Consolidated MIT Class of 2017 EA/RD Results

hennebou · March 13, 2013, 9:38pm

Decisions are released tomorrow – May the odds be ever in your favor !

Posting your results here may help future applicants; just copy the following:

[noparse]
Pick one:
Decision: Accepted
Decision: Waitlisted
Decision: Rejected

Objective:[ul]
[li] SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):[/li]
[li] SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):[/li]
[li] ACT (breakdown):[/li]
[li] ACT superscore (breakdown):[/li]
[li] SAT II (subject, score):[/li]
[li] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0):[/li]
[li] Weighted GPA:[/li]
[li] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):[/li]
[li] AP (place score in parentheses):[/li]
[li] IB (place score in parentheses):[/li]
[li] Senior Year Course Load:[/li]
[li] Number of other EA applicants in your school:[/li]
[li] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.):[/li]
[li] Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.):[/ul][/li]
Subjective:[ul]

[li] Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):[/li]
[li] Job/Work Experience:[/li]
[li] Volunteer/Community Service:[/li]
[li] Summer Experience: [/ul][/li]
Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]

[li] Essays:[list][/li]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure:[/li]
[li] Department at MIT:[/li]
[li] Trait Most Proud Of:[/li]
[li] World You Come From:[/li]
[li] Significant Challenge:[/li]
[li] Additional Essay/QB Essays:[/ul][/li]
[li] Recommendations (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul][/li]
[li] Teacher Recommendation #1:[/li]
[li] Teacher Recommendation #2:[/li]
[li] Counselor Rec:[/li]
[li] Additional Info/Rec:[/ul][/li]
[li] Interview:[/li]
[li] Art Supplement:[/list][/li]
Other[ul]

[li] Date Submitted App:[/li]
[li] U.S. State/Territory or Country:[/li]
[li] School Type:[/li]
[li] Ethnicity:[/li]
[li] Gender:[/li]
[li] Income Bracket Range:[/li]
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development):[/ul][/li]
Reflection[ul]

[li] Strengths:[/li]
[li] Weaknesses:[/li]
[li] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected:[/li]
[li] What would you have done differently?:[/ul][/li]
Other Factors:

General Comments & Advice:

[/noparse]

molliebatmit · March 13, 2013, 10:59pm

Good luck and best wishes to everyone!

Your local hopelessly anal-retentive moderator would like to remind you that this here is a no-chat thread, and chat posts will be moved to the decisions discussion thread.

I will open the thread just before 6:28 PM EDT.

EDIT, 7:50 PM: So sorry! Please forgive me. Open now.

discrete · March 14, 2013, 8:02pm

Decision: Rejected

Objective:[ul]
[] ACT (breakdown): Composite 36, English 35, Math 36, Reading 36, Science 36, Writing 8
[] ACT superscore (breakdown): see above, but with an 11 on the writing
[] SAT II: (From most recent to least recent) Literature 730, Physics 710, USH 740, Bio-E 630, Chem 560, Phys 680,. Chem 570, Math 750, Phys 670, Chem 570, Math 690, Phys 670
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.5
[] Weighted GPA: 3.85
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 43 / 507 (top 8.4%) based on weighted GPA
[] AP (place score in parentheses): APUS 5, APWH 5, AP Calc AB 4
[] Senior Year Course Load: Dual-enrolled at a local college, working on a computer science degree in my senior year of high school
[] Number of other applicants in your school: Less than 10?
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): None[/ul]

Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): Extemporaneous speaking, student government (numerous elections won), several other minor activities
[] Job/Work Experience: Math tutor at a learning center
[] Volunteer/Community service: None
[] Summer experience: Taking college courses and attending various conferences.[/ul]

Writing (Write a brief description and Rate Quality on 1-10 Scale; 10 as Best):[ul]
[] Essays (Include Subjects): 8. Talked about the importance of collaboration.
[] Common App Main: Wrote a reflection on the death of my best friend’s father, and how I neglected to help my best friend through the grieving process. 9
[] EC Short Answer: Wrote about a high-pressure situation in student government that I helped defuse
[] Teacher Recommendation #1: Physics teacher. 8
[] Teacher Recommendation #2: History teacher. 8
[] Counselor Rec: Did not read
[] Additional Rec: Student government director. 8
[] Art Supplement: None
[li] Research Supplement: None[/ul][/li]
Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[] Essays:[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: Dancing[/li][] Department at MIT: Computer Science
[] Trait Most Proud Of: My social skills
[] World You Come From: Described parents’ religious background
[] Significant Challenge: Calming down a group of people concerned about their safety
[] Additional Essay/QB Essays:[/ul]
[] Recommendations (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[li] Teacher Recommendation #1: Physics teacher. 8[/li][] Teacher Recommendation #2: History teacher. 8
[] Counselor Rec: Did not read
[] Additional Rec: Student government director. 8[/ul]
[] Interview: Went incredibly well.
[] Art Supplement: None[/list]

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: 12/12/12
[] State (if domestic applicant): Minnesota
[] Country (if international applicant):
[] School Type: Suburban public high school
[] Ethnicity: Asian
[] Gender: Male
[] Income Bracket: Wealthy
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None known[/ul]

Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: Perfect ACT, polished essays.
[] Weaknesses: Low unweighted GPA, low SAT IIs
[] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: My weaknesses, of course.
[] Where else have you been accepted/deferred/rejected: Waiting on some more letters
[*] What would you have done differently?: Gone back 4 years in time to get a higher GPA[/ul]

Lanayru · March 14, 2013, 8:04pm

Pick one:
Decision: Accepted

Objective:[ul][] SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 780/800/800/12
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): same
[] ACT (breakdown): n/a
[] ACT superscore (breakdown): n/a
[] SAT II (subject, score): 800s on three
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): all As
[] Weighted GPA: 4.4?
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): top 5%
[] AP (place score in parentheses): 5’s in 7 subjects
[] IB (place score in parentheses): n/a
[] Senior Year Course Load: 6 APs
[] Number of other EA applicants in your school: about a dozen?
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): not a lot
[] Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): too many[/ul]

Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): stalk my other posts (:
[] Job/Work Experience:
[] Volunteer/Community Service:
[] Summer Experience:[/ul]

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[] Essays:[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: aquariums! 10/10[/li][] Department at MIT: Bioengineering! 8/10 - some specific references here and there
[] Trait Most Proud Of: quirkiness 7/10 - wrote it last minute
[] World You Come From: my not-so-ordinary family 0/10
[] Significant Challenge: secret topic! 9/10
[] Additional Essay/QB Essays:[/ul]
[] Recommendations (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[li] Teacher Recommendation #1:[/li][] Teacher Recommendation #2:
[] Counselor Rec:
[] Additional Info/Rec: additional rec from AG coach[/ul]
[] Interview: pretty normal
[] Art Supplement: sent one for the clarinet[/list]

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: on the deadline
[] U.S. State/Territory or Country: GA
[] School Type: public
[] Ethnicity: you know
[] Gender: the drill
[] Income Bracket Range:
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development):[/ul][/li]
Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths:
[] Weaknesses:
[] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected:
[] What would you have done differently?:[/ul]

Other Factors:

General Comments & Advice: So excited!

sebsan · March 14, 2013, 8:05pm

Pick one:
Decision: Accepted

Objective:[ul][] SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): Didn’t send.
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):N/A
[] ACT (breakdown):31
[] ACT superscore (breakdown): 33 M, 31 R, 30 E, 30 S, 8 w
[] SAT II (subject, score):800 Chemistry, 760 Math II
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
[] Weighted GPA:4.24 on a 4.25 scale
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):1/205
[] AP (place score in parentheses):None (you can only take APs in your senior year)
[] IB (place score in parentheses):Not offered
[] Senior Year Course Load:AP Calculus, AP English, AP Stats, AP Chem, AP Spanish
[] Number of other applicants in your school:4 (3 of which got in EA)
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.):None lol
[] Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.):1st Place Regional Science bowl, 1st Place ACS Regional Chemistry Olympiad, USNCO Qualifier, Presidential Scholar Candidate [/ul]

Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):Chemistry Club (president), Science Bowl Team, Math Club, Tutoring, National Honor Society, English Club
[] Job/Work Experience:None
[] Volunteer/Community Service:Around 150 hours
[] Summer Experience:none[/ul]

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[] Essays:[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure:9, reading poetry[/li][] Department at MIT:6, department of chemistry
[] Trait Most Proud Of:7? Talked about my obsession with random trivia lol
[] World You Come From:8, talked about my island and its not so good educational system
[] Significant Challenge:7, talked about something personal
[] Additional Essay/QB Essays:[/ul]
[] Recommendations (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[li] Teacher Recommendation #1:10, Chemistry teacher, she loves me[/li][] Teacher Recommendation #2:7, English teacher, it was pretty good
[] Counselor Rec: Didn’t read
[] Additional Info/Rec:[/ul]
[] Interview:Out all the college interviews, I think that this was the best one.
[] Art Supplement:[/list]

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App:12/27/2012
[] U.S. State/Territory or Country:Puerto Rico
[] School Type:Private
[] Ethnicity:Puerto Rican
[] Gender:Male
[] Income Bracket Range:95k
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): URM[/ul][/li]
Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths:URM, essays (sort of)
[] Weaknesses:ACT scores
[] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected:I have no idea xD
[] What would you have done differently?:well I got in, so nothing I guess!
[li]Where else have you been accepted/deferred/rejected:Purdue University, Brown University (Likely letter) currently waiting on UChicago, Yale, Harvard, UPenn, and Cornell[/ul][/li]
Other Factors:

General Comments & Advice: GAAAAAH I’m so excited!, can’t wait to see you guys in CPW

FraNeighbor · March 14, 2013, 8:13pm

Decision: Rejected

Objective:[ul][] SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): (740/600/640)
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 1980
[] ACT (breakdown): 32M, 32E, 28R, 28S
[] ACT superscore (breakdown): 30
[] SAT II (subject, score): Bio M 780, Spanish 780, M2: 750
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.86
[] Weighted GPA:4.62
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 12/508
[] AP (place score in parentheses): Too many
[] IB (place score in parentheses): Thus far, Psychology SL (5)
[] Senior Year Course Load: IB Bio HL, IB History of the Americas HL, TOK, IB English, AP Psychology, IB French SL, IB Math SL
[] Number of other RA applicants in your school: 4 total
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): Too lazy to write lol
[] Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): AP Scholar, Honor Roll[/ul]

Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): French National Honor Society, HSL, Student Government, SAT/ACT Prep-Course
[] Job/Work Experience: Basketball Stats Taker
[] Volunteer/Community Service: Summer Camps, Graphics Maker
[] Summer Experience: Not sure what to put…[/ul]

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[] Essays: 8[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: 9[/li][] Department at MIT: 6
[] Trait Most Proud Of: 9
[] World You Come From: 9
[] Significant Challenge: 6
[] Additional Essay/QB Essays:Thought they were good [/ul]
[] Recommendations (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details): 8[ul]
[li] Teacher Recommendation #1: 10[/li][] Teacher Recommendation #2: 8
[] Counselor Rec: 9
[] Additional Info/Rec: - [/ul]
[] Interview:8
[] Art Supplement: - [/list]

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: Dec. 29th
[] U.S. State/Territory or Country: Florida/US
[] School Type: Public
[] Ethnicity: Hispanic (Puerto Rican)
[] Gender: Male
[] Income Bracket Range: <$25K
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): URM, First Gen, Development[/ul][/li]
Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: Maybe Hispanic lol
[] Weaknesses: Everything lol
[] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: GPA, Scores
[] What would you have done differently? GPA and scores much higher[/ul]

**General Comments & Advice: If you want this, don’t take it easy. Work hard on every little assignment. **

Justanothersr · March 14, 2013, 8:14pm

Decision: Deferred(EA) ->Rejected

Objective:[ul][] SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): Didn’t Send
[] ACT (breakdown): 35: 36, 35, 36, 31
[] ACT superscore (breakdown): 35: 36, 36, 36, 33
[] SAT II (subject, score): Math II - 800, Biology M - 760
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.99
[] Weighted GPA:
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 1% in class of 750
[] AP (place score in parentheses): 5: Chemistry, Biology, Calculus BC, Calculus AB Subscore, US Government and Politics, English Language, Computer Science
Taking: Macroeconomics, Microeconomics, Physics C Mechanics, Physics C E & M
[] IB (place score in parentheses):
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics C, Linear Algebra/Multivariable Calculus, AP Economics, AP Senior English, CS Data Structures, Dual-credit Digital Electronics
[] Number of other applicants in your school: 15 or so
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): Eagle Scout, FIRST Robotics State Champion
[] Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.):
Many common awards:
National Merit Scholar
AP Scholar with Distinction
National Honor Society
National Latin Honor Society,
etc.
[/ul]
Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): FTC Robotics: 11, 12; team captain of state championship winning team that started in 2011.
Boy Scouts of America: 9, 10, 11, 12; Eagle Scout and Senior Patrol Leader.
Congressional Debate: 9, 10, 11, 12; Qualified Legislation for State Tournament.
Leo Club: 12; confounding Vice President.
Others: Advisory Council to the Superintendent (9, 10), Recreational Tennis (9, 10, 11), Latin Club, and A/V Technician.
[] Job/Work Experience: Information Technology Intern with small business for junior year, electrical engineering aid with local business for senior year, and editor to credential-earning gaming website
[] Volunteer/Community Service: around 200 hours including Eagle Scout Project.
[] Summer Experience: Camping with Boy Scouts and employment[/ul]

