<p>I'm a junior from Taiwan, and I'm planning on going to the US for college. I'm a US citizen, but have been educated my whole life in regular Chinese schools. I currently attend the best girls' high school in Taiwan, which is extremely competitive and prestigious, and receive top grades there. Here are my stats and ECs, and I would very much appreciate it if you could give me some suggestions or evaluate, to your best understanding, how my chances for Stanford are. Thanks a lot!! </p>
<p>Stats
SAT I: CR: 800 ;Writing: 780 ;Math: 800
SAT II: Literature: 790 (I plan on taking Math 2 and Physics in June and have confidence in both.)
GPA: 4.0 UW
Rank: 20/1300 </p>
<p>ECs:
Editor and writer of school newspaper (10-11th)
Member of guitar club; in charge of practice and teaching fellow members (10th)
Piano 10 yrs/violin 4 yrs/clarinet 2 yrs/ guitar 1 yr
First place in school-wide English composition competition (10th) ; Third place (11th)
Fifth place in school-wide Chinese composition competition (10th)
Fifth place in school-wide Chinese short story competition (10th)
Second place in school-wide poetry competition (11th)
Third place in school-wide composition competition (10th, 11th)
Qualified for AIME
In charge of classroom decoration for two semesters; won an award for classroom decoration (10th)
Won a prestitious scholarship for English (10th)
Honorary Award A (meaning top three of class in both academic and moral grades) (10th, 11th)</p>
<p>I know my ECs are weak but I hope to make up with my SAT scores, school performance, application essay and excellent recs. I plan to apply for Early Action this November. How are my chances?
Thanks~all information and suggestions would be extremely appreciated.</p>
<p>Stanford doesn't look at freshman grades, so I think you're fine. Your SAT scores are good enough for any top-tier college. By the way, if you don't mind me asking, do you go to Bei Nu Xiao (sorry, I have poor hanyu pinyin) in Taipei?</p>
<p>Edited; sorry, I just reread your post and noted that you are not an international, which is a very good thing because you will have a greater chance in admission.</p>
<p>Thanks for replying, guys!! :-)
kchen: Yes, I do go to Bei Nu Xiao (it's called Taipei First Girls' Senior High School in English, which is a mouthful). I'm so glad someone's heard of my school! Where do you know First Girls' from?
Thanks for the encouragement, it's really warmed up my day! Best wishes to all!</p>
<p>Rar, i'm so jealous, the american school is freaking awesome.</p>
<p>On another note, ROCKao, if your parents are succesfull talk to their friends and their friends friends about internship opportunities, doesn't have to be anything official. One of the coolest things I've found out about in Taiwan is how valuable connections are. I've already got two "internships" at electronics companies and am working on getting a third at the legislative yuan. Maybe it's really easy because I'm white but who knows, give it a shot.</p>
<p>good stat, like find any problem except that its better if you have more awards that are not only "In school"......But your standardized tests are extremely good (I want your sat1 score ^-^)</p>
<p>One thing that could hurt you is that you sound like the typical Chinese (international) applicant. If I were forced to guess at your stats based on contemporary stereotypes, here would've been my guess:</p>
<p>SAT: 2350+
SATII: all math and sciences, 780+
ECs: Piano, piano, and... more piano
Awards: Piano awards
Hooks: You've been playing piano since you were three.
Other: Qualified for USAMO (the highest HS math competition in the U.S.)</p>
<p>And now compare my guesses with your actual stats... do they look hauntingly familiar? =)
So my advice is to steer away from the stereotype.</p>
<p>Chlor,
Thanks for the reply!
I'm a little surprised that you should think of me as a 'typical' Chinese applicant. I took the SAT II on Literature and recieved 780, and almost all my ECs (except for AMC, which is a long way from USAMO) involve English or Chinese literature. I actually thought of myself as very different from most Chinese International applicants because of my skills of and passion for literature as opposed to math and sciences, which I understand represent the stereotype Chinese. I'm pretty good at sciences and math as well, but my real passion lies in literature and I want to major in it in college.
I wanted to use my love for literature as an advantage; if my passion wasn't very clear, I'll try to express it more effectively in my application.
Thanks again!</p>
<p>Errr....Any more feedback, people?
Questions: which of the top colleges is best known for its Literature program? Is Comparative Literature a major at all popular in Stanford?
I've been browsing Stanford's website, and all the application forms there are those of 2006. When will the forms for students applying this year come out? Do essay questions vary greatly each year or are they basically similar? If anyone knows, please reply.
Thanks!</p>
<p>Nothing wrong to be a typical whatever . Be proud of who you are and open your heart to knowledge which is shared by all mankind. Stereotypical image does exist.; but no need taking it seriously.</p>
<p>I believe Chlor meant well to offer you a good suggestion.</p>
<p>hmm lit.. yale, columbia?
the 2006 application cycle will probably start around july/august, but you can always write in to request for their prospectus/application package/whatever right about now. essay qns are pretty much the same each year..</p>
<p>u should consider national university (tai da) haha. but i know that it's like a one-shot deal where if u don't do well on the entrance exam then you won't get in or something</p>
<p>Wellesley College might be a good safety..
wow...i sometimes wish i went to a local school like Bei Yi Nu instead of being pampered in the american school. i'm surprised they calculate GPA for you there!</p>
<p>for the essay topics, they are the same each year as yesh said. you don't want to list out and explain each EC again. it's more interesting to tell a story or an experience.</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice, guys!
I was just browsing the RD decisions thread; congrats to all who got in!!! Hope I can get a taste of what you're feeling next year! :-)</p>
<p>A few updates on my stats and ECs: Took the June SAT II Math IIC and Physics, got 800s on both. Recieved second place for a Taipei City story-writing competition. Am going to a prestigious science camp this summer on a merit-based scholarship. Elected as class representative for graduation preparations (graduation ceremony, yearbook, etc) It's not much, but I justed wanted to keep my stats updated.
Also, I'm writing the main essay on a meaningful picture, and it's about the yin-yang symbol and what the balance and harmony it symbolizes means to me. If anyone is interested, please leave a message and I'll PM it to you. I would really appreciate any comments, suggestions, or critism.
Thank you!!:-)</p>
<p>My mum went to your school. But I like how you called your ECs weak when they are not. They’re not super strong, but they’re clearly far from weak.</p>