<p>I personally think the SAT is harder than the ACT, so a 2210 will look equally as good</p>
<p>^colleges proclaim that they consider the two equally.</p>
<p>BTW, that 2210 was best of 3 tries. 2180 -> 2210 -> 2000 (I know)</p>
<p>I just realized, even though I’ve received great response from everyone here, that there aren’t quite any “chances” that have been posted. Are those schools match, low reach, high reach? What about Cornell, Chicago, and Columbia?</p>
<p>Great resume. UVa oos is more difficult (approx 70/30 split). They really look at EC’s (which yours are good), essays, and LOR’s, so you only have part of the picture. Make sure you have good LOR’s & essays. </p>
<p>I would agree with a previous poster who suggested that volunteer hours would be much more meaningful if you tie them to something you are already doing. Show a common thread, something you love so much you wanted to help out. Your talent in swimming or music could easily serve this.</p>
<p>I’m hoping to make my shorter, but more powerful (if you ask me) commitment to DECA one of my stronger points. Would that help in any way with volunteer hours or in general? For example, I run an event with my DECA chapter that is based around music for kids and all proceeds go to charity?</p>
<p>Northwestern and Emory will be slight reaches for you. I agree with upping your volunteer hours if possible- summer is still young! If you can start a position now, maybe you can set up a way to get in 3 hours a week during the school year at the same place and you can maybe get up to 80, 90 before apps are due. Also, go ahead and apply to your dream school, be that Columbia, Cornell, or Chicago. What’s the worst that can happen?</p>
<p>Also, send only your ACT. Your SAT is weaker, even if both are admirable.</p>
<p>Since I’m applying for a job, my open time for volunteer will severely be limited. Should I find more places to volunteer at and fill up my summer that way or should I do not as much volunteer and get a job?</p>
<p>Get a job, no real need to volunteer if you’re just doing it for college.</p>
<p>So I take it, after all these responses, that I’m OK for everywhere except Northwestern and Emory, where I might encounter some trouble. Are there any suggestions as to where else I should apply in terms of tougher schools? My brother says I need a good spread from safety to reach, and I’m not sure I have that just yet.</p>
<p>hehe bump?</p>
<p>you pretty much sounded like me when i applied, so ill give you some advice. it may sound harsh, but i’ll be brutally honest.</p>
<p>Being chinese: That’ll definitely hurt. Especially at the top universities, although I’d look into schools in california such as stanford and USC, that doesn’t practice affirmative action. there’s published academic evidence that supports this notion ([Office</a> of Population Research, Princeton University](<a href=“http://opr.princeton.edu/faculty/page.asp?id=tje]Office”>http://opr.princeton.edu/faculty/page.asp?id=tje)), although the specific details of each college admission’s criteria are unknown, but we can speculate! (I wonder if finding out how to not disclose your racial identity will help, although having a last name like Wong or Chou wouldn’t help ;))</p>
<p>Rank: Looks good</p>
<p>ACT/SAT/SATII/APs: Looks good</p>
<p>Course work: If you’re interested in econ, have you taken AP Econ/Stats/Calc/History courses?</p>
<p>Swim team: Any significant accomplishments? Made states or anything like that? Broke any records? #1 in league? If you are just part of the team and haven’t really stepped up to the plate to do anything or hold any leadership roles, colleges will just brush it aside. </p>
<p>Piano: Won any (recent) competitions? If you just played for a hobby, or your parents made you, it won’t mean anything (pretty much what my college advisor told me, and she’s pretty much a savant at making admissions predictions). Colleges look for who YOU want to be, not who your parents want you to be. They can see through that. Example: Asian parents wants kid to become doctor. Kid HATES biology and medicine and is completely miserable in medical school. Would you want him as your doctor?</p>
<p>DECA: Looks like something you can talk about. Did you do anything innovative? Changed peoples lives? How did it affect the world around you?</p>
<p>Chamber Choir: Looks nice, but unless you can sing like J. Bieber (just kidding), it’s just filler.</p>
<p>Volunteering: Significant impact? 20 hours seem little. If you’re just doing it as part of a requirement and not out of self–initiative, it doesn’t mean anything.</p>
<p>Work experience: If you can talk about how working made you more independent, encouraged you to innovate and challenge yourself, maybe you can get somewhere. Example, if you worked in a restaurant, and found an ingenious way to take orders (just a silly example) and increased profits by 5000%, then you’re onto something.</p>
<p>I’d say you have a good chance at the schools you listed if you get good rec letters and write a good essay. Me, having similar stats to yours landed me at CMU (also got accepted by Virginia). If you apply to CMU Tepper or H&SS I’d say your chances are very much in your favor. Northwestern is tougher, but with some beefing up your app, I think you stand more competitively. I might add Michigan, NYU (+++ for economics), Boston College, UCs (Berkeley, SD, LA) and Tufts.</p>
<p>Schools like Columbia, Harvard, MIT, etc… might be pushing it though.</p>
<p>Final concerns: Your application does look like the typical Asian applicant (piano, swimming, lets face it, every asian dude does that). Is there anything you can do in your last semester to really stand out?</p>
<p>I’d say you’re practically a for sure at NYU, and you have a good chance at Emory and Virginia. Columbia, Harvard, and MIT are definitely reaches, but I would say also apply to these:
University of Chicago-- also a reach, but it is for anyone. noted for it’s math department (ideal for someone interested in finance).
