Chances of getting into Caltech

Colleges and Universities A-Z California Institute of Technology
1

<p>I'm going to be a Senior soon at South Pas High School (very close to Caltech and before going to South Pas I basically grew up in Pasadena) and I was wondering what my chances are of getting in. </p>

<p>First off, the stats:</p>

<p>SAT:
First time: 2050
Second Time: 2150 (might take a third time after actually studying)</p>

<p>SAT II:
Math II: 800
Bio: 670
US History: 710
(Will take World History, Chem, and Physics before applications)</p>

<p>AP Tests:
5 on Chem, Bio, AP US Hist, and AP Language (Was not able to take Physics C because my school did not offer it and it would have been right after Bio AP Test, too soon to go to another school to take it)</p>

<p>Unweighted Academic GPA: 3.29 (School does not do ranks)</p>

<p>A on Calc I and Russian I at Pasadena City College, A- on Stanford EPGY Physics C.</p>

<p>As you can see my academic results are mixed at best, disastrous at worst. I am an immigrant from Russia and I was stuck in Mexico for half of my Freshman year, thus receiving a B in Spanish and a C in Algebra 2 while getting no marks for the rest of my classes that year. After I came back, my father was still stuck in Mexico so that put a major strain on my family and after he came back, the separation of my parents created an even bigger strain. I got a concussion at the end of freshman year so that caused me to get another C and all this family stuff cleared up only by the beginning of junior year. My sophomore year was littered with Bs as I had to struggle with a broken up family life. Junior year, after it had settled down a little bit, I received 4 As and a B in first semester (3 AP classes, Spanish 4th year, and Virtual Business) but slipped second semester and got 2 As, 3 Bs.</p>

<p>This Junior year me and a friend won first place at the New York International Trade Fair for our website (hundreds of schools from dozens of states and countries competed) and I now do freelance programming for small companies and organizations around the world. </p>

<p>Most important however, is the stuff that I do off screen. I don't participate in many, if any, extra curricular activities and instead spend that time actually learning. I have so far taught myself calculus II and III, linear algebra, differential equations and the university level physics leading up to quantum mechanics, which I am currently learning along with partial differential equations. I am also currently learning electrical engineering and aerodynamics for the Team America Rocket Challenge and my computer science, both theoretical and practical, is well beyond the levels of most (equivalent to most Techers since I've done nothing but computers in the last 10 years including programming, security, graphics, etc.)</p>

<p>Even with all the learning I had nothing to show for it so I am taking Ph135abc and Ae160ab at Caltech my senior year. It's not for credit or even auditing (Caltech is a closed campus) but I'll be taking all the homework and tests regular students will as well as sitting in/doing all of the projects (if any) and lectures. I have received permission from the professors to do so and at least one of them has promised me a letter of recommendation before college applications start going out. I am also looking at taking Cs156 and Ee051 which is computer science, which I have a lot more experience with then the Ae/Ph class.</p>

<p>Obviously I will go through at most half the second term in the classes but will that help? The two classes I'm taking for sure are graduate level courses, well beyond what my high school or the local community college has to offer. With the time I have available my senior year (even with multiple APs) I believe that I will pass the initial two classes since I'll be in a position to collaborate with the other students in the class.</p>

<p>I am also entering TARC and ISEF this year but results won't be in until way after applications are due and I was thinking if it was worth waiting a year after high school before going anywhere and instead apply to Caltech/Stanford/etc. a second time? It would allow me to get an internship and take more Caltech classes which interest me more then anything I have ever had in high school.</p>

<p>Last question would be, how would my relationship to Caltech in general help while writing the essay? My mother worked at Caltech as a post doc and I spent countless hours walking around Caltech and talking to people there. Even now I go there quite often to visit people who I've known, including a tech administrator who got me started with my first computer and science in general. Should I play up on that when I write the essay? I have been interested in the sciences and Caltech for a long time, I just need something to somehow overcome the uninspiring grades.</p>

