Cornelius Vanderbilt Scholarship Results Class of 2019

Colleges and Universities A-Z Vanderbilt University
1

Haven’t seen a similar thread and results are apparently imminent so thought I might as well post this for the benefit of future applicants. Good luck to all who applied.

[aB][asize=4][acolor=#008000]Decision: Accepted[/color][/size]**
[aB][asize=4][acolor=#FF0000]Decision: Rejected[/color][/size]**

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown):
ACT (breakdown):
SAT II:
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0):
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):
AP (place score in parenthesis):
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load:
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Job/Work Experience:
Volunteer/Community service:
Summer Activities:
Admissions Essay (rating 1-10, details):
CV Scholarship Essay (rating 1-10, details):
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1:
Teacher Rec #2:
Counselor Rec:
Additional Rec:
Interview:

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?:
Intended Major:
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant):
School Type:
Ethnicity:
Gender:
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):

Reflection

Strengths:
Weaknesses:
Why you think you were accepted/rejected:
Where else were you accepted/rejected:

General Comments:

2

Decision: Rejected

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2170 (730R, 700M,740W)
ACT (breakdown): -
SAT II: 800 Spanish
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.97
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): top 10%
AP (place score in parenthesis): ush 5, Lang 5
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: all ap
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): 3 Scholastic Art Awards and 4 Scholastic Writing Awards

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): buncha volunteering
Job/Work Experience: sales
Volunteer/Community service: bunch
Summer Activities: above
Admissions Essay (rating 1-10, details): 10
CV Scholarship Essay (rating 1-10, details): 9
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): 11

Teacher Rec #1: bomb
Teacher Rec #2: wow
Counselor Rec: generic
Additional Rec:
Interview: bomb

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: CAS
State (if domestic applicant): Wi
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: public
Ethnicity: Hispanic
Gender: M
Income Bracket: 40,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): urm

Reflection

Strengths: essays, recs, urm
Weaknesses: test scores
Why you think you were accepted/rejected: only 3% of the 6000 applicants got it
Where else were you accepted/rejected:
Accepted at UAlabama, UMinnesota, UKentucky, UOregon, SAIC, UCSD, UPittsburgh, MSU

General Comments:
Really hoping I get accepted RD!

3

Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2330 (730 CR, 800M, 800W) - (superscored)
ACT (breakdown): 35 - Essay 11
SAT II: 800 Math II, 800 Physics, 770 Lit
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/65
AP (place score in parenthesis): Calc BC (5), AP Physics B (5), Chemistry(?), AP Physics C-Mechanics and E/M(?) (currently taking)
Senior Year Course Load: Spanish 4, AP Chemistry, Religion, Research Methods, History 115 (Dual Enrollment), Teacher assistant, select choir, differential equations (DE), calculus 3 (DE)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Not really major - National Merit Semifinalist (231 PSAT), National Hispanic Scholar, Outstanding Sophomore Award, Tri-M Music Honor Society

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):

Piano (11 years), Student council (Treasurer), Envirothon (1st place at regionals 3 times, first place at state twice - also team captain), Select Choir (pretty selective group), Math team (1 of 3 selected Junior and senior year - top 5% out of 1500 in a test), Student ambassador (conduct tours, run school promotional events), FBLA (placed in top 8 for 4 events at state competition - including 1st in cybersecurity - competed against ~ 4,000 others, several other regional awards), Track (9, 12), Tri-M Music Honor Society (treasurer), Tennis (12 - just for fun)

Job/Work Experience:

Volunteer/Community service: Tutoring - 150 hours, School sponsored at various locations - 40 hours
Summer Activities: Not much, a few youth camps, vacations, summer classes
CommonApp Essay (rating 1-10, details): 8, honestly this wasn’t my best essay (I sat down and cranked it out in 45 minutes - but spent almost 2 hours revising), but I think it got my personality and the way I think across. No one cried when they read it :expressionless:
Activities Essay (rating 1-10, details): 7, pretty dry, just listed some things I did in student council and why they mattered to me
CV Scholarship Essay (rating 1-10, details): I have no idea, maybe 8 or 9? - I only found out about the scholarship as I was checking my application portal and saw that I could apply for it. I just rehashed one of my other essays about my love for the environment and how my passion for engineering related to it.

