Chance a junior for a WIDE range of schools? **I will chance you back!**

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

**I have questions relevant to my app at the bottom that I have actually done research on but came up blank! Skimming is fine lol, I know this is super long.

All Ivies + Stanford University and MIT, Georgetown University, Johns Hopkins University, Williams, Amherst, George Washington University, and Boston University.

THE SHORT VERSION:

Middle Eastern female from prestigious NYS prep school. 2310 SAT (790/740/780), ~3.8 UW GPA, 6 AP’s, great EC’s, and a hook for science research (Intel ISEF, patented and published). Summer work in foreign country: teaching English (am bilingual) and teaching an MIT affiliated camp. Lots of music, but not particularly talented | Small amount of sports involvement, but very un-athletic.

Intended major is Biomedicine/Pharmacology but I’m really not sure.

Race: White (I am Middle Eastern, but this is counted as ‘white’ on apps).
Gender: Female
Financial Need: No financial need
State: New York

**School gives no class rank or GPA, and, as everyone in my class of 100 is very private/competitive I have no way of estimating my rank. They will only send a transcript to schools.

**Transcript:/b

Freshman Year:
English I: A
History: A-
Physics: A-
Algebra II/Trig: B+
French I: B+

Sophomore Year:
History: A
English II: A
French II: A
PreCalculus: A-
Chemistry: A-

Junior Year:
AP Biology: A
English III: A
US History: A
French III: A
AP Calculus: A-

Senior Year: (Classes only)
AP Calculus BC (Semester 1) / Multivariable Calculus (Semester 2)
AP Physics C
AP Government
Shakespearean Tragedy (Semester 1) / AP English (Semester 2)
French IV

**A note re: the rigor of my schedule: this is just about the most rigorous program offered by my school. If one took every single AP the school allows the top students to take at any point he or she would have 7 AP’s, and I have 6. The discrepancy would be APUSH on top of AP Bio and AP Calc in the junior year.

Total UW GPA: 3.81
Total UW GPA w/o freshman year: 3.91

SAT/Subject Tests

SAT: 790 CR, 740 M, 780 W (10 Essay, 77 MC). Total: 2310.

This is not a super scored value, and I only sat the test once.

Literature SAT II: 770

Math SAT II, Level I: (First attempt: 730), Assume second attempt is 750+

Biology (E) SAT II: Assume at least 700, hopefully 750+

My sophomore and junior PSATs were 204 and 206, respectively, if this matters. Enough to get commendation, but not enough for Semi-Finalist (225 cutoff for NE boarding schools applies)

Extracurricular Activities

Science Olympiad (Grade 7-12): Division B awards in: Anatomy and Physiology, Microbiology, and Chemistry of Foods. Division C awards in: Technical Problem Solving. Hopefully, elected to head position in grade 12.

Model United Nations (Grade 11-12): Advanced committee member. Competed in multiple conferences throughout the years in specialized committees and crisis simulations (including Cornell MUNC). Earned Best Delegate award from [other college]MUNC. Elected Vice President/Secretary General as well as head chair of the historic committee for an official Model UN conference held at my school my 11th grade. Hopefully, will take control of said official conference in grade 12, as well as run the main club.

Mock Trial (Grade 9-12): Head Lawyer 10 - 12 grade and head of club 11 – 12 grade.

Newspaper (Grade 9-12): Was a writer freshman year, bumped up to Section Editor sophomore through senior year. Was selected for a Journalism retreat to NYC.

Math/Science Tutor (Grade 9-12): Tutored students in Physics, Chemistry, Biology, AP Biology, Algebra I, Algebra II and Trigonometry, Pre Calculus, Calculus, and AP Calculus AB.

On-Campus Internship (Grade 9-10): Worked extensively with solar panels. Learned the process of the design and printing of objects using 3-Dimensional Printers. (I use this in the summer of my sophomore year in an internship described below). // Intern at [Top 40 Uni]’s Department of Biomedicine (Grade 11-12): Part of a school’s ‘Signature Project’ program created for deeply exploring students’ existing passions.

Field Hockey and Lacrosse (JV, Grade 9-10): I’m really un-athletic, but I gave sports a fair shot.

Orchestra (Grade 9-12): Fourth chair clarinet (I won’t mention it’s of only 6 :P).

Summer Activities

Camp Instructor, MIT’s Fabrication Laboratory (Fab Lab), Summer of Sophomore year. Taught Maker’s Camp for students aged 8 to 18, in which students completed weekly projects such as dance pads and mini-Ferris wheels. Participated in a course modeled after MIT’s ‘How to Make Almost Anything’ (MAS.863).

I took Oud classes at a prestigious and historically rich music center in Egypt as well as advanced Arabic classes (I am fluent).

Special Talents/Skills

I think my experience with science research qualifies as a special talent, rather than just an extracurricular. I mentioned an internship (listed above), and this research comes from another, similar internship – this one at a different uni that I did not get through my school.

