Chances Advice.....

Student Lounge International Students
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<p>I'm doing my gap-year ("long term" as we call it here in India) preparing again for IIT and AIEEE etc. Thing is, I took the SAT on a whim and scored a 2290. Now, I have little idea about the US App procedure and colleges worth going to - hence this post here. My profile:</p>

<p>SAT - 2290
Subject Tests - Gonna take. Expecting and assuming for the sake of this post, above 750 in Math, Phy and Chem</p>

<p>School Marks: (ICSE)
9th - 81.4%
10th - 75%</p>

<p>Intermediate Percentage - 72% (SSC - obviously low - concentrating on IIT and AIEEE and ignored the state exams)</p>

<p>Desired Major - Computer Science.
Financial Aid - YES</p>

<p>EC's:
All of them are certificates awarded by my school:
1) Topped my school in English and Computers in 10th.
2) Footballer of the Year (meaning, best footballer of my school in class 10)
3) Public Speaker of the Year ("year" means my class 10 batch)
4) Essay Writer of the Year
5) Winner of our annual Quiz competition.
6) Couple of debate certificates.</p>

<p>A YMCA certification in "C and Data Structures" </p>

<p>That's about it. So, which colleges might be possible for me??</p>

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<p>anurag, u have many choices for computer science. don’t get hung up on US News & World Report rankings for CS undergrad study. don’t discard II tier schools if u need FA.</p>

<p>try SUNY schools and a few Texas schools if you really really need FA.</p>

<p>Indian students I know at UT Dallas have done very well - either getting a job in the industry or going to graduate schools like Stanford.</p>

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<p>TippuSultan - Which tier I colleges are reaches for me??? </p>

<p>Btw, I have my eye on Duke, Georgetown and North Carolina. No hope there???</p>

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<p>Tippu, do any schools in the US give Fin Aid to internationals other than the best of the Tier Is (MIT and the Ivies)? Even Stanford and Caltech don’t give aid to internationals, isn’t it?</p>

<p>SUNY and Texas schools give aid to Indians?</p>

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<p>Anurag: You got more in Class 9 than in ICSE? That’s pretty weird.</p>

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<p>You got 75 in your 10th std boards or in the internal school examinations?</p>

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<p>@RohanG - Perhaps it is weird. Irrelevant anyway.</p>

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<p>Lmao. The ICSE scores are the most important scores in your transcript, fyi :)</p>

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<p>@aniruddhc - 75 in the 10th Standard Boards. And I meant, its irrelevant whether its weird or no. I din’t mean the marks are irrelevant. </p>

<p>Though, what exactly do you mean “the most important scores in your transcript”??? More than my inter marks too??</p>

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<p>Oh just realized, you gave the 12th board exams as well…</p>

<p>Your 10th and 12th board marks matter the most in the transcript. </p>

<p>I don’t know which is given more consideration but I guess they look at the 12th marks more closely.</p>

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<p>@aniruddhc - Ok. Any suggestions on prospective colleges???</p>

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<p>Wait,‘Inter’(im assuming that means ICSE 12th) would have been of use to you if they’d been above 85 at least.I know,IIT prep hindered your performance,but its going to pull your application downn mate.
Duke would be reach for you.
For North Carolina we have our very own representative BLUEBOX who can give you the inside goop ;)</p>

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<p>@perfectpixie - Inter means SSC 11th and 12th. Yes I know it’s gonna hurt me real bad - but I’ll try and make it up in the essays and the like.</p>

<p>And I’m planning on Duke Early Action. That seems the best option for me.</p>

<p>And Bluebox is at North Carolina @ Chapel Hill??</p>

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<p>Yups. No financial aid offered, and they’re considering increasing international tuition next year (they increased it last year too), so this probably isn’t the best place for you.
And applying to Duke w/ financial aid is extremely competitive. They’ll want to see what productive work you’ve done with your gap year. I don’t think studying for an exam will be enough, but you can try, or course.</p>

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<p>@blue_box - so you’re paying for North Carolina on your own?? or scholarship?? </p>

<p>And yes Duke will be competitive, but I haven’t exactly been “only studying” this year. I’ve volunteered and still am volunteering at our local Red Cross Society, and learning a foreign language. Problem is, I can get the certificates for these only in December/January - can’t show Duke by Nov 1st. After all, my gap year has only started - its been just 2 months. It’s not like I’ve finished one year…:/…Is it possible to update my profile later after I’ve sent my application??</p>

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<p>No scholarship. </p>

<p>Yes, you can update it later. But try to write an essay about what you gained from your gap year.</p>

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<p>So, putting money aside, would North Carolina be a reach for me???</p>

<p>And as for the essay - is it a bad idea to write an essay on my lower 12th marks???</p>

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<p>Make a note of your 12th board marks drop in the academic circumstances section!</p>

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<p>possibly, but I had no special “extenuating circumstances”…what could I possibly write down that would be acceptable???</p>

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<p>Nothing really. </p>

<p>You gotta make do with them, to be honest.
Though you could say that you were concentrating on the entrance examinations. And if you got a good rank the first time you can mention all the ranks and stuff, that wud help atleast at MIT and all that where they know everything about the Indian system properly.</p>