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

(these are purely based on assumptions as I have not seen them personally)
Teacher Rec #1: 10/10, My Calc BC and Physics B teacher and student council Advisor, also I TA for him, so I think he likes me and wrote a good rec.
Teacher Rec #2: 9/10, English teacher and student council advisor, only had her for 2 semesters, but I’ve gotten to know her through FBLA (she is the advisor for that as well) and student council so I think the rec was also good.
Counselor Rec: 8/10, She likes me I think and told me her rec was “glowing” so I think it was good, but I don’t think she knows me all that well, so I don’t think the rec was all that personal.
Additional Rec: N/A
Interview: None

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Electrical Engineering
State (if domestic applicant): NE
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Private, super small
Ethnicity: Hispanic
Gender: M
Income Bracket: mid-low 100,000s, terrible FA because of investments and home equity - so this really helps
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM - I’m half hispanic. That’s pretty much it I think.

Reflection

Strengths: Pretty decent scores overall, relatively strong course load (for my school that is) - doesn’t even compare to many of the others I have seen on here though.
Weaknesses: Somewhat weak on the extracurriculars, no job and not much volunteering. My essays were definitely lacking since I didn’t invest much time into them and procrastinated quite a bit.
Why you think you were accepted/rejected: Absolutely no idea. Still can’t believe I got it. Waiting for them to email me and say they awarded it to me by accident.
Where else were you accepted/rejected:
A few state schools, Purdue, OU, UT Austin, Texas A&M, other regional schools

General Comments:
Congrats to everyone else who got it, and I’m sorry for everyone who didn’t get it. I have no idea what they saw in my application as many others seemed far more qualified.

4

** Decision:Rejected **

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2180 (CR 730, Math 800, Writing 650) (Officially English is the third language in Tunisia)
ACT (breakdown): N/A
TOEFL (breakdown) 109 ( R 27 S 27 L 29 W 26)
SAT II: Math 2 (800), Physics (710)
GPA (Weighted): 17.77/20 (One of the highest in Tunisia) Showing Progress
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/252 Top of the high school in physics and math/ Most Competitive School in Tunisia.
AP (place score in parenthesis): Not available in Tunisia
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: Arabic, French, English, Spanish, Philosophy, Math (Very advanced), Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Physical Education, IT
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): N/A

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
-Winner of an international educational program organized by ENI and MIT about Energy (My major). Interacted with Professors at MIT and had a test after every lecture (16 lectures). Had the highest scores.

  • Kung Fu Trainee for 4 years (1056 hours): Vice-Champion of the state in heavyweights.
  • Participated at the second edition of the theatre festival at our high school attended by more than 300 persons and had the major role in the main play. Nomination for the best actor award.
    – Taking part in an international written-debate contest (the Public Policy International Contest) Organized by New York University. Received a certificate of excellence.
    – Received the national certificate of First Aid after taking part in a formation.
    Job/Work Experience: Working in a factory during two summers. 30 Hours per week for 6 weeks every summer. (360 hours)
    Volunteer/Community service: Different activities (10) with the Red Cross More than 900 hours
    Essays: Personal Statement 10/10 Read by more than 10 people including education USA advisors and teachers that rated it extremely Good. Wrote about getting knocked out at the kung-fu state championship.
    Supplements: 7/10 Not brilliant but good.
    Teacher Recommendation: 10/10. Very good with strong statements like the best student ever.
    Counselor Rec: 10/10. Outstanding. She rated me as the best student in the history of the high school
    Additional Rec: English Teacher + Mentor during Lab4energy. Did not read but it is supposed to be good. 8/10
    Interview: N/A

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Engineering/Undecided
State (if domestic applicant): N/A
Country (if international applicant): Tunisia
School Type: Public School
Ethnicity: North African / Middle Eastern
Gender: M
Income Bracket: $20000 - $30000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): N/A

Strengths: Community Service / GPA / Class Rank / Good Essay / Stellar Recommendation / Origins
Weaknesses: Lacking some ECs / Physics SAT / Intl’ Too much need
Colleges Where I applied: Columbia / Cornell University / Duke / Fordham / Grinnell / Harvard / Rhodes / Stanford / Trinity College / UChicago / UDenver / U Miami / U Notre Dame / UPenn / Vanderbilt / Washington St. Louis / Vanderbilt / MIT / Trinity Univerity / Tulane

Accepted at Upenn (Likely Letter)
Finalist at Duke Karsh International Scholarship
Waitlisted at UDenver LOOOOL