Regional Science and Engineering Fair (Third Place), Grade 9

Intel ISEF Finalist, Grade 9

Intel ISEF (Special) Award, Grade 9

Regional Science and Engineering Fair (Sixth Place), Grade 10

State Science Congress (Second Place), Grade 10

**I am the sole inventor on one U.S. Patent, and I have been published in scientific journals two times.

Extra Information/Hooks

High rigor college preparatory high school

I have first generation legacies (siblings attended) at: Princeton, Cornell, John’s Hopkins, Georgetown (2), and George Washington.

Bilingual and culturally Middle Eastern. I don’t even know if this counts, but, hey, I’ll put it down anyway.

**I have a recommendation from the math teacher that gave me the B+ my freshman year and an A- my junior year in my respective math courses that should speak highly of my character and effort in these courses. He knows me quite well as a person, too.

What I think:

Strongest part of application: SAT, essay, science research ‘hook’

Weakest part of application: GPA :frowning:

Please estimate the chances that I will get into at least one of the Ivy League Universities (+ Stanford and MIT). The dream is a spot at one of these 10 schools, but I’m not hung up over which one. Also, what do you think are my chances for Georgetown and Johns Hopkins?

How do you think my shabby freshman year will impact my chances? Do Princeton and Stanford really not weigh freshman year in GPA? (I’ve searched through CC, the websites of the uni’s themselves, and elsewhere but cannot find a consensus.) How should I strategize my EA/ED such that it improves my chances at an ivy school best?

Whatever you can answer of the above would be much appreciated. Thanks!

2

Your GPA puts you in the “academically qualified” range, I would not worry about it.
I know that there is a difference in eastern mentality, but be careful when describing 1) the program’s you did and 2) the awards you won. I think I read the word “prestigious” and “— place” ten times. Remember, it’s what you got out of the activities that counts.
Some of those random activities are a bit odd because they don’t fit with everything else. Furthermore, your spread of ECs is rather ecletic, but hopefully not cursory. Though, overall, your application looks very good.

Don’t worry too much about the “strategizing” stuff, just make sure your essays are approaching perfection. Don’t model your essays after something else you read. Individuality counts for a lot.

3

Thanks for the comment, @1golfer1‌. I was really concerned about the GPA. Well, my EC’s are generally either some form of public speaking or STEM. I’ll agree they’re pretty varied, but each one I’ve done I think I’ve put a lot of time into and I hope that shows, especially with MUN.

Haha yes, I’ll agree the wording was snooty, and I’ll definitely not write my applications like that!

Thanks again for the time.

4

Odds are good at Ivies+Stanford/MIT. I’d say 25-30% (about 10 times the international acceptance rate). Georgetown and JHU should be matches (not high ones, but matches nonetheless).

5

I won’t worry too much about your GPA since you got an upward trend in your high school years. SAT score is really high and is definitely will be an advantage of you. However, Ivies and MIT, Stanford are reaches to everyone. I will say you have high chances to get into those colleges. I think you can definitely get into Amherst, BU and GWU

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Is this really a “wide range”? These are pretty much all schools of the same caliber. There isn’t a wide range. You could very well get rejected by every school here. Because you are applying to so many reach schools, the quality of each supplement, which is the most scrutinized part of the application, will inevitably drop. You’re looking at 40+ supplements.

And, there is no way in hell that you are actually interested in every school on this list.

You have no business applying to every Ivy League and Stanford and MIT. Would you really be equally as happy being in the middle of nowhere up at Cornell and Dartmouth as you would be in the city at Harvard and Columbia? Would you really be equally as happy on an open campus like Harvard compared to a closed campus like Brown? Would you really be equally as happy at a school like Boston U and at a school as small as Williams?

It’s extremely clear that you only care about the name (something colleges are VERY good at spotting). And it’s extremely obvious that you just took the most prestigious national universities and the top ranked liberal arts colleges, and then said you have a “list”. If I were you, I would go back, make a REAL list, and then come back and make a new thread.

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@CaliCash - Sorry if I was unclear. I meant they are a wide range culturally, in where they’re placed (urban/rural). And that’s exactly what you mention in your next para, so I’d assume you’re just being snarky with your first point.

As it is February of my junior year I will cut this list down as I do more research. For example, I already know that I’ll probably cut both Williams and Amherst. And, I will be applying to safeties/matches other than GW and BU

The reason I’m looking at all of them for now is that I have no idea where I want to be, environmentally. Seriously. I could, as you say, decide “OK fine, I’ll eliminate the ones that aren’t in cities.” But then I’d wake up a year from now and go: “Oh shit, I hate cities! Now I have to spend four years in one.” Is it fair to let my 15-year-old self decide, right now where I want to be for four years of my life? If I apply to schools with all of the things I know I want right now (co-ed, in New England or the West Coast), then I can visit the schools at which I’m accepted later, when I have a better idea of who I am and where I want to be.

Now, the reason you see more top-tier schools is less the name and more the connections going to a top-tier will get me. You may find this un-admirable, but, frankly, I don’t care! How many Harvard applicants do you think would be applying if it were Rank #974 with all of the same qualities it has other than those garnered only by the name?

