Hi! So I love the things I do outside of school (running, research, debate, Sanskrit), but I’m not sure if these activities are stellar enough for MIT. What I’m really looking for is reassurance that my ECs shouldn’t hurt me. If you feel they do, then I want advice on how to improve my current ECs. I am national qualifier for the Junior Olympics in both cross country and track as well as all-county, team mvp, and captain. I also perform research in my intended major at an Ivy League institution where being published, getting a patent, and presenting at a research conference are definitely doable. I am nationally and internationally recognized for my knowledge of Sanskrit and teach local classes to kids. I am a leader, mentor, and multiple time trophy winner, plaque winner, & state qualifier for debate. Any advice is greatly appreciated! Remember, I am NOT looking to do new activities just for college! I want to instead be the best in the ECs I love most!
Nothing on your applications hurts you. Everything activity you put, even underwater basket-weaving, will help admisson officers know more about who you are and why they should accept you. You should not list activities that are impressive by their covers. You should list the activities that have had the biggest influence on you or that describe why your contribution helped your community.
They want to know who you are as a person. Do you give up easily? Are you passionate about something? Has an activity made you a better person? Do you help your community in a way not many people would think of?
MIT says that activities play as big or even a larger role than your academics because they describe how you would adapt to MIT’s diverse community. Your cross-country / track, debate, and Sanskrit contributions are all great topics to mention in both your Activity list and your essays. Don’t be afraid to show yourself off!
Thanks so much! I really love running and make training plans for myself and everything. I invest so much time into it it’s one of my only main ECs. I just felt a little uneasy since I see all these kids on CC with crazy apps being both rejected and accepted. It’s really confusing, yet heartwarming, to know that I don’t need to be an IMO winner to get into MIT lol.
Haha, you should take a look at Yuliya’s latest blog. She refers to exactly what you are talking about. http://mitadmissions.org/blogs/entry/hi-applicant-to-the-class-of-2021
I just checked it out! This is very encouraging to me! Thanks!
Anyone else have thoughts on this? This is really stressing me out.
I’d really appreciate more advice on this lol.
My advice is to relax. If it’s what you want to do then do it and don’t worry about what others think. If MIT doesn’t like it then you wouldn’t be happy there and another college will and you’ll be happy at that institution.
@Dolemite Thanks for the comforting response! However, when I visited MIT for its annual MIT Water Night (was looking do to research there, but housing was too expensive), I absolutely fell in love with the people, campus, and research there. The people are so kind, helpful, and curious while the beauty of the Charles River is hard to beat. And, of course, the research being conducted at MIT is world-class (esp for water treatment - my intended major is environmental engineering).
@thebigbman I’m hoping that’s a compliment lol. It’s good you’re expressing your opinions. The reason why I’m asking this is cuz I see all these USAMO & ISEF winners that scare me. In my mind, I am a driven & dedicated runner with a dream to make potable water accessible to people across the globe. I do debate since I like discussing issues while I teach Sanskrit to other Indians to enrich their knowledge of their heritage and culture.
Your activities look fine. Are you good enough to be recruited for track or cross country? Do your best in your MIT application, but there are other great schools besides MIT. Not sure what your stats are, but do you have CalTech and Mudd on your list? Also reaches, but pretty great STEM schools.
@intparent I have both Caltech & Mudd on my list. I’m also applying to match & safety schools (10 schools in total). As for recruitment, I likely won’t be a recruit (slightly slower). Recruits need at least sub-9:40 3200m. I will have ~9:55 3200m by the end of this year.
My stats are as follows: 3.90 uw gpa, will take sat (am getting 700 cr/w & 760 math in practice tests) & math 2 & physics (at least 760 in both), & will have taken 7 APs by the end of senior year (Calc BC, Stat, Physics 1, Physics C, Bio, Lang, French) in addition to college level Multivariable Calc, English, & French and completion of the science research program (3 years) at my school.
Work on your test scores for all oft he schools mentioned. That should be you number one priority right now, as they are soft for an unhooked applicant to those schools.
What would be a good goal? 800 in sat math, math 2, and physics?
Go for the highest. Ideally, anything above 700 is still treated about the same. Just don’t freak out if you have a 730. I doubt it would hurt you.
@ObitoSigma Do I seem academically qualified for MIT? I don’t want my academics to be the reason why I am rejected by MIT. I know I’ve heard MIT Admissions say that the average MIT admit takes 5-6 APs. I’d rather not take more, though. I also don’t want a low SAT score to weigh me down. Thus, I plan on taking 7 APs (in addition to 3 college level courses & 3 years of science research) by the end of senior year as well as getting 800s on Math 2 & Physics & a 1500 on the SAT (800 Math & 700+ CR+W). However, I (ofc) don’t need perfect test scores.
Does MIT require or look at the SAT Essay?
MIT does not require but not recommends the essay. MIT feels that they would already have an idea on your writing and communication skills through your essays and other application aspects than the SAT or ACT Essay. Also, AP classes are not proportional to academic excellence, especially since APs are an “American thing”. MIT wants to see you articulate your opportunities and balance your schedule to express given resources. IB, AICE, Duel Enrollment… whatever you have available to you. Some schools, especially private schools, have Honors or post-AP classes that are even more rigorous than AP courses such as Organic Chemistry, Multivariable Calculus, and Relativity Physics.
During my interview, I told my interviewer that I was the only student in my AP Physics C class because I was really interested in Physics but had no online alternative so I made an agreement with a teacher at my school to privately teach and grade me for credit. He asked me how many students were in my AP Calculus BC class, and I replied with “3”. He must have known that my school is not well know for prestigious STEM students, and that I was taking any opportunity I had to follow my passion in mathematics and Physics. In some schools, it is normal to take AP Physics C and AP Calculus BC. But for schools like mine, we are lucky to even have a class. This is why MIT doesn’t care about how many APs you take as much as how many you COULD take. One more note is that, by taking a lot of APs in one year, colleges such as MIT can view you as an AP-holic who would rather succumb to coursework and exams than to extracurricular and service activities. A balanced schedule between courses, extracurricular activities, research, and anything else is much better to both you and MIT than overloading yourself.
Does it seem like I have a balanced schedule? I really enjoy what I do & don;t feel overwhelmed. I see my peers killing themselves with 5 APs, though. That scares me.
Yes your schedule is balanced. stop worrying. I have 8 APs all 4s and above and am taking 7 more this year but have almost no extracurriculars as good as yours. So you’ll undoubtedly be fine. Just wondering, What type of research did you do?
@theChinaman I did environmental engineering research. I want to major in environmental engineering.
That looks great, you know. You’re not only outstanding in terms of research and classes, but you also have really unique, impressive extracurriculars. It doesn’t matter much if you didn’t win an international science competition, you’re doing research at an ivy university so I’m sure that covers up for it.