<p>was hoping you guys could give me a hand with these prompts, and judge whether my ideas for them are justifiable. Im not an American (or even a British) student, so i might not be understanding them as i should be.</p>
<p>For the "What makes stanford a good place" I was going to write about my diversity in both academics and social life - then i did some research into the Stanford faculty and read some of their publications and was going to mention that i specifically enjoyed reading the works of this and that professor.</p>
<p>The "Intellectual Vitality" one I was going to write an essay about my IB Extended Essay, namely in History, just describing how it was a large and intriguing research project, the first part probably being about how i chose my topic, and the second part about how it was intellectually benefiting i suppose.</p>
<p>Also, i would like some advice on my chances.</p>
<p>As far as i understand most US High School students would only have SAT’s and SAT Subject Tests (normally) to apply with - so since i will have both of them, as well as GCSE’s and IB this should in theory give me a substantial advantage?</p>
<p>That, and i am trilingual (Russian and French)</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Either of your ideas for “why Stanford” are good as long as you can make them personal and avoid generalities, or in the case, of the research, writing a laundry list of why that research is cool. Maybe you can tie the diversity and research together in some way…</p></li>
<li><p>For the “intellectual vitality”: if you feel strongly about your work, go for it. There is no right and wrong answer to this question–probably the first thing that comes to your mind will be the best thing to write about.</p></li>
<li><p>You are mistaken about the additional tests giving you a substantial advantage. Most US applicants to Stanford will graduate with either a bunch of APs or a full/nearly-full IB diplomas. The AP and IB systems are similar, and one will not give you a substantial advantage over the other. Moreover, neither have much influence in admissions and are used mostly for placement after being admitted. The GCSE probably won’t help you much either. </p></li>
<li><p>Being trilingual helps and is really cool. Those would be the two languages I would learn if I were to be trilingual, instead I have Spanish and English. No chance of me reading the original War and Peace. Shucks.</p></li>
<li><p>Good luck with your application and applying and everything!</p></li>
</ol>
<p>I don’t think being trilingual is anything special in college admissions. Many of my friends are Asian American and speak their language at home due to having first generation parents (for example: Chinese, Korean, Viet, etc), take a foreign language at school (for example: Latin, Spanish, French, German) as a graduation requirement, and know English. I think quadrilinguals are slightly more unique, while pentalinguals can definitely stand out in college admissions.</p>
<p>All of the supplement questions test your suitability to Stanford- in both how you write and what you write about. They want for kids who will fit, master the challenges and will thrive there- not just academicaly, but also socially.</p>
<p>“Why S” - just praising their reputation, a department or professor is not enough; you should know the school’s core values, the sort of academic opportunities you will have there, etc. You don’t repeat these, you show how you will fit into that environment, make the most of it- and contribute back. And, show your enthusiasm.</p>
<p>“Vitality” tests your awareness of your academic and intellectual strengths, your confidence, your knowledge^ of what they value and your perspective. Just focusing on one academic achievement is not the same as describing a strength that will be relevant to them and to your work there. </p>
<p>So, be careful how you state accomplishments and smarts. All the highlights are already listed on the CA. This is a chance to describe part of you behind the stats and record. The advice is show them, through careful examples-not tell them.</p>