Chances... Details inside

Colleges and Universities A-Z Columbia University
1

<p>My SAT's are 1500 (720 & 780)
My GPA is 3.7 (I have a reason) (hardest courses)</p>

<p>My ranking is not known as my school does not rank. very small school.
Also, if anyone could suggest any other schools that would be awesome.</p>

<p>My reason for a low GPA and so many business ventures is becuase my mother was pregnant during my freshman yr. She had a miscarraige and then got pregnant again. She is very high risk and was bedridden. This is my essay. Ive been told by many people its very good and "gripping."</p>

<p>I wanted to apply to Some IVYs, but my GPA is really low for them. What do any of you think?</p>

<p>Current Classes are AP Physics, AP Calc, AP Stats, Honors English, Honors History</p>

<p>Will take SAT II in Bio, Math IC, Lit (above 680 in all)</p>

<p>Here is my exact resume i will be sending to the schools and my essay will be very good and explain low GPA and other events. What are my chances at:</p>

<p>Honors, Awards, and Achievements</p>

<p>• Computer Excellence Award 9th
• Director’s List (All A’s and B’s) 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th
• Racquetball Division (Under Fitness Club)
o Founder 11th
o President 11th, 12th
• Varsity Lacrosse
o District Champions 11th
o 4-yr Athlete Award 12th
o Varsity Letter 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th
• 1st Place Piano Recital 9th
• Racquetball
o 4-yr Athlete Award 12th
o Most Improved 11th
o MVP 11th, 12th
• Ceramics
o Most Beautiful Impression 10th
o Most Beautiful Coil Pot 10th
o Best Pinch-Pot 10th
• Rite Track Service Award (Tutor Less Fortunate Kids) 11th
• Piccolo Park “Aggressive Inline” Skate Tournament
o 2nd Place Trophy – Individual Street 9th, 10th
o 1st Place Trophy – Individual Street 11th
• 14 Year Club 12th
• Physics Bridge Building Champion 11th </p>

<p>Extra Curricular Activities and Positions Held</p>

<p>• Junior Varsity Lacrosse 9th
• Varsity Lacrosse 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th
o Co-Captain 10th, 11th, 12th
o Starting Goalie 10th, 11th, 12th
• Quayside Racquetball 11th, 12th
o Captain 11th, 12th
• Varsity Cross Country 12th
o Manager 12th
• Aggressive Inline Skating 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th
• Boat Sailing 10th, 11th, 12th
o Instructor 11th
• Anchor Club 9th, 10th, 12th
• Fitness Club 11th, 12th
o Founding Member 11th
• Rite Track (Tutor Less Fortunate Kids) 10th, 11th, 12th </p>

<p>School and Community Service</p>

<p>• Anchor Club Annual Walk for Cancer 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th
• Arcola Lakes Elementary School for Disabled Students 9th, 10th
• Hands on Miami Retirement Home Cleanup 11th
• Key Club Special Olympics 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th
• 24 Hour Cancer Walk 9th
• SADD Skate-A-Thon 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th
• Hollywood Memorial Hospital 10th, 11th, 12th
o Cardiac Recovery Unit
o Emergency Room Recovery Unit
o Over 300hrs
• Bayside Beach Clean Up 10th </p>

<p>Work Experiences (* - denotes self-employed)
• Shadow Cardiologist 11th, 12th
o Watched Procedures
- Stints, Arterial Cleaning, Ballooning, etc
o Recorded Stats
o Took Vitals
o Helped Submit Procedural Notes
o Helped Recovering Patients
• Children’s Counselor at Williams Island Winter Camp 10th
• Model at Abercrombie Kids in Aventura, FL 11th, 12th
• Computer Repair/ Home Networking * 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th
• Computer Repair and Sales 9th
• Xbox Customization and Repair * 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th
o Exterior Customization
o Reprogram User Interface
o Install Upgraded Hardware
o Fix Circuit Board Problems
o Network Systems
o Enhanced Cooling Solutions
o Modchip Installation and repair
• Cellphone Repair and Modification * 10th, 11th
o Flashing
o Reprogramming
o Unlocking
• Assistant Realtor 9th, 10th, 11th
o Learned MLS Systems, MLXChange, Etc
o Helped “Farm” locations
o Showed Properties
o Worked for 2 Largest Companies
- Wimbish Realty
• Fabian Garcia Diaz
o Top Male Realtor in Nation
- Fortune Realty
• Maggie Morton
o Top Female Realtor in Miami
• Website Design and Consultations * 10th, 11th, 12th
o Designed Website for Teachers at School
o Lead Designer for “Aventura Nannies N’ More”
- A Miami Based Housekeeping Agency</p>

2

<p>you've done a myriad of small things, nothing really hits me, other than the roundedness of the activities (maybe lacrosse is decent). I would omit the smaller activities, like an annual walk that you took part in, and focus on your strengths / longer committments. you're gpa is low, although i have no way to guage that since there is no class rank or school difficulty. what's the sat writing score? sat 2 above 680 in all, says very little, since the averages are in the 600's. if your story is compelling and mature more than emphatic, then you stand a decent chance. Otherwise chances are not great.</p>

