Chance me for Columbia ED!

Colleges and Universities A-Z Columbia University
1

First off, I’m an international student. I’ve lived in South Korea for my whole life. Those factors probably count against me…
Now to the numbers:

GPA (unweighted): 4.85 out of 5.00 (downward trend for three semesters, then up for two)
SAT: 1st try 2280 (CR 720, M 760, W 800) 2nd try 2400
SAT Subjects: Bio E 800, Math Level II 800, Lit 730
APs: Biology, Psychology, World History, US Gov, English Lit, Calculus BC, Environmental Science

Honors:
5th ESU Korea English Public Speaking Competition - Award of Distinction (1st place) (N)
18th National Schools Debating Championship - Semi-finalist (N)
Oxford Youth Writing Challenge - Bodley Silver Award (N)
2015 Asia Pacific JA Company of the Year - Finalist (I)
2015 International Youth Invention Contest - Gold Prize (I)
Class honors for In-depth English Reading, AP English lit and AP World History (S)

Extracurriculars: (you can just read the lines right next to the numbers; the other lines are only for detail)

  1. Internship – Ewha Womans University Biology Laboratory (1 school vacation for 8 hours per week)
    Researched media perception of animal behavior; aided a primatologist and an animal rights activist group in writing a newspaper editorial on animal misrepresentation in Korean media
  2. Independent Research – Major Research Paper (10 months for 2 hours per week)
    Researched & experimented different patterns of perception (holistic/specific) in students with and without experience living abroad
  3. Member – Organizing Committee of school TEDx (2 years for 1 hour per week)
    Helped organize the first TEDx event for the school; curated the TEDx event; planned a fusion performance with Korean traditional percussion and rock music
  4. Founder & Chief – Fusion Band (1 year for 2 hours per week)
    Composed and taught fusion performance pieces with Korean traditional percussion and rock music; performed at the school TEDx and the annual school concert
  5. Conductor & Vice-chief – Korean Traditional Percussion Band (2 years for 2.5 hours per week)
    Conducted traditional Korean percussive music; performed at the annual school concert; planned and played at a performance at a regional festival
  6. Chief – Photography Club (3 years for 1 hour per week)
    Guided 20+ members in artistic photography; started the biannual photography exhibition project
  7. Member – Girls’ Varsity Softball Team (3 years for 3 hours per week)
    Pitched and played outfield for the varsity softball team
  8. Feature Writer & Director of Design – School Newspaper (2 years for 2.5 hours per week)
    Wrote feature articles as a junior writer; oversaw the design for four quarterly issues; created new design templates and guidelines as director of design
  9. Volunteer Service – for Multi-cultural Families (3 years for 1 hour per week)
    Supported multi-cultural families (often victims of discrimination in Korea); taught Korean to foreign wives to help them settle
  10. Personal Hobby – Inventing (2 years for 1 hour per week)
    Invented a container for whiteboard marker pens that prevents them from drying even without lids; invented a cooker/plate for Vietnamese spring rolls

State (if domestic applicant): international (South Korea)
School Type: private, one of the top schools in Korea. rural boarding school
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: F
Income Bracket: 80k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): …? probably none

I’m hoping to major in anthropology (so CC). My areas of interest are literature, history, and sociology, and I’ll hopefully get letters from teachers in those fields. I know for a fact that being an international student is a HUGE setback, but still… chance me please?

2

You have the stats and ec’s. Columbia will want at least one or two students from South Korea so you have a good chance. Your competition is those applying from South Korea. If the rest of the South Korea student have similar stats (which I guess they would) then your chances are one (or two) in # of South Koreans applying. Your EC’s look unique so your chances are as good as can be expected but admissions will verify your EC’s (like they verified my son’s). Good luck!

3

Thank you so much! They verify the EC’s through an interview, right?

4

No one is going to try to verify your ECs. They might be a topic you bring up but the interviewer has no idea your activiities.

5

My son presented at an OpenSource conference and admissions contacted the organizers to find out he was the youngest presenter ever. We know this because of a hand written note on his acceptance letter. Your interviewer is an alumni volunteer who has no access to your application and will not likely verify anything.

6

Thanks for the comments! I didn’t know that the interviewers don’t have access to applications. What do they ask about then? Do they ask generic questions that would work for anybody?

7

Yes generic questions. My son emailed his interviewers a resume which helped start the conversation. Good luck!

8

I see! Thank you so much, Kathleen. If any more of you could chance me, it would be much appreciated :slight_smile: