Chance an International Student for Ivies/T20's!

I have already applied to Princeton, Columbia, Brown, NYU, Barnard and Smith College.

SAT: 1490

GPA: Our school doesn’t do a GPA but I scored 93.4% in my midterm exams for class 12, and overall academic record is consistently high. Still awaiting results from CBSE Final Board Examinations but predicted grades are 98.2%

class9: 10 cGPA (highest)

Class 10: 96.2%

Class 11: 96% (Highest marks in my batch that year)

IELTS: 8.5

Major: English/Creative Writing

EC’s

CREATIVE WRITING

1)Runner Up in a very prestigious international essay writing competition, over 13,000 entries, received my award at the Buckingham Palace. my work was appreciated by many eminent British authors.

2)Only Asian author shortlisted in an international short story competition with hundreds of entries, story to be published in an anthology later this year

Authored a children’s book in 2017, was interviewed by the BBC World Service in a radio program broadcasted across the world about my book and modern children’s fiction as a whole.

3)Winner of two prestigious national writing contests. My story was published in an anthology in the first, and my story was judged by an eminent Indian author in the second.

  1. Panellist at a prestigious literature festival in Delhi.

5)My work has been published in several national newspapers and magazines as well as many international forums since I was ten years old.

6)Won several school and state-level writing contests; contribute regularly to my school’s literary magazine which is run by the faculty.

MUSIC

  1. Represented my country in Australia at an international concert tour for students from across the world.

  2. Lead Vocalist in my School Choir, performed at locations like the Prime Minister’s Residence, India International Centre, etc

9)Won several school level music contests across the city.

DEBATE

  1. Co-founder and Leader of the school’s debate club, over 30 members in the span of a year. First student-run club in my school.

  2. Member, National Level School Debate Team- participated in over 50 debate championships over the last four years, won 6 national debate championships in the last year.

LEADERSHIP

  1. School Prefect (Highest Office in our school)

13)Member, Student Council

  1. Panellist/ Student Representative at UNICEF’S Fair Start Campaign alongside UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, Priyanka Chopra

  2. Speaker and panellist at many education conferences across the city.

COMMUNITY SERVICE/ VOLUNTEER WORK

  1. Each One Teach One Program- made 50 slum people literate in skills of math and reading.

  2. Part of a school program which looks at student interaction with the abandoned elderly in old-age homes. We spend time with them in constructive ways through group interactions, music programs, and helping them with their chores.

  3. Worked at a local slum school as a peer mentor, working with over 40 underprivileged girls and giving them company, aiding them with classes, providing them with better stationery and resources and conducting menstrual health workshops.

  4. Raised over Rs.10,000 for earthquake relief, cleaning drives at the school, and participated in ration (food, clothing, utensils, etc) distribution drives for local slums.

  5. Volunteered at the local Blind School as a scribe and helped students give their written examinations.

MISC./ACADEMIC HONOURS

  1. International rank of 2 in the International English Olympiad last year, with School, state and national rank 1.

  2. Won a total of 8 individual school awards over 6 years of middle and high school for excellence in music, writing, and overall cultural engagement.

  3. Received the school award for an excellent academic record for my whole school life, which is 11 years in a row.

  4. Member and Writer, Annual School Production Team; won a few national, and many school and state-level theatre contests; organized Shakespeare workshops.

Essays: I’d say a 7 or 8/10…I’m not really sure what makes for a good essay, but I wrote about how coming from a family of scientists provides fertile ground for my interest in literature. It’s very personal to me, and I like it a lot, though I’m not sure about admissions officers!

Supplemental essays would be a 7/10 too.

LOR’s

English Teacher- 9/10 wrote about my passion for my work and my motivation, plus my love for the subject.

Sociology Teacher- 8/10 wrote about my willingness to connect textbook material to real-world issues

Principal (as a counsellor)- 6/10 (though maybe the fact that the Principal wrote the letter holds some weight? Not totally clear on that)

I have applied for Financial Aid too.

Thanks for taking the time out to read this! Hope y’all get into your top choices and we come out of Ivy Day alive and happy:)

International and asking for financial aid will not help. With everything unfolding right now it might also go against you if universities feel that there are visa restrictions. It’s really a difficult year to figure out chances

Patience is all there is for now- there is nobody on this forum who can tell you anything more than ‘maybe’ or ‘you are a credible candidate’. Good luck :slight_smile:

Agree with previous posters^.

Additionally, your list of schools includes NYU which is known for giving really poor financial aid. Can you afford $72K per year?
Another issue is what you hope to do with a degree in:

Are you planning to teach English in your country?

I have a friend who is an English professor at a university in the Midwest. She loves teaching Literature and English but does indicate that her students are having a rough time finding employment that will pay their bills. The return on their investment has not been great. So, if you plan on paying $72K per year, then going on, and paying for a Ph.D, an English Prof in the US, starts at ~$60K. A journalism major makes about the same. That’s if you can find employment and can afford to pay back your loans.

13 days to Ivy Day. I’m afraid a slew of applicants to top tier colleges get anxious at this point, want a guess from the crowd, when it’s too late to change anything. And, our guesses are not the same as adcom reactions to your actual full application.

The ideal is any applicant to a Tippy Top has explored his/her college hopefuls, understands what these colleges like and look for, what you offer, before finalizing your list of targets. Key includes how you match what these colleges look for, (not just how they match what you want. Or competitions or awards, stats.) This understanding allows you to get an idea whether you do match and to know better how to best present yourself.

At this point, your chances depend on how well you put your whole app package together. It’s more than competitions/awards or stats.