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[] Essays:[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: Camp with my fellow Boy Scouts. Not my best essay because I didn’t take it the way others seem to have. It should have been a different topic. [/li][] Department at MIT: Cognitive Science. This essay was my strongest, because it focused on specifics at MIT.
[] Trait Most Proud Of: Intellectual Curiosity. I talked about how many TED Talks, Khan Academy lectures, and wikipedia articles I have viewed. This seems to be a popular topic, sadly.
[] World You Come From: Although I live in a relatively privileged world, I pursue my passions with absolute intensity and interest. Notably, I don’t contribute much to the diversity of any school.
[] Significant Challenge: Robotics as a learning experience
[] Additional Essay/QB Essays:[/ul]
[] Recommendations (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[li] Teacher Recommendation #1: Didn’t read, but it was from my AP Government teacher. I went to her wedding, so I imagine it was good. [/li][] Teacher Recommendation #2: My AP Computer Science teacher wrote a rather vague and general recommendation for me. Certainly not the best recommendation possible, but it was still very positive.
[] Counselor Rec: I presume that this was lackluster, as I do not particularly known my counselor very well. He manages around 500 students.
[] Additional Info/Rec:[/ul]
[] Interview: Went great! I spent nearly 1:45 at my interviewer’s office talking about everything from Freakonomics to hacking the Marriott’s sign. I ended up sending my interviewer my extra copy of a book he was looking forward to read.
[] Art Supplement: Ha.[/list]

Other [ul]
[] Date Submitted App: October 30th
[] U.S. State/Territory or Country:Withheld
[] School Type: Public
[] Ethnicity: White
[] Gender: Male
[] Income Bracket Range: 150k
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athlete, development): none [/ul][/li]
Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: Interview, academic standing within high school, commitment and execution of final goals.
[] Weaknesses: Lack of diversity aspect. Less than perfect essays.
[] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Mainly, I’m just a white, unspectacular male from a top high school in major metropolitan area. I haven’t cured cancer, made a nuclear reactor, or grown up in poverty.
Also, I didn’t write essays that separated me from the crowd. In retrospect, my essays were on common topics. I should have chosen to write about more obscure topics, and I should have attempted to appear more honest throughout my application.
[] What would you have done differently?: I would have dramatically changed the tone of my essays. I would have also submitted other applications before MIT. MIT was my first application and received my least polished essays. [/ul]

Other Factors:

General Comments & Advice:
This result was totally expected (but that doesn’t make it any better).
Congratulations to everyone that got in! I’ll probably keep trying to find a way into Cambridge, whether for a graduate program or as a transfer next year. I’m still waiting on UChicago, Carnegie Mellon, Cornell, Johns Hopkins, and Stanford.

Thankfully, I’ll never have to feel stupid looking through one of these threads ever again.

nefliege · March 14, 2013, 8:19pm

Decision: Rejected

Objective:[ul][] SAT I 2250 (breakdown M 740/CR 780/W 730/Essay 8):
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): -
[] ACT (breakdown): -
[] ACT superscore (breakdown): -
[] SAT II: Math II 800, Physics 800, German 680
[] Unweighted GPA: 5 something/out of 6
[] Weighted GPA: -
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 3/117
[] AP (place score in parentheses): -
[] IB (place score in parentheses): -
[] Senior Year Course Load: Additional IT, Physics, Math, German and Chemistry classes, on top of the required curriculum
[] Number of other applicants in your school: 0
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): Finalist of Polish Physics Olympiad
[] Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): some [/ul]

Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): Math Club, Chemistry Club
[] Job/Work Experience: working full time right now in McDonald’s, aww yeah
[] Volunteer/Community Service: -
[] Summer Experience: Gliding course[/ul]

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[] Essays:[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: Walking 7[/li][] Department at MIT: Aerospace Engineering 6
[] Trait Most Proud Of: individuality 1
[] World You Come From: trapped in a small town in Poland 3
[] Significant Challenge: pushing my boundaries 5
[] Additional Essay/QB Essays: moving to the UK for my gap year(s), horrrible 1[/ul]
[] Recommendations:[ul]
[li] Teacher Recommendation #1: Math teacher, 3[/li][] Teacher Recommendation #2: English teacher, submitted two (the original one plus the one he wrote for UCAS), 4
[] Counselor Rec: 1
[] Additional Info/Rec: - [/ul]
[] Interview: Honestly no idea. I think the guy was rather unimpressed.
[] Art Supplement: - [/list]

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: 1/1/13
[] U.S. State/Territory or Country: Poland
[] School Type: Public
[] Ethnicity: Polish
[] Gender: Female
[] Income Bracket Range: ~10,000$
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): Only female Physics Olympiad finalist in Poland? lol[/ul][/li]
Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: Physics Olympiad, stellar final exams scores (all 90%+), moving to a foreign country at 18 all by myself
[] Weaknesses: horrible essays written a few hours before deadline, dull personality, no drive
[] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I’m just not an MIT material, that’s all there is to it, really.
[] What would you have done differently?: Nothing, that’s the second time I was rejected, I doubt there is a single thing I could do to change it[/ul]

**Other Factors: - **

**General Comments & Advice: I’ll be going to Cambridge or Imperial anyway, so I’m not upset. Congratulations to the admits To all you fellow rejects: don’t despair.
I’ve battled depression for most of my conscious life… I’m clear of it now, and you know what, not being depressed is much more important to me than not getting in, I’d never exchange them. There are worse things than being rejected. **

splosions117 · March 14, 2013, 8:21pm

Decision: Accepted

Objective:[ul][] SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 800/750/750/08
[] ACT (breakdown): 36 on all sections, 08 on the essay
[] SAT II: Physics 750, Math II 800, U.S. History 690, World History 740
[] Unweighted GPA: 4.0
[] Weighted GPA:4.636
[] Rank: 2/538
[] AP: AB Calc (5), World (4), Psych (5)
[] Senior Year Course Load: BC Calc, Econ Honors/AP Gov, Humanities, AP Lit, AP Stats, AP HuG, APUSH
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): 0
[] Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): AP Scholar, Honor Roll, National Merit Finalist[/ul]

Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars: NHS President, MAT President, Interact President, Academic Olympic Team Captain, SGA Member, Key Club, Drug Free Youth
[] Job/Work Experience: Part time job at Chick-fil-A
[] Volunteer/Community Service: Through above mentioned clubs
[] Summer Experience: DukeTIP program in mathematics[/ul]

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: October?
[] U.S. State/Territory or Country: Florida
[] School Type: Public
[] Ethnicity: White
[] Gender: Male
[] Income Bracket Range: 30 - 50 k
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): none that I’m aware[/ul][/li]
Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: Essays
[] Weaknesses: Didn’t perform research/win competitions/other insane stuff I’ve heard of
[] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Essays or my mid-year report
[] What would you have done differently?: Nothing, it worked out great apparently[/ul]

General Comments & Advice:
I have no idea if this helped, but on my mid-year report where they asked if anything had changed or “to just write something entertaining” I wrote a quote from Isaac Asimov because it was reading his works that inspired me to go into computer science and it seemed appropriate for their jobs going through applications
Quote:
It is change, continuing change, inevitable change, that is the dominant factor in society today. No sensible decision can be made any longer without taking into account not only the world as it is, but the world as it will be.
Isaac Asimov

decision2017 · March 14, 2013, 8:30pm

Decision: Waitlisted

Objective:[ul][] SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):
[] ACT (breakdown): 35 Composite (36 M 36 S 35 E 34 R)
[] ACT superscore (breakdown):
[] SAT II (subject, score): 780 Bio 800 MII
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
[] Weighted GPA: 4.8
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1
[] AP (place score in parentheses): Bio 5, BC 5, Chem 5
[] IB (place score in parentheses): Economics 7, French 6
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics, IB Bio, AP Stats, IB English, IB History, TOK
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): USABO Semifinalist, USNChO Semifinalist
[li] Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.):AP Scholar, NMSF [/ul][/li]
Subjective:[ul]
[li] Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):[/li]Research, Published paper in FASEB Journal
Debate, placed at nationals and bid to TOC
State Youth Commission Executive Member
Boys State

