ivy level colleges such as Duke (my #1) will toss out an app with any C's?

I have three C's on my app but otherwise I am in the middle-low range among other ivy applicants with my SAT and Class Rank. Do I still have a chance?

Is it true that all ivy league and ivy level colleges such as Duke (my #1) will toss out an app with any C's?
You would be right to say that three C's would hurt your applicant image as the majority of students who apply to those schools are statistically exceptional. But you would be wrong to make such a sweeping generalization about all ivy leagues schools and those considered to be on par with the top institutions.



Will the top colleges in the nation toss out a particular application due to three C's? Who knows? They may, they may not. Some applicants without the top credentials get in, many with the top credentials don't get in, and most who get in are exceptional in one way or another. If you do enough research into these schools and their admissions statistics, you'll find there isn't an exact formula and in a way, I think that's the way it should be.



Honestly, I think three C's will do exactly what I mentioned earlier. It will hurt your ability to stand out when being compared to students with 4.0unweighted GPA's, published writings, and 2320 SAT scores. Then again, one must also consider the rigor of your high school curriculum as well. Did you get the C because you didn't try? Or rather, because the particular teacher has "C" for a middle name? And did you get all those A's because of genuine, intellectual prowess or might it have been that your particular high school has a penchant for giving undeserved grades. That's what the SAT and the essay writing is for. Those two factors are the great equalizers in the admissions game and without them, there simply wouldn't be anything to help distinguish an individual candidate.



Best bet for you to stay competitive? Have an exceptional SAT score, good reasons for the mediocre grades, and something special to bring to the table....(Who well can you shoot a basketball? What's your 50 meter? Can you play the piano blindfolded?, Did you lose an arm in Iraq? Or maybe you've got a Silver star under your belt? Does your father's name grace the wall of the science building? Have your cogitations about the world resulted in the intellectual underpinnings for the next great political revolution? Or maybe, you're just the most honest person the admissions committee has ever seen in the past ten years and they just love you for being you and want to give you a big bear hug.) See my point? It's so competitive at the top schools that the requirements have become quite ridiculous.



You still have a chance, but I think the climb just got a bit steeper. You'll need to tell a great story. Good luck to you!
Reply:OMG I hope that's not true! I got a lot of C's in 9th grade! Then all A's.



They probably won't toss it out, but they'll probably not consider it as highly.





You do still have a chance. My friend Jazmine got into Harvard with a 3.2 GPA.
Reply:dukes not ivy league...
Reply:You don't still have a chance.
Reply:No you have no chance of getting into duke!