5

Rejected
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2380; Math 800, Writing 790, Reading 790
ACT (breakdown): 35; 33 Reading, 34 Math, 35 Science, 36 English
SAT II: Math 1: 740, Math 2: 790; Chemistry: 720
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): #1 out of 300
AP (place score in parenthesis): English Language (5), AP US (4), AP World (4), AP Chem (3)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: Religion, AP Calc AB, AP Euro, AP Literature, AP Biology, AP Gov, AP French
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Finalist, AP Scholar with Honor, National French Contest silver and bronze awards, MathFax Geometry 2nd place

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Gymnastics, Youth and Government (President), French Club (Vice President), Harbinger Literary Magazine (Copy editor), Mu Alpha Theta, Ambassador’s Club
Job/Work Experience: Counselor in Training at multiple camps
Volunteer/Community service: Hospital volunteer, Sunday School teacher, Catholic Heart Work Camp, CIT at a camp for children with disabilities
Summer Activities: Northwestern CTD program 2012 & 2013; Oxford Royale Academy Summer School 2014; ISRA Summer Research in Biochemistry
Admissions Essay (rating 1-10, details): 8
CV Scholarship Essay (rating 1-10, details): 8
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): 9

Teacher Rec #1: Really good
Teacher Rec #2: Never saw it but I assume it was good
Counselor Rec: Didn’t see it either
Additional Rec:
Interview: Went well

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?:
Intended Major: Engineering
State (if domestic applicant): Illinois
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Catholic high school
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):

Accepted so far in engineering at Notre Dame (early action), U of Illinois, Purdue, and in arts and sciences at Boston College

6

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 800 CR, 800 M, 720 W one sitting
ACT: 34
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4+
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 2/135
AP (place score in parenthesis): Lang (5), bio (4), US (4), currently in physics, calc ab, French, and lit
Senior Year Course Load: all AP with one honors
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Finalist, a bunch of science research things, scholastic keys, peace essay

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): science research, junior engineering society, dance team
Job/Volunteer Experience: HUGE volunteer experience at Cincinnati Zoo, now have amazing paid position, a lot of tutoring, random other jobs and service activities, service chair of NHS
Admissions Essay (rating 1-10, details): great, heartfelt, about my experience at Cinci Zoo
CV Scholarship Essay (rating 1-10, details): adorable, about how I decided I wanted to be an engineer
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): haven’t seen, but assuming great

Teacher Rec #1: physics teacher/research mentor
Teacher Rec #2: four year French teacher
Counselor Rec: she’s great and really likes me
Additional Rec: mentor at Cinci Zoo
Interview: went very well, super chill

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: civil engineering
State (if domestic applicant): Kentucky
School Type: all-girls catholic
Ethnicity: white
Gender: female

Reflection

Strengths: clearly dedicated/passionate

7

@HannahZ‌ Did you receive the scholarship?

8

Yes I did, forgot to put that! @Matt846‌

9

Decision: Rejected

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 800 math, 700 writing, 670 critical reading
ACT (breakdown): 35 English, 36 math, 33 reading, 35 science
SAT II: none (I did poorly on all of them)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.96
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Homeschooled, so no %.
AP (place score in parenthesis): English Lang (5), Calculus BC (4 / 4 AB sub), Macroecon (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis): none
Senior Year Course Load: Medium – AP Eng Lit, Diff Eq, Calc-based Physics C, AP Psych
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Made AIME, but besides that, nothing major.

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Cross-county, robotics, math club, Honor Society (Vice pres)
Job/Work Experience: nothing offical
Volunteer/Community service: Voluneer tutor, library worker
Summer Activities: Comp Phys with the Governor’s School, Philmont three times, A* Math Camp
Admissions Essay (rating 1-10, details): 7. Cheesy as all get out.

CV Scholarship Essay (rating 1-10, details): 8. I thought it outlined my desire to learn well, but my friend pointed out that it could have been organized a different way.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): 4. Most of my most recent teachers were online, and the on-the-ground teachers I had were from too long ago.

Teacher Rec #1: Calc teacher from online. From the info he asked of me, I think his rec was a form letter :frowning:
Teacher Rec #2: English teacher from 10th grade. She liked me a lot, but she was 10th grade. :confused:
Counselor Rec: Absolutely awful. She originally sent it to me (and not to Vandy), and what she sent was the worst-written form litter of all time. It didn’t even include my name; the blank was filled in with someone else’s.
Additional Rec: Cross-country coach. I wanted to include his because I had known him for such a long time and was as much of a teacher as my (actual) teachers were.
Interview: None.