[] Job/Work Experience: Research
[] Volunteer/Community Service: Lots of Community work in disadvantaged areas with my youth commission
[li] Summer Experience: Lots of Research, lots of community service tutoring, activities [/ul][/li]
Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[] Essays:[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: Throwing Darts[/li][] Department at MIT: Engineering
[] Trait Most Proud Of: Flexibility
[] World You Come From: Spoke in the third person about my life in the format of a cool fiction book. It’s weird, but it’s because I love reading
[] Significant Challenge: Car crash injury, living with the death of a friend, taking almost a month off from school and activities because of the injury/depression
[] Additional Essay/QB Essays:[/ul]
[] Recommendations (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[li] Teacher Recommendation #1: Don’t know, assume 6[/li][] Teacher Recommendation #2: Don’t know, assume 6
[] Counselor Rec: Don’t know, assume 8
[] Additional Info/Rec:[/ul]
[] Interview: Forgot to request one oops
[] Art Supplement:[/list]

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: December 12, 2012
[] U.S. State/Territory or Country: California
[] School Type: Charter
[] Ethnicity: Asian
[] Gender: Male
[] Income Bracket Range: 200k+
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development):[/ul][/li]
Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: Research, Stats
[] Weaknesses: I didn’t really show interest in MIT like I should have. Amazing school, great people, but I applied to way too many schools and neglected effort to this place.
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I’d like to think I was a solid applicant, just did not put in enough effort, and MIT took candidates better than me presumably.
[] What would you have done differently?: Worked harder on MIT app, INTERVIEWED. [/ul]

Other Factors:

**General Comments & Advice: ** For all of you that were accepted, I extend my heartfelt congratulations. For those that were waitlisted/rejected, I’m not going to sugarcoat it. It sucks. But in the long run, you put your effort into something, and MIT acknowledged you. You will attend a college that you will have the time of your life at, and in 10 years, you won’t be thinking about how MIT didn’t accept you, but how College ABC did, and how that shaped your life for the better.

kawhitney · March 14, 2013, 8:46pm

Pick one:
Decision: Accepted

Objective:[ul][] SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 2160 (740/650/770/9)
[] ACT (breakdown):
[] ACT superscore (breakdown):
[] SAT II (subject, score): Physics-660, Math I-760
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.92
[] Weighted GPA: 4.75/5
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): I think 6/320
[] AP (place score in parentheses): English Lang & Comp(4), Latin IV Vergil(3)
[] IB (place score in parentheses):
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP English Lit & Comp, AP Calc AB, AP Physics B, AP Latin V, ceramics, web design, photography, & Independent study for robotics
[] Number of other RA applicants in your school: 3 others (all denied)
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): …None
[] Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): Abigail Adams, honor roll/high honors every term, scholar athlete
[/ul]

Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): Student Council (9-12, Class VP gr 10, EB SEMASC Rep. gr 11, EB Secretary gr 12), Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) (10-12), Math Team (10-12, high scorer), National Honor Society (10-12), Robotics Team (12), Cross Country (11-12), and more that I didn’t list on the app
[] Job/Work Experience: Arts for Youth Summer Camp (11 - assisted in computer, art, music, and drama classrooms with 7-12 year olds)
[] Volunteer/Community Service: various community activities with NHS and StuCo as well as a monthly member of a local library’s youth group
[] Summer Experience: I wrote I love camping with my family, going to the jersey shore, my youth camp job, and I think that’s it
[/ul]

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[] Essays:[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: I wrote about blogging on Tumblr. How it’s helped express my creativity, meet others, explore, and discover myself. Probably a 6/10[/li][] Department at MIT: I mentioned course 6-2, but my whole intro was how I’ve been “inventing” stuff since I was really little with my craft cabinet. I listed some of the inventions including how I thought of the “snuggie” before it came out. It’s a very MIT-ish essay so 9/10
[] Trait Most Proud Of: Self-motivation. How it’s led me to everything I want to be doing now - engineering. How I’ll continue to be self-driven, etc. 7/10
[] World You Come From: I’ve grown up from thriving in a small town with unranked classes, to a regional high school with smart kids that forced me to try harder and do better. I wrote how being around such impressive people makes me want to continue being around people with huge aspirations. 9.5/10
[] Significant Challenge: I wrote about creating/starting the first FIRST Robotics team at my school entirely by myself. MIT is a huge supporter of FIRST and I think they were incredibly impressed in how I did something that a group of adults usually do. 9/10
[] Additional Essay/QB Essays: In Application Part I, in the ethnicity section, I wrote about how my ginger complexion and lack of irish ethnicity has made me grow into an individual. it was a silly three-sentence thing.
[/ul]
[] Recommendations (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[li] Teacher Recommendation #1: Algebra II teacher freshman year, I got straight A+s and she recruited me for math team where I became a high-scorer my sophomore year. She offered to do my rec without me asking so i guess it’s pretty great.[/li][] Teacher Recommendation #2: My latin teacher for four years now. Only four of us take AP Latin V with him now. He used to be a lawyer and now teaches latin, probably the most intelligent and respectful man I know. He’s always been there for me so I’m guessing it’s a pretty amazing rec.
[] Counselor Rec: I’m not sure, she was out on pregnancy leave… I hadn’t talked to her in like a year.
[] Additional Info/Rec:[/ul]
[] Interview: Wow. Where to start? He was a great guy who graduated with the same degree that I want. I joked with him a lot, he TOLD me to go ahead and play “the robotics team” card when he asked certain questions. I guess I made him laugh a lot, 'cause then he told me funny stories about himself at MIT in return. I think I stood out to him since I told him I was going to be the next Steve Jobs, heh. He was taken aback immediately, but I think I really impressed him. The interview lasted 20 minutes longer than it was planned to and he ended it saying, “Well, I hope you had as much fun at this interview as I had.” Thanks, Michel, if you see this
[] Art Supplement:[/list]

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: December 31st, 2012 … 11:45 pm, hahaha.
[] U.S. State/Territory or Country: Massachusetts, USA
[] School Type: large suburban public school
[] Ethnicity: white
[] Gender: Female
[] Income Bracket Range: Middle Class/Upper Middle
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): The robotics team was probably my hook. Since it’s successful and all. [/ul][/li]
Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: Individualism, self-drive, leadership, inclination to engineering, female in engineering
[] Weaknesses: I had pretty low scores…especially my subject tests? And only a 2160.
[] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I think I owe a lot of this to my interviewer/creativity in my application
[] What would you have done differently?:Nothing, I’m beyond ecstatic I got in.[/ul]

Other Factors:

**General Comments & Advice: BE YOURSELF! Show personality! Be a leader! STAND OUT! If you’re a general computer geek, you’re just like a billion other applicants! Be well-rounded, start something new, expand your horizons, anything. Impress your interviewer and have fun! Don’t be a grade-obsessed stickler. **

Desperatefrench · March 14, 2013, 8:46pm

Decision: Rejected

Objective:[ul][] SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): only taken once (770/680/700)
[] ACT (breakdown):
[] ACT superscore (breakdown): never taken
[] SAT II (subject, score): (Biology E, 690)(Math II, 590)–>I know, really really bad…(World History, 690)
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): I’m giving mine out of 20 (trying to convert it would be meaningless, believe me) 16.81/20
[] Weighted GPA: none
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top tenth
[] AP (place score in parentheses): 0
[] IB (place score in parentheses): 0
[li] Senior Year Course Load:[/li]Math (honor) : trigonometry, calculus etc.
Physics-chemistry (honor)
Biology and Geology (honor)
German (primary foreign language)
English (second foreign language)
Spanish (third foreign language), optional
Physical Education
Civics
European section (history and geography in English), optional
History and geography, optional
Philosophy

[] Number of other EA applicants in your school: none
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): none
[li] Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.):[/ul]ranked 3rd at geology olympiads (regionally, first of my school), 11th grade[/li]German proficiency degree, low level (B1), obtained in 10th grade

Subjective:[ul]
[li] Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): [/li]guitar (five years), 7th–>11th
dance (4years), 8th–>10th
school chaplaincy, 11th and 12th grade
school council (11th and 12h) since it has been created

[li] Job/Work Experience:[/li]tutoring (12th grade)
cake sales (11th and 12th) (mostly for neighbors and family)
baby-sitting (11th and 12th grade)

[] Volunteer/Community Service:tutoring (association), 12th grade
[] Summer Experience:[/ul]baby-sitting
trip to Ireland (I don’t even remember if I mentioned that…it would not have changed anything)

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[] Essays:[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: (Guitar if I remember well, 7 or 8, talked about how lousy players most of us were but how we used to bond)[/li][] Department at MIT: (Biology (again my mind is kind of blurry, I’m not even sure of the number…), 7 or 8, why I liked biology and so on…)
[] Trait Most Proud Of: (will to meet new people (something like this…it seemed much better as I was writing it LOL), 8 or 9, I don’t remember much…)
[] World You Come From: (my godmother and the cultural mix etc., 8, I’d rather not give too much details…)
[] Significant Challenge: (tried to explain why I did not like math while having good grades and why I do now like math…(lame, I know…), 6 or 7…)
[] Additional Essay/QB Essays:<a href=“cultural%20background,%207%20(it%20was%20more%20explicative%20than%20anything%20else…)”>/list</a>
[] Recommendations (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details):[list]
[li] Teacher Recommendation #1: (German, 9.5 or 10, awesoooome : French teachers are pretty skimp on compliments but his report, like greaaaat !!!)[/li][] Teacher Recommendation #2: (Biology and Geology teacher, i would say between 7.5 and 9, I did not read it but I like her a lot and she does like me too so I guess…)
[] Counselor Rec: Very good, even though she was kind of bored to fill these forms she has been really committed and so on…
[] Additional Info/Rec:[/ul]none
[] Interview: not the best but I would say a 7.5 or maybe more (it was my first and therefore my view might be highly biased…)
[] Art Supplement:[/list]none

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: a day before the deadline if I remember well
[] U.S. State/Territory or Country: France
[] School Type: independant
[] Ethnicity: Black
[] Gender: Female
[] Income Bracket Range: < 60000 $
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development):[/ul]nothing ? or maybe…nothing MIT would have cared about really, LOL[/li]
Reflection[list]
[*] Strengths: pretty nothing, maybe recs…?, most rigorous course load of my school (the only one, I think I may have one of the most rigorous allowed for the Baccalaur

cynical555 · March 14, 2013, 8:47pm

Decision: Accepted

Objective:[ul][] SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):760/760/600
[] ACT (breakdown):
[] ACT superscore (breakdown):
[] SAT II (subject, score):Chemistry,800 Physics, 800, Math 2 800
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0):3.98
[] Weighted GPA: 4.3
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):6
[] AP (place score in parentheses): AP English Lang(5) AP Chem (5) AP Bio(5) AP Calc(5)
[] IB (place score in parentheses):
[] Senior Year Course Load:
AP Physics
AP Calculus BC
AP Economics
AP English Lit
Research
Research
Research
[] Number of other EA applicants in your school:
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): USNCO Honors Top 150, Top 200 USABO, Math day at the Beach 4th in Division B, Top 800 UsaPho, 8th in Regional Science Bowl, 3rd in Regional Science Bowl Hands-on,
[] Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.):[/ul]

Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):
[] Job/Work Experience:Research during the school year and the summer logging over 800 hours
[] Volunteer/Community Service:
[] Summer Experience:[/ul]

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[] Essays:[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure:5[/li][] Department at MIT:5
[] Trait Most Proud Of:7
[] World You Come From:5
[] Significant Challenge:5
[] Additional Essay/QB Essays:[/ul]
[] Recommendations (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[li] Teacher Recommendation #1:10[/li][] Teacher Recommendation #2:10
[] Counselor Rec:10
[] Additional Info/Rec:[/ul]
[] Interview:7
[] Art Supplement:[/list]

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: two seconds before deadline
[] U.S. State/Territory or Country:
[] School Type: Magnet Public
[] Ethnicity:Chinese
[] Gender:Male
[] Income Bracket Range: Low to Middle Class
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development):[/ul][/li]
Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths:
[] Weaknesses:
[] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected:
[] What would you have done differently?:[/ul]

Other Factors:

General Comments & Advice:

balderdash · March 14, 2013, 8:47pm

Decision: Accepted

Objective:[ul][] SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 800/720/770/10 (2nd sitting)
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 800/760/770/10 (took it twice)
[] ACT (breakdown): 34 E/36 M/34 R/35 S (only sitting)
[] ACT superscore (breakdown): 35
[] SAT II (subject, score): Math II 800, Math I 800, Chinese w/ Listening 800, Chemistry 800, Biology M 800, US History 790, World History 760
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
[] Weighted GPA: 4.68
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 3/ ~250
[] AP (place score in parentheses): Comp Sci A (5), Chemistry (5), Stats-self study (5), US History (5), and the rest of my APs senior year
[] IB (place score in parentheses):
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc BC, AP English Lit, AP Psych, AP Biology, AP French, AP Physics B
[] Number of other applicants in your school: 5 (includes EA and RA)
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): couple of individual state science and math awards (Always in Top 3), UNSCO Top 150 (2012), AIME Qualifier X2, National French Exam 11th in Nation, Merck Scholar, Outstanding Statesperson (NJ YAG)
[] Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): AP Scholar with Honor, National Merit Finalist, Merit with Distinction (Honor Roll) [/ul]

Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): Science League (9-12), Math League (9-12), Concert Chorus (9-12), Varsity Girl’s Volleyball (9-12), MUN (10-12), NJ YAG (10), ACSL (10-12), French Honor Society (10-12), NHS (11-12)
[] Job/Work Experience: none
[] Volunteer/Community Service: Soup kitchen, Reading program at local library (assist elementary school kids with reading), Cinderella’s Closet (provide prom dresses and accessories free of charge to lower income families)-everything was all four years
[] Summer Experience: Volleyball practice (we start in July :P), and a Virtualization class at AV Tech since my dad was teaching the class (summer of 2012) [/ul]

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul][] Essays:[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: Minesweeper (9/10, mirrored improvement in game with development in life)[/li][] Department at MIT: Course VI-Computer Science and Electrical Engineering (10/10, drew on specifics at MIT)
[] Trait Most Proud Of: Curiosity (10/10, integrated the Virtualization class and my constant questions and desire to learn material more in depth)
[] World You Come From: News? (9/10, its ubiquitous presence and my habit of watching it everyday, related it back to making a difference in this world)
[] Significant Challenge: Merck Day (10/10, an underdog story)
[] Additional Essay/QB Essays:Resume[/ul]
[] Recommendations (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[li] Teacher Recommendation #1: Honors Geo/AP Comp Sci teacher (10/10, basically said “I’m writing one for you” before I asked him, but I didn’t see it)[/li][] Teacher Recommendation #2: Honors English 3, junior year (Didn’t see it but 9/10? showed improvement in my writing throughout the year and I know he liked me)
[] Counselor Rec: 10/10 (Said I was the cream of the crop)
[] Additional Info/Rec:[/ul]
[] Interview: 9/10 It was over Skype with freshman at Harvard Med (graduated last year)
[] Art Supplement:[/list]

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: 12/27 I think
[] U.S. State/Territory or Country: NJ
[] School Type: Public
[] Ethnicity: Asian…
[] Gender: F
[] Income Bracket Range: 80,000-110,000
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athlete, development): nada[/ul][/li]
Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: Essays, and clear inclination towards science and math, possibly SAT IIs
[] Weaknesses: SAT score, lack of leadership, nothing extremely major for awards
[] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Female clearly interested in science and technology?
[] What would you have done differently?:nothing[/ul]

**Other Factors:**I feel that Virtualization definitely made me stand out. It’s an emerging field and for a high school student to take a class on it is rare (I was the only female and the other guys were like in their forties…awkward) and for the cultural background essay showed that I wasn’t a complete nerd (talked about how I follow college basketball, NBA, college football, and NFL despite being an Asian female)

**Where else were you Accepted/Rejected: ** Accepted Princeton SCEA, Accepted to Rutgers Pharmacy and Honors Science Program (both on presidential scholarship-full tuition)

**General Comments & Advice: **Congratulations to everyone else who was accepted! To those waitlisted or rejected: Please don’t get down, you will definitely end up at an amazing college! To future seniors: Just be yourself in the essays and follow your passions and interests

blackwood57 · March 14, 2013, 8:52pm

Decision: Deferred -> Rejected

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): (800M/710CR/780W/9) 2290
[] SAT II (subject, score): Math II 780, Chem 790
[] Weighted GPA: 4.48 (School doesn’t report)
[] AP (place score in parentheses): AP Chemistry (5), AP English Literature (4)
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP Spanish Language, AP English Language, AP Statistics, AP Calculus BC, AP Physics B, Music Theory
[] Number of other applicants in your school: 1-2 (also rejected)
[li] Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): High Honor Roll, Rensselaer Medal for Excellence in Math and Science (school award), Most Improved Awards in Cross Country and Track[/ul][/li]
Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):

[list][li]Cross Country (9th-12th, 12th:Captain, 3yrs on Varsity) []Indoor/Outdoor Track (9th-12th, 12th: Captain-elect) []Japanese Study (10th-12th, traveled to Japan) []Bass Guitar (8th-12th, talent show performances) []Class Representative (10th-12th) []Theology Club (11th-12th, Web Director, we provide a forum for students to voice religious opinions) []NJ Science League (9th-12th, 11th: individual divisional champion in Physics I) []NJ Math League (12th, limited to seniors only) []Belford Fisheries Project (11th-12th, worked with a local marine engineering firm to investigate decline in local fisheries) []National Honor Society (11th-12th) []Spanish National Honor Society (Treasurer, 11th-12th) [/ul][/li][li] Job/Work Experience: Work as Clerk/Technical Advisor at local variety store[/li][] Volunteer/Community Service: Teacher’s Aide at Local Summer Enrichment program for at-risk youth (4 summers, 500+ hours)
[li] Summer Experience: Traveled to Japan as Student Ambassador, Took Engineering seminar at Brown University[/list][/li]
Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[] Essays:[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: Play Bass Guitar (7)[/li][] Department at MIT: Course 2, specifically Marine Engineering (Course 2-OE) (7)
[] Trait Most Proud Of: Mediation, especially within my family (8)
[] World You Come From: Living up to my Father and Grandfather (8)
[] Significant Challenge: Cross Country and holding a diverse team together (8)
[] Additional Essay/QB Essays: Common App Short Answer about how I went to Japan, then came back and taught underpriviledged primary school students to fold paper cranes for the World Peace Museum in Nagasaki (6.5)[/ul]
[] Recommendations (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[li] Teacher Recommendation #1: AP Chem Teacher >8/10; very appreciative of my work ethic[/li][] Teacher Recommendation #2: Spanish Teacher; ?/10, she retired so I really don’t know about this one…
[] Counselor Rec: >9/10; she really liked me and told me she would write an awesome recommendation
[] Additional Info/Rec: 9/10 I sent in a supplemental recommendation from a man I know who used to be head of research for the navy. I seriously think this helped my app.[/ul]
[] Interview: 8/10, I was in a car accident earlier that day, so I was still a bit shaky, but it went over pretty well.
[] Art Supplement: I probably should have sent one in despite thinking that my music isn’t really good enough to be considered.[/list]

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: 10/17
[] U.S. State/Territory or Country: New Jersey
[] School Type: Public
[] Ethnicity: White (European)
[] Gender: Male
[] Income Bracket Range: $200,000+
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): None [/ul][/li]
Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: Volunteer work, recommendations, diverse number of extracurriculars
[] Weaknesses: No Major Awards; Not enough APs; My school is heavily focused on english and history, so not a ton of STEM opportunities
[] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Although I spent a couple of weeks on my essays, I probably should’ve done more. Other than that, no idea.
[] What would you have done differently?: Worked harder my freshman year. Should have sent in an art supplement and should’ve reached out to the coaches there despite not wanting to compete on the collegiate level.[/ul]

**General Comments & Advice:

After being deferred, I got two more letters of recommendation, one from the head of a local charity program I’ve worked with extensively and my cross country/track coach, a Harvard grad who writes REALLY good recommendation letters. I thought that definitely would’ve helped a little bit more considering I already had a recommendation letter from the former Head of Naval Research. I also wrote in my mid-year report how I had to hold my cross-country team together in the wake of Super-storm Sandy, but I wrote that pretty quickly and didn’t think much of it.

I still woke up this morning knowing that I was going to be rejected.

Obviously right now, I’m just a little upset, so take this all with a grain of salt.

