Chances at Stanford and MIT

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>I'm a junior and I would just like to know what you think of my chances at Stanford and MIT. Based on my scores I think that I have a decent chance and I am likely to apply to one of them. Overall, I'm pretty relaxed with the whole college admissions process, but I'm curious as to where I stand. Please provide honest feedback.</p>

<p>White male from the Northeast.</p>

<p>One of the top 50 publics in the country. Many students go to selective colleges (ex - about 20 students/year to ivies).</p>

<p>SAT: 2360 (760 CR, 800 M, 800 W) - took it once</p>

<p>SAT II: 800 Physics, 790 Math 2, will take US History</p>

<p>Unweighted GPA: 97.something
-My school does not rank, but I would definitely be top few out of about 220.</p>

<p>APs: Physics B (9) - 5, Calc AB (10) - 5
-This year I am taking Calc BC, Bio, US History, and Eng. Language
-Next year I am taking a lot including Physics C (and a beyond-BC Calc night class at another high school).</p>

<p>ECs (brief summary): Captain of the Quizbowl Team as junior (member all years), Math Team officer, Model Congress, JV Sports, Community Service involving helping immigrants with English, guitar, and Science Research class including numerous fairs and such.</p>

<p>Awards:
-Second Place in a national essay contest.
-Second Place at state level of Nat'l Geographic Bee.
-Fourth Place at county math tournament as sophomore.
-AIME qualifier
-Member of 5-person team that won $7500 in an applied math contest
-REgional Science Fair honorable mention
-Second place in a county math contest
-Honorable mention in Nat'l Spanish exam
-Gavel award at columbia model congress
-Likely to be NM Semifinalist and further
some others</p>

<p>Summers:
05 - Penn Summer Science Academy
06 - Astrophysics Research as part of the Simons Fellowship program at Stony Brook University.</p>

<p>Okay so it's getting a little long. I'll spare the people reading this. So, what do you think of Stanford and MIT, maybe Stanford EA?</p>

2

<p>I don't think you need us to tell you that you have a very strong resume, but you could still get rejected from Stanford.</p>

3

<p>Thanks.</p>

<p>My concern is not really my scores. I know that my SAT scores are about 75th percentile for stanford (770/780).</p>

<p>My concern is more that I am white male. There are a lot of people just like me. I have a bunch of really good awards and my summer research should be AWESOME, but then again you never know.</p>

<p>I know that nobody is automatic at these schools. I just want to know if you think my resume is strong enough to overcome the fact that I am a white male with, although some good ecs and awards, no major factor like legacy or minority status.</p>

4

<p>Anyone for some feeback?</p>

5

<p>Any responses?</p>

6

<p>Statistically, you are golden for Stanford.</p>

<p>Your essays will be the make/break.</p>

7

<p>Looks like you have a great shot. You scores are awesome, so are your awards, and your ECs look good enough. It doesnt really seem like theres much more you could do to improve your chances. Good luck with ur applications next year!</p>

8

<p>you're white
thats a good thing
when it comes to Stanford
at least you're not an asian male or worse, an asian female</p>

9

<p>you dont have to worry about your race when applying to standford/ivies- the only way that you're gonna get rejected for not being a minority is if someone has the same stats as you but just happens to be a minority.</p>

10

<p>It wouldn't hurt you to not be a minority, but it might hurt you if you were over-represented (like an Asian). You've obviously worked very hard, don't consider being white a disadvantage, consider it not an advantage . . . . </p>

<p>Your looking to be a reach at both schools, but your scores are phenomenal (and I noticed that they're 75 percentile for Stanford). They won't get you in, but they will help you a lot. Essays essays essays . . .</p>

11

<p>Thanks for the replies. I'll be sure to work on my essays over the summer.</p>

12

<p>Stanford and MIT are my two top choices.</p>

<p>But what do you think about chances at UPenn, UChicago, Wash U StL, or Carnegie Mellon?</p>

13

<p>UPenn will be a bit easier to get into than Stanford. UChicago, WUSTL, and CMU will be a bit easier still than UPenn.</p>

14

<p>Do you think that I will have a solid chance at UChicago, Wash U StL, and CMU in regular decision? I'm pretty sure I will do either Stanford or MIT for EA.</p>

15

<p>Frankly, you have a solid chance at all schools you are applying for. Pick one safety, just in case.</p>

16

<p>You're a competitive applicant. I think, provided you have good essays, it'll come down to luck.</p>

17

<p>Yeah I realize that there's some chance in it. Quite honestly, I'd be happy at any of my top few choices. I'm still looking for schools that I can consider safeties though. Anybody have any safety suggestions for someone who wants to go into the sciences or engineering? I've been told about Rice and a few others.</p>

18

<p>Rice is a great school but I'd call it a match for you--not a safety.</p>

19

<p>Yeah I know its a great school. But at my high school, nobody has applied to Rice in the longest time, and all my guidance counselors are recommending that I be the one to apply since apparently the school wants Northeast kids. Virtually nobody in the NYC area knows about it. Plus, I come from the whole NYC-area research/Intel group which isn't as common at schools in the Midwest.</p>

<p>Trust me, I'd be thrilled to get in there.</p>

20

<p>Anybody else?</p>