Hello Everyone!
I’m getting started on my college apps and was wondering if you could recommend some colleges based on my stats.
ACT: 34 (Will retake in Sept)
SAT Subject Tests: Math 2 (800), Physics (October test), Chemistry (October Test)
GPA: My school doesn’t calculate GPA
Status: US Citizen but not resident
Course Load: My school doesn’t allow you to choose your courses (I live outside the US)
Extra Curricular:
Table Tennis: Played for 10 years. Few school level prices.
Piano: Completed Initial, 1, 2, 7 grades by Trinity College, 3, 4, 5, 6 by ABRSM
I was city topper in Grade 7.
Research: Did two projects: one engineering another math. I presented the math one at a conference.
Awards:
ISEF 3rd grand award + 1 special award
Siemens: Semifinalist
RSI Alternate
Qualified my region’s math Olympiad. Selected to take the national olympiad
Several math quizzes
Volunteer Work:
Volunteered at cancer hospital
Volunteered for food distribution to homeless people
Volunteered to distribute food, clothing during a flood
Prospective Major: Math/Computer Science/Engineering
Even your school doesn’t calculate GPA. The US Colleges will calculate it for you. You may want to prepare one just to be the guidelines for college application like this one
https://www.princetonreview.com/college-advice/gpa-college-admissions
Will you need financial aid? You are a very competitive candidate, but your chosen fields are the most competitive ones, and the most talented students from all over the world all seek admission to colleges like MIT and Cal Tech, and usually are disappointed. Only a small number of American colleges guarantee that they will meet need for international students, and, unsurprisingly, most of them are also the most selective institutions.
There are many good options, but a lot of international applicants are only interested in the leading “brand-name” colleges and universities.
What are some of your other interests? I always suggest that students build their lists “from the bottom up”: identify some “safe” colleges where you can be sure you will get in, can afford, and would be happy attending; proceed to choose “match” and “reach” schools afterward. Your safeties might be ones in your country of residence; very few overseas universities are as expensive as American ones.
It’s perfectly reasonable to construct your list using non-academic criteria. What are some of your hobbies, interests, preferences, and tastes? Would you like the “big-school” experience of Division I sports teams? If so, look at a lot of large, public universities. Don’t merely consider Berkeley and Michigan; also look at Clemson, Alabama, Iowa, et al. Do you want a lovely campus? Go beyond Cornell and Princeton, and consider Lehigh. Want a big, dynamic city? You aren’t limited to Columbia and MIT; there are Pitt, Temple, et al. Are you a skier/snowboarder, windsurfer, hiker? Choose locations that facilitate those. Preference for climate? You won’t need to worry about brutal winters at Arizona State.
@artloversplus
Ever since 9th grade, I’ve been scoring A+s in all my tests. Based on that and the link you provided, I guess my unweighted GPA should be 4.0. Since my school has no thing as ‘choosing your courses’, there are no accelerated courses and hence, no weighted GPA.
@woogzmama
No, I don’t require financial aid. Moreover, though I live abroad, I am a US citizen. So, I’m not an international. I’m a domestic student.
Right, OP is a US citizen. But will have no affordable in state options.
Re#4, @OP - Do your parents officially have a US address or domicile? If not, then intparent is correct; you would not qualify as in-state at any US colleges. Since financial aid isn’t a concern, then your eligibility for federal loans will not affect your choices.
I would certainly look at RPI, WPI, Purdue, Northeastern, Drexel, Lehigh, as well as MIT, CalTech, et al.
@woogzmama #6
My parents do have an official US address in Texas. So I believe I will qualify for in-state at public colleges in Texas. Thank you for the college recommendations.
@eulerboy your transcript has to come from a Texas school.
Oh okay. I wasn’t aware of that.
You also can look at UC Berkeley and UCLA, UCSD etc as you will be full pay in most public univ. If you like get some merit aids, look at Rochester, USC, Reed, Harvey Mudd and CMU etc.
Lucky you that can afford college without financial aids. So your family can comfortably pay $65k/year? There are many good engineering schools you may apply even for some reach schools.
@artloversplus #10
Thank you. I shall look into these schools.
@billcsho #11
They’re not comfortable as such. It’s jus that we don’t qualify for aid anywhere.
There’s a big difference between not qualifying for financial aid and being able to afford $65-75K/year. You need to find out how much your parents will pay before you start adding colleges to your list
^Exactly. You should look for some schools that may potentially give you merit scholarships to lower the cost. Nevertheless, that means you may need of aim slightly lower as ACT34 is not likely to get you significant scholarship, if at all, at top schools.
@boulders #14
My parents can afford to pay $65-75k per year.