<p>Edit: sorry for the really really long post.</p>

2

<p>what a cool life story,
i guess it can’t hurt to apply,
you look like you have lots of passion and that other stuff caltech people look for</p>

3

<p>Like fizix2 said, nice story.</p>

<p>I’m sure if you write great essays explaining your situation, you’re more than in.
That’s a lot of passion you’re packing.</p>

4

<p>yeah, at first when I looked at ur stats, I was skeptical, but I definitely see ur strengths after you wrote about what u did</p>

5

<p>I am commenting on your resume because I find your story interesting. I am not knowledgeable about Caltech admissions, but I am fairly knowledgeable about Stanford admissions. You say that you might consider applying to Stanford a year after high school.</p>

<p>First I want to wish you well in whatever you choose to do. Your life has been a struggle and you deserve a chance to be successful.</p>

<p>Now for some realistic observations about your resume. I don’t know about Caltech, but at Stanford you would have to present some actual accomplishments rather than just tell them you are the smartest person ever. </p>

<p>You say that you have taught yourself Calculus II, III, university level physics, etc. Because you have nothing tangible to prove this, as an admissions officer I would view it with a great deal of skepticism.</p>

<p>You say that you are planning to take two classes at Caltech your senior year. But as I understand it, you won’t be taking the tests, getting a grade, or any credit. As an admissions officer, my view would be that anybody who has connections could do this. It doesn’t equate to any academic achievement because you are not being graded.</p>

<p>You claim you got an A- for Stanford’s EPGY Physics C course. I assume you mean the online course rather than the summer camp. This is a very expensive course and doesn’t seem to mesh with the story of being from a “broken” family.</p>

<p>You are a Russian immigrant and I assume the Russian language is spoken in the home. As an admissions officer I would ask why you wasted time taking Russian I at a community college. Simply to get an easy A?</p>

<p>Admissions officers are pretty darn smart. They can tell when someone is giving them jive in an essay. They have also seen every imaginable excuse for low grades.</p>

<p>You have an appealing story to tell that may get you where you want to go. My main advice for you college essays would be to stick to the facts in telling the story and talk about tangible achievements.</p>

<p>I have made some assumptions about your resume that may or may not be accurate. Please take or ignore my input based on what is helpful. I believe tough-love advice can be of more value than the typical CC post of “I think you have a great chance to get into wherever you apply.”</p>

6

<p>Thank you for your replies everyone, especially cardfan.</p>

<p>I agree about the mathematics not being tangible, which is why I am taking the Caltech classes. I WILL be taking the tests, doing all of the problem sets, and getting a grade. Though I will not be receiving credit, I will still be ranked within the classes (small as they are at Caltech) and the letters of recommendations from the professors (if I get them), will explicitly state my grade with relation to the rest of the class and in general, how well I performed.</p>

<p>I took the Physics C course with financial aid so it did not cost as much as it usually is. I may speak Russian fluently but when it comes to reading and writing, I may as well be a first year. The class really helped me to get back into reading and writing.</p>

<p>Yes you are right, your post was more helpful. I wrote down your comments to make sure and explain them in my essays, especially with the mathematics and the Physics/Russian courses.</p>

7

<p>Just out of curiosity, how was Mexico?</p>

<p>I can’t imagine being stuck in a country and not having a clue what people around me are saying :confused: (I mean, when I came to the US, I was lost in terms of understanding people, but I had some previous knowledge of English, but it seems you don’t know Spanish)</p>

8

<p>I could understand some of it because of Spanish class but yes, it was pretty bad. It didn’t really matter though because most of them spoke English. We lived in a cheap motel on the beach for the first three months and a lot of Americans go there so everyone needed to speak English.</p>

<p>The worst part was not the language, it was being stuck in a country, literally 20 meters from the border of a country in which I spent the last decade of my life (now 13), and not being able to go back because of bureaucratic nonsense. No friends, school, or anything to do. Just 4 months of just sitting there with a crappy laptop that started falling apart quickly.</p>