Can I get into Brown?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Brown University
1

<p>I was wondering how good of a chance I have for getting into Brown.</p>

<p>I am a white female from Minnesota. I go to a public school, but it is the best one in the city.</p>

<p>I have a unweighted 4.00 GPA (straight As), with rigorous classes, but I’m not sure I can maintain it through my senior year. Right now, I am tied with one other person for 1st in the class (out of 410), but again, that might slip a little bit.</p>

<p>My classes:
Freshman year:
Pre-IB English 9
Pre-IB Geography 9
Biology (we don’t have honors bio)
Spanish 3
IB Math Studies
Orchestra</p>

<p>Sophomore year:
Pre-IB English 10
AP US history
Chemistry
Spanish 4
AP Calculus (AB)
Orchestra</p>

<p>Junior year:
IB HL 1 English
IB SL 20th century history
IB SL/AP Physics
IB SL Spanish
IB HL 2 Math (usually only taken senior year)
Orchestra</p>

<p>Senior year (most likely):
IB HL 2 English
IB HL History of the Americas
IB SL Chemistry
IB HL Spanish
IB Theory of Knowledge
Orchestra
Multivariable Calculus and Linear Algebra and Differential Equations at the University of Minnesota (through PSEO)</p>

<p>AP Tests:
Sophomore Year: AP US History-4, Calculus AB-5
Junior Year: Physics B and Calculus BC
Senior year: probably chemistry</p>

<p>As you can tell from my schedule, I am in the IB program, and will be getting an IB Diploma</p>

<p>Test Scores:
ACT: 35 Composite (35 English, 34 Math, 35 Reading, 36 Science), Combined English/Writing 31 (8 on the essay)
SAT I: 2200 (730 Reading, 800 Math, 630 Writing) - I might retake
SAT II: Math II-800, Physics-800, Spanish-750</p>

<p>Extra Curriculars:
Math team: I’ve been on the “varsity” (scoring) team since freshman year, I’m very committed to it, we have won city and participated in all 3 years, this year we placed 9th in state, and I was second in city this year. My (3-person) team also won the Concordia college math bowl this year, out of about 24 teams. I was captain this year and will be again next year.</p>

<p>Math tutoring: My math coach started a program this year in which students can get math help from other students every Thursday after school. I have participated in the program as a volunteer math tutor almost every week since it started this winter. I also do a little bit of private math tutoring (for pay)</p>

<p>Music: I play viola in orchestra (class) and chamber orchestra (zero-hour, before school, but we do receive credit). I am the principle viola, although that means almost nothing. I played in pit orchestra for one musical and most likely will again this year. I occasionally play in various ensembles (sometimes for money) and I also take private lessons. I have been playing since 5th grade. I don’t consider myself a great musician, and I don’t plan on majoring in music, but I really like viola and put a lot of time into it and plan on continuing to play in some capacity in college.</p>

<p>Sports: The only school sport I have participated in was Nordic (cross-country) skiing, which I only did in 9th grade.</p>

<p>I am also in NHS.</p>

<p>Volunteering: I have volunteered at a twice yearly fair trade sale every year since I was little. I also do other volunteer work, on a less regular basis.</p>

<p>Job experience: I was an intern at a financial company last year during the summer. I am a summer school assistant this summer.</p>

<p>Other awards: I, along with my best friend, won State History Day for senior group documentary in 9th grade. I won the Harvard Book award this year (but I know this doesn’t mean much). I have also won various math prizes over the years.</p>

<p>The thing that I am worried about is the essay. I’m an okay writer, but I don’t consider myself that interesting of a person, and my essay will probably end up being slightly boring. How much will this hurt me?</p>

<p>In terms of teacher recs, I’ll get won from my math teacher, who really likes me but is a bad writer. I’ll also get one from either my english or history teachers, both of who like me, but I feel like they don’t actually know me that well, so it will probably be a pretty generic this is a good student thing.</p>

<p>Will I get into Brown? Is there anything I should do to improve my chances?</p>

2

<p>I don’t have enough time to comment in much depth at the moment, but both 2200 and 35 should be high enough that there’s no need to retake the SATs. Both scores are in the range where they signal to a college that you’re a good student, and after a certain point, these tests are about luck and test-taking ability more than intelligence.</p>

<p>

Who knows? No one can answer this question definitively except the admissions officers as they read your application. A strong, interesting essay would certainly help, and the grades, SATs and course rigor (including college level math courses) will look good. You seem to have some activities you’re very into and Brown will see that. I think you should focus on doing your best in class (if your best isn’t straight As this year, so be it…just be sure you did all you could. No shame in that) and continuing with your activities - show your commitment to them and excitement for them. When it comes to the essay, write a few. Try different styles. Perhaps an anecdote that really shows who you are and what you stand for.</p>

3

<p>I agree with Uroogla that you don’t need to retake the SAT – that 35 ACT score is strong enough, and your math and CR are also very strong. The only reason to retake the SATs is if there are scholarships you are interested in that require higher SATs. </p>

<p>Your weak spot seems to be writing, given your SAT and ACT scores. Write good essays, but make sure they really sound like you. Getting a rec from an English teacher might be a good idea.</p>

<p>You are a strong candidate, but only the Admissions Committee knows what your chances are.</p>

