Chance for International applicant

Colleges and Universities A-Z Massachusetts Institute of Technology
1

<p>Hey guys, Im an international student of Indian origin from Dubai and want to apply in Fall 2010. Basically, I've done GCE O levels [considered the highest level for British Ordinary Level Syllabus] and GCE AS Levels in Maths, Biology, Physics and Chemistry and plan on doing A2 Course in these four subjects this year.</p>

<p>My syllabus does not offer GPA but these are my school and exam grades so far:
Subject: 9th Grade 10th Grade 11th Grade {+Board} 12th Grade{}</p>

<p>English B[72] B[66] A,A[76],{82} x
Maths A[86] A[86] A,A[91],{95}, {99 in C1}
Physics A[90] A[83] A,A[92],{85}, (NA)
Chemistry A[78] A[83] A,A[85],{90}, (NA)
Biology A[83] A[82] A,A[82],{82}, (NA)
Human Biology A[88] A[84] A,A[88],{81}, x
Hindi A[77] A[73] A,B[76],{76}, x
Arabic A[87] A[82] A,A[90],{87}, x</p>

<p>NA- not available atm since results come out in august, but I believe Ive done on par with my O level Board results.
x - because I did not take these in AS levels.</p>

<p>And oh, all the marks are out of 100</p>

<p>Here are my SAT I Scores:
Sitting 1 Sitting 2
CR 590 670
M 680 640
W 650 720
Total 1920 2030</p>

<p>I plan on taking the SAT Subject tests this October in Maths IIC, Physics and Biology M.</p>

<p>I also have received certificates for/achieved merit in:
- Academic Excellence in Grades 9-11 for coming in the top two ranks in the grade.
- Certificate of Appreciation for Oral presentation on World Events.
-Merit Certificate for participation in Inter School Quiz, Gulf Asian Inter-School Quiz competitions and also for conducting an Inter-House Quiz competition in my school.
- Certificate of Appreciation for Community Service conducted at Labour Camps in Dubai from Grade 9-11.
- Certificate for Best Actor in School Skit competition and also for Writer of the Best Skit.
- Participation Certification for Awareness Walk at Spring Fiesta event.
- Distinction in Mathematics exam conducted by University of New South Wales in 2001.
- Certification of Merit for Participation in Global Young Leaders Conference in Washington, New York.
- Winner of Inter-House Soccer Tournament in Grade 12.
- 3rd Position in 400m-relay in Inter-House School Athletics Meet in Grade 12.
- 3rd Position in 100m-relay in Inter-House School Athletics Meet in Grade 12.</p>

<p>Well, sorry if it is a bit too long, not really sure about what all to include and not to include since I come under the International applicants category. Thanks.</p>

2

<p>bump bump bump</p>

3

<p>I know that you said that you were taking the SAT IIs in October, but I also recommend taking the SATs again like in November.</p>

4

<p>Ohh alright, I know the second sitting helped a lot but I guess it still overall falls in the lower tier of MIT applicants in terms of the SAT scores alone. As I said, since I’m doing four A2 subjects, schedules gonna be pretty hectic and sitting for the subject tests itself will be quite a task. Just in case the SAT I sitting does not take place, do you think the EC’s are good enough ? Any areas which I should work on ? If they’re below par, which other colleges do you recommend for BME or engineering with my stats ?</p>

<p>Little unaware of where exactly I stand. thanks alot tho !</p>

5

<p>Hey!
I’m an int. student from Chile who got accepted to MIT this year.
If you want my opinion, I think you are a solid candidate. You’ve done well academically and you seem like a person who has a variety of well-pursued interests. Honestly, I don’t think SATs matter that much for int. students (as long as you have more than 650 in CR, it shows you can understand English).
Now the important part (and I can’t put enough emphasis on this) is to have mind-blowing essays: honest, original and passionate.
Being quite blunt, there are 3500 int. applicants each year and only around 100 are selected. Can you convince them that you should be in that 3%?</p>

<p>Show them you are the “fit” they are looking for…
Cheers</p>

6

<p>Hii Zorgoski, congratulations on getting into MIT ! Well, thanks alot, good to know I stand some what of a chance although I will try and push those SAT II scores as high as possible. Thanks alot for letting me know the significance of the essays, I will definitely put alot of stress on making them meaningful and convey my message with as much impact as I can. Thanks alot and hve a good time at MIT ! =)</p>

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<p>Those sat I math scores might hurt you a little but if you get 700+ or even 750+ on the SAT II it should be all right. I would definitely say that MIT is looking more at essays and other factors though with so many excellent applicants.</p>

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<p>so, zorgoski , you said a 650 + in cr should be fine for an int. applicant.that leaves me kind of in the middle
I got 630 cr 730 math 680 writing . do you think I should retake ?</p>

9

<p>I was always under the impression that I have a very little chance of getting in given that american students who apply to MIT themselves get a very high SAT score (higher than mine atleast). Thanks Zorgoski, gives me hope now that you mentioned the whole importance of essays over SAT I’s for international applicants.</p>

10

<p>Demet: I guess it depends how you feel about it and if English is your first language or not… I got 660 in both writing and cr, but then again I’m fluent in French and Spanish (my first language) and had 6/7 predicted in IB English A1 SL
you can always take Toefl if English isn’t your first language…</p>

<p>SAT IIs shouldn’t really be a problem if you take Maths 2 and physics (the curve is a joke) and perhaps a language or history.</p>

11

<p>I read somewhere that at some universities, international students have to take an English test before the first semester despite the tests they hve taken to show english proficiency. Is that true ?</p>

<p>Also, I forgot to mention that I plan on taking the Biomedical Engineering major. Since my EC’s do not actually encompass any medical/science related topics, I was wondering if an "Oberservership’’ I plan on doing at a local hospital for 2 weeks (for the radiology and lab departments) will count as a ‘BME related’ EC ? Thanks</p>

12

<p>The degree is Biological Engineering - the minor in that department is Biomedical Engineering.</p>

13

<p>Ohh, my mistake. Thanks for rectifying.</p>

14

<p>Hey PiperXP, now that you’ve mentioned it, whats the difference between the two, anything significant ?</p>

15

<p>It seems CC today is full of Let-Me-Goolge-That-For-You :P</p>

<p>Here’s a departmental FAQ you can look at to start:
[MIT</a> | Department of Biological Engineering](<a href=“http://web.mit.edu/be/education/be_faq.htm]MIT”>http://web.mit.edu/be/education/be_faq.htm)</p>

16

<p>Ah, Haha well thanks a lot for the link. Really appreciate it.</p>