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes.
Intended Major: EEngineering
State (if domestic applicant): TN
Country (if international applicant): N/A
School Type: Homeschooled
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: ~$120000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None

Reflection

Strengths: I showed that I had a true desire to learn. My essay was my strongest component.
Weaknesses: I think they didn’t believe me when I told them that I wanted to learn because I didn’t have many extracurriculars. (But perhaps they have some idea of how hard it is to be involved as a homeschooler? :frowning: )
Why you think you were accepted/rejected: See “Weakness”
Where else were you accepted/rejected: Accepted into Vandy Early Decision. I haven’t gotten any of the (numerous) scholarships I’ve applied to.

General Comments: Pretty disappointed I wasn’t accepted because I thought I had a good shot. Congrats to all who got it, though.

10

[aB][asize=4][acolor=#FF0000]Decision: Rejected[/size]**

I have played soccer and piano for 14 years.

[ b]Objective:**
[ *] SAT I (breakdown):2180(M:770-unlucky R:660-poop I know W:750)
[ *] ACT:34(E:34 M:35 R:32 S:33)
[ *] SAT II: 770 math 2
[ *] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0):4.0
[ *] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 2/465
[ *] AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Gov:5 APUSH:4 AP English lang:4 AP Psych:4 AP comp science:3 AP music theory:3 AP chem:3
[ *] IB (place score in parenthesis):NA
[ *] Senior Year Course Load: AP Macro, AP English lit, AP calc bc, AP Euro, AP Bio
[ *] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):NA, minor award: AP scholar with distinction

[ /list][ b]Subjective:**
[ *] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Division 1 club soccer(Captain for 4 years)-placed 5th and 4th at state tournament in 2013 and 2014 respectively(second in league and third in league respectively as well).
Varsity soccer for 4 years-we were ranked top 20 in the nation during my freshman and sophomore years. Lots of district and region titles-no state titles sadly. I also have lots of individual awards(All conference, all region, all district, etc).
Piano-lots of “superiors” and “guild awards.” Going for high school diploma this year.
Also teach English to my cousins on free weekends-family is important ya know lol
[ *] Job/Work Experience: Worked at chick fil a for 1 month. Referee for 5 years.
[ *] Volunteer/Community service:200 hours-hospital, soup kitchen, coach
[ *] Summer Activities: Only volunteered for 200 hours or so…
[ *] Essays: common app-good, CV essay-decent, Vandy essay: good but had a typo(I used “affect” instead of “effect” lol oh well).
[ *] Teacher Recommendation: Both should be pretty good.
[ *] Counselor Rec:Good
[ ] Additional Rec:Good
[ ] Interview:Not yet
[ /list][ b]Other
[ *] State (if domestic applicant):TN
[ *] School Type:Public
[ *] Ethnicity:Asian
[ *] Gender:Male
[ *]Income Bracket:200k+
[ *] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):NA

[ b]Reflection**
[ *] Strengths:IDK really lol
[ *] Weaknesses:no research experience/not much leadership and boring EC’s. 3’s on some AP tests-in my defense, my chem 2 teacher and music theory teachers were not great. Comp science-I took it as an underclassmen, so I was a slack-fack.
[ b]General Comments:**: Chance me?

11

[aB][asize=4][acolor=#FF0000]Decision: Rejected[/color][/size]**

I have played soccer and piano for 14 years.

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown):2180(M:770-unlucky R:660-poop I know W:750)
ACT (breakdown):34(E:34 M:35 R:32 S:33) writing:9/12
SAT II:770 math 2
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0):4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):2/470
AP (place score in parenthesis):AP Gov:5 APUSH:4 AP English lang:4 AP Psych:4 AP comp science:3 AP music theory:3 AP chem:3
Senior Year Course Load:AP Macro, AP English lit, AP calc bc, AP Euro, AP Bio
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
Minor: (AP scholar with distinction(not even an “award” lol)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):Division 1 club soccer(Captain for 4 years)-placed 5th and 4th at state tournament in 2013 and 2014 respectively(second in league and third in league respectively as well).
Varsity soccer for 4 years-we were ranked top 20 in the nation during my freshman and sophomore years. Lots of district and region titles-no state titles sadly. I also have lots of individual awards(All conference, all region, all district, etc).
Piano-lots of “superiors” and “guild awards.” Going for high school diploma this year.
Also teach English to my cousins on free weekends-family is important ya know lol

