Chance an Indian for HYPD + Cornell + MIT? (Will chance back)

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Well, I would be really greatful to all of you if you people could chance me since you know much more about the admissions process in the States than I do. So any help will be appreciated.
No matter how harsh your opinions, put them in front of me.
(Missed the EA deadline so probably will apply in RD)</p>

<p>**NOTE : Currently taking a gap year as family's financial conditions are bad and am working, as well as learning C++ <a href="Still%20play%20sports">/b</a></p>

<p>Require chances for the following schools:</p>

<p>Harvard
Yale
Princeton
MIT Sloan
Cornell
Dartmouth</p>

<p>Academic Scores</p>

<p>SAT I (breakdown): 2000 (NO PREP 760 M, 630 W - Got a 6 on the essay :(, 610 CR) - Taking again
SAT II : Gave Math II and Chem in November (Math went fine while I screwed up in Chemistry because the teacher didn't tell us 5 minutes were left so couldnt bubble in all the answers.)
School grades and performances : (CBSE Diploma/Curriculum)
10th Grade - 9.6/10 CGPA
12th Grade - 83 Percent.
Rank : School doesnt rank, though my teachers believe its top 20%</p>

<p>**Academic Achievements<a href="High%20School%20Only">/b</a></p>

<p>[ul]
[li] Won 3 Gold Medals at the 9th, 10th and 11th National Cyber Olympiads organised by Science Olympiad Foundation (All India Rank 14, 17 and 12 respectively)</p>[/li]
<p>[li] Got percentile score of 98 in International Informatics Olympiad 2009 organised by Computer Literacy Foundation.</p>[/li]
<p>[li] 18th International Rank in International Informatics Olympiad 2010.</p>[/li]
<p>[li] 25th All India Rank in National Science Olympiad 2010.</p>[/li]
<p>[li] 95+ Percentile in International Maths Olympiad organised by Science Olympiad Foundation.</p>[/li]
<p>[li] Gold Medals in two Math Olympiads organised by Eduheal Foundation.</p>[/li]
<p>[li] 17th All India Rank in International Cyber Olympiad organised by Eduheal Foundation.</p>[/li]
<p>[li] Came 3rd in the Zonal Level of Maths World Oral Calculation Competition.</p>[/li]
<p>[li] 3rd in the Zonal Level of Mother Dairy Spell Vocab Challenger 2009. (Ranked #1 in School).[/li][/ul]</p>

<p>** Sports And Athletics **</p>

<p>[ul]</p>

<p>[li] Varsity Soccer Team (Captain, played Nationals three years in a row, finished 2nd in State twice)[/li]Play for my State Soccer Team (Winger or Leftback)
Was invited to U-19 soccer camps by some clubs but could not go due to financials.</p>

<p>[li] Varsity Cricket Team (Vice Captain, played Nationals twice, 3rd and 2nd in State in the two competitions)</p>[/li]
<p>[li] Rowing/Crew (Represented my State at the 30th, 31st and 32nd National Rowing Championships) - Summer/Holiday Sport</p>[/li]
<p>[li] Table Tennis (Distinguished player, picked up as a stress relieving hobby).</p>[/li]
<p>[li] Athletics Varsity - No major accomplishment, just an intraschool medal.[/li][/ul]</p>

<p>** Misc. Extracurriculars/Other Info. **</p>

<p>[ul]</p>

<p>[li] Chosen as 1 of 5 students from the school and rewarded for academic excellence in 10th grade - Also recieved a scholarship from the school.</p>[/li]
<p>[li] Member of the School's Economic Club, participated in various competitions/debates including one held by FICCI and won a few awards.</p>[/li]
<p>[li] Volunteered/Campaigned for the City's College Elections for the victorious party (cannot divulge names).</p>[/li]
<p>[li] Part of a School Initiative/Campaign (~20 children) to urge people to exercise their voting rights, managed to persuade 2000+ people to pledge that they would vote in the near future. (Got the pledges signed by the people, also took their details. Elections were only 2 days away)</p>[/li]
<p>[li] 1.5 years Internship at a National Magazine. - Paid</p>[/li]
<p>[li] Part time DJ (Weekends only) at a nightclub in the City (~1 year) - Paid[/li][/ul]</p>

