<p>Hi, Just wanted to know how many of us are here.
I'll start...
From: Beijing (Currently in the US)</p>
<p>Applying to: Yale, Princeton, MIT, Cornell, Johns Hopkins, Caltech, UPenn, Duke, and a few others that I can't think of right now...</p>
<p>SATs: 1560/800/800/790</p>
<p>EC: piano, track, nothing that significant</p>
<p>Other factors: Applying for FinAid</p>
<p>From Shanghai (Currently in US)
Applied to EA U Chicago and ED Swarthmore
Got accepted at both institutes.
Going to Swarthmore</p>
<p>SAT: nothing stellar like 1600s
ECs: Doubt could get any better
Great School Record
Self-studied AP Cal Bc, Phy B, US History, and Chem last year and get 5,5,5,4</p>
<p>Love Swarthmore because it's the top LAC!
Love LAC because..... Love Academic Challenge :-)</p>
<p>Congrats! Wow, I didn't know you could do another EA with an ED... Yeah, I'm applying to Chicago RD, doubful that I'll get in though w/ finaid...</p>
<p>Um...From Beijing (now in US), applying RD to Princeton and Yale....
SAT...bah 1510/790/750/670
EC: band and environmental club, in other words not much
GPA: 3.98
AP: 4 and 3 <em>runs and hides</em>
Probably will go to some obscure little local school....</p>
<p>From: Nanjing (Currently in Canada)</p>
<p>Applying to: MIT, Caltech, WUSTL, Johns Hopkins, Boston</p>
<p>SATs: 1600/800/800/800</p>
<p>EC: violin, piano, choir, maths club, newspaper...typical </p>
<p>Other factors: </p>
<p>Haha, no way my parents will let me go to the US without financial aid.</p>
<p>You guys got amazing stats.Did you attend high school in China or elsewhere?I attended high school in China and applied to some schools but definitely not Ivy Leagues.Got in Emory,UIUC,WashU,Tulane...You guys are truly amazing...</p>
<p>I go to high school here, but finished elementary school in China. Yeah, I applied to some Ivies but doubt that I'll get into any (just stayed up all last night to finish 12 apps...not a good idea)</p>
<p>How many years did you guys live in US/Canada? I was from Tianjin and lived here a few years but now I finally have my PR card.</p>
<p>Does Hong Kong count? LOL! I don't speak Mandarin--shame on me. ;)
My stats--SAT I (formally SAT: low verbal + near perfect math)
SAT II (formally achievment test: 780/710/540 (writing))
Got into CMU/WashU but transferred to Northwestern with a 3.9+ GPA on WashU's transcript.</p>
<p>Did you not like WashU for some reason? I'm applying there</p>
<p>Sam Lee,I speak both Mandarin and Cantonese,haha.Both fluently cuz I live in Shenzhen.</p>
<p>I'm from Taiwan but live in Spain, so either way I'm applying as an international student. I'm still in my junior year, but I'm trying to research as much as possible and compile a list of colleges and majors... </p>
<p>I took the SAT I on November, got 1470 (750V, 720M). As for the TOEFL CBT, I got 293.</p>
<p>Don't have as many Extra-Curricular activities as most of you :( so I guess I'm at a severe disadvantage, especially considering the amazing stats that everyone has :O</p>
<p>BTW, I speak Mandarin and Taiwanese</p>
<p>10 years ago, Northwestern had significantly better reputation. After transferring, I could tell right away that the caliber of students I was competing with was higher. WashU was not my first choice (got rejected at Brown) to begin with; I couldn't help flirting and wondering about Northwestern since it's only few hours away around Chicago. I got interested in engineering and figured I should be good enough to go to a more reputated school with a better engineering program; NU seemed to be what I wanted. I also considered Illinois-UC (engineering school didn't accept international applicants) and Michigan (cost was actually a bit higher than Northwestern for internationals--shockingly expensive for a public university). I got into CMU also but I really didn't like the campus much.</p>
<p>Hey Sam, are you still in NU? I am from HK too and I am applying to NU.</p>
<p>'kay, SAT 1420 (you guys up there have such fantastic scores), SAT II 760 760 760 in 2 phy and bio and maths 2c and an awful 600 in writing. i have self-studied AP macroecon, bio, phy, Cal BCand chem (since my school do not have AP) with scores 5 5 5 5 4. </p>
<p>Seems like most of you guys are born and received several years of education in china, then moved elsewhere!</p>
<p>I received education until senior high school in China.Then moved on to US to receive college education,hehe.Now studying at Tulane University.</p>
<p>y21cbe6b,</p>
<p>your stats look really great. you should be in great shape unless you bomb the HKCEE/HKAL. Which high school do you go to? How did you do on HKCEE?</p>
<p>I graduated already several years ago. I am getting OLD :(</p>
<p>By the way, what do you want to study?</p>
<p>I have to agree that it' MUCH harder to apply from mainland china directly.</p>
<p>Even if chinese (mainland) students have equal stats and ability as any of the other intnl students, they're disadvantaged at:</p>
<ol>
<li>TOEFL is not highly-regarded anymore and chinese students have to fly to hongkong to take SAT I (or II)</li>
<li>Mainland Chinese schools usually don't have a college guidiance counselor and that kind of results in a selection of college based on rank instead of fit. --harder to get into some colleges truly ask you "why".......H is the #1?....lol</li>
<li>It's almost impossible to get the two excellent recommendations written in insightful and eloquent english. Translation usually doesn't do the thing and a lot of students simply resort to write their own recs...which is even more dangeours.......</li>
</ol>
<p>These being said, still a lot of mainland chinese students get into top caliber colleges every year, but sometimes they do have to work through a twisted path.</p>
<p>and yy0712-</p>
<p>Your can do one ED and as many EA as you want at the same time as long as you are not applying EA to Stanford, Harvard, or Yale. You are binded to go to your ED school if admitted.</p>
<p>It is definitely hard to get in an American school from China. China's school have very different admissions process (based all on stats) and so most Chinese kids have all the number but hardly any ECs. I would recommend applying for a less prestigious college first and then transfer later. Besides, getting a visa is never guaranteed.</p>
<p>ditto on manchu_princess
And I would also recommend apply to the colleges outside of the chinese prestige spectrum. i.e. outside of the Ivies and Berkeley. U Chicago is one example and so as the LACs. A lot of top liberal arts colleges are first class in academics and are much easier to get in than HYP. Colleges like Carleton, Haverford, Reed are top notch and are seeking diversity from international students. Other colleges like Middlebury, Grinnell are totally need-blind for international admission. Just my 2 cents :D</p>