<p>I’m currently a junior interested in neuroscience, and Brown’s neuroscience program looks awesome. Up until recently I hadn’t really thought about college, but now I’m starting to worry. My GPA is 3.95 (unweighted, only As and A-s), I’ve taken the hardest classes available to me, and I’m confident my test scores and application essay will be great. Unfortunately, I’ve done almost no extracurriculars in the past two years. I’m participating in science olympiad this year to reconcile, but it seems awfully weak compared to kids boasting 3 clubs and 4 years of sports.</p>
<p>Brown is definitely my first choice, and I’m planning to apply early decision. I’ll do some community service and hopefully take classes at Brown over the summer. Is there anything else I can do to strengthen my resume before next year?</p>
<p>develop a passion. seriously everything looks really good for you right now as far as gpa and courseload go. but you need a passion or special talent, i think. if you like science, do something unique with it. extensive original research on an unusual topic, maybe. maybe a serious internship in a research lab or something. if you’re going to brown for neuroscience, i highly suggest getting really involved with heavy and long-term science related extracurriculars. also, if you have other interests, pick one or two and just get really passionate about them as well. play the saxophone? get super good, maybe start a jazz band, involve yourself in talent competitions. like to design fashion? better start working on a portfolio. </p>
<p>whatever it is you’re truly passionate about, just get really deeply into it and it’ll help you shine. good luck!</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice. I play guitar, but music is recreational for me, and I couldn’t turn it into something competitive. A research internship sounds great if I can find one.</p>
<p>A lot of seniors at my school only take 6 classes instead of 7. How much of a difference does not taking the extra class make (I’m guessing it’s pretty significant), or doing an independent study with a teacher instead? Also, does anyone know how admissions calculates your gpa?</p>