Chances for an International?

Colleges and Universities A-Z California Institute of Technology
1

<p>Hey,</p>

<p>Am deciding whether to apply Caltech for RD this year.....
Help me!</p>

<p>Asian Female
SAT 1 - Took in Oct - Math 750, CR -600 (Ouch) and Writing 690(12/12 in essay)
Retook in Dec - Hoping to improve CR by at least 50 points</p>

<p>SAT 2 - Math IIC - 790, Chem and Bio - 740 each...</p>

<p>GPA - My school doesnt provide a 4 point GPA - Its out of 100% and I recieved 93%. Though thats the highest they give.</p>

<p>Awards and Extra curriculars</p>

<p>Best Student, Girl - Academics, Extra curriculars and other activities.</p>

<p>Recipient of Merit Scholarship given by the National Government
Won several debating competitions at school, city, district and national level and have been adjudged Best Speaker quite a few times too.</p>

<p>Participated in the research competition on Ecological Sustainability for school campuses. Was team leader of group which won second place. Presented the paper in the International Green Building Conference, Indian Chapter. </p>

<p>Was a student delegate for a Parliamentary Committee of Petitions on Adoloscent Education Programme implementation and have actively participated in many awareness programmes. </p>

<p>Merit Scholarship Holder in both Junior and Senior Level Geography Talent Tests</p>

<p>Have been learning an ancient Indian art form for the past 7 years and have completed several stages in it.</p>

<p>Have done a research project on Transgeniticism with help from one of the top bio research centres in India.</p>

<p>Have been learning the piano for around 8 years</p>

<p>Was chosen to present a paper presentation for the Eco-Petition Awards conducted by Henkel India, Pvt. Ltd.</p>

<p>Volunteer and Community Service:</p>

<p>Have been deeply involved in tutoring under privileaged students for the past 2-3 years, free of cost.</p>

<p>Leadership Positions:</p>

<p>Have been the class president for several years</p>

<p>Elected to the student council of this academic year with a student preference of 581 in 800 </p>

<p>Intra school Cultural and Talent Related Event Management Secretary</p>

<p>Editor of The Fourth Estate of my school</p>

<p>Co-editor of the school yearbook last year</p>

<p>Co-editor of the school's Newsletter</p>

<p>I would like to major in either Civil Engineering or Biomedical..... Both my parents are urban planners and I am deeply attached to the subject since childhood and have done several layout designs etc. I even have a recommendation from the Ex-Secretary, Govt of Tamil Nadu, India regarding that. </p>

<p>But I am also equally passionate about Biology and have constantly topped my class in the subject. </p>

<p>I have excellent recommendations from two teachers who have taught me for around 5 years. </p>

<p>So do I apply? I am really confused too.... I only want to apply somewhere where I stand at least a minimal chance....</p>

<p>Thanks...</p>

2

<p>Ben pointed out a few days ago that it's unusual for an international to have a chance. You should apply everywhere you'd realistically want to go.</p>

3

<p>are you from chennai
which school by the way
i think your EC<code>S are perfect but try improving the SAT</code>s to atleast 2200
it is not that tough</p>

4

<p>Yea... I am.... I hope to improve my overall score by at least 100-150 points this time... I mean, after taking SAT 1 in Dec, I felt a lot better than when I had taken it in Oct... And what about you? From Chennai? Know you are from India, read a couple of other posts.... Where from?</p>

5

<p>You're from Chennai? Cool, so am I! Which school? BVM? PS?</p>

6

<p>well i am from singapore
but chennai is my hometown
i have been there for 4 years
which board(cbse, state??)
how come you are managing between SAT, school, AIEEE, IIT ??
isnt it too difficult</p>

7

<p>PS... :D What about ya tetrisfan? Maybe we know each other... LOL.... CBSE.... It is a bit too difficult, but then its only for a short period of time, might as well take it on now, than later :D Which colleges are ya applying to?</p>

8

<p>I'm only in the 10th lol :). Got a while to go before I do this whole thing!</p>

9

<p>awww... 10thie? From where? BVM? :D All the best though!</p>

10

<p>Sishya. And thanks!</p>

11

<p>Hey folks,</p>

<p>Just a reminder: if you're deferred, either admissions wants to wait to see how you'll compare to the RD pool, or they just didn't have the sort of information they needed to make a decision. E.g., if you or one of your rec writers mentioned that you did some research and you didn't write about it, submit a mentor rec, or submit a paper, we probably want to know a bit more about what you did there. It's OK if it wasn't groundbreaking--just tell us something about it. Similarly, if you said you took some college classes but we didn't get your grades, or if you think we weren't convinced that you like math/science enough to stay sane at Tech, submit some relevant materials to help us make the decision during the RD round. Basically, if you're deferred, make sure to figure out why (you might even call admissions) and submit the stuff that we need. That said, best of luck to all of you! Now back to finals -- Hamik</p>

12

<p>Obviously it's way too late. Meant to post this in the decisions thread!</p>

13

<p>Am applying to Caltech!!! :D I just got my SAT scores... Dont know if they are great, but definitely better than my previous... 2180 with 710 R 740M and 730 W....</p>