<p>Recommendations : Gave it to my Chem, Economics, and Math teachers. Chem and Economics should be best, they did say they'd write it as well as they possibly can. Both of them know me pretty well. Wont be terrific or awesome, just good enough! </p>

<p>Special Circumstances(?) - Kinda hard to explain, but after the economic problems in the country, Dad barely kept his job but couldnt bring much money home, so started working by the beginning of 11th Grade to earn some money to support my family. :)</p>

<p>Background Info.
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Depends on the college really. My interest is towards Economics and Business, but to be specific.
HYPD - Economics
MIT Sloan - Business Undergrad
Cornell - Economics/Engg.
Country (if International Applicant): India
School Type: Ranked #5 in the City. (Top 10)
Ethnicity: Indian (Asian)
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: ~6000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None I guess?</p>

<p>P.S. Sorry if it's too long, Will chance back! Thanks a lot :)</p>

2

<p>Your background is a hook, your ECs and awards are a lot and strong the only problem I’ll say is your SAT, your 83% GPA in 12th grade and the fact that your indian might hurt you because I know most indians have like 2300+s but its not too late increase your SATs and get killer Subs test then you are definitely a strong candidate. For now you have average chance for Cornell and I’m guessing D is dartmouth but Harvard, Yale or MIT is a crapshoot because they are madly selective. Goodluck</p>

3

<p>Yes D is Dartmouth :D</p>

<p>Thanks for the chances! :slight_smile:
Yes it is indeed my SAT and my nationality that are the weakest parts of my application :frowning:
Actually, I asked a Teacher and she said that in the CBSE Curriculum , 80 percent is graded as an A (80 to 100 is usually top notch) :slight_smile:
Do you really think I have strong ECs? I thought I lacked them since I didnt join any clubs or did any volunteering!
Thankyou Lelyke :)</p>

<p>It is getting the finaid that worries me the most !</p>

4

<p>Well if you are indeed only top 20%, then you have no chances at any of those schools. Top 10% is basically a requirement, particularly for an International from India. And even top 10% really wouldn’t be enough for HYPM. I don’t know how you stand against the rest of your classmates, especially since your grading scale is so different (not like standard 4.0 GPA). I don’t see how an 83% could be good.</p>

<p>Your SAT score is pretty bad, but you know that. You need to raise it to atleast 2200+, but a 2300+ would definitely be ideal. I’m not sure if you can pull it off with just one more shot, since I think the December SAT is the last opportunity before RD. You may want to try the ACT too. I hope your subject tests weren’t too bad. It sounds like you bombed chem, so like a 600? Anything less and I bet they’d think you weren’t even serious about applying, and throw away your application on the spot. Hopefully math II was a 750+, but a 700+ is just fine.</p>

<p>Your ECs looks good however. Varsity sports, Lots of math/science awards, etc. You seem to have plenty of accomplishments. Don’t worry about clubs and volunteering. Colleges barely care about someone who just participates in random clubs or just accumulates volunteer hours. You’ve done plenty, and I’m sure they’ll see that.</p>

<p>However, I’m not so sure that your ECs/awards will be enough when coupled with bad test scores and an ‘average?’ rank/GPA, especially with being an Indian International applicant. Hopefully your teacher recommendations and essays are phenomenal. At this point I’d say you have no chance at HYPM, and a small chance at Cornell & Dartmouth (if top 10%). But again, get a much higher score on the SAT and you might just have an average chance at Cornell/Dartmouth, but I’d still be very surprised if you got into HYPM</p>

