Hi! Guys now I am in my tenth grade.Please tell me what I have to concentrate in this grade and what I should do like
Extra curriculars or other things.In my previous profile I wrote some of my activities.Are those extra curricular activities ok or do I have to do anything more for the admission.Please tell me.
To gain admittance to these schools, the short answer is: 1. obtain very high standardized test scores, 2. maintain a nearly-perfect GPA, 3. have some great extracurriculars, 4. get people to write sterling letters of recommendation, and 5. write essays that captivate your readers.
@c357911 unfortunately it doesn’t seem like you understand how college admissions works, especially for the top schools, speaking as a current MIT student.
There is not one “thing” or EC you have to do for admission. It’s true that participating in national or international olympiads (e.g. IMO, IPhO) will look really good, but many of these take a lot of dedication and passion, and many olympiad participants are still rejected from these schools, simply because there is not enough room.
I mean this in the nicest way possible, but I also suggest working on your English (e.g. in post #19, use “advice,” not “advise”). As these are English-language universities, you are expected to be fluent.
Additionally, MIT has a bunch of admissions-related blogs, which I encourage you to read.
Lastly, definitely apply to some safety schools, as there is a good chance you could be rejected from all the top schools, for whatever reason.
I say go live in a rural area, pick up some great stories for your app, not even kidding right now, MIT likes nothing more than a good story apparently. Also do a summer course in a foreign uni.
I thank you all for your responses,
@notjoe thanks for telling me what I have to do from now on or maybe in the future.But are my ECs ok for now or should I do anything more apart from them.Please reply soon.
@MITer94 thanks a lot for your suggestions,I know I am not that good but you know.In my school there is less importance for languages and the teachers concentrate more on core subjects like maths,physics and chemistry.I will try my best to improve my fluency in English.Also.I wanted to ask this,Are you an international undergraduate at MIT?.
Please reply soon.
@Bored1997 Thanks for your response.I am unable to understand what you mean by" Yesterday at 10:44 pm
I say go live in a rural area, pick up some great stories for your app, not even kidding right now, MIT likes nothing more than a good story apparently. Also do a summer course in a foreign uni.".Please reply soon.
Sorry to be vague, but it can’t be avoided. You’re focused on having someone name specific activities that will enhance your application to top schools. You want a list of “good ECs” that are sure to impress. Well, you could win an Intel prize. Or publish a best-selling novel. Or cure cancer. I actually knew a student who cured cancer. Well, he discovered a test to find cancer sooner. He did win an Intel prize for his work. He could have probably have gotten into MIT, if he wanted it. However, my understanding is he’s headed for Stanford.
But lots of kids get into MIT or Harvard or what-have-you without winning Intel prizes, without fixing global warming, and without achieving peace in the Middle East. Seemingly ordinary kids (with great test scores and grades, to be sure). You’re looking for their magic formula.
It doesn’t exist.
There is no formula that reliably gets anyone into these top schools. You need good grades, good test score, good ECs, good letters, good essays. But all those things, though necessary, are not sufficient.
There is something missing.
One reason why these schools do all the different things they do is they’re looking for that missing thing, too. They want to know: do you have it? If so, maybe there’s a spot for you. If not, then there isn’t. That missing thing isn’t high grades, or test scores. It’s not fantastic ECs are a fabulous letter of recommendation. It’s not an essay, or an interview. Those are all signs. They’re signifiers. They’re things that can point to that missing quality, but they are not the thing itself. It may be that an EC or an essay uncovers the truth about a student. But the EC or the essay are not the truth itself. They’re just the sign of its existence.
You are the source of the existence of that missing quality. Or not. One hopes that it will show through your work - through your grades, test scores, ECs, essays, letters, interviews. But that quality looks a little different in each individual.
Having someone on an Internet forum suggest “great” ECs to you is counterproductive. You may very well mistake the signifier for the thing itself, and then, instead of elucidating your best qualities, that “great” EC will only obscure the admissions committee’s view of you.
@c357911 I agree with @notjoe – you still have the wrong idea about this. I can’t recommend EC’s for you; you should just do what you enjoy (in addition to maintaining solid grades/scores) and find ways to get involved; do not join an EC for the sole purpose of getting into MIT or whatever. I strongly encourage you to read this admissions blog:
http://mitadmissions.org/apply/prepare/highschool
I’m an undergraduate at MIT, but not international.
Thanks for your responses,
@notjoe thanks for your response.I understood what you wrote in your post.But I was just asking about my ECs whether they are sufficient or should I do anything more.In miter94’s post he agrees with you,but it’s not about the recommendation of ECs or whatever it’s just about whether they are fine.Thanks,and please don’t take this as an offence.Please reply soon.
@MITer94 Thanks for your response.I know I have the wrong idea after many people told me about what it’s like in real,I mean they told me that it’ snot so easy.They told me everything that you wrote in your post,about grades,academic profile,etc.But I am not hell bent on getting into these top notch universities.I was asking whether these ECs are sufficient or not.So that I can know other’s opinion like you,then I will be able to know what else I have to do.Please don’t take this as an offence and pls reply soon.
@c357911 Here’s my opinion on your EC list - please note that others’ opinions can differ.
