Chances for Columbia ED?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Columbia University
1

I’m currently a junior from a suburb of Cleveland, Ohio. Columbia is my dream school and I was wondering if I had a good chance of getting in early. I’m a girl and planning on majoring in computer science/applied math.

I’m a straight A student and got an A every quarter for each class except those listed as the ones i am planning to take senior year
Classes:
Freshman-
Sports and Activities/Personal Fitness (gym)
Honors Algebra 2
AP World History (4)
French 2
Orchestra
Honors English
Honors Bio

Sophomore-
APUSH (5)
Honors English
Honors Chem
Honors Precalc
AP Comp Sci (5)
AP Bio (4)
French 3

Junior-
AP Chem
AP Lang/Comp
AP Physics 1
AP Enviro
AP Gov
French 4
AP Calc BC

Senior-
AP Comp Gov
Calc 3 (Multivariable/Differential Equations)
AP Lit
AP French
AP Econ
AP Physics 2
Health

Scores:
New SAT- 1560
ACT- 35
Bio SATII- 800
I was also a semifinalist for USABO but was unable to take the test to determine finalists due to scheduling conflicts

Extracurriculars:
Science Olympiad- I was captain of my school’s division B team my freshman year and we won nationals. I was honored by President Barack Obama at the White House Science Fair for this accomplishment and was invited to a discussion panel on improving the quality of STEM education in public schools by the Secretary of Education. I plan on being an officer my senior year.

Government- I volunteered for the Ohio Democratic Party this past fall and plan on interning again this summer and throughout the year.

Speech and Debate- I participated in speech my sophomore and junior year. I wasn’t amazing but I did win a few awards.

Tedx- I am a member of my school’s Tedx club where each year we produce a Tedx event for the local community featuring local figures.

NHS- I am a member of my school’s NHS chapter starting senior year and plan on running for officer.

CTY- every summer I attend Johns Hopkins’ Center for Talented Youth program where I take college level classes not offered in school. I’ve taken Logic, Cognitive Psychology, Utopias and Dystopias (creative writing course), Pholosophy of Mind, and I’m taking Neuroscience this upcoming summer. Last year I was an “officer” (equivalent to photographer) and this year I am going to be the equivalent of “club president”.

Recs:
I have really good relationships with my bio, enviro, and gov teachers (my enviro teacher also happens to be my Science Olympiad advisor) so I expect my rec letters to be strong.

I think that’s it! Please let me know! I am slightly worried that my extracurriculars are weak but that’s because I dedicate so much time to Science Olympiad and clearly that has yielded results so hopefully that makes up for lack of variety.

2

with your strength in Bio, why are you looking at CompSci? You look like a strong bio applicant, not so much compsci.

3

Great stats and extracurriculars. You are definitely a strong applicant, but it really is impossible to say for any Ivy or top 25 school since most applicants are very strong.

4

Columbia is my dream school, too. My profile is not and is not likely to ever be as strong as yours. My school is small and rural and not very good at anything. You are certainly fortunate you go to a school that does so well in SciOly. We have a team, but I don;t think it’s ever gone anywhere. :frowning:
Would you mind looking at my classes/ ECs (in my other posts; you might have to do some digging. Sorry!) to give me some insight on the strengths/weaknesses of my profile? Suggestions on how I can improve? If I even have a shot? (yes, I know Columbia is a reach no matter how good you are).

By the way, your ECs are very strong and the focus in SciOly is an asset, not a liability. It’s better to focus deeply on one area than shallowly in lots of areas, which you have done precisely. I wish you the best and I hope that you get into Columbia with all my heart.
Thanks and good luck!

5

@futurecollege00 What are yours stats, ECs?

6

You like you will be a very well qualified applicant but it is impossible to chance at a school with a 6% acceptance rate.

7

@Politicsrule
1st of all, I love your username. I definitely agree! :slight_smile:

STATS: (no honors classes at all at my school; no AP’s for 9th/10th graders, and I got cheated out of advanced classes b/c of class size)
8th:
Spanish I (98)

Freshman:
Algebra 1 (98)
Earth Science (96)
Global 9 (99)
English 9 (98)
Spanish II (99)
Chorus (98)
PE (95)
TAing (P on a P/F scale)

No tests yet; I took a practice PSAT for the 1st time (i.e. no studying AT ALL) and got 1040.

