3 months later...

Colleges and Universities A-Z Harvard University
1

<p>Hi again!
Many of you thankfully replied to my posts in late February. I'm that one freshman who was planning to take the SAT and ACT in March, and I was asking for 'chances' (My bad, I should've just asked what to stop, continue, or begin in extracurriculars and school).</p>

<p>I was surprised everyone was freaking out about me taking the SAT as a freshman and in 7th grade.</p>

<p>Because everyone was freaking out about it, and telling me that my scores would be recorded, etc. I have to explain:
I took the SAT and ACT through a gifted and talented search that forces me to drop the score no matter what. So even if I got a 2400 it would not be an 'official' score. While I took the exact same test that you all took, my scores were not recorded. SO IT'S ALL GOOD! :)</p>

<p>I got my new SAT scores: 2,120 (720 math 610 reading 790 writing!)
and ACT scores: 30 (32 math 32 reading 28 science 28 english)</p>

<p>From 7th grade SAT, over 3 years ago: 1,930 (710 math 590 reading 630 writing)</p>

<p>^any comments, how can i improve? </p>

<p>I only jumped a little in math which REALLY disappointed me (i am taking AP Calc BC, so I was suppposedly already learned everything that would be in the test, and i thought the math was REALLY easy). My reading was low, but I did not expect such a low increase :( But I am super glad that I went through the Peterson's and Barron's writing SAT books. They were so great, and i jumped 160 on writing at least :)</p>

<p>I was disapointed on all of my ACT scores. I had easily enough time ( I was able to check the reading section 2 and a 1/2 times! Too much?) and I felt like I aced it. Except for teh science. I was so glad i got a 28, I had to guess on at least 20 of teh 40 problems haha).</p>

<p>And yes, I'm doing lots of clubs and sports (FBLA, city orchestra, football track, etc. too many to write down), don't worry about extracurriculars. I am not freaking out about my prospects of getting into Ivy League. All I am is focused, driven, and hopefully prepared for college.</p>

<p>P.S. I will be taking the SAT 2 math subject level 2 test tomorrow. I took precalc and ap world this year but i am deciding not to take the SAT 2 world history because it is too risky to get a low score.</p>

<p>P.P.S. I think I did really well on teh Ap world and Ap statistics tests though. Definitely at least high 4, if not both easy 5s.</p>

<p>P.P.P.S. Please give me any pointers, or anything that I am missing right now. I hope you don't get the idea that I'm some crazy korean american who studies all the damn time. Don't worry I have lots of fun still. I mean I'm a freshman. Don't think i'm some nerd who studies all teh time. :)</p>

2

<p>Wow this is really freaky, you have a lot of the same stats. Did you take the SAT and ACT through NUMATs talent search from Northwestern University.</p>

<p>Anyways I think you are doing great although I think you should get 5’s on your AP exams. I think that most people will get 5’s that are the top of the country. I think your scores are a good base for improvement.</p>

<p>Also personally I think you should have waited for SAT 2’s since people usually don’t retake those, so if you mess up on them you will not get a perfect score. You should get an 800 on the SAT math section before the SAT Math 2.</p>

3

<p>I feel compelled to share insight with you that I doubt you will get from anyone else on CC, so pay attention. Brandonkunyuplee, you are without a doubt an excellent student. Your numbers absolutely prove this, and it is obvious that they will be extremely high before you become a senior. Nevertheless, don’t fall in love with your numbers, especially as it relates to admissions to Harvard. You see, Harvard looks beyond your numbers to ascertain whether you are, as a whole, extraordinary or special. The question they will be trying to answer is this: “What makes this excellent student or leader, everyday person—son, daughter, friend, and classmate, or gifted or talented individual in the field of leadership, athletics, creativity or intellectuality so extraordinary or special? This is a particularly relevant question because there are lots of people who apply to Harvard with excellent numbers and are, therefore, excellent students.</p>

<p>However, most applicants to Harvard do a lousy job of communicating what makes them extraordinary or special. And one reason for this failure is that many make the mistake of believing that their impressive numbers automatically classify them as an extraordinary applicant. Consequently, many try to sell themselves as an extraordinary applicant, either as an extraordinary accomplished student (artistic, athletic, creative, leadership, etc.) or as an extraordinary academic or intellectual applicant. But as the Dean of Harvard Admissions, William Fitzsimmons, states, each year they will admit “200 or 300 people who will have some sort of a distinguishable excellence [meaning, extraordinary accomplishment]… might be music, it could be social services; it is very clear at a national or international level that this person is unusual.” Regarding extraordinary academic and intellectual applicants, he says, “then there are 200 to 300 people [that Harvard admits] who are very unusual academically, and then again it isn’t just test scores and grades but it’s the recommendations, it’s international–national contests, whatever, anybody who is truly unusual academically.”
(See [Harvard</a> Admissions Dean Fitzsimmons Interview (On Harvard Time) - YouTube](<a href=“Harvard Admissions Dean Fitzsimmons Interview (On Harvard Time) - YouTube”>Harvard Admissions Dean Fitzsimmons Interview (On Harvard Time) - YouTube) for these quotes)</p>