4

<p>

Sorry, I don’t think you’re Brown material.</p>

<p>(joking…)</p>

5

<p>Sorry about the typo</p>

6

<p>Fun stuff. 35 on the ACT is darn good, don’t bother retaking your tests. Relax, enjoy your senior year. You’ve got a lot to look forward to. The only thing I’d try to do is make sure your essays are great. If you know you’re weak in writing, then start writing your essays NOW, and don’t be afraid to throw out ones that you’ve spent 3, 5 hours writing if you can do better (admittedly, I got a 9 on the SAT essay, and even had I gotten an 8 I wouldn’t have considered myself a weak writer so I dunno if you are or aren’t). Along with writing your essays, get them proofread by people in the know, preferably more than a week before they’re due (English teachers are great resources, and friends/family can help you catch little mistakes, or tell you if your essay sounds like it isn’t you).</p>

7

<p>why do you ask this stupid question. you know your good enough. you meet all of the qualifications. have a little confidence, you just seem stupid for asking this question.</p>

8

<p>Yes, you’re in. If you want to talk Harvard, Yale, Stanford (not Ivy, but…), or Princeton: it’s anyone’s guess.</p>

<p>Brown, Cornell, and Dartmouth are the lower tier Ivies and are thus a little more predictable.</p>

9

<p>It looks like your scores are really good. If I were to say what your hook is, i’d talk about your work experience. Summer school intern? that’s some dedication right there.</p>

10

<p>Your stats and ECs are excellent - you’re well rounded and you excel in what you do. But Brown has a lot of other candidates like you. I guess the question is, what do you want to concentrate in, and what passion makes you unique. For example, if you wanted to concentrate in Econ or Commerce, Organizations, and Entrepreneurship, you could write about your experiences with interning at the financial company. If you want to major in math, you can talk about your changing view of numbers and problem solving. You just need something that makes you memorable, or something you stand for.</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>I’m not going to argue with the whole “lower-tier” thing because some people just don’t know better, but Brown is definitely not as predictable in admissions for the highly-qualified candidate. In fact, Brown has been called “schizophrenic” in it’s admissions policies. Brown is predictable when a candidate is hooked, but at Brown hooked may cover more things than other places (e.g highly qualified in hard sciences).</p>

11

<p>WILL you get in? Who knows
Are you QUALIFIED to get accepted: Definitely. You have amazing grades and test scores (I wouldn’t bother retaking them) and seem to be a well-rounded candidate.
The annoying part these days is that schools reject thousands of top-notch students, and accept thousands of top-notch students. What makes one group different from the other? I don’t know, but maybe a little luck was on their side…good luck!!</p>

12

<p>Lower tier?? For undergrad many would argue that Brown is better than Harvard. It’s all about fit and what you want.</p>

13

<p>I would say you are strong candidate for Brown, which unfortunately as everyone is saying, means that it is somewhat of a crapshoot, as long as you don’t have alumni connections. However, I would say that you are a lot better off than many other people. The thing that I would say to focus on are your essays, because that is the only part of your application where colleges can actually see what you are about.</p>

<p>wolfmanjack: I agree about the whole Brown being better for undergraduate. Now that I have said that don’t go crazy everyone that is reading this. The reason for this statement is that at Brown many of the classes are taught by professors whereas at Harvard, just about none of their senior faculty teaches undergraduate, rather they teach in the graduate school, and undergraduate is taught by foreign TAs that you can’t really understand. At least that is what I have discovered from my comparison of the two. Although, I will say that Harvard may have more prestigious graduate schools. Hope this doesn’t get anyone too riled up.</p>

14

<p>i definitely think you have a shot, i have just read a bunch of info on brown and am starting to like it myself.</p>

15

<p>I am interested in engineering, which sets me apart a little bit because I am a girl, and applied math, which Brown has one of the best programs in the country in. Hopefully that will help me a little bit. I wrote about both of them in my essays.</p>

<p>xXSalomon1080Xx, while I agree that Brown is really good for undergrad, the one class I sat in was taught by a TA (I think) with an accent and speech impediment so bad that I could barely understand her.</p>

16

<p>^ If it was math 10, 17, 18, 19 or 20, those are exceptions rather than the rules(all of these are our intro calc classes: 18 and 20 are multivariable, 17 and 19 correspond roughly to BC calc, but more in depth, and 10 is the intro calc class, from which you take 18 or 20). Our pure math department is relatively small, yet a very large percentage of our campus has to take intro calc classes. If you’re a freshman in one of these classes, this is where you learn to learn from each other by studying with other people. And, if you really don’t want to be taught by a TA, there should always be one section taught by an actual professor, so if you figure out who that is, you can register for that one.</p>

<p>Oh, and again with math: we really have the choice of having small classes taught by TAs (no intro calc is larger than 30 students, I believe) or have huge lecture halls taught by professors. Personally, I think in this instance small classes, even with somewhat inferior teachers, are better, just because you can see and question what’s going on.</p>

17

<p>mngirl: As i would assume anyone going into mathematical studies should know, especially applied mathematics, a sample size of n=1 is not significant in any capacity. I acknowledge that some classes will be taught by foreign TAs at all Ivies, but I have discovered it to be especially prevalent at Harvard. In addition, I agree Brown does not only have one of the best applied mathematics programs in the country, but it is commonly referred to as the best in the world. Best of luck.</p>

18

<p>I know that the class I visited was an exception. I just thought it was funny.</p>

<p>FYI, the class was multivariable calc. Now, I’ve already taken the class, so its not an issue anyway</p>

19

<p>totally disagree with Brown about its being a lower-tier Ivy… people often come to this conclusion because of the liberal academics, but it’s still hard as **** to get in. i wouldn’t definitively say that she’s in just because of her excellent academic record</p>