<p>I thought my application looked really good albeit heavily focused on my academic credentials. However, looking at the outstanding ECs listed in the 'chance me' threads I am now gripped with self-doubt. </p>
<p>I am an international student, applying from Australia. My SAT scores are CR:800, M:780, W:760, Maths II 800 and French 800 - all achieved in the first attempt. </p>
<p>From students who have already got in - I was wondering whether my exceptional academic achievements throughout middle and high school redeem me from my not so spectacular extra-curricular activities (a lot of them but nothing exceptional)? I am ranked #1 not only in my school cohort but also placed in the top .05% of my state's entire cohort of 50,000 students. I have also won gold medals/ranked #1 in numerous state level competitions in English, French, Maths etc. I also have outstanding recommendations from my high school teachers. Thanks.</p>
<p>First off, colleges only look at grades 9-12, they do NOT look at anything in middle school.</p>
<p>Secondly, plenty of other applicants will boast exceptional grades and outstanding test scores. Excellent grades inform an admissions officer that the application is worthy of consideration, which is significant. Consideration and admission, however, are two very different things.</p>
<p>College admissions committees view themselves as community builders. They are societal engineers who take pride in sifting through thousands, if not tens of thousands of applications, and carefully select each student who sets foot onto their campuses in the fall. </p>
<p>Campus recruiters look for students who demonstrate passion in a variety of areas, not just academics. They not only want to know if the student excels academically, but also if she or he displays qualitative characteristics such as integrity and leadership, qualities that will indicate whether he or she is likely to contribute to the social fabric of the wider campus community. What are you bringing to the table besides being in the “top .05% of my state’s entire cohort of 50,000 students?”</p>
<p>Only 30 students were admitted from Australia last year. Who knows how many students applied, but you realistically need to consider other schools besides Harvard as your overall chances as an international student are not that great, no matter what your stats!</p>
<p>^^ EDIT to my previous post: Only 30 students from Australia are attending Harvard College in 2013, that includes students from all 4 years (freshman, sophomore, junior and seniors). So, it’s safe to assume Harvard enrolls only 7 to 8 students from Australia every year! And you are aiming to be one of them – those are the astronomical odds you are facing!</p>
<p>If you look through my posts/threads, you can find my list of ECs. Looks pretty ordinary, right? Well, that ordinary list got me into Harvard a few days ago, and I have relatively the same scores as you and a lower class rank. So yes, it’s possible :)</p>
<p>Thank you, thebeatlestoday, that made feel a lot better </p>
<p>I do have several ECAs to my credit - debates, volunteering, fund raising, human rights activist, animal rights activist, school orchestra etc - i.e. the usual, nothing that immediately stands out and differentiates me from everyone else’s ECs. So I was hoping my SAT scores and academic results would be my differentiating factors.</p>
<p>I have also just been accepted into the Chancellor’s scholarship program at the University of Melbourne (this is ranked #1 in Australia) - complete fee remission for my undergraduate degree as well as a guaranteed pathway to a graduate degree of my choice (e.g. Juris Doctor, MBA…). So I won’t be shattered if I don’t get accepted into H,Y,P or S.</p>
<p>Edit: PS - In my school, Years 9-10 are considered middle school and years 11-12 is senior school. I was ranked #1 in a very high performing cohort (in a selective school for academically gifted students)</p>
<p>Keep in mind, however, that while simply having good grades and test scores may not be enough, you don’t necessarily need to supplement these with extracurriculars. Harvard still wants the future academic superstars, and will accept them even if they aren’t community leaders as well. To establish yourself as someone with superstar potential requires typically more than grades and scores – research projects, for example.</p>
<p>1) Congrats on getting into that scholarship program! Looks you are in fact a “superstar” :D</p>
<p>2) I think that at this point, the essay is what’s going to really help you stand out. Bear in mind that there are plenty of CCers who can read your essay (for free, obviously) and help you out with editing the essay and such, myself included – it’s a valuable resource to have, especially since most CCers are actually quite helpful and generous with their time :)</p>
<p>Here’s the thing: you’re as qualified as the applicants who get in. And every year, so are tens of thousands of the applicants who don’t. </p>
<p>Whether you’ll be one of the few who get in or the many who don’t, nobody can predict. And which group you’ll eventually wind up in obviously has nothing to do with your own merits.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone for your responses. In fact I am hoping my ability to succeed (academically) despite major setbacks and my essays will also set me apart. Anyway, time will tell whether my application is good enough to get me admitted. </p>
<p>Thank you once again, Thebeatlestoday.</p>
<p>PS: Just checked, none of the boys in my class are applying to colleges in the US…or so they say…lol</p>
<p>If you don’t mind me asking, did you get into the schools that you applied for? Your stats and resume seem pretty decent for Australian international student (Another Australian student right here applying in a few years) </p>
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