If I’m going to spend 40,000*4+ on my education, why should I not try to get the most amount of connections/opportunities (something Ivies do have more of just because of a name) I can on top of the great education I could get at most anywhere?

These are all amazing schools, and there are things at each of them I’d love and things I’d hate. I just want a wide range of options come senior year, and I want to get the most for my money.

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bump bump bump…

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I’m assuming that you are interested in Biomedical Engineering. For those who are in the biomedical engineering field, a Harvard degree will not get you a job over someone who went to Georgia Tech. A degree from Brown will not get you a job over someone who went to the University of Washington. With the exception of investment banking, the prestige of an undergraduate degree doesn’t really mean that much. Especially if you are going into a major that will likely lead you to grad school. If prestige means something to you, it’s best suited on a grad school degree (even though the Ivies aren’t the best options for the two majors you listed).

And for Pharmacology, the top schools are not Ivy League schools. They are state schools like the University of Minnesota and UNC- Chapel Hill and UT- Austin and Purdue. So if prestige means anything, those are schools that are prestigious in those field. A liberal arts degree from Harvard will do nothing for you.

Do your research. If you actually have any intention of being a Biomedical Engineering and Pharmacology major, start your search with that.

Best value doesn’t mean spending as much as you can. For example, Minnesota’s tuition is just a little more than $20,000 for out of state students. And it has one of the leading pharmacology departments. Spend your money wisely.

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@CaliCash If you are a Harvard graduate applying for a job, you will (bar some extreme interview error) get that job. I also resent your relaince on US News and Reports to state which colleges the OP should consider.
That said, you are correct in writing that each college specializes in certain fields, and even the “big name” colleges lack expertise in some areas.
Location, I think, is the most often overlooked factor. Information regarding “campus life” is not representative of the often diverse social groups most universities have. However, if you are not used to freezing winters / burning summers and lack exposure to differering American cultures, going to some Ivy school or southern school can be a big shock.

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@1golfer1 So a Harvard graduate has never been denied a job? Yeah, I’m sure that’s true.

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@1golfer1, @CaliCash:

I’m aware of the specialization of various ivies, but this is very much in line with my earlier sentiment about being 15 and having no idea what I want to do. Yes, I’m doing a lot of biomedical research now, but for the moment I’m equally likely to go into Economics, PoliSci, Biomedicine/Biology, Statistics, or underwater basket weaving. (OK, while the last one is snark, the rest are serious.) These are strengths at different institutions, so better to have a variety of colleges with a variety of strengths to choose from when I’m more equipped to make the final decision (or at least forced to).

I’m just about equally comfortable in freezing New England as I am on the West Coast, in a small college town as I am in NYC. Or at least I don’t have a known preference.

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@1golfer1‌ -If you are a Harvard graduate applying for a job, that means (unless your last name is Bush) that you had to pass a lot of very challenging courses to get your degree. That’s no less true of about 10 more colleges in each field, some of which will have better programs than Harvard’s. Businesses that hire Harvard graduates for no reason save their alma mater, are just asking for trouble.

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OK guys, I get the prelim list of schools is controversial, but I’d like more suggestions as to the weakest part of my applications or if anyone has answers to my questions rather than arguing about my schools here.

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Should most likely get into Georgetown and JHU. Will definitely get into some Ivies, particularly Cornell (less selective + legacy). Mit is the only one I see you having little shot at.

I would advise applying early to Princeton and taking advantage of the legacy.

Accept/waitlist/reject predictions for me? http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1741178-predict-my-results-will-chance-back.html#latest

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Thanks, @theanaconda! I was definitely planning on single-choice EA for Princeton. And yeah haha the more I look at what the typical MIT student is the more I’m ‘turned off’ (800 Math scores, but 650 CR/W, typically very good at math and science, but only math and science - which is amazing, but not me at all).

Chanced you back :slight_smile:

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hey :slight_smile: i think you are academically able (gpa shouldnt be a problem if all your other acadmics are good, and you have other academic awards). the fact you are legacy also helps. If you are not needing financial aid, then you will have a higher chance. how many people apply from ur country? if not thats also a diversity point. also bear in mind that the common application only lets you put 10 cocurriculars, do depth :smile:

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Bump?

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I’d say that you’ll get into 2-3 of the Ives, and BU and GWU, probably either Williams or Amherst too. From what I’ve heard on CC, Princeton and Stanford don’t count freshman year; however I don’t entirely know if this is true sorry. Use EAs and EDs for schools you have legacies at, otherwise the legacies won’t count as much. Good luck, hope I helped!
Take a look at my thread if you can please :smile:
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1743297-ecs-will-chance-back-p1.html

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You’re definitely a very qualified applicant to all of these schools. I predict that you’ll get into most of them. I don’t think your ‘shabby’ freshman year was nearly shabby enough to get you rejected from any of them. A 3.81 GPA is still very good, especially if your school is known for being difficult. Your SAT IIs in Math II and Bio seem a little bit low considering your STEM accomplishments, but schools will probably just assume you got unlucky or something.