@purrples I believe so. They still want to make sure you didn’t fail all your finals and get C’s in all your classes 
@smartypants57 That makes sense. Looks like I can’t fall prey to senioritis until after Winter Break then.
@purrples they can still revoke admission if you fail all your classes in second semester, so don’t be too lazy
Any RD/deferred applicants around? I can’t imagine another 2 month wait; the early round was only a month and a half and I felt like I was passing through hell…
I’m applying RD!
This thread is dead, though.
@EvenfallsWolf I’ve applied RD! And yes, this wait is terrible, it must be even more terrible to have waited through the first round too!
@potatoheadhala Almost dead
Haha yeah, I’m surprised though. Question - do you think Caltech will reject me based on my poor writing score (650)?
@potatoheadhala if you show good grades in your English classes they’ll probably let it slide, but it’ll definitely hurt you.
I hope it doesn’t come down to that. I have the grades, and I was pleased with my essays (not that it means much).
friend just got accepted into Caltech!!
@potatoheadhala I didn’t have all too great of a writing score either–timed writes really aren’t my forte and I think that the multiple choice is what saved me. If your total SAT superscore is competitive and you’re pleased with how your app essays turned out (especially if others have read them and agreed with your opinion), I don’t think they’ll reject you just based on that one test score alone. I know that Caltech is beyond super-competitive, but I’d still like to think that they take into consideration that a standardized test doesn’t reflect the entirety of what a student has to offer–if they don’t, the minuscule chance I thought that I just might have is entirely nonexistent! (I got a 760 on the math section and a 770 on Math II–I didn’t finish either–basically timed anything isn’t my forte!) But hey, none of us can change our scores now, so no use stressing over what particular aspect of our applications we theorize may cause a rejection!
Yep, you’re right. Don’t fret over things we simply cannot control.
Does anyone know when RD decisions are going out? I know in the past they’ve announced before MIT’s Pi Day decisions, but has anyone heard anything about this year’s date?
@whynotnow I don’t think any schools have released their decisions date, and for EA they didn’t even release a date/time, they just released decisions. They probably won’t release date/time till early March, but you can predict it’ll be on March 13.
Hi! I’ve applied to Caltech under RA from Australia, and was wondering if anyone else from down under has also applied?
Also, I thought we could maybe share some info like in other colleges’ threads to enliven this rather dead thread (and also to get an idea of who is applying)…so I go first:
Domestic/International: International, from Australia, already graduated
SAT scores: n/a
ACT scores: did it twice; composite 32 both times, English 29 & 30, Maths 34 both times, Reading 36 & 32, Science 30 & 33, English/Writing 28, Writing 9/12 & 36/36 (I was so surprised!), new ELA 33, new STEM 34 (yep Caltech is one of my “reach” schools)
SAT II scores: Maths II 790, Physics 730
GPA: n/a (school doesn’t calculate them, but all A’s)
Class rank: definitely top 10%, but they don’t release specifics
Classes (or APs): Physics, Maths Extension 1 (medium level), Maths Extension 2 (highest level), Chemistry, Economics, English Advanced (normal)
School: private
Awards: major ones are Distinction in Australian Physics Olympiad, Silver in da Vinci Decathlon and Duke of Edinburgh silver (yeah I know not so impressive, but there weren’t that many opportunities)
Research: nothing published (as far as I know things like that don’t happen in Australia), but was selected in a school research program and conducted mentored research in relatively and quantum mechanics for 5 years
Extracurriculars: founded a “student government” IT subsidiary and was “president” for 2 years, competed in selective school choir, debating, school newspaper writer and editor (these are the important ones)
Volunteering: weekly at Sydney Observatory and at school IT department
Intended major: Physics
Financial aid: no
Family income: 300-400k
Other US schools applied to: MIT, Princeton, Columbia, UC Berkeley, UCLA (all RA)
BTW This is my first post ever on College Confidential!
DId everybody get the financial aid email this afternoon?
@whynotnow. I did not receive an email. What was its significance?
@whynotnow- yes & it makes me more anxious because we can’t finish our taxes- waiting on one document that won’t be ready until 3/22!
@HankGreen Subject of the email: Caltech: Applying for Financial Aid. It was from a specific financial aid officer and explains the financial aid process. It seemed personalized with names and also at the bottom it says “Since you submitted your CSS Profile and/or FAFSA, we’re assuming that you intend to apply for financial aid. If you are 100% sure that you don’t want to apply for financial aid at Caltech, please respond to this e-mail to let me know, and I’ll make sure you don’t continue to receive e-mails from my office.”
@whynotnow it probably only indicates that you applied for financial aid and has nothing to do with admissions.