Bottom-line: If you think you application is strong enough, it’s not.**

Yanks270 · March 14, 2013, 8:53pm

Decision: Rejected

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): didn’t send
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): N/A
ACT (breakdown): 36 (E), 34 (M), 31 (R), 31 (S), 10 essay
ACT superscore (breakdown): 33
SAT II (subject, score): MathII 790, Bio M 760
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Weighted GPA: 4.33
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/278
AP (place score in parentheses): 7 APs through junior year, four 5s, three 4s
IB (place score in parentheses):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc, AP Stat, AP Econ, AP Art History, AP Latin, AP English Lit, Honors Theology
Number of other RA applicants in your school: 3
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): Eagle Scout, black belt in karate, Presidential Volunteer Service Award for a few years, some other scouting awards that sound nice
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): AP Scholar with Distinction, Honor Roll, National Merit Commended Scholar, Math Honor Society, National Honor Society

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): Boy Scouts (few leadership positions and Eagle Scout), Venturing scouts, Math Honor Society (president), French Club (vice president and secretary), Latin tutor, SAT tutor, school religious group
Job/Work Experience: none
Volunteer/Community Service: lots of stuff through scouting and religious groups
Summer Experience: National Leadership training in New York, few week-long scout camps, two summer classes at high school

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Essays: 8
What You Do For Pleasure: 7
Department at MIT: 7
Trait Most Proud Of: 9
World You Come From: 8
Significant Challenge: 9
Additional Essay/QB Essays:
Recommendations (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details): 9
Teacher Recommendation #1: 8
Teacher Recommendation #2: 10
Counselor Rec: 7
Additional Info/Rec: none
Interview: 7/8
Art Supplement: none

Other
Date Submitted App: early December
U.S. State/Territory or Country: NJ/US
School Type: Catholic Prep School
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket Range: around 120K?
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): absolutely nothing

Reflection
Strengths: Grades, GPA, class rank
Weaknesses: white, male, from NJ, not having any really outstanding awards?
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: ^
What would you have done differently? idk

General Comments & Advice: While I knew that rejection was very likely because of how strong the other applicants always are, I was still hoping that I would get in, especially when everyone at school tells you not to worry because you’ll be accepted. Just 2 more weeks of waiting now…

shredsauce · March 14, 2013, 8:55pm

Decision: Waitlisted

Objective:[ul][] SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):2230
[] ACT (breakdown):33 and 35
[] SAT II (subject, score):750 physics, 800 math
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0):3.96
[] Weighted GPA:4.81
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):69 (not available)
[] AP (place score in parentheses):5s on 4 tests
[] IB (place score in parentheses):didn’t send
[] Senior Year Course Load:IB History, IB Math HL, IB Physics, Honor Band, Computer Art, IB English, IB Chemistry
[] Number of other EA applicants in your school: 6 or 7
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): none
[] Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.):[/ul] Ap Scholar, etc.

Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):sports, band, etc.
[] Job/Work Experience:Physics Lab.
[] Volunteer/Community Service:none really
[] Summer Experience:[/ul]Work, swimming

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[] Essays: decent
[] Department at MIT:physics
[] Teacher Recommendation #1:Good probably, but rushed
[] Teacher Recommendation #2:Same as above
[] Counselor Rec:Great, we’re good friends.
[] Interview:Pretty good.
[li] Art Supplement:N/A [/ul][/li]
Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: Jan. 1st…regretting that now!!!
[] U.S. State/Territory or Country:Utah
[] School Type: public
[] Ethnicity:hispanic
[] Gender:Male
[] Income Bracket Range:not sure.
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): URM[/ul][/li]
Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths:Some test scores, essays were well revised
[] Weaknesses: Dont apply on the deadline kiddies (not really sure if that matters, but just in case!) and SAT II physics.
[] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected:Too many cool kids in one place. Congrats to everyone that’s going there!
[] What would you have done differently?:[/ul] Start working on your app early, study the subject test, make sure you know your interview lines up with your app.

Other Factors:

General Comments & Advice: Congrats to everyone that got in! Have fun yeeee.

idreyn · March 14, 2013, 9:04pm

Decision: Deferred->Accepted

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 2330 (730 M, 800 CR, 800 W), did not send
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): One sitting, see above
[] ACT (breakdown): 35 (35 M, 35 S, 35 CR, 35 E, 8 W)
[] ACT superscore (breakdown): One sitting, see above
[] SAT II (subject, score): 790 Math II, 730 Chem (did not send), 770 Bio E
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.94
[] Weighted GPA: 4.26 or something? My school keeps changing their system
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Somewhere in top 5 of 330.
[] AP (place score in parentheses): 5 on Calc AP (self-studied), Compsci (self-studied), EnviroSci, US Gov. 4 on Chem.
[] IB (place score in parentheses): N/A
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP Stats, AP Bio, AP Physics, Calc II through U of M, Spanish V, etc.
[] Number of other EA applicants in your school: 0 (AFAIK)
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): None
[] Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): Presidential HR, NHS, NM Semifinalist, AP Scholar (with distinction, oooh), Rensselaer Sci/Eng Medialist (??), MIT Think! Honorable Mention 2012.
[/ul]

Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): Math team (captain), state science olympiad team (captain), knowledge bowl (de-facto captain, ha), Political Affairs Club (leadership committee), FIRST Robotics, cross country (varsity 4 years)
[] Job/Work Experience: Clerk/old-timey soda jerk at local drugstore, web developer for Canadian consulting firm, summer work study, Sweet Martha’s employee (shoutout to any MN applicants who get that!) μ ~ 20hrs/week.
[] Volunteer/Community Service: Habitat for humanity, volunteering at local homeless shelter, tutoring at my high school and disadvantaged middle school, volunteer coder for several projects, MIT Scratch community moderator, started fundraiser that raised $4000 for clean water projects, Justice Week 2013 coordinator at school.
[] Summer Experience: Hahaha, easily my worst aspect. I work a lot during the summer and otherwise I’m either running or just lounging around with my friends. Should have found a research internship maybe?
[/ul]

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[] Essays:[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: 8/10, talked about why I love to run. Genuine.[/li][] Department at MIT: 9/10, Media Lab. Pulled some heartstrings.
[] Trait Most Proud Of: 5/10, my curiosity and drive to learn outside school. In retrospect, kind of unoriginal.
[] World You Come From: 8/10, the unique Minnesotan experience. Funny and heartfelt but perhaps a little off topic.
[] Significant Challenge: 8/10, finding my leadership ability during aforementioned water project. Feels too condensed.
[] Additional Essay/QB Essays: None, just gave them a link to my personal portfolio[/ul]
Other (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details):
[] Teacher Recommendation #1: Bio teacher 2 years, full of high praise.
[] Teacher Recommendation #2: Humanities teacher/advisor for water project. Didn’t read but liable to be pretty good, she is an excellent writer.
[] Counselor Rec: Didn’t read, my counselor is probably sick of me showing up at her office with odd requests (QuestBridge, anyone?) but I’m sure it was very positive.
[] Additional Info/Rec: N/A
[] Interview: Went surprisingly well. EC works in digital forensics, which I know a couple of things about, and we talked about his career at great lengths. I gave good answers, conversation flowed well, we exchanged some laughs. Lasted 2.5 hours, probably a good sign.
[] Art Supplement: N/A
[/list]

