Chance a rising senior from Canada for Wharton and Ivies

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Hey guys. </p>

<p>I'm a rising senior at a large, competitive high school in Canada (3rd in province, sends a handful of students to Ivies each year). Hoping for one last round of chances before I start applications =)</p>

<p>SAT I: 2300 (single sitting - 700CR/800M/800W)
SAT II: Math II - 800, Biology M - 750, planning on taking Chemistry
Rank - School doesn't rank
UW GPA - 88%/100, upward trend, had 91.8% in junior year</p>

<p>Currently taking the hardest course load possible (IB HL English, IB HL Economics, IB HL Chemistry, IB SL Physics)</p>

<p>IB Scores:
IB SL Math - 7/7
IB SL French - 5/7</p>

<p>Awards:
-Certificates of distinction in CEMC math contests (Pascal, Cayley, Fermat, Euclid)
-Won a bronze medal at a Youth Science Canada sponsored science fair for a 3-month, independent research project </p>

<p>Extracurriculars:</p>

<p>Music
-Wind ensemble (trombone - 9, 10, 11, 12) - My school's wind ensemble has received Gold ratings in provincial festivals and such, performed at various theatres (several hundred in audience) and a senior home (lol)
-Jazz band (also trombone - 9, 10) - performed several times at various public venues and restaurants
-Jazz choir (tenor - 11, 12 - might become a section leader or something similar this year) - performed various times at similar venues as jazz band
-Men's chorus (tenor - 10) - performed at a theatre in front of a few hundred
-Guitar (since 8th grade) - performed numerous times in front of live audiences, writes own songs, some connections with local music scene, etc.
-Performed as a solo artist on the main stage at a large annual 2-day festival in 2011 with several thousand in attendance over the two days
-Placed 2nd in a local singing competition held in the greater Toronto area (2011)</p>

<p>Misc.
-Model UN, member since start of junior year, attended a small regional, inter-school assembly and invited to attend SOMA (a provincial assembly - longest running MUN in North America)
-Director of entertainment (PROBABLE but still pending) of a charitable organization that raises money for homeless youth in Toronto since start of junior year - found local bands for fundraising concerts raising over $1500 this year
-Member of an awareness group against impaired driving in sophomore year
-President and co-creator of Mu Alpha Theta (still pending)</p>

<p>Athletics
-National Lifeguard Service (Since 8th grade) - Certified to be a lifeguard in Canada for swimming pools (there's different certificates for pools/outdoor/resorts, etc) and certified in CPR and first aid
-Powerlifting (11, 12) - Lifts heavy weights 4-5x a week, training for several competitions in November, decent chance of placing
-Track and field (11)</p>

<p>Volunteering:
-Around 40 hours doing misc. activities and helping with events - I think I can also claim about 100 more hours for some other things</p>

<p>Summer activities:
-Took acceleration summer courses at other high schools in Gr. 9 and 10 (Gr. 10 course in the summer of Gr 9, Gr. 12 Biology in the summer of Gr. 10)
-Interned at a small hedge fund advisory firm in London, UK and worked alongside a former Goldman-Sachs director
-Presented at a school in Urumqi, China in front of a hundred foreign students</p>

<p>Misc info:
Intended major: Finance/business
Ethnicity - Asian (lol)
Gender - Male (lol again)
Family Income - Around $100,000</p>

<p>Chance me for...</p>

<p>Wharton - ED (Applying FA)
Harvard (FA)
Yale (FA)
Princeton (FA)
Stanford
MIT
UCBerkeley
Columbia (FA)
UCLA
Dartmouth (FA)</p>

2

<p>Bump? 10char</p>

3

<p>You’re definitely in the ballpark for all those schools. Your GPA is way below the average and will hurt you, do you happen to know your class rank or where you stand in terms of the students in your school? You’re ECs are good in terms of music, but the ones that are still pending or that you are starting this year may look like you’re trying to pile things on at the last minute. </p>

<p>While you have a shot at all the schools you listed, many of them are capricious when it comes to acceptances/rejections. I recommend you choose a safety school or two to apply as well (although I’d be very surprised if you don’t get into UCLA at least). </p>

