Chance me! (Upenn, Columbia, Yale, Princeton, Ivies)

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

I’m from a smaller city in Canada, so we only have a few AP classes here and no honours classes.

Asian female
SAT - 1450 (700 W&R) (750 M) - this was the first time I took it and I have a tragic problem with getting sick before major exams

GPA - 4.0
WGPA - no idea, my school doesn’t do that
Class rank: 3

APs
AP Biology - I got a 99% in that course, but a 3 on the AP exam (again, tragic problem with getting sick before major exams)
AP European History - I got 100% in the course, and a 5 on the exam - highest score in course
self studying AP World History -most likely 5
AP Comp - (taking this year) maybe 4
AP Chinese Language (taking this year) - maybe a 5

I’m someone who is really really into humanities and hates science (only took AP bio because I liked the teacher), but my school only offers two AP humanities courses: Euro and English, so I can’t really take as many APs I would like to and my school doesn’t really approve of self-studying AP courses.

ECs:

Created a Chinese to English translation website for Chinese novels in 2018- it has over 2 million views in 6 months and is ranked 57 000 in the Philippines for traffic
I used to work for another website so I’ve been translating Chinese novels to English since Grade 10 (remarkable thing - I can’t read Chinese lol)
I was an editor for another person translating Chinese Novels for 6 months until I started translating

I make Kpop art and merch and sell it (it was really a whim but people actually buy it)
I started my own sticker company and make personalized stickers for planners, mostly to sell to people at school and stuff
I’m the main graphic designer at my school, I do advertising (posters) for almost all the clubs at school and am the marketing head on student council (I designed posters for the LBGTQ+ club at our school, student council, grad, the Walk Out last year etc.)
Won the grad wear contest (designing clothes for senior year)
Won a Human Right themed button contest
I’ve been in student council for 6 years and have been marketing head for 2 years
Won a “make a colouring sheet” contest for radon awareness in my province and got a lot of science lab equipment money for my school
gonna make Christmas Cards and sell them as part of a student council fundraiser for a charity
Has had a wattpad account since 10 years old and has a book that has 11k reads (I’ve stopped writing now)

won Gold in grade 9 science fair at divisionals
won the Young People’s Citizenship Award at Heritage Fair
Highest Grade in Province for Theory I (piano theory)
3rd in city-wide public speaking in grade 9
won #1 delegation last year in Model UN
Was Mulan in Mulan the musical
Won school book award for highest academic achievement in Grade 11
(there’s more but I remember nothing right now)

Volunteering
helped teach Sunday school for kids
volunteered at a provincial Children’s museum for 3 years
played piano at both a chapel for seniors and a local hospital for 2 years
currently a volunteer interpreter at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights (really hard to get in since it’s the only national museum not in the Ottawa region)
volunteer interpreted for Human Rights university classes over the summer
Co-organized Holiday Hamper for 2 years now, got together 25 boxes filled with food every year from students at school to give to 25 families in our city

Employment
I currently work at Club Monaco as a stylist

I’m a Chinese to English translator and I work for myself
I taught English in China for 2 months to elementary school students during the summer

Sports
I was in Karate for 2 years,
the provincial Karate team for a year and a half, but had to stop because of a wrist injury
won gold in team kata and individual kata for my category in provincials
Now I Kpop dance at the university in my city

Essays: I’ll probably write about how I’ve battled severe insomnia for almost all my life, honestly, I have no idea what to write for essays rip
recommendations - I’m pretty sure they’ll be really good b/c I’m bffs with both of them

I have a fairly strong GPA (almost 95%+ in all courses), but unfortunately a low SAT score, living in a smaller city in Canada kind of limits the opportunities of doing competitions and winning awards and stuff so i don’t have a whole list of those on my EC. However, I think my EC is fairly unique? I’m pretty sure I’m also one of the youngest people to be hired at Club Monaco in Canada.

My EC’s might be a tad odd list, but those were all things I enjoyed every moment of

2

bump

3

These schools are super competitive for domestic applicants, even harder for international students. Your SAT score is on the low end of the range. Do you have SAT II subject test scores?

CC advice is to not write about medical issues in your essay.

Be sure to have match and safety schools on your list.

4

I think you ecs are great - if you can get your test scores up a bit, then I think you’ll be a more competitive applicatn. Good luck!

5

@momofsenior1 I’m going to take the ACT in hopes of getting my score up, I didn’t take the SAT II subject at all (mostly because I really didn’t know about them), all my safety schools are in Canada so I’m not worried about that. I’ll make sure to take note of not writing about medical issues! thank you!

6

Be sure to check if any of these schools require SAT II tests. Some still do and even if they say “recommended”, that usually really means, “take them”.

7

@momofsenior1 Unfortunately, I doubt that I’ll be able to do my SAT II tests in time for the deadline, hopefully they’ll look pass it, I don’t think they wrote it in the “what international students need for admission” which was probably why I missed it rip :frowning:

8

Wow! Your EC’s look amazing and focused on one particular subject. How did you get into translation? I’ve tried some fan translating myself :). What majors are you applying for at these schools?

9

@Hvitserk I would like to major in International Relations! so I got into translating when I was watching a chinese drama, and then I couldn’t understand one scene so I went online and searched the drama up (turned out to be a super ambigious bed scene who knew) and found that it was based on a novel, then I got really really into Chinese novels. However, the issue with reading Chinese novels is that translating takes a really really long time so most people can’t update chapters that frequently, so one day I woke up and was like “screw this, I’m going to translate because I’m lucky enough to know Chinese and I would like to share the novels I really like to other people” and so yeah, now I’m here lol

10

Translation and International Relations seem very relevant to me. Good job and good luck!