Job/Work Experience:Worked at chick fil a for 1 month. Referee for 5 years.
Volunteer/Community service:200 hours-hospital, soup kitchen, coach
Summer Activities: volunteering
Admissions Essay (rating 1-10, details): 8, talked about leadership in division 1 soccer
CV Scholarship Essay (rating 1-10, details): 7, Arts and Sciences Essay topic was very vague. I kind of wanted to learn everything haha, but focused my essay on my goal of becoming a doctor, generic I know.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):9
Teacher Rec #1:9
Teacher Rec #2:8
Counselor Rec:8
Additional Rec:Coach, 10
Interview:nope

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major:Biological Sciences
State (if domestic applicant):TN
Country (if international applicant):US
School Type:Public
Ethnicity:Asian
Gender:Male
Income Bracket:200k+
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):NOPE

Reflection: I wasn’t expecting to get this at all haha

Strengths:Decent ACT score with strong EC’s. No idea how I could have done more EC’s with my current EC’s and my workload in school.
Weaknesses:Boring EC’s and not enough leadership, also lacked research and strong summer activities.3’s on some AP tests-in my defense, my chem 2 teacher and music theory teachers were not great. Comp science-I took it as an underclassmen, so I was a slack-fack.
Why you think you were accepted/rejected: Average CV applicant
Where else were you accepted/rejected:Accepted to Purdue, UIUC, Ohio State, Clemson. Still waiting to hear back from 10 other colleges.

12

[aB][asize=4][acolor=#FF0000]Decision: Rejected[/color][/size]**

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2340, 760 CR, 780 W, 800 M
ACT (breakdown): Didn’t take
SAT II: 730 Chem 750 Math II
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.94
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 16/509
AP (place score in parenthesis): Chem (5) Calc BC (5/5) World (5) Microecon (5) Macroecon (5) Physics C Mech (5) Physics C E&M (5) Lang (5) APUSH (4), currently in Music Theory, Bio, Lit, and US Gov
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Lit, AP Bio, AP US Gov, AP Music Theory, Orchestra, Band, Spanish III, Walking Wellness, Senior Mentor (built into schedule)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
National AP Scholar
NMS Letter of Commendation

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): All State Band (Horn), Local youth orchestra, marching band, lots of county sponsored side-by-sides and ensembles, violin, piano, NHS, Tri-M, Senior Mentor
Job/Work Experience: None
Volunteer/Community service: Minimal, done through NHS
Summer Activities: None
Admissions Essay (rating 1-10, details): 9-10 for both commonapp/vandy
CV Scholarship Essay (rating 1-10, details): 8-9
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): 10 based on 2 of the 4 I’ve read

Teacher Rec #1: 10
Teacher Rec #2: 9/10
Counselor Rec:10
Additional Rec: 11
Interview: None

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Undeclared
State (if domestic applicant): MD
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: 70-100k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None

Reflection

Strengths: SAT I, Course rigor
Weaknesses: EC diversity, SAT IIs probably didn’t help, class rank
Why you think you were accepted/rejected: Don’t do much outside of school except band (which does take a LOT of time), no job, no summer activities, a couple Bs and music classes hurt my class rank
Where else were you accepted/rejected:
Accepted UMD Honors, haven’t heard back from anywhere else yet

General Comments:
It was a long shot but I feel like I had as good a chance as anyone else. Still have hopes up for the RD round.

13

Decision: Rejected

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): N/A
ACT (breakdown): 33 (34 English, 31 Math, 33 Reading, 33 Science, 8 Writing)
SAT II: N/A
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.95
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 3/331
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Bio (4), AP English Lang (3), APUSH (5), AP Macroeconomics (3), AP Microeconomics (5), AP Calc AB (3)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc BC, AP US/Comp Gov, AP French, AP English Lit, APES
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Scholar w/ Distinction

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Youth Court (Chief Judge), captain of debate team, co-president of Partners Club, Mock Trial
Job/Work Experience: N/A
Volunteer/Community service: 530+ hours of community service with Youth Court over four years
Summer Activities: Bill of Rights Institute Summer Camp
Admissions Essay (rating 1-10, details): 8-9, wrote about my first ever debate round and what I learned from getting crushed
CV Scholarship Essay (rating 1-10, details): 7-8, it was a bit on the short side, but I feel like it was articulate and strong
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): See below

Teacher Rec #1: 8/10, a little generic, but strong nonetheless
Teacher Rec #2: 10/10, it was amazing.
Counselor Rec:
Additional Rec: 9/10, it was from the executive director at Youth Court that wrote about all of the things that I’ve done for the organization
Interview: 8/10

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Economics/Public Policy
State (if domestic applicant): AK
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: 60-70k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Geography, maybe?

