So, to give you guys some context before I begin, this is me:
SAT: 800W, 750M, 760W
SAT2: 770 USH, 750 Math II, 750 French
ACT: 34 (don’t feel like looking up my breakdown)
AP: Euro, USH, Chem, Art History (all 5s)
GPA: 3.77 UW
Class Rank: Unranked (but for reference: top quartile)
Senior Year Classes: AP Calc AB, AP English, AP French, AP Physics B, Economics, Independent Study in Economics and Public Policy, Independent Study in Financial Markets, Playwriting III
Academic Index: 229.5 8/9 (cool little tool. Made some of this sting more though) Calculate yours here: <a href=“http://www.collegeconfidential.com/academic_index3.htm”>http://www.collegeconfidential.com/academic_index3.htm</a>
Leadership ECs: History Bowl Captain, Quizbowl Co-Captain, Mock Trial Co-Captain, Senior Class Treasurer, Investment Club Speaker, YIG Supreme Court Justice, MUN Security Council member
Sports: 4-year Varsity Swimming, 3-year independent Crew, 4-year independent skiing (more hobby than sport)
Awards: Top 32 Nationally in History Bowl, Top 50 nationally in Quizbowl, 4th in the city for Mock Trial, NMSF, AP Scholar w/ Honor, Best Written Argument for the YIG Supreme Court of TN
Work: Spent the summer between junior and senior years interning with a major conservative economist; co-wrote a paper and was invited to continue part-time during the school year.
Colleges applied to: HYPS, Chicago, Columbia, Dartmouth, Penn, Cornell, Brown, Williams, Pomona, CMC, WUSTL, Duke, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, Georgetown, Tufts, Trinity (CT), Syracuse
Accepted: Syracuse (w/ some money), Trinity (CT) (full-ride merit), Tufts, Vanderbilt, Cornell
Waitlisted, then Accepted: CMC, Chicago
Waitlisted: Williams, WUSTL
Denied: HYPS, Columbia, Dartmouth, Penn, Brown, Pomona, Duke, Northwestern, Georgetown
Attending: Chicago
My (short so I can get to the reflections) story: In the fall, I applied to Pton over Dartmouth ED/UChicago EA because I was scared of commitment; the result being that I was deferred and then rejected by Pton, rejected by Dartmouth, and waitlisted by UChicago (those being my ‘core’ top three choices). I was going to attend Cornell, but I managed to make my way off UChicago’s waitlist to join the class of 2019. Yay!
Alright. Now that that is out of the way, let’s begin my reflections:
<ol>
<li>Apply to 21 schools was too much, and I left some schools out that I shouldn’t have. I realized late in the process that I wasn’t a big fan of being in a hyper-urbanized area (so Columbia would be out) and that I didn’t really want to remain in the south (so Duke. I’m a double-legacy at Vandy, so that one was staying on.) Also, a number of schools that I applied to made no real sense for a hyper-social-sciences and academia oriented person like me (Yale, Brown, WUSTL, Cornell, Northwestern, Gtown). That drops me down to 13, and since I found I liked the academic atmosphere of small colleges (and UChicago), I would have also applied to Amherst and Swarthmore. 15 is easier than 21, I certainly would hope.</li>
<li>GPA GPA GPA GPA. After my decisions came in, my college counselor and I reviewed what happened, and my GPA was almost certainly the killer (well, that and the fact that 6 of my peers got into HYPS early, so only one person got in RD)–but it was probably what killed me at the rest of the top schools that aren’t in Ithaca or Hyde Park. If I had one thing I could go and say to my younger self, it would be to work a lot harder in math (as that topic alone counts for a substantial portion of my GPA drop). </li>
<li>SAT counseling helps. My 2190 went to a 2310, and I’m certain I wouldn’t have even got my foot in the door without it. IT’S WORTH IT.</li>
<li>Tips for getting off the waitlist: 1) write a letter 2) make sure that letter arrives 3) If, for whatever reason, the letter doesn’t arrive, get your counselor to explain the situation to the admissions officer. At Chicago, they were very understanding (and let me in!)</li>
<li>Just a little writing hint: even if you’ve gone over your essay 7 times and someone else has read it at least twice, have a third person read it. Otherwise, you might miss your first line saying “I want to go Syracuse.”</li>
<li>Regarding 5: you can make a typo (like leaving out the verb ‘acclimate’ from a sentence in an EC essay) and still get into the college you sent that essay to (oh, Vandy.)</li>
<li>Remember this: wherever you go to college, you will be successful if you apply yourself. In some ways, I’m glad HYPS rejected me, because I’m not sitting on my laurels this summer/gap year–I’m going out and doing things (in my case, interning on a campaign). Note: For those of you going to HYPS, rest on your laurels; you’ve earned it (and those of us trying to catch up need to gain some ground.)</li>
</ol>