What courses do I take and what else should i do to get into Harvard University?

The following is from harvard's admissions website frequently asked questions:

Frequently Asked Questions: Admissions

High School Preparation

Are there secondary school course requirements for admission?

There is no single academic path we expect all students to follow, but the strongest applicants take the most rigorous secondary school curricula available to them. An ideal four-year preparatory program includes four years of English, with extensive practice in writing; four years of math; four years of science: biology, chemistry, physics, and an advanced course in one of these subjects; three years of history, including American and European history; and four years of one foreign language.

Is it to a student's advantage to take advanced, accelerated or honors courses?

Yes. Although schools provide different opportunities, students should pursue the most demanding college-preparatory program available.

Must a student have certain grades or marks to be considered for admission?

The Admissions Committee recognizes that schools vary by size, academic program, and grading policies, so we do not have rigid grade requirements. There is no single academic path we expect all students to follow, but the strongest applicants take the most rigorous secondary school curricula available to them. We do seek students who achieve at a high level, and most admitted students rank in the top 10-15% of their graduating classes.

How familiar is the Admissions Committee with secondary schools? their rigor? what marks mean in a particular school or educational system?

We have worked hard for many years to learn about schools in the U.S. and around the world. Our careful study of different schools, curricula, and educational systems benefits, too, from information we receive directly each year from schools, extensive personal communication we have with school personnel, and the interview reports we receive from our alumni/ae, who meet thousands of applicants to the College each year. We can always learn more, so we welcome information students think might be helpful to the Admissions Committee in understanding their accomplishments in their school communities.

Does Harvard rank secondary schools in the U.S. and abroad?

No. While we understand there are differences in the overall strengths of secondary schools, we are most interested in how well applicants have taken advantage of available resources.

What if a student has attended more than one secondary school?

We ask students to provide Secondary School Reports from the college counselor of each school they have attended in their last two years of secondary school.

Does Harvard consider non-required test results, such as Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, Abitur, or GCE A-levels?

Yes. We value any information that helps us form a complete picture of an applicant's academic interests and strengths.

I also included URLs to the admissions requirements,contanct information, and electronic resources for you to peruse. Good luck!

Everyone making use of has the maximum grades within the toughest categories and really top scan ratings. If you hadn't failed a host of categories, your possibilities could nonetheless best be approximately natural, possibly a little bit not up to natural - you did not record whatever with a purpose to make you stand out, and your SAT ratings are a little bit low. But with a host of failed categories, that is going to scale down your possibilities extra. Sorry, however you wouldn't have so much of a shot headquartered on all this, and also you did not earlier than both. Go forward and follow, however have plenty of backup plans (Yale isn't a backup plan).

Sorry to be rather cynical about this, but what matters to get into Harvard is how much money you have and who in your family went there. And, occasionally, if you can manage to get a perfect score on the SAT you might have a shot.

Obviously I don't know your background, but I did all AP classes, extracurriculars, good SAT score (not perfect but close), etc. etc. etc., everything they tell you you need, and I still had no chance.

Oh, and if you happen to be a really famous movie star you can probably get in.

Have money. It's that simple. Harvard is very expensive, and if you can pay, you can go. That's the rule for most schools. And it's not hard to find out if you have that kind of cash.

Otheriwse, better start meeting congresspeople and schmoozing, cuz it truely is all about who you know. They get thousands of valadictorians every year who they turn down. Good luck!

Be brilliant, a minority, wealthy, famous, have famous parents, start a non-profit organization, do philanthropic work, have parents in government...