5

<p>Yes I understand, but my classmates had only 5 subjects, while I took an additional two. And I was one of ONLY two students at my school to have gone for more than 5 subjects. I wish to offer no excuses, for I know there are none. I know I could’ve worked harder on my academics back then, I really do, but it’s of no use. Plus I think I took time to get acquainted with my new “lifestyle”. I Hawked the streets, worked at construction sites, and delivered milk to people’s places, doing all that didn’t really leave much time for me to study, considering the fact my peers could afford prep classes and expensive coaching :expressionless:
Nevermind.
Btw, that top 20 percent is because my school doesnt rank the usual way, as in, there are no Top 10 percents or stuff. Its more like Top 20, Top 40, Top 60… :)</p>

<p>Yeah I know, my SAT is way below the 25th/75th percentile. I was averaging in the 2200s-2300s in the Practice Tests, but I made bubbling errors, plus screwed up my essay :frowning:
Definitely not less than 600. Math II was better, keeping in mind the fact that I did not have a calculator (couldnt really afford one).</p>

<p>Well, one less thing to worry about. I actually got scared looking at people’s lists here on CC, they were so exhaustive! I hope they do !</p>

<p>Yes indeed :slight_smile: I dont think they will. Really need to prep for the Jan SAT!
I actually have no idea what the ACT is about! So idk if I will give that or not.</p>

<p>Thanks for being honest SAT128, this was just what I needed. I will do all I can to get a good enough score. Thanks :)</p>

6

<p>Ehm I think you should put those hawking and all in your essay. I know a guy with a 1900 who put how he hawked on the streets and got all As in his final exams. Obviously MIT was impressed and gave him a full ride. We were all shocked but he got in.</p>

7

<p>Lelyke - Do you mean a supplementary essay ?</p>

8

<p>No he wrote in in his main essay actually but I think it doesn’t matter where you place it so long as you get it across to them and they know how you persevered what you went through.</p>

9

<p>Okay! Thanks. Guess I will attach a supplementary essay. :slight_smile:
Thanks for the tips :smiley:
Appreciate it.</p>

10

<p>Try your best to increase your sat score to a 2250+ and explain why your gpa is a little lacking. Your awards are extremely impressive and if you are successful in improving scores, I’d say you have a decent chance at those schools.</p>

11

<p>Thankyou :slight_smile:
Yes Ill try my best to do that. :slight_smile:
I talked to a teacher today and she said that my score will be graded as an A since the system is different than the one used in USA.
Thankyou again!
Appreciate it .</p>

12

<p>Yes indeed I know. Will work on SATs when I get a break from work :smiley:
My school does not give out exact ranks, it gives out your academic standing by the 20th percentiles. So basically, we have 5 ranks :
Top 20 percent, Top 40, Top 60, Top 80 and so forth (hope you get it).
Dont be sorry for stating the truth :slight_smile:
Thanks :D</p>

<p>Chancing back !</p>

13

<p>First, thank you for chancing me. I really appreciate it.
You have some very strong parts of your app that you shoulf highlight (ecs). Also, you should definitely explain your family’s situation; it gives some context to your app. Really, I think your chances depend on how well you explain yourself in your essays, so work very hard on them.
Just a tip but if you take the sat again (you probably should if you can) bubble in your answers as you go so you can avoid the problem of not having enough time to fill them all in.</p>

14

<p>bring up sat. and you’re good to go.
preferably 2240+ :smiley:
im being serious… </p>

<p>chance me!
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1411880-chance-me-cmus-cit-mcs-cfa-earlyd-2.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1411880-chance-me-cmus-cit-mcs-cfa-earlyd-2.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

