Thank you… I think I would also like Cornell/Columbia within the state. I will definitely explore U Mass Amherst also.
Just trying to help. You did ask for help.
You’ve applied to top schools, but you’ve also given them a significant reason to reject all of your other accomplishments. You have to be an “all-rounder” to gain admission to these elite schools.
“Thanks, as a first author one needs to write their research paper”
Your use of pronouns needs work.
If you use “one needs”, then you need to follow the statement using the correct pronoun that suits the subject.
In this case, you would use: “his/her” (As a first author, one needs to write his own research paper) or: “As a first author, one need to write one’s research paper.” It can become awkward.
I’ve written research papers and have been scrutinized during each attempt and I gained benefits from the advice. It is really important to have stellar grammar because if you are considered for publishing, the editors will redline all of those errors. They wont publish something that is awkwardly written.
I had to redline a number of my student’s papers and it’s not fun telling them to rewrite it. Are you a second language speaker? That would explain some of the errors.
Our son is a CS/engineer. He attended Caltech. We believe he got in because of his writing abilities. Yes, the perfect SAT score helped, but he also performed exceptionally well in his literature classes and was an “all-rounder”: what we know as “well-rounded” in sports, Scouting, and thousands of hours in volunteer activities. These schools want students who can communicate effectively and who are aware of the benefits of knowing more than just one discipline.
An ACT score doesn’t mean anything if you can’t convey thoughts and grammar in a cohesive manner.
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UMass has a very strong CS program that attracts kids from all over. S22 is a freshman at UMass who lives in a CS/Engineering dorm (he is neither) and tells me that the kids are very accomplished and work very hard. He actually has a couple of friends from CA who are CS majors. It is a high quality backup/target for a student like you but you must apply EA as the CS program fills up early. You have a very decent chance at your reach schools, but it is not a bad fallback if those don’t work out. Purdue is another program to look at which is still very competitive but a notch down from the schools you listed.
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For now i just have received 2 summer research internship offers from 2 universities of my favorites in the list…so, Its going to be a hectic summer and mostly a couple of more publications on the way before i finish my HS 
For future readers of this thread, just be yourself and nothing can stop you from achieving your goal! Thanks everyone…
Back from vacation and just got caught up on the thread.
I agree with other posters. @soumya1, you have quite strong academic credentials. But I know of students with stronger credentials (2XUSAMO, nationally recognized research program, similar publications) and a better command of English. That student was initially deferred at MIT but was accepted in the regular round. That gives you an idea of what MIT is looking for.
Based upon what I see from you, I would give you a 30% chance for MIT, and 50% for CMU CS ED. That’s certainly much better than the average admit rate, but nowhere close to guaranteed. You need to work on your matches.
I think you have a very bright future ahead. And that will be true whether or not you get into your dream college, which is not guaranteed.
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Duplicate post deleted.
Thank you, @hebegebe for your constant willingness to share your insights when paged. Hope you had a wonderful vacation!
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