3

<p>can you give a year by year gpa breakdown? if you had a 2.5 freshman year but 4.0's the subsequent years i could see a pretty good shot</p>

4

<p>i had 3.5, 3.5, 3.7, 4.4 so far</p>

<p>My Sat II's have not been taken but i expect in the mid to high 700's; i just said about 680 as a worst-case-scenario</p>

5

<p>
[quote]
what's the sat writing score?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>if u r intentionally dodging this question then u might have a problem</p>

<p>
[quote]
My reason for a low GPA and so many business ventures is becuase my mother was pregnant during my freshman yr. She had a miscarraige and then got pregnant again. She is very high risk and was bedridden. This is my essay. Ive been told by many people its very good and "gripping."

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Though your excuse for a low GPA may be valid, i strongly recommend that this not be your essay topic. </p>

<p>Think about it this way: if i were to say to you "tell me about yourself" and all you can come up with is an excuse for sub-par performance in school then there's a problem. Columbia gives you such a unique opportunity to express yourself in an open ended essay and they want to hear something about YOU. Leave the explaining away of the GPA to your guidance counselor or some other recommendation writer who understands your situation and use your essay to tell a story, paint a picture of yourself rather than making excuses for something that happened in arguably the least important year of your high school career.</p>

6

<p>^i'd say he could still use the topic but only if he writes about how it changed him as a person, not as an excuse for low gpa</p>

7

<p>I know about the risks of my essay. Ive made sure to make it about the life changing experience. Im assuming the ADCOM will put 2 and 2 together to see the reason for my GPA. </p>

<p>my writing section was 680 but will probably go up inoctober. Sorry, didnt mean to dodge the question. Does Columbia look at that score?</p>

8

<p>I can't believe I just read about somebody's award for "Best Pinch-Pot" in 10th grade ceramics.</p>

<p>I mean jeez, I had a 1-page resume of activities and accomplishments, but it was things like "Placed 10th regionally on Ashdowns national chemistry exam".</p>

9

<p>Im sorry arts are not important to you. Not all my awards are the most serious of accomplishments, but they are all part of me and my high school career.</p>

10

<p>What Denz means is that you should try and focus on awards that show you are the best among the people who are applying for the same positions. Does having best pinch-pot in your school in 10-th grade make it so you had the best-pinch pot of the thousands of applicants?</p>

11

<p>"Im sorry arts are not important to you. Not all my awards are the most serious of accomplishments, but they are all part of me and my high school career"</p>

<p>I'm pretty sure Den wasn't degrading it because it was un-scientific. it clearly isn't / shouldn't be one of your significant achievements, unless you're explaining it badly. but basically you should discern between what made a difference to you, and what makes a difference on paper. </p>

<p>ex: I'm not on any ultimate team, but might have had an intense, eye-opening, character-molding ultimate frisbee game, but it's still an ultimate frisbee game that would waste space on a resume. </p>

<p>It might make for a good essay, if you can draw clever parallels to your life, but on a resume it can only hurt you, because it makes you seem to be desperately trying to fill space, it implies a scarcity of more serious stuff, and worst of all it can detract attention from your more serious activities. So by omitting such inconsequential (and possibly harmful) details, you highlight only what is significant, that's what the ad com wants to see, they realize you've done a bunch of small things, like making a beautiful pot, but they don't want to read about it, it adds no value.</p>

12

<p>ok thanks for the explanation</p>

13

<p>Columbia's also not an arts school. Music and visual arts are fine, but nobody's going to be impressed by your achievements in the field of Ceramics unless you've gotten a bunch of prestigious awards or started your own business.</p>

<p>CC did a good job of explaining the main thrust of my point though.</p>

14

<p>Thanks alot. What do you recommend i remove?</p>

15

<p>Honors, Awards, and Achievements</p>

<p>• Computer Excellence Award 9th<br>
• Director’s List (All A’s and B’s) 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th
• Founder of Racquetball Sector of Fitness Club 11th
• Varsity Lacrosse (Goalie)
o District 2 Champions 11th
o 4-yr Athlete Award 12th
o Varsity Letter 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th
• 1st Place Piano Concert 9th
• Racquetball
o 4-yr Athlete Award 12th
o Most Improved 11th
o MVP 11th, 12th
• Rite Track Service Award (Tutor Less Fortunate Kids) 11th
• Piccolo Park “Aggressive Inline” Skate Tournament - Miami<br>
o 2nd Place Trophy – Individual, Street 9th, 10th
o 1st Place Trophy – Individual, Street 11th
• Physics Balsa Bridge Champion 11th </p>

<p>Extra Curricular Activities and Positions Held</p>

<p>• Varsity Lacrosse (Goalie) 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th<br>
o Co-Captain 10th, 11th, 12th
o Starting Goalie 10th, 11th, 12th
• Captain of Quayside Racquetball Team 11th, 12th
• Aggressive Inline Skating (Street) 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th
• Boat Sailing 10th, 11th, 12th
o Instructor at Science Camp 11th
• Anchor Club 9th, 10th, 12th
• Fitness Club (Promotes Health and Fitness) 11th, 12th
o Founding Member 11th
o President – Racquetball Div. 11th, 12th
• Rite Track (Tutor Less Fortunate Kids) 10th, 11th, 12th </p>

