Clark Scholars Program!!

<p>Uh...haha..I did NOT do that....should've I? lol.</p>

<p>everyone who applied to rsi didnt get accepted. i think all the texas kids didnt bother w/ rsi. we also had two seniors so they obviously didnt apply to rsi. so i think there were maybe 5 of us?</p>

<p>btw im going to caltech next year. im doing their caltech-ucsd med scholars program. ill be at caltech w/ at least 4 other former clarkies (obviously not all from my year) and possibly 5 depending on where one other one decides to go.</p>

<p>^ Wow, that's great. Cal-Tech seems really fun with its small classes--there must be a lot of opportunity to get to know each other well!</p>

<p>im not sure if you are at all interested in caltech but ill just clarify for ur future reference</p>

<p>although caltech is a really small university, caltech's class sizes are comparable to other universities. classes on core (ones that everyone has to take to graduate) are usually large lectures with the entire freshman class so ~230 students im guessing. i heard upper level classes, like at any other university, are really small. the small size of caltech was nice, but since i also see advantages to a big school, this was not a decision factor for me. </p>

<p>i would say that at any size school, u will get to noe a particular group of ppl well. the difference is u prob noe a higher percentage of ppl at caltech vs. a larger university. i think socially, what makes caltech different is the house system, not the size.</p>

<p>When I said "classes" I meant "classes" as in Class of 2012, Class of 2013 ^^ I'm not particularly sure if I do like Cal-Tech, but ever since hearing that each class was only ~250 people, I'd grown to like it more and more. I agree that for every college, there's a niche, a group, of people who who you are closest with. However, for a class of only 250 people, there are a lot more social opportunities to get to each aquaintance more indepth than a college with an incoming freshmen class of 1000. I'd never actually seriously considered applying to CT but I think I may just do so in the fall. These small colleges are, for lack of better word, very cozy. There are advantages to bigger colleges, true. I prefer smaller environments and we all know de gustibus non est disputandum...</p>

<p>i kind of agree with marimare here about caltech. i prefer small classes very much b/c i function better in a small envrionment, espeically for a hearing -impaired person, and get more attention from professsors and other students on the materials, but there might not be much ppl to ask if u have a problem with a hw.
but i'm still going to apply to caltech and see what happens.</p>

<p>i got an email from ms durham saying that the final decisions havent been made yet</p>

<p>oh...great! how come one person already heard from them then? :confused: hehe.</p>

<p>We haven't yet made our final decisions regarding the 2008 Clark Scholars.
-the exact wording-
its kinda open to interpretation
ive grown obsessed about this thanks to cc btw!</p>

<p>
[quote]
ive grown obsessed about this thanks to cc btw!

[/quote]

I know right! lol.</p>

<p>let me emphasize once again that caltech's actually classes arent that small. lectures will still be lectures with LOTS of people. core classes like math1abc or chem1ab are basically with the entire freshman class.. so ~230 kids. i think you're going to find large lectures at most universities w/ hs class sized recitations. also interaction w/ profs i heard really comes from research or upper level classes where they are small.. but this would be the case at any university, not just caltech. really dont make the class size a deciding factor.</p>

<p>i think where size plays a role is more in the atomsphere and social environment at caltech. you prob wont be bffs w/ everyone, but you will at least be familiar with ppl's faces. and as with any school, you eventually develop your group of friends that you spend most of your time with. just cuz its small doesnt mean everyone is friends.</p>

<p>about having ppl to ask for help on hw.. from what i know, its the opposite of what you are saying wildchartermage. caltech really encourages collaboration on sets. i noe a lot of ppl consider hw time a sort of social time too. the high density of extremely intelligent kids makes caltech a great learning environment. also house system makes upperclassmen who have already taken the class more accessible vs a large unversity where there is less interaction between the years. although im not a caltech student, you will not find a shortage of help at caltech if you are willing to seek it out. </p>