15

<p>I think your chances depend largely on your essays, i come from similar background although your academic achievements are farrrr more impressive than mine :), i assume that you need a lot of financial aid so you have to understand that internationals asking for money don’t have great chances at american universities so you NEED to improve your sat scores in order to have a fighting chance against the rest of applicants from your continent(they are mostly extreme overachievers) Also make clear that you are a top student because they may think that you’re not due to the weird rank system your school uses.So to sum up, write killer essays explaining how you have overcome any hardship you’ve been through(top schools love driven, motivated people), improve your sat scores, get fantastic rec letter form your teachers, explain your school’s rank system and keep you fingers crossed. I wish you the best of luck.</p>

16

<p>It sounds like you should have some good essay writing material-- maybe the Ivies would like to hear how you worked to support your family .
As mentioned before , your SAT is pretty low but assuming you get that up you should have a fair chance of getting into one of those places, especially Cornell or Dartmouth.
The EC’s are good so that should help. The reason I began mentioning how you worked to support your family is that last year someone from my city got in to MIT with an 1860 on the SAT likely because his application was centered around family hardships and how he worked and overcame them. Nonetheless, a better SAT Score would be nice. Good Luck!</p>

17

<p>IIO is VEERY impressive.
SAT, 10th, 12th board percentage and top 20% is not. Also, SOF olympiads aren’t recognized. No one cares about them.
And if you can afford a second attempt at the SAT, rowing equipment etc you’re probably not that poor. Sorry if I’m being insensitive.
Your ECs are awesome. But are balanced out by your relatively lack-luster academics. I’d say your chances are somewhere between average and above average. If I had to score you on a 10 point scale, I’d give you 6.5.
I can’t see how can someone who claims to not know much about US applications chance people. But I appreciate your effort.</p>

18

<p>I think people have said the main things: try and improve your SAT, explain your background, etc., so I won’t repeat that.</p>

<p>Just wanted to tell you that my cousin, from India, who has similar quality ECs to you, applied to a bunch of schools from the US and ended up getting a full ride to Harvard. He got a 2020 on his SAT–also similar to you. Obviously he was super fortunate and that doesn’t happen to everyone, but I just wanted to let you know that I’m sure you have a fighting chance!! No one can really predict who will get into these schools–who knows, it could be you! Be sure to put your heart and soul into your essays, and really show them who you are. Good luck.</p>

19

<p>Twinsarebetter - You’re welcome and thankyou :slight_smile: Okay, I will do that.
Yeah, since I’m applying to RD, I do have 2 months to think about and write some really good essays, hope I can come up with something :slight_smile:
Yes I think I will take it again, since the first one was kinda sponsored by my school (i.e. the school pitched in some of the money needed). So yes i think I will be able to register for it again, probably for the Jan one .</p>

<p>@White Captain - Thanks. Seriously? Just a 2250 will do? :open_mouth: Thanks so much, chancing right away skipper ! :)</p>

<p>@MarceloSanchez - I know how it is man. I know its hard :slight_smile:
Yes I know. It severely limits our options, though we’re lucky that a university is funding a student from ANOTHER country :expressionless: But lets just hope for the best.
Umm yeah I guess my teachers will explain my ranking system and stuff, since I have a good image in front of both teachers. Best Of Luck to you too, my man :)</p>

20

<p>BackDoor Donny - Okay thanks :slight_smile: Yes but that person was a US Resident and I am an Indian, they’re very picky when it comes to Indians I’ve heard. But I will make sure to follow your advice. Thanks a lot :)</p>

<p>eltanin - Even the 10th percentage? I was one of Top 5 students in the school. And back then not many people managed CGPA’s of 10.0 (It was before CCE was started).
Anyway, shouldnt I include SOF Olympiads simply because I am ranked well nationally?
My SATs were partially sponsored by my school after my request. Also, I do not own any Rowing Equipment, the organizers provide it. No problem man :slight_smile:
Thankyou :slight_smile: I omitted several relatively “useless” ECs like Youth Congress Stuff, Clubs etc. Thankyou again. Appreciate it!</p>

<p>hope2013 - That surely gives me hope ! True to your name, you inspired some hope in me. Thankyou :smiley: Appreciate you taking out time to chance me!</p>