<p>Nevertheless, most students who are admitted to Harvard are special in some specific way, but they are not extraordinary. These special students fall in the “Good All-Arounders at a very high level” group, as Fitzsimmons calls them. He says, “…and you can’t really categorize them. They are multi-talented; they’re [multitalented] right across the board–academically, extracurricularly, and personally.” Thus, “the foundation [of selecting from this group] for every case is actually character and personal qualities,” explains Fitzsimmons. (Please listen to everything he says on this subject at [Harvard</a> Admissions Dean Fitzsimmons Interview (On Harvard Time) - YouTube](<a href=“Harvard Admissions Dean Fitzsimmons Interview (On Harvard Time) - YouTube”>Harvard Admissions Dean Fitzsimmons Interview (On Harvard Time) - YouTube). (And gain more in-depth understanding about Harvard and its admissions philosophy at [HIGHER</a> EDUCATION TODAY - Harvard Admissions - YouTube](<a href=“HIGHER EDUCATION TODAY - Harvard Admissions - YouTube”>HIGHER EDUCATION TODAY - Harvard Admissions - YouTube)) </p>

<p>Students fail to communicate how special they are as “Good All-Arounders” because they lack the ability to reflect, and the same goes for students who mistakenly identify themselves as extraordinary, which means all non-reflectors will be unable to communicate their insightful reflections on their Harvard application, a failure that will definitely lead to a rejection letter. No matter how uncomfortable reflecting makes you feel, reflect and discover who you are, what is special or extraordinary about you, and accurately determine the applicant group to which you belong: the extraordinary or special applicant group. Then make the best possible case for yourself through your personal essays, your recommendations, your list of accomplishments and the short answer questions that allow you to reveal your unique personality and character. Moreover, determine what you need to accomplish or pursue to solidify your position in the Harvard admissions group to which you properly belong. Additionally, in your app communicate the story line or theme about all of your academic and non-academic accomplishments. Understand that the Area Admissions Representative from Harvard is primarily responsible for making your case before the admissions committee. So if you fail to provide the AAR with convincing or powerful evidence to make your case, it will be as though your app was empty of thought and substance and worthy of nothing but a trash can. The AAR should not have to struggle to make your case; you should make his or her case easy! So be humble, wise, and truly revealing about who you are and about all you have accomplished on your Harvard app, but don’t you dare count on your numbers to do all the work for you. </p>

<p>And since your Harvard app hasn’t been written, no one can or should chance your admission possibility for Harvard. Just follow my advice and you will at least make a strong case for your admissibility to Harvard when your time comes.</p>

4

<p>@brandonkunyuplee: Not sure why people were shocked to hear that you took the SAT in 7th grade. The Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth (CTY) program has been in existence for over 30 years now. Participation in CTY programs is based on SAT scores when taken in the 7th grade. I’m sure other “gifted” student searches use similar means to identify smart kids before high school. For what it’s worth, I took the SAT when I was in 7th grade. Once I got to Harvard, I learned that a number of my classmates had done the same thing. I’m sure lots of other kids who end up in top colleges took the SAT while in 7th grade. No big deal.</p>

<p>dascholar gives good advice with respect to writing your personal statement and answering the short answer questions on college apps. You’re still a couple of years away from the application process, though.</p>

<p>If you’re dedicated, you can certainly increase your SAT scores. It just takes some practice. Purchase the Big Blue Book (College Board SAT tome) and take the 10 practice tests under simulated testing conditions. The highest level of math tested on the SAT is geometry. You should already have the right tools to be successful.</p>

<p>On another note, I suspect that you don’t read very much outside of school work; your SAT Critical Reading and ACT scores seem to hint at that. Start reading “good” books in your leisure time. Your reading speed and comprehension will improve naturally. With this sort of practice tucked under your arm, you should be able to max out (or nearly max out) on your standardized test scores.</p>

<p>Relax. Enjoy high school.</p>

5

<p>@youngster 9 no i took mine through western talent search. i live in the midwest.
and i feel really confident about this sat 2 this morning, i expect 800, only omitted 1. (On 16 practice tests I took earlier this week i always got 750+ at least!
@dascholar yes i agree. I have heard of many students who are ectremely well qualified who failed all the ivy leagues. One girl only got accepted to a ‘party’ state college. Its a real shame. The college admissions game is really, ALL ABOUT HOW YOU PRESENT YOURSELF.
@Bartleby007 Yes my sat/act test provider (western talent search) was based off of this johns hopkins CTY program! I live in the midwest so the CTY program was brought over here about 10 years ago? Everyone overexaggerates it and thinks its a waste of time and money but a 7th grade sat/act is valuable to see what you should work on. and yes, :slight_smile: i don’t read outside of class. I should start doing that soon. I have taken all teh blue book and princeton review tests. I dont think kaplan is good enough, and their tests seem unrealistic.</p>

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<p>Correction, brandonkunyuplee: It’s not “ALL ABOUT HOW YOU PRESENT YOURSELF.” It’s about revealing all of you and not just your numbers or stats. And that’s why I emphasize the point that you should not fall in love with your numbers. You are more than numbers. There are universities like the Indian Institute of Technology that care about nothing but your numbers and stats. Your numbers do matter to Ivy League universities and many other elite universities like Stanford and MIT in that they open the door for consideration. But what gets you in the door is your character, personality, and accomplishments. Understand this subtle distinction.</p>