<p>so i noe this is a clarks thread.. and im doing a plug for caltech. oops. but in case you are curious.. i believe everyone from clarks who applied to caltech has gotten in. and clarks is prob not necessary, i think its the research experience and passion for science that all clarkies share that really helps in the admissions process. although, i guess clarks isnt limited to science.. but thats what the research has been so far. perhaps there will be some changes this year. :)</p>

<p>dsl09--are you sure the calls have started? I don't want to doubt you but you first posted "I got a call", and then hastily editted that, actually, your friend got a call. Are you just pulling our leg here?</p>

<p>Oh well, from last year it seems like decisions take over 7 days to get out o_o;;</p>

<p>Good luck all! ^^</p>

<p>kelid--did you email Ms. Durham beforehand or did she just email you independently? If she just emailed you independently, then you might have a good chance of getting in!</p>

<p>hehe....Ms. Druham wouldn't just go around emailing ppl....well..20 ppl...but still, I highly doubt it.</p>

<p>hey mjchiu2k ,</p>

<p>thanks for the tidbits about caltech! just wondering....are those classes pretty "dry",like listenting to teachers talk about physics? Are classroooms mostly, like, just the teacher talk all the time and students just listen and take notes (do students copy notes from board or from listening?). Does caltech have any "disabled" people there and is caltech friendly to ppl with disabilties?</p>

<p>i'm sure that i'm going to be rejected from clark. Oh, did anybody got accepted into another summer program somewhere else? I did.....</p>

<p>you caught me. all right i got the call, but i felt kind of bad posting about how i got in. </p>

<p>but YES, i'm sure that calls have started. i just wanted to tell you guys that, but that probably made you more worried than not. -_-</p>

<p>edit: if you have any questions you can pm me... i won't be checking threads anymore though. i only came back to post about the call ><</p>

<p>^ Awww, that's so sweet of you!! You're so thoughtful!</p>

<p>I'm having a seriously bad premonition that working at the pharmacy would be the story for my summer. :/ hehe.</p>

<p>good luck you guys! just relax! if you get in, it'll be a great experience.. but if you don't, dont start freaking out and taking it personally. not getting in says little to nothing about how "good" you are or how college admissions will turn out. at caltech's pfw i met a girl who didnt get into clarks but got into caltech and mit so i mean there are def plenty of ways to being "successful"</p>

<p>and dsl congrats on rsi and clarks... although i would say u made the wrong choice =P but im sure whoever gets your spot will be eternally grateful. </p>

<p>wildchartermage-i hope i didnt give the wrong impression. im not actually a student yet at caltech.. although my familiarity with the school is prob greater than the avg prefrosh. basically ive been in love w/ caltech since my junior year so i noe a lot about the school. and w/ a number of former clark scholars there.. i have a pretty good insider info. so i guess my point is i really haveno way of answering ur questions really acurately. i noe from visting caltech and attending classes that the "dryness" depends on the class and the prof. i attended an economics class... which was lecture style.. but the prof did a good job of involving the students and making concepts applicable to real life. the biology class.. for non-bio majors was also pretty interesting. i heard that during one lecture the prof prearranged to have a student throw a ball at him in class.. then ended up chasing the wrong student out of the class room and around the building. somehow this related to biology.. im not sure. but i guess like hs, there isnt any way to generalize how all the classes are going to be.. cuz each prof is different. as for disabilities... i really am not sure since that is not something i typically pay attention to when i visit a college. im sure if you when to the caltech board and posted a message.. caltech students would be very happy to answer ur questions.</p>

<p>once again, best wishes to you all!!!</p>

<p>marimare-
i did email ms durham first, saying my parents do not speak english and since i'm from turkey theres the time difference as well
she told me that she will make sure dr. san fransisco knows about this and also said that the final decisions havent been made yet
but they apparently started calling people who are their first choices :(
i just wanna learn the result so that i can move on! :) that was the whole point of the email basically
but...
still waiting...</p>