ECs: Last year:
Musical, Speech and Debate Club (2 full state bids but coach doesn’t “believe” in states so no opportunity for higher competition level), Environmental Club, Soccer, Basketball, softball, library volunteer, student gov’t (class rep), 2 academic summer programs for the past 2 summers, noncredit exercise science course, 1st place in NY state for AMVETS essay contest, foreign language club, school board grading committee, a writing workshop, babysitting, and work w/ my town tourism&beautufication dept.

Yeah I know it’s a lot and it’s a laundry list but I didn’t know that when I signed up for all this stuff so I AM culling it quite a bit and developing more of a focus on science/medical

8

@futurecollege00 Oh you’re a rising sophomore? You def. have time to work on everything!

I’m 99.9% the schools you apply to will see that your school doesn’t offer H classes, but ask your counselor. If not, def. try to say somewhere on your apps that your school doesn’t offer them. They won’t hold that against you. It’s literally not your fault:) As for the AP thing, I’m sorry!!! Just try to get into them for Jr./Sr. year. (Not your fault in any way that you can’t take APs though, so don’t sweat it). I wouldn’t start actual prep, but honestly, if I were you, I would start looking up math topics and stuff that are on the ACT/SAT (take mocks and see which one you like. You can also take both…I just took the ACT) Varsity tutors has free stuff where you can see the topics. Also, Khan Academy has a great course, but if you can afford it, i would prep summer going into junior year so that you can take the test asap.

For Columbia, aim for a 34+ on the act…i don’t know what that looks like on the SAT because I don’t think the SAT but you can always google conversion charts.

Try to get on varsity for the sports because schools like to see that. You don’t have to be recruitable level (I mean it would help, but simply seeing varsity looks great).

Something I really can’t emphasize enough is how much ivies and schools alike LOVE passion. As you said, you’re trying to focus on science/medicine which looks great!!! Something I wish I would’ve done is search for research opportunities. I know you said you live in a rural area, but if there is the opportunity to do research at any universities then contact them!!! I’m not sure if you would be able to travel this far, but I would try to email university professors performing research within a 100 mile radius. I would try to spend some free time this year researching various medical topics and really get to know them. If you develop a passion for them, try emailing professors around Jan./Feb./Mar. about assisting them in the summer. REALLLY express you passion. And don’t be offended or discouraged if you get a no. You most likely will, but it’s worth a try!

That genius kid, Jack Andraka, got turned down a bunch. A professor finally said yes and he was able to create this super accurate and cheaper (pancreatic??) cancer detector. Although, that was solely for him to perform his research i believe, you get the point:)

Maybe try to start a HOSA at your school if y’all don’t have one.

Be really involved!

Keep your grades up!

try to get into APs!

Try to find something or a few things that are unique. I live in the south, so rowing and squash are two things that aren’t big here. Try to get involved in something in your area that will make you stand out amongst applicants in your state. Also try to find things that will make you stand out nationally. Make sure you actually like it though!

Try to get a lot of leadership positions.

Remember essays are very important. When the time comes, don’t rush them.

Lastly…remember that you don’t have to be at or above their avg. GPA or test score, yes it helps, but it’s not everything. I know Harvard students that had 30s on their acts. I know gtown students that have 29s on their ACTs.

As for your APP: Be yourself.

Also, I know you kind of wanted a chance me and this turned into an advice article, but it’s really quite impossible to chance for ivies…unless you have insanely low grades…but even then…you never know.

Honestly, CC can be kind of toxic and this is the internet, so who’s to say people are telling the truth. Also, remember these applicants and people that get admitted are only a few compared to those admitted/applied. Don’t try comparing yourself.

Good luck!

9

Engineering female + ED + good profile, I think you’ll get in.

10

I think you have a nice chance at ED. Even though your background may be more enviro and bio it still makes sense that you would be a strong candidate for comp sci and/or applied math. It’s hard to get really specific in HS because there are not as many offerings necessarily and usually you figure this all out later in the process. They do a good job once you are admitted making sure you find a good fit within a major in SEAS. They have a required Art of Engineering class that introduces all of the disciplines which seems to help too.