<p>School and Community Service</p>

<p>• Anchor Club Annual Walk for Cancer 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th
• Arcola Lakes Elementary School for Disabled Students 9th, 10th<br>
• Key Club Special Olympics at FIU 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th
• 24 Hour Cancer Walk at Aventura Park 9th, 10th
• SADD Skate-A-Thon 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th
o Students Against Destructive Decisions
• Hollywood Memorial Hospital 10th, 11th, 12th
o Cardiac Recovery Unit
o Emergency Room Recovery Unit</p>

<p>Work Experiences - * denotes summer job</p>

<p>Shadow Cardiologist, grades 11 – 12, 5 hrs/ wk: I recorded stats, took vitals, helped submit procedural notes, and watched procedures such as stinting, arterial cleaning, ballooning, etc.</p>

<p>Children’s counselor at Williams Island Winter Sports Camp, grades 9 – 10, 40 hrs/ wk: I watched over kids, taught Math and English, and was the lacrosse instructor.*</p>

<p>Model at Abercrombie Kids in Aventura, Grades 11 – 12, 15 hrs/ wk: I work as a floor sales person and focus on selling and maintaining the clothes as well as the appearance of the store.</p>

<p>Computer Repair/ Home Networking, grades 9 – 12, 10 hrs/ wk: I upgrade hardware and internal components of personal computers as well as upgrade software and maintain home and office network integrity. All of the necessary skills were self taught early in 9th grade. My Clientele consists of neighbors, realtors, salesmen, and other students.</p>

<p>Xbox Customization and Repair, grades 9 – 12, 20 hrs/ wk: I upgrade/swap/install internal components (hard drive, motherboards, DVD-drives, etc), reprogram user interface, network systems to home computers, and repair cooling and circuit problems. All programming and soldering/circuitry skills were self taught while mother was pregnant in 9th grade. I made additional income for the family by offering my skills and services to friends, family, students, and online communities.</p>

<p>Cellular Telephone Repair and Modification, grades 10 – 11, 5 hrs/ wk: I would use programming knowledge to edit the SEEM, unlock phones to all carriers, and flash/reprogram new user interfaces. Skills were self taught after receiving an extremely crippled cell phone in 10th grade. Customers were students and neighbors looking to use unhindered cellular telephones and people looking to switch carriers.</p>

<p>Assistant Realtor, grades 9 – 11, 7 hrs/ wk: I learned MLS property search, MLXChange listing service, and Act databases. I helped “farm” locations by creating and distributing flyers and promotions. Additionally, I would show property when my employer was too busy or otherwise engaged. I was employed by Wimbish Realty (until it was purchased by Coldwell Banker) and then Fortune Realty. I was under the guidance of Fabian Garcia Diaz, top producing realtor (Realtor Association) since 1988 with over $500 million sold.*</p>

<p>Website Design and Consultations, grades 10 – 12, 5 hrs/ wk: I started by designing websites for teachers to earn service hours, but later began charging people and companies for my service. I learned how to use the necessary programs in a basic web design class. I expanded my knowledge of these programs as well as HTML, CSS, and JAVA language in my free time. My current main client is “Aventura Nannies N’ More,” a Miami based housekeeping agency. </p>

<p>HOW does that look as a new resume? i changed some words to be more clear and redid the whole work section. Its 2 pages now. Work covers a full page and everything else is on the other.</p>

16

<p>1) a resume is 1 page
2) you're not sending a resume, you're listing the most important things in your experiences.</p>

<p>so learn to condense things. for example for lax you can say "Varsity Lacrosse - captain and starting goalie 3 years" that gets rid of a lot of your bullets.</p>

<p>no one wants to read pages of a resume. they want to be able to pick out things that make them say "wow", not read a bunch of fluff.</p>

<p>i would say look online for some resume pointers.</p>

17

<p>so i should use my second version and condense it more?</p>

18

<p>
[quote]
1) a resume is 1 page

[/quote]
</p>

<p>a better way to put that is: until your junior year of college your resume should be AT MOST one page. </p>

<p>Columbia specifically asks you NOT to include a resume, not that what you posted here looks anything like a professional resume. In everything you read and hear about college admissions they tell you not to give a laundry list of activities or awards irrespective of significance to you or to whoever is reading it. Also, if you look at the columbia application they specifically say to list the activities that are "most important to you" .....so they WANT you to limit your list and not just throw everything at them and have them pick out what they like.</p>

19

<p>So i should cut down to 1 page and only put the things that "made me what i am"?</p>

<p>Ill end up removing trivial things like cancer walk, skate a thon ,etc</p>

<p>is that correct</p>

20

<p>My work experience alone is 1 page.... and its all very important to me. WHat should ido?</p>