- I don't know much about "Spell Bee" (we have the Scripps National Spelling Bee in the U.S.) or NCC, but if you think you did well enough to mention it on a college app, mention it. Also, can you be a bit more specific with "Olympiads" (since those vary greatly)?
- is not an EC; it is just class rank. Also, I wouldn't really consider 5. an EC either. The rest appear pretty generic and/or not that specific.
Don’t worry, I’m not offended. I just don’t know the answer to your question. What you make of your extracurricular activities on your college applications is really up to you. I don’t know whether there’s something tremendous hiding in that acronymn NCC or whether it’s just resume filler. I don’t really know what all you did with your charity work, whether it’s just something you did to put on your application, or whether it tells something meaningful about you. That’s what YOU have to work on.
Thanks for your responses,I am glad to know your opinion about my ECs.
@MITer94 thanks for your response.The spell bee in our country is almost same as that in your country and this competition is conducted by the international spell bee organisation and NCCis actually National Cadet Corps where the cadets can live like the people who are in the defense forces.And the cadets are given a certificate which is accepted by many people.The one who have these certificates can be awarded scholarships,jobs etc.they can even join the defensive forces after their 12th grade directly with this certificate.I had a relative who had the A,B and C certificate of NCC,
Sorry my previous comment was incomplete.
So I am continuing the incomplete matter in this comment
So the man was just an average student but he got into a big software company and he is well settled in the U.S. now.Pleas reply soon.And my summer vacation is starting after two or three days.Please advice me how to spend this time efficiently.Please reply soon.
@notjoe Thanks for your response.NCC is really a big thing in my country as I mentioned in the previous reply to miter94 and it’s not just a resume filler.I devoted my time to it because I thought it was a great job I was doing and it was indeed a very good job you can search about it on the Internet.And my charity work was I volunteered for collection money,food,clothing for the people who were affected last year in the flash floods.This was not just for the sake of filling my resume so that it would make the application look good.This is what I wanted to do and I devoted my precious time for this because I wanted to.So then I did it without a second thought in my mind.I know this may seem a bit dramatic.Because I know what other’ stink when they read posts like these.and my summer vacation is going to start after 2-3 days please tell me how to spend this time efficiently.Thank you and please reply soon.
@c357911 okay. However the rest are very vague and don’t communicate much.
Because it’s so early, there is a lot of info that’s missing that makes it difficult to determine what your strengths/weaknesses are and what you should work on (e.g. grades/GPA, test scores, both of which are very impprtant).
Also, I’m not sure if this is true, but I’ve heard that MIT only accepts a small handful (<10 students?) each year. Regardless of that, the admission rate internationally is very low, and you want some way to stand out somehow and show them that you have potential to succeed here.
That is for you to decide. Get involved with something. Just don’t spend all your time lying around, doing nothing.
thank for your response,
@MITer94 Thanks for your response.I’d like to know what is vague and what is that which doesn’t communicate much.
I know that its a bit early but I just wanted to know out of some curiosity or whatever.I have a solid academic record till now and my average GPA is about 9.7 out of 10.And is the acceptance rate that you wrote is for all the international applicants.I know this may se bit funny but how to stand out among others?.Thanks for your response.Please reply soon.
@c357911 look back at @mnm111’s posts (#14 and #17); that should give you a good idea.
I agree; this seems like a silly question.
I encourage you to read the following admissions blogs:
http://mitadmissions.org/blogs/entry/being-qualified-for-mit
http://mitadmissions.org/blogs/entry/so-chance-me-maybe (an interesting take on CC chance threads themselves)
We can’t tell you how to stand out. You have to figure that out yourself. The idea that there is one formula for standing out contradicts the whole point of being different from other candidates to stand out.
Don’t do things just for college admissions. It’s not worth it. I have one friend who’s an IChO silver medallist and one who is an IBO silver medallist. Both were rejected from MIT. Do things because you love them and they help you grow as a person. If at the end of it all, you get into MIT, great! If not, you spent a meaningful 4 years doing something you are passionate about.
These sort of questions would be asinine taken all by themselves. They are even more so when one considers that there are literally hundreds (if not thousands) of almost identical questions that have been asked (and answered – at length) in these very forums over the years.
The OP is asking the generic “I want to go to [Harvard, CalTech, MIT, Stanford, <insert school=”" that="" rejects="" 95%="" of="" their="" applicants="">" and I have no GPA, no test scores and I want to know what I need to / what are my chances. Each of these questions are equally silly. About the only thing the OP didn’t throw in would be the typical “oh… and I need to have 100% of my costs covered.”
@MITer94 thanks for your response.mnm’s posts gave me me a good idea about what I should do.I know that I don’t have sufficient information to provide,but just out of curiosity or whatever.I read those blogs which you posted and they are very meaningful and tell about the essentials.Thanks for you response.
@OrchidBloom thanks for your response I know that others cannot tell me how to stand out.I know that I don’t have enough information like GPAs,test scores or anything but I do only things that i love and which I like the most thanks for your reply.
@soze thanks fro your response.I know that I don’t have enough info to provide but at least you can consider some of those listed if not then I am sorry for coming to this website.thanks for your reply.