Georgetown-- being in Washington DC would be a good place to get business experience
UC Berkeley-- (because your from California)
USC- good business school
Duke- you seem to be interested in southern schools so I’d say give Duke a shot</p>
<p>@jpan89: Thanks for your in depth response. I do realize my application reflects a typical Asian. That’s why I’m not particularly looking at UPenn (as much), Harvard, MIT, etc. If anything, I’m planning on using my early decision with Cornell.</p>
<p>Course work: AP Macroecon is offered as a senior class (I’m signed up for it), I’m looking to take Micro at a community college, Stats/Calc BC/World History I have. Not US though.</p>
<p>Swim Team: All I can mention are my qualifying times. The thing is that I’ve been brushed aside by my swim team. Since I don’t swim with my school (I practice with my club team) I wasn’t allowed a captain position. Then, it all comes down to talent and diligence to get, say, a record or first place in an event or something. I only have the diligence part. I could have quit like my brother did 5-6 years ago, but I stuck with it. Besides that, I can only mention my sectionals qualifying times. Got a few Top Ten times in my region for my age group a while back, but that’s it.</p>
<p>Piano: Why does hobby not count? If a college is looking to see what I want to be and/or what I want to do, piano and swimming have got to be part of it. Sure, my parents may have started me on it when I was 5, but it was my option to continue. They quit with the pressuring at age 7.</p>
<p>DECA: All I can say is that I’m coordinating a massive fundraising effort this summer to decrease competition costs so more people can attend.</p>
<p>Chamber Choir: If I link that with piano, isn’t that a general love for music? I’ve also picked up guitar on my own.</p>
<p>Volunteering: True true, I haven’t really had a drive in volunteering. Maybe it’s because my previous activities fill up my schedule to the point where I can’t volunteer out of initiative.</p>
<p>Work Experience: I didn’t mention this in my original post, but I typed up a proposal to my parents stating that I would become “financially independent” (in reality, I would just pay for all of my own expenditures, plus 1/4th of all costs affecting the household like utility) after I get my job. </p>
<p>Question: Does taking community college classes during the summer/fall add rigor to a schedule?</p>
<p>Addressing final concerns: I have to stress that even though swimming and piano have been part of my life the longest, I do not consider them my strongest. Yes I love keeping them in my life, but my primary passion lies in DECA. The only things I feel I could do (stuff that links with all my previous stuff and that won’t seem like a desperate attempt) would be through DECA. I was planning on creating a financial literacy guide for teens, but then my qualifications are ZERO so I had to scrap that idea…</p>
<p>@DecidingSoon: Thanks for your response as well. I think I’m going to ED to Cornell, then RD at Michigan, NU, NYU, Emory, CMU, the UC system, UChi, and Duke as my main focuses. I’ll look into more schools as safeties later, but I am NOT going to expect to get into Columbia, Harvard, MIT, Stanford, UPenn, even though I might apply to a few of those places. I based my decisions off of researching schools that would prepare well for investment banking. I think Cornell, with double major in CompSci and Econ, is the best choice for me, and NYU, with joint major in CompSci/Econ, would be second best.</p>
<p>Your extracurriculars look good! I swim too :)</p>
<p>The work experience looks good, your gpa and test scores are a little low, but if you truly convey yourself as a passionate student that could be an asset to a college community, you should have no problem getting into some of those schools.</p>
<p>I would look to volunteer a bit more though…</p>
<p>Can you chance me back? <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/941645-chance-me-ivies-amherst-uchicago.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/941645-chance-me-ivies-amherst-uchicago.html</a></p>
<p>You should apply to some of the major UC’s as matches or safeties.</p>
<p>@jubilee27 Yeah I plan on doing that, but other than Berkeley and LA, which seem to be harder and harder to get into, none of the other UCs appeal to me.</p>
<p>To address your concerns:</p>
<p>Swim team: Can you find someway to challenge the norm and the expectations of society? Can you find a loophole in which you can make captain despite everything that is against you? THAT is what colleges look for. If you continue letting them “brush you aside”, then it’s your own downfall. Colleges look for the underdog who fight and stand up for themselves in spite of all the challenges ahead of them. So what if you’re not allowed the captain position? Find a way to beat the system. That is what will distinguish you from the rest. They’re not interested in excuses, they’re interested in how you solve your problems.</p>
<p>Piano/Singing/Hobbies etc…: Sure, but doesn’t everyone have hobbies, whether it be piano or football? You’re not standing out. I bet you 1000 other applicants have musical ability and play the piano. You need to take that hobby one step further and really show them who you are as a person are you a person who follows a hobby for the hell of it, or are you the sort or person to takes it to the next step and really create something special? Says a lot about who you are.</p>
<p>"Financial Independence" That could do both ways, depends on how you present it. But whats the underlying reason? Does your family not have enough money? Do you feel you should return something back to your parents? Do you want to feel what its like to live on your own? Personally, I think you should look at your employment opportunity as a way to better yourself in terms of innovation and pushing boundaries. Sure, giving money back to the family is kind, but that’s not your priority here. I’d focus on the actual work you do and how you can better yourself through that.</p>
<p>It sounds like DECA is your strongest and most passionate point thus far. Keep a journal or a log when you coordinate your summer fundraiser so you can keep track of what went right, what went wrong, etc… so you can present to the colleges exactly how you think and who you are as a person.</p>
<p>EDing Cornell is a good choice, but keep in mind, they get so so so many other applicants just like you, especially in the ED round. I ED’d cornell, got deferred, then rejected. You have a summer and a semester left. What can you do to pull yourself out of that “stereotypical asian” pool?</p>
<p>@jpan89: Thanks for the help. I’m brainstorming like crazy, possibly trying to link music with DECA in a way.</p>