Other[ul]
[]Date Submitted App: 11/19 (they extended EA because of Sandy so I jumped on that)
[]U.S. State/Territory or Country: MN
[]School Type: Private/Catholic
[]Ethnicity: White as the driven snow
[]Gender: Male
[]Income Bracket Range: <$20,000 which is actually a little misleading (complicated)
[li]Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): Single parent[/li][/ul]

Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: Strong test scores, essays genuinely reflected who I am. Interview went well and I was able to go deeper into ECs and some work I do. Strong volunteering/work.
[] Weaknesses: No medals, internships, etc. that show I am a “very serious science student”
[] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I would like to think that my deferral might have something to do with me submitting my EA app 19 days late! I…don’t know. I guess I just got lucky!
[] What would you have done differently?: I started from scratch with the MIT app once I was rejected from QuestBridge. In retrospect I might have been better off submitting my QuestBridge application as the longer essays reflected my personality better. Eh, who cares? I’m in!
[/ul]

Other Factors:
My midyear report was just a rap battle between Isaac Newton and Steve Jobs. Maybe that made some adcom stop and chuckle.

General Comments & Advice:
This is insane. 24 hours ago I wasn’t even thinking about the possibility of going to MIT and now…it’s a little too much to process! I was at peace with my “polite rejection” from December and I was/am pretty excited to attend the University of Minnesota. Wow. I guess I am one of the lucky ones…unreal. I don’t want to get all preachy because I know how hard this is to hear but all of us are going to do great no matter where we end up. MIT admissions is a highly stochastic process and it doesn’t reflect on your worth as a person! :D

Colleginator · March 14, 2013, 9:05pm

Decision: Rejected

Objective:[ul][] SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 770/800/750/9
[] SAT II (subject, score): Physics 800, Math II 800, U.S. History 800
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
[] Weighted GPA: 5.535 (on a 6-point scale)
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/335
[] AP (place score in parentheses): U.S. History (5), AB Calc (5), Chemistry (5), English Lang (5)
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics B, AP Bio, AP Euro, AP English Lit, AP Macro/Micro Econ, AP Calc BC, self-study AP Physics C: E and M, Mechanics
[] Number of other applicants in your school: 1
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): Nope
[] Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): NM finalist, AP Scholar w/ Honor, Wendy’s High School Heisman School Winner, a regional science fair award, etc.[/ul]

Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): NHS (President), MAT (President, Founder–my school’s first STEM club), Key Club (Editor), Cross Country/Indoor/Outdoor Track (Captain, Varsity), It’s Academic (Competing Team), Robotics Team at another high school, Model UN and Model Congress as an underclassman
[] Job/Work Experience: Temporary job at a farm
[] Volunteer/Community Service: Lots of tutoring, various community service through Key Club and NHS, a few other service jobs
[] Summer Experience:Cross Country practices, self-taught Python on OCW, took a stat class at the local community college, random farm work with my brother, took a required health course at summer school, etc.[/ul]

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Essays:[ul]
[] What You Do For Pleasure: 6. Personal, but generic subject
[] Department at MIT: 4. AeroAstro, but no demonstrated interest
[] Trait Most Proud Of: 6. Well written, but I don’t think it really captured who I am
[] World You Come From: 5. Again, well written but not entirely reflective of me
[li] Significant Challenge: 7.5. Liked this one[/ul][/li]
Recommendations (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[] Teacher Recommendation #1: 8. Said it was best she’s ever written (did not read)
[] Teacher Recommendation #2: 6. Positive and meaningful, by no means laudatory or MIT-level
[] Counselor Rec: 6.5. She likes me well enough (did not read)
[] Additional Info/Rec:
[li] Interview: Went well, about an hour. Interviewer was very nice and genuinely enjoyed his time at MIT [/ul][/li]
Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: 1 day before EA due date
[] U.S. State/Territory or Country: Domestic
[] School Type: Slightly below average (by testing data) public
[] Ethnicity: White
[] Gender: Male
[] Income Bracket Range: <45,000
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development):Brother is a farmer?[/ul] [/li]
Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: Scores and recommendations
[] Weaknesses: Essays, “uniqueness” factor
[] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: You can never know
[] What would you have done differently?:More involvement freshman year, would not have tinkered with my essays as much as I did. Worked very hard to find an internship but could not get one.[/ul]

General Comments & Advice:
Girlfriend is ranked 2nd in the class. I encouraged her to apply and she got in. I did not. Life is a bit rough sometimes.

Be yourself. Honestly. You cannot pretend to be someone you aren’t–you are you, and that is that. Do what you love, get good at it, make connections, and don’t ever tell yourself you can’t do something because it’s too hard.

Congratulations to all of those admitted, you guys have earned it.

evansgambit · March 14, 2013, 9:13pm

Decision: Rejected

Objective:[ul][] SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 2300 - 750M, 750CR, 800W
[] SAT II (subject, score): Math II - 770, Chemistry 700, US History 710
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): ~3.9
[] Weighted GPA: ~4.4
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 6/290
[] AP (place score in parentheses): AP Computer Science with Java (5), AP US History (5), AP English Language (5), AP Chemistry (4) - Currently taking AP Calc BC, AP Spanish, AP Modern European History, AP English Literature
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP Lit, Calc BC, AP MEH, AP Spanish, Astronomy, Honors Wind Ensemble, Honors Physics, Gym/Health (oh New Jersey)
[] Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): National Hispanic Recognition Program, NMSQT Commended Student, AP Scholar with Honor, Principal’s Honor Roll I guess haha
[/ul]

Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): Varsity Chess Team (Captain), Academic Quiz Bowl Team (Captain), Debate Team (Captain), Tennis Team, National Honor Society, World Language Honor Society (Spanish)
[] Job/Work Experience: None
[] Volunteer/Community Service: 4 years of volunteering to teach chess to children, random stuff with National Honor Society
[] Summer Experience: None[/ul]

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):[ul]
[li] I mean I don’t really know what they thought about my essays/letters/etc, I thought they were good and I thought my interview was good.[/ul][/li]
Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: excessively early
[] U.S. State/Territory or Country: NJ
[] School Type: Rural Public
[] Ethnicity: Hispanic
[] Gender: Male
[] Income Bracket Range: less than $60k
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athlete, development): URM, first generation, single parent, low income I guess[/ul][/li]
Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: Good SAT Score, hooks
[] Weaknesses: SAT IIs, SAT I Math, class rank, work experience
[] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: *shrug It’s MIT, the applicant pool is strong enough that there’s going to be lots of strong candidates, even among URMs
[li] What would you have done differently?: I probably should have applied EA considering I got my application in like 4 weeks before the EA deadline haha. I should have taken the SAT IIs again and not been satisfied with a 770 and a 700. Probably should have tried to raise my rank lol[/ul][/li]
**General Comments & Advice: Congratulations to everyone that was accepted! Hopefully I’ll have better luck at other schools. **

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