<p>And thanks for chancing me! :)</p>

4

<p>I am going to be straight out honest with you.</p>

<p>I am not impressed with your 700 CR, for it’s the most indicative score out of the 3 for success at college. If I were you, I would retake for the sake of enhancing CR score.</p>

<p>Your GPA is weak compared to others applying for the same schools. The cutoff mark for an A in Toronto is a 86%. Your GPA will somewhat be a disadvantage. There should’ve been more IBs in Junior Year. I just hope you completely throw the adcoms out of the ball park with your senior scores. I also hope there is a story why you’ve underachieved in your frsh & soph years (coming of your age story or special circumstance?). </p>

<p>Interesting extracurriculars, and you seem to be active in many strands. However, adcoms want a specific passion that you’ve pursued with all your heart. I am from BC and my extracurriculars focus on Piano, MUN and Taekwondo. Although you can dismiss them with a whiff of your hand they are ‘asian activities,’ but the fact I have created first intl mun in Canada for high school students, the fact I’ve come semi-finalist at a very competitive international piano competition, the fact I am a third degree black belt instructor for 2 years - my passions for those activities will impress the adcoms. We can always revert back to the popular saying quality over quantity.</p>

<ul>
<li><p>I am wondering if you have garnered any prestigious national level or provincial level qualifications.</p></li>
<li><p>Are you Asian?</p></li>
</ul>

<p>One thing that sticks out is the fact you’ve worked with a former director at Goldman Sachs. Make sure to blow that up and explain it in your application. Make sure to get fantastic recs and write meaningful, personal essays.</p>

<p>All the while, you do have chances at these, but your battlefield is bloody; too many qualified students, to little spots. Good luck, and the final advice I could give you is to only follow your passion and follow it with all your passion and love.</p>

<p>GL</p>

5

<p>@dancetildawn Thanks =)</p>

<p>@Kohazard Thanks for your honesty =) I was also taking IB HL English, IB HL Chem, IB HL Economics and IB Theory of Knowledge in junior year, they’re all three semesters long haha. Also, I took all pre-IB courses in Freshman and Sophomore year (hardest courses available), but nonetheless I agree that my GPA is on the lower side of things. However, I’d still say I’m easily top 10% in my class, if not top 5%. </p>

<p>Unfortunately I don’t have any extremely prestigious awards that stand out, and yes, I am asian (Chinese).</p>

6

<p>I wouldn’t worry about your SAT score. 2300 is more than enough for any of those schools. Just make sure your essay is strong</p>

7

<p>Ancient bump. </p>

<p>Updates from last time:
-Attained Director of the Race for the charitable organization
-IB predicted grade will probably be 40-41/45
-Guidance counselor said I received some strong recommendations from teachers, although I didn’t see them for myself
-Around 100 hours volunteering total
-Lifting stats: 170lb Bench press, 265lb Squat, 305lb Deadlift for anyone well-versed in powerlifting haha</p>

<p>Will still chance back =)</p>

8

<p>You have a chance at those schools, apply and you might be surprised where you get accepted. :)</p>

9

<p>I’d say you have a pretty good chance at every school, except Wharton and HYP where you have a running chance, but I wouldn’t count on getting in.</p>

<p>As a poster previously mentioned, your GPA is a little bit on the low side :confused: and although your school doesn’t rank, they guidance counselor does report the highest attained GPA of your class. This could work both ways, since I’m not sure of your Canadian curriculum is so difficult that the top 5% have GPAs in the low 90’s.</p>

<p>The fact that you’re international hurts a little bit. Your EC’s are good, though not god-like. Make sure your essays are excellent and think you’ll be great!</p>

10

<p>Final bump before I submit in a few days?</p>

11

<p>GPA + ECs = Lacking = Not likely at anywhere youre applying except MAYBE for UCB and UCLA. SAT is fabulous, dont retake, ivies will frown upon it, even if you do better b/c some school dont take score choice like yale</p>

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