Hi guys. I’m currently an African American high school junior and I want to major in International Relations and minor in Poli. Sci. I love traveling and I always keep up with contemporary foreign affairs; i find the international platform very intriguing and interesting. I’m not sure which school I should go to for undergrad & I’m not aware of which schools I can possibly get into. I like Tufts because of its Study Abroad program and because of the traditional campus feel but I like Georgetown because of the D.C. atmosphere and the internships that are available in the area. I also plan to take up extra language courses while I’m in undergrad to strengthen my career resume. But 1st of all, do I have a chance of getting into these schools? Here are my stats:

-4.0 unweighted GPA. 4.4 weighted .
-currently ranked 2 out of 351 .
-1710 SAT . . .(ughh =/ . . ) 540 M, 560 CR & 610 W
i took the SAT again yesterday and I’m taking the ACT in June
-5 in AP Bio, 4 in AP World . 3 more APs by the end of this year. I’m also independently studying AP courses .
-SATII: World History-740, Bio-750

-1st generation for college, single parent household, less than 30k/year

-Student Advisory Council Secretary, President
-Freshman President
-Sophomore Secretary
-Active NAACP member
-Over 200 hours of Community Service
-President of Epsilon Chi Chapter of Phi Delta Kappa
-Founder of my school’s Freshman Mentoring Program
-Model UN Vice-President
-Drum player in the band for 7 years
-NHS Vice-President
-Co-Founder and Vice-President of a Literary Club
-Science/English Honor Societies & Mu Alpha Theta
-Head Tutor at the local Community Action Partnership for 3 years
-Columbia University SPREP alumna
-recently won an extremely competitive scholarship from national geographic student expeditions to do community service in Tanzania over the summer
-People to People Student Ambassadors Alumna: Europe; afforded through conducting plenty of fundraisers and sending letters to my family.

I know I have to improve my SAT score. I’m trying so hard and I can’t afford to go to prep classes because I work to sustain my family’s needs so I can help my mom. However, I purchased the collegeboard review book and I find whatever I can online that would help me out. I don’t think my academic performance has anything to do with my SAT score. I heard that it’s common for top students to underperform on the SAT. But what I don’t understand is why the score is so paramount to my acceptance? I just hope that the admit officers can look besides that .

I think I have a good chance but I’m very nervous about my standardized test scores. I want colleges to see me for the individual I am, as opposed to some incompetent test scores that say absolutely nothing about my academic potential. I know I can do better, but I need a chance to show them. Do you think that by being a low-income African American male that my chances of getting accepted will be a little better? If not Georgetown or Tufts, what other schools should I look into for my major? Please HELP ! Thanks .