<p>Thanks for the grammar lesson.</p>
<p>This is getting somewhat petty. </p>
<p>OP, if you do what you love for the next three years, and demonstrate this “passion”, you will have a better shot than most applicants (assuming you keep a good gpa, SAT score, etc). Keep dreaming big buddy!!</p>
<p>PS: I use “passion” very liberally because I personally think it’s unreasonable for high school students to have such a strong predilection for something that they 100% know they want to do when they’re older. Basically, do things that interest you and do them in depth. Also test the waters for other activities – who knows, you could find something extremely fun and worthwhile and maybe even learn something new about yourself in the process(a great essay topic btw). My advice has little validity though as I haven’t applied to those top schools yet. My turn is next year. </p>
<p>All the best!</p>
<p>lordfarquaad:</p>
<p>I do agree with you. I have had a very firm idea on what I wanted to do with my life ever since I was 11. That was when I started programming in C++. Now, I knew for a fact that I wanted to go into some computer science. Now, I want to be a research scientist in the field of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering. So essentially, I am stuck on whether I want to stay in academia my whole life and eventually become a professor, or to be in research and development in a big company or government agency. I do not know which branch of CS I should get into when it comes to my dissertations (I know, that is a long ways off) whether to get into quantum computing, robotics, AI, computer architectures, massive parallel processing or budding technologies in EE. Or I can do all of the above. Imagine, a robot with high AI, uses several quantum computers running in parallel for data processing. I want to work on that.</p>
<p>hah. these people are just jealous.</p>
<p>you’ll do fine. welcome to cc.</p>
<p>also, if science is your thing, i highly recommend you volunteer in a decent lab over the summer (check out their publications first). if you get your name on a paper before you apply to colleges that’s a nice boost to your resume.</p>
<p>I use to be like that. Thinking that ivies were the only acceptable things. Stats similar to yours, competitive high school, 3/519, 4.29 GPA that sort of thing. But then I realised that ivies weren’t the only places where my education would be “acceptable.” trust me, it takes away a lot of the stress, and I’ve finally been able to relax more and not constantly stress over grades.</p>
<p>I was pretty stressed through high school as well. I think it’s a good experience to go through once (but of course, it’s another story if it gets to the point that I’m doing a bunch of EC’s just to get into a top school), but I wouldn’t go through it more than once (I.e., for grad/professional school after wards). </p>
<p>It’s good to have the experience, but having high epinephrine levels for 6+ years really damages my brain and if it’s unnecessary to go through it again, then I won’t go through it again. But of course, if all you care about is prestige, then that’s a different story…</p>
<p>“However, I’m not the kind of person who sets their goals at a second rate option.”</p>
<p>Oh, I wasn’t aware that Standford/Duke/MIT/Oxford/Cambridge (all NON Ivies) were “second rate options”…</p>
<p>Honestly, you are a freshman. Focus on high school. I know sooooo many kids who obsessed freshman year and continued to do so throughout high school, and despite starting out in the top 10 of our ~400 kid class, then burned out and now don’t have nearly the grades they once had.</p>
<p>I, on the other hand, remained calm and collected, understanding that college was ultimately the “light at the end of the tunnel” that is highschool, but trying to enjoy myself somewhat and not get too neurotic. Now, I’ve maintain my top 10 position, and will be graduating with top stats. THAT BEING SAID, I’m <em>not</em> going to delude myself into thinking that means I’ll get into all/any of the top schools I plan to apply to in just a few short months. My stats are at the high end for all the Ivies, but so what?! So are the stats of thousands of other kids who also plan to apply! So don’t get crazy now and try to be the best and outdo everyone. It’ll just make everyone hate you at school. And yes, I do mean EVERYONE. EVERY. SINGLE. PERSON. Teenagers hate the kids who are obsessed with getting into Ivies throughout high school. Heck, teenagers hate those kids regardless of whether or not they are even in the same grade as those students. And everyone secretly hopes they get rejected, and then rejoice when such a person does, in fact, get a big fat rejection letter.</p>
<p>So in short, don’t a a d-bag. Lighten up and try to enjoy yourself somewhat in high school. Don’t be THAT guy…</p>
<p>Get off CC now.</p>
