<p>First thread! Though I've been on this site for some time.</p>
<p>Chinese male living in London, UK. I'm international, as I'm holding a Chinese passport, but I'm also a Canadian permanent resident. I need about $20,000 aid. (oh no..) But HYP gives need-blind to internationals, so that's good to know.</p>
<p>UW GPA: 3.88 (out of 4.0) W GPA: 4.13</p>
<p>I'm in a very competitive private American high school in central London, last year about 6% of the graduates went to Harvard/Yale/Princeton. And about 15%-20% went to Ivies, Ivy-comparables, Oxford & Cambridge, LSE, Imperial, etc. I should be in the top 5% but as we know, in good private schools it's not always the top 5% that will make into the top 5 universities. There are lots of other factors, such as legacy, alumni relationships, etc. (which, of couse, I have none) But again, school doesn't rank.</p>
<p>SAT1: Critical Reading: 770 Math:800 Writing:770 (first shot)
SAT2: Physics: 780 Math Level 2: 800 US History: 800</p>
<p>I started to go to an English-instructing school in freshman year, before that I was in mainland China and rarely spoke English. So I personally think I really improved my English over the 3 years.</p>
<p>Junior year schedule:
AP Physics B
AP Calculus BC
AP US History
French 4A
Chemistry A
American Literature / Philosophy & Literature
Intro to Java</p>
<p>Senior year schedule:
AP French Literature
AP Physics C
AP Econ (Macro & Micro)
AP Comp Sci
Differential Equations
Russian Literature (Our school doesn't have AP English but many people do take the exam in May. I might sign up for the test.)</p>
<p>Note: I started to take French in sophomore year. And I doubled my french during second semester. (French 1 & 2) Then I skipped French 3 and took French 4 in junior year. Then I skipped AP French Lang. to take AP French Lit. in senior year. In other words, I'm taking AP french lit. as my 3rd year french, since I skipped 3 levels before that.</p>
<p>AP results: all 5s in Calc BC, AB subscore, US History and Phys B</p>
<p>Academic Awards:
Honor Roll (Gr9)
Head of School's List (Gr10)
Oustanding Underclassman in French (Gr10)
Academic Awards in French, AP Physics and Social Studies (Gr11)
David K.E. Bruce Award--recognizes an outstanding student in the junior class, selection based on GPA and a vote by high school faculty.</p>
<p>ECs:
I have been to 3 high schools in the past 3 years, because my dad's job kept us moving. So I really don't have that many opportunities for ECs. And I had to improve my English and adapt to the American environment first, so ECs aren't exactly that good.</p>
<p>Croydon Model United Nations (11 & 12, I'm applying as the chairperson of a committee this year. I should get it.)
The Hague International Model UN (11 & 12, I'm applying as a chair too, but it's very hard so I don't know whether I can get it.)
Math Team (11 & 12)
Habitat for Humanity (10)
Community service in a local school for disabled children in Malaysia (9 & 10)
National Honor Society (Induced at the end of Gr11)</p>
<p>Essays should be good. I'm writing on my experience in my first international school and how I grew after my struggle with the language barriers, cultural differences and other difficulties. The essay is not fancy, but it reflects my growth in a very personal way. For the sake of the chancing let's say it has a 50/50 chance of standing out among the 10,000 applications that the top schools receive each year. </p>
<p>I asked Recs from my french and history teacher. Before I asked them, they told me that if I wanted a recommendation, they would be happy to do it. So recs should be excellent. Counselor recommendation should be good too.</p>
<p>Could you guys chance me for:
Stanford SCEA
Harvard
Yale
Princeton
Penn
Columbia
UChicago
Georgetown</p>
<p>And I'm applying to University of British Columbia, UToronto and MacGill. They are my backups/safeties.</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>