<p>@ shmeepo: yea! since im currently considering the premed track, i want to volunteer during most of the summer& probably continue senior year at my local hospital. its something i really like and it will allow me to perphaps conclude whether or not i want to pursue this field 
btw would you mind sharing ur stats w/ us ?
idk i like to see what other ppl have :p</p>
<p>@mdh I tend to change my mind a lot because I don’t know all of my options. But out of the Ivies, UPenn, Brown, Dartmouth, Cornell and Columbia are easier to get into than HYP and out of those 4 I’ve pretty much found reasons to eliminate all but Columbia (UPenn is too preprofessional, Dartmouth and Cornell are too kind of in the middle of nowhere, Dartmouth is too small, Brown doesn’t offer Chinese and my dad has been pushing Brown for a while which is one of the other things that turned me off >.< stupid parents). I also go to Columbia ever Saturday so I’m VERY familiar with the campus. I can’t really see myself at a small LAC so I’ve basically got it down to Columbia/Barnard lol. I would honestly be VERY happy at either of the two but I think I prefer Columbia JUST a bit but I really want to take at least a few classes at Barnard either way. My other top right now is UC Berkeley since they have a top chem department (it even has its own college FTW) and offers Chinese. Unfortunately, the Cali condition was I can only go if I don’t get into a SINGLE comparable school in the Northeast.</p>
<p>PS. By small LAC I meant one that’s it’s own community, Barnard overlaps with Columbia sort of eliminating the small LAC environment in a way. It’s also in NYC :)</p>
<p>Le Stats
Taking the ACTs in June (I know it’s late, but finding a Saturday when I’m not already committed to something is kind of a chore…plus, more time to prepare? I hope?
Taking SAT IIs in June as well in US History and Lit
3.58 GPA, hoping to end this year with a 3.8 though. My lower overall is mostly due to the fact that I’m god awful at chemistry and geometry…but hey! I never have to take them again! So its all good.</p>
<p>Junior APs/honours:
AP Spanish, AP Eng Lang, AP USH, honours physics
Senior APs:
AP Lit, AP Gov, AP Psych, AP Art History(self study), AP World History(self study) (obviously I’m a humanities type of person) Senior Independent Research in something like Mythical Images or Biblical Archetypes in Literature…haven’t quite nailed down the details.</p>
<p>ECs-
Lit Mag (Editor)
JV Tennis 2 seasons
Expert Ranked in Riflery
Choir, Choir, Choir:
Selective Church Choir since 2nd grade: have sung the entire Mozart Requiem, and loads of other stuff I’m much too lazy to list, performed in concerts with Dave Brubeck, Stephen Schwartz, Judy Collins (had a duet with her), Maureen McGovern, Paul Winter and others (once again, lazy), lots and lots of solo work, choir soprano section leader, youth leader
Madrigal Select Choir at school: Overall best choir awards in competition, solos, alto section leader
CMEA Western Regionals 3 years
ACDA All Eastern Women’s Honour Choir 2010 (possibly the most epic experience of my life?)
Kind of new: participated in Eric Whitacre’s Virtual Choir. It’s tres awesome, check it out on Youtube
Operation Smile Volunteer
Raised $10,000 for Heifer Project (to fund initiative in India)
Relay for Life team captain 3 years
Short stories published in various online and print lit mags
Youth Group leader
Worrrking on a novel that I hope to finish over the summer</p>
<p>Ermmm, I have an internationally read blog, which is always fun…I’m probably missing stuff, but that’s the jist.</p>
<p>Hope that helped? Kind of?</p>
<p>oh shoot I forgot theater. oh well. i figure that should suffice.</p>
<p>wow shmeepo if you’re not in, no one is! 10,000 dollars!! i donated all of my S16 money to the american cancer society lol but I’m not gonna put it on apps since it wasn’t technically like raising it or anything.</p>
<p>haha I wouldn’t say that; the whole application process is such a crap shoot. But hey! That makes one of us who’s confident ;-)</p>
<p>Haha I wish I was as confident in myself as I am in you. But then again, this program everyone though I was a shoo-in for I got rejected from so… ***** happens. However, college applications take essays into account probably more than the program I applied to did (or in a different way) so if you can write at least a good to great essay I’d say you’re in!</p>
<p>@ mdh 625</p>
<p>Hey
wait you are not applying to Barnard ED because of finalcial reason? Is there any disadvantage in terms of scholarship and financial aid if you apply through ED?
