I will be applying RD to Harvard for admissions to the class of 2020. I have a few doubts regarding the research supplements that I intend to send to Harvard.
Throughout my high school, I have focussed on two research projects. It is important to note that I did NOT receive help of any kind at any point of my research. The first project falls in the Behavioural Science + CS category and it has been published in a peer-reviewed journal. My project has a real world application I did everything - from carrying out the research to developing the manuscript for publication. Please note that although my research has been published, it is not in the same league as Nature, PNAS, Annals of Mathematics and the likes. It has a fairly high impact factor but not as high as the ones listed in previous sentence.
In the second project, I developed a novel method for the early diagnosis of a specific form of cancer. I plan on entering it in the national science fair this year so that I can move on to ISEF and the Google Science Fair next year. I have also started the patenting process and I expect to attain the patent by the time I apply to colleges. I earlier planned on publishing my work but that seems highly unlikely now as a change in schedule does not permit me to devote enough time for developing a proper manuscript. So it is highly unlikely that my research will get published by the time I apply to colleges.
The problem is, I have heard that sending in unnecessary supplements can hurt one’s application. There is no doubt that every year, Harvard gets hundreds of applicants who have done commendable research at the highest level. A few of them might have even published their work. But majority of the people who do so receive help of a professor throughout their research. I did not receive any form of help. One of my work has been published while the other has been patented. One has a solution to a problem relevant to almost every school student while the other can accurately diagnose a specific form of cancer early in a way no one ever has.
The question: Which research should I send? Is it fine if I send both? What are the pros and cons of sending both in?
Just an abstract, maybe a short paragraph.
It’s not bad to have a mentor, btw. It implies a professional level of guidance and oversight, plugging into a valid project.
It doesn’t hurt to briefly describe. However, how do you expect them to vet your work? Just because it was published? If you are claiming these results as a hs junior, one could think there would be some sort of acclaim.
So, according to you, I should send in both and I should also briefly describe them. Am I right?
Second, I tried contacting professors but no one agreed to help me. After receiving a lot of rejections (read > 50), I thought that it would be best to carry out the project myself.
As for your claim of acclaim, the paper had been published just a month back. Although publishing as a HS student is rare, I am not the only one to have done it. There have been people who have done so before me and will continue to do so long after I die. As for the second project, I haven’t really told anybody except my family and a doctor that I have been consulting. The reason being that I do not want to bring in unnecessary publicity that I believe will harm my academic performance. I will be entering the national science fair this year in hopes of making it to Intel ISEF next year. So, expect acclaim then.
And, FWIW: many students who do research, do so in conjunction with a supervisory adult, who has credentials in the field, and acts as a mentor and advisor. The mentor usually writes an additional Letter of Recommendation to colleges which allows Admissions to understand the student and their accomplishments better. Research carried out by a student on their own shows that the student is self-directed learner, but it doesn’t carry as much weight as having a professor’s name attached to it.
Thanks, gibby. But I’d say, considering this is a college app, not for the pro audience, one short-ish paragraph each. Some few, focused words that inform them without overwhelming. Intrigue them. But show good judgment in keeping it contained. You can also give a link to the fuller descriptions, if they are interested or pass your file for a faculty look-see.
Thanks for replying and clearing that out! I’m glad that you could provide the links. Initially, I thought of copy-pasting the same abstract used in the published paper but I will have to change that now.
As for carrying out research without a mentor, I thought that it would hold more weight than research carried without a mentor. After all, they do get support all along the way. On the flip side, people who do carry out independent research (like me) do not receive guidance and have to take all the decisions.
While what you say about a mentor to validate your research and your accomplishments is true, wouldn’t a college say, in my case, prefer a person who, has not taken a single biology class at all, does not have parents who have studied biology at all, research on the idea and carry out all the relevant experiments. After all, I did find out a novel method for early diagnosis of cancer on my own.
So one final question: Should I ask an expert in the field of cancer research to write a letter for me in order to validate my work and my accomplishments?
Admissions Officers rely on adults in a supervisory capacity (teachers, professors, school principals, guidance counselors, mentors) to tell them how an applicant compares to other students their age. That’s true for your recommendation letters and research project. Student’s are much better off when they have a mentor validate their accomplishments – so, yes you should have an expert in the field write a letter about your research. Unfortunately, too many students have tried to deceive college admissions officers, claiming they did research on their own, or that their research was published in a peer review (meaning high school publication) that Admissions Officers tend to discount those activities and lump them together as self-directed learning. Harvard, in particular, has been duped in the past and I imagine is now more vigilant than ever: http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2010/12/16/harvard-wheeler-college-guilty/?page=single
Many large high schools in the United States publish their student’s works in-house. Some publications are hard bound, while others are available just on-line. It’s basically peer publications for math, literary works, bio chem research, art etc. which are fairly common, at least in New York City where my kids went to high school.
Not all top projects have or need a mentor @gibby my friend did a biotechnology research project that was conducted entirely on the computer and as far as I know, he didn’t have any research mentor. He placed quite well in Siemens a couple of years ago.
Well I would assume that whether or not you have a mentor, you would still have some kind of outsider verification in order for the research to mean something, right? For example, publishing the paper, presenting at a conference, and participating in Intel/Siemens are all things you could do with or without a mentor.
Not that simple. The question is posted under Harvard. What tells you the quality and impact? “Just” because he did it on his own? He hasn’t cited where or how the pro community is reacting. How he tested his results.
We’re not trying to be hard on OP.
^^exactly. The OP hasn’t cited anything about how the scientific community has reacted. That’s something he should do to prove that his work has some merit.
@gibby Again, thanks for letting me know. My research was published in a journal with a fairly high impact factor. So, no worries.
@lookingforward and @starwatch
I have had outside verification for both the projects in the sense that the first one was published in a peer-reviewed journal with a fairly high impact factor. Although that doesn’t say a lot about the quality of research, I am working on acquiring letters from experts in the field of research to further validate my work. As for the second project involving cancer diagnosis, I have been contacted by a professor from Harvard Med school to advance my system of diagnosis. As stated earlier, I will also be entering the national science fair in hopes of making it to ISEF next year. I’m sorry if you still feel that my researches lack merit, but revealing further will also reveal my identity on this site (which I prefer not to).
We do not say it lacks merit. We say we have no way to know. It’s good to be published, but we have no idea where, what standing the journal has, nor on what basis your piece was selected. We have no idea what the scientific community thinks of your cancer work. We do know there is usually a strenuous process by which ideas are vetted and tested. Don’t know if you’ve gone through that. And you imply you have not taken biology. It’s up to you to tie up all loose ends. A Harvard has many talented applicants to choose from. And they look at your whole package. So take the next steps. Best wishes.
@mumbai98 I am NOT saying that your research lacks merit at all. On the contrary, it sounds like you’ve done some pretty high quality research. I apologize if my previous post was confusing. I meant that anyone who does an independent research project (i.e. Not under the direct supervision of a professor) Might want to have some outside verification (publication, presentation, intel, etc) to prove that their research is important.