<p>What I meant was, “I used to be like that,” not, “I use to be like that.” <em>shudders at typo</em></p>
<p>@evenh14 “I use to be like that. Thinking that ivies were the only acceptable things. Stats similar to yours, competitive high school, 3/519, 4.29 GPA that sort of thing. But then I realised that ivies weren’t the only places where my education would be “acceptable.” trust me, it takes away a lot of the stress, and I’ve finally been able to relax more and not constantly stress over grades.”</p>
<p>Well said! So true!</p>
<p>Honestly, the Ivies truly are NOT everything. My mother, despite being valedictorian and having great grades in high school, went to Union College/Albany Medical School 6 yr medical program (which is pretty good, but not an Ivy level by any standards). She did well there and managed to be valedictorian of med school, because she wasn’t a small fish in a big pond, and then got her pick at ANY residency she wanted. She ended up going to Johns Hopkins for her residency, which is considered anywhere from #1-#3 in the entire country in terms of that sort of opportunity. Now, she is an EXTREMELY successful doctor. And guess what?! She managed to do that WITHOUT an Ivy education!</p>
<p>^THANK YOU SO MUCH! I’ve been trying to explain other people that when they ask me why I’m turning down UC Berkeley for Virginia Commonwealth University. I’ve been accepted to their 8 year med program with a scholarship, why the hell wouldn’t I choose that? We don’t need a “top 20” or Ivy education to do well in life, and OP needs to really understand that.</p>
<p>@bsmd11 Congrats! That sounds like a great program! And it’s not about where you go, but what you do when you get there. Good luck!</p>
<p>Took the words out of my mouth. G’luck to you too!</p>
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<p>um no they don’t</p>
<p>@born2dance: Wow. That was almost neurotic.</p>
<p>Where did you and bmsd get this idea that I felt the Ivies were the only acceptable schools to attend? In fact, I’d much rather go to MIT/Stanford/Duke than Brown, Cornell, or UPenn. Stanford might even beat out all of the Ivies.</p>
<p>I can almost feel the bitterness emanating from your posts. It’s as if you need to justify the fact that your mother is successful but didn’t go to an Ivy League school. In fact, I love Johns Hopkins ( and it’s extremely impressive that your mother went there for med school). I’m well aware that you can have just as much success at a non-Ivy, even more so. In fact, my uncle went to a no-name undergraduate school and is now attending UPitt Med School (Top 15 in the nation). </p>
<p>I’m sorry that you guys don’t appreciate my lofty goals. Yes, I acknowledge that they’re lofty. However, there’s no need to disdain me for them. Harvard is my dream school, so what? I get that I probably won’t get in, and I get that I’m more likely to end up at UVA. Furthermore, I’m fine with that. Neither of my parents went to an esteemed college or graduate school. I’m fine with that. Is it so wrong for me to aspire to attend an amazing school like Harvard (or Stanford, or MIT)?</p>
<p>The reason I posted this thread was because I’d been reading Ivy decisions threads that troubled me. That is why there was so much Ivy talk in my original post. Not because I feel that an Ivy education is superior to any other institution and that I’d be a failure if I attended a ‘lesser’ school.</p>
<p>That aside, my goal is still to attend Harvard. As the saying goes, ‘Shoot for the moon, and at the very least, you’ll land among the stars.’ I’ll shoot for Harvard, and if I miss (which is likely), I’ll land among Dartmouth, UChicago, and UVA (or something like that :D).</p>
<p>So, do you have anything actually helpful to contribute? Something that might aid me in my quest for a top tier education? If not, please don’t post here anymore.</p>
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<p>There’s no bitterness since I didn’t even apply to the Ivies (because if I ended up going to one I’d see a lot of idiots like you). </p>
<p>I’m done posting here, not because my comments aren’t helpful, but because you are not smart enough to understand them.</p>
<p>‘because you’re not smart enough to understand them.’</p>
<p>Sir, I believe you have this turned around. I posted an extremely coherent reply that outlined my intentions and expected input for this thread. You, on the other hand, have simply been trying to knock the schools that I wish to get into. Every post of yours has just done something to devalue my aspirations. Not one helpful word.</p>
<p>@bsmd11… you picked VCU? Congrats. Good Med School program over there. Have some friends that plan to do that program as well.</p>
<p>Thank you sir. It was a tough decision deciding b/w that and Berkeley, seeing as Berkeley is a quick drive away from my house.</p>
<p>From Cali all the way to Richmond, VA. Certainly a long trip.</p>