Also did Barnard administrators say that they are going to consider ECs more? I think my ECs are stronger than my academic stats though.</p>
<p>and for everyone, I would like to share my stats</p>
<p>GPA: 3.73 unweighted, 3.97 weighted
SAT: didnt receive the scores yeat
SAT II: Korean (780) Math IIC (630) (Im taking both again)
APs until senior year: Human Geo, Calc AB, BC, Lit, Music Theory, Enviro, (Psych maybe)</p>
<p>ECs
reporter for 4 magazines/newspapers (out of school)
- one of them is paid
5 years of orchestra
some flute concerto experience
treasurer at one club for 2 years
treasurer at church for 2 years
Korean school teacher/tutor for 3 years</p>
<p>those are my main activities… I have few more but they are not that significant…
Any suggestions?</p>
<p>@ shmeepo
Hey You have really strong EC! I am thinking of taking voice lesson after this college process. In my opinion, it would be better if you could raise your GPA after this semester. I think your choir experience can cover your GPA but I dont know if Barnard administrators take it though. Do you know your ranking?</p>
<p>And good luck on both of us 
Im another applicant for Barnard ED! Barnard for the win :)</p>
<p>I am gonna jump in here to quickly try to clarify the “financial” considerations of applying ED:
Application to Barnard for Early Decision (or ED) is BINDING. This means if you are accepted, you must withdraw any other college applications. You get what you get in terms of financial aid, and that means you do NOT get a choice between Barnard and other schools which may or may not offer a better financial aid package.</p>
<p>You all probably know that Barnard offers “need-based” aid. They do NOT offer any merit scholarships. You can certainly apply for outside scholarships, though, and I urge you to look into this. We found Barnard’s financial aid to be pretty generous, but it was a challenge for our family to send our daughter there…make no mistake about that! We of course think it was well worth it. In fact, we figure we kind of paid for her PhD program by paying for her to attend Barnard for undergrad, as we are pretty sure she would not have come out of our “state” school (which she would have attended for free) with an admission to a fully funded PhD program in her present field.</p>
<p>They way the financial aid application process works basically is that your parents and you have to provide all sorts of financial info to Barnard through filling out the FAFSA and the CSS profile plus Barnard’s own financial aid application. They will determine what THEY (Barnard) consider to be the amount your family can afford to pay to send you there for that year. Then Barnard will cover the rest of the amount due with grants (that is money given to you which you don’t have to pay back), loans and/or work-study. A Barnard education is far from inexpensive, though, so if your parents and you are not prepared to pay pretty close to $50,000 per year (which is full price, and “worst case scenario”), you might want to consider applying RD so you can compare financial packages among schools to which you are accepted.</p>
<p>Please forgive the parental intrusion. Carry on!</p>
<p>To add on a little: what’s so dangerous about applying ED if you are concerned about finances is that you might get less aid that you may have wanted/expected but are still bound by contract to attend…which could put your family in a really precarious financial situation.</p>
<p>Oh my goodness, I’m so glad I found this thread.
I’ve been looking at colleges these past two-three weeks, and I stumbled upon Barnard.
I’m not sure if I want to go there for sure, but I’m definately going to send an application.
I’m just worried I don’t have the chops for the school, guess I’ll have to work harder at school. :)</p>
<p>@mdh625: I’m pretty sure I’ll still have a spot (or at least I really hope I do!). According to the website, “Admitted students who wish to defer enrollment in Barnard for up to one year must obtain permission by writing to the Dean of Admissions, explaining the reasons for the deferral request.” But kids admitted from the waiting list can’t defer. And I’m doing a Rotary Youth Exchange so the year will be educational. </p>
<p>I’m so nervous, letters are sent out in two days!</p>
<p>Welcome to our thread adorkablerika! (btw i like the name lol)</p>
<p>@hyeonyun: like churchmusicmom said ED will force your family to accept the schools financial aid package & well coming from a family that doesnt make much, finanacial aid is important to us. </p>
<p>@shmeepo: awesome stats you have a nice chance! wow the more stats i see the more scared i become! you girls have some great ECs! (& i dont really have much… :/) </p>
<p>@sjogren: the youth exchange sounds like an awesome opportunity! i hope you get into barnard! please let us know when the big envelope comes in! ;)</p>
<p>@rainbowrose: well if you really like Columbia then you should def go for ED :), go for what feels right for you! (you are the 1 going to college not your parents, i dont like when they insist too much on one ivy league) </p>
<p>AP exams are right around the corner girls! i was talking to my AP biology teach& she said we basically have 4 more school weeks (well in NY public schools) ahhhh!! time flies!</p>
<p>@mdh625 odgsuhwrousdv I’m going to implode from stress within the next month. 4 weeks! That’s insanity. I’m starting review on the 1st of April this year because last year I made the mistake of not studying until the day before the Euro exam…oops</p>
<p>Is it just me or has junior year gone by ridiculously fast? Of all the APs you guys are taking, which one are you the most nervous about?</p>
<p>schmeepo - Most nervous about AP Lang and Physics
Did anyone else take the national spanish exam? I just did embarassingly bad. 58% XD. There goes three years in a row of silver. I’m thinking honorable mention? Oh well.</p>
<p>EDIT: Ahh! A verizon ad just came up in SPANISH! The torture!</p>
<p>@shmeepo: i know how you feel! ughh im freakin out as well! i want to go to sleep & to wake up in te middle of june (so i just have to take 1 dumb regents exam :p) </p>
<p>im actually scared of eng language 
i am not the best at critical reading, i mean i got a 99 on the english regents this january but the AP exam doesnt even compare to that baby test& its something you can’t study for … *sigh</p>
<p>yeah, I feel your pain on the AP Lang test, I have absolutely NO idea what we’re supposed to be tested on…I think I’m mostly going to work on memorizing literary terms until the exam…I’m almost kind of tempted to pass it off as something I really don’t need to study for, but that’d probably be a mistake.</p>
<p>Have any of you taken the AP Spanish test? That’s the one I’m most nervous about…apparently less than half of the people that get 5’s on it are non-native speakers…scary.</p>
<p>shmeepo I don’t take AP spanish till senior year which means I’m doing it only to get credit and not necessarily to look good. I’m SO afraid for physics (B)! My teacher said I could probably get a 750+ on the SAT II when I asked him but I think the AP is gonna be a LOT harder!</p>
<p>So excited for next year! AP Bio :D. Gonna be way better than this AP Physics B/ AP Chem doubling business.</p>
<p>im debating whether or not i should take AP Span Lit next yr… im spanish so it wont be a huge deal but i heard the teacher goes hard on native speakers& that you are constantly reading novels… idk yet mayb… </p>
<p>what AP classes do you guys intend to take next year??</p>
<p>my list so far looks like this : calc BC, chem, gov, span lit& idk about eng lit… well i can only take 4 APs anyways because my school doesnt allow anyone to take more than 4 AP classes, dumb budget cuts! i mean teachers are even saying that calc& the ap sciences are going to be cut to one period! thats insane! i have double pd bio & we are just gonna make it for the exam! :/</p>