Reflection

Strengths: ECs, Common App/Vanderbilt Admissions Essay, Grades
Weaknesses: ACT score, CV scholarship essay
Why you think you were accepted/rejected: Test scores and great, but not outstanding grades.
Where else were you accepted/rejected: CWRU, Tulane Honors, Rhodes, Willamette, U Portland, U Minnesota, and Pitt.

General Comments: Congratulations to everyone that got the scholarship. I knew my chances were low, but I wanted to at least make a solid effort.

14

Hope that this will give hope to future applicants. I know that CC has helped me out several times, so I’m returning the favor.

DECISION: ACCEPTED

SAT I (breakdown):
ACT (breakdown): 34 (31M/36W/35R/32S)
SAT II (place score in parentheses): US History 760, Bio M 730
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.909
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 2/847
AP (place score in parentheses): AP Chemistry (3), AP Biology (4), (5) on AP US Gov, Comparative Gov, Environmental Science, US History, AB Calculus, English Language, Macroeconomics, Psychology.
IB (place score in parentheses):
Senior Year Course Load: 4 AP Courses, 3 dual-enrollment courses (per semester. )
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Sunshine State Scholar, mayor-chosen humanitarian award, AP National Scholar, Art and Essay Contest winner, history department & biology department Student of the Year (at my school). SAT I (breakdown): Uh, no.
ACT (breakdown): 34 (31M/36W/35R/32S)
SAT II (place score in parentheses): US History 760, Bio M 730
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.909
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 2/847
AP (place score in parentheses): AP Chemistry (3), AP Biology (4), 5 on AP US Gov, Comparative Gov, Environmental Science, US History, AB Calculus, English Language, Macroeconomics, Psychology.
IB (place score in parentheses):
Senior Year Course Load: 4 AP Courses, 3 dual-enrollment courses (per semester. )
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Sunshine State Scholar, mayor-chosen humanitarian award, AP National Scholar, Art and Essay Contest winner, history department & biology department Student of the Year (at my school). Quest bridge Finalist
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): Model United Nations (President), Love Letters (card-marking club for terminally ill children, President), Quizbowl (captain)
Job/Work Experience: Paid tutor at a professional company (~7 months)
Summer Activities: E2@MIT summer camp at MIT, scholarship-funded study abroad program in Barcelona
Volunteer/Community Service: 300+ hours at a local nursing home, 100+hours at a women’s hospital, 50+ hours through Love Letters Club
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common App essay was really cool (I think) about my fascination with bugs, so I would say 9/10. My CV supplement, as I look at it now, looks pretty good. A couple grammatical errors here and there, but quite unique I guess.
Teacher Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):: US History teacher 10/10 (she’s been my rock since sophomore year, when I moved to this school). Calculus teacher 6-7/10? I don’t know…
Counselor Rec (rating 1-10, details):: 10/10 We are really close.
Additional Rec (rating 1-10, details)::
Interview: NOPE

Other
Applied for Financial Aid? YUP
State (if domestic applicant): FL
Country (if international applicant): US
School Type: Ridiculously large public school
Ethnicity: Mexican and Indian
Gender: F
Income Bracket: Less than 20,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM, baller essay, ??

Reflection
Strengths: URM, ACT, rank(out of so many students), taking a bunch of dual-enrollment courses specific to my intended majors.
Weaknesses: ECs, major awards, research experience
Where else you are applying or have already applied: Couple of Ivy League colleges, a few top schools in the south.
General Comments/Advice/Hindsight: THRILLED BEYOND BELIEF. BTW also accepted to Emory, USC, Tulane

15

Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2290 (800 M, 760 W, 730 R)
ACT (breakdown): 36 (36 M, 36 R, 35 W, 35 S, 8 Essay)
SAT II: 800 Math II, 800 Physics
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0/4.72 weighted
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/300+
AP (place score in parenthesis): 10 5s and 1 4
Senior Year Course Load: IB HL History, IB HL English, IB HL Further Math, IB SL Philosophy, IB SL French, EPGY Physics C: E & M online, PE
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): national merit finalist & national AP scholar

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Lots of music/songwriting experience, released my own EP and played all the instruments, lead singer and guitarist in a band which plays around town, math team (4 years, very competitive, lots of awards), varsity cross country (state qualifier), french honor society (president), science olympiad (placed at state level)
Job/Work Experience: None
Volunteer/Community service: Volunteer solo acoustic performer at the VA Medical Center, volunteer shows with my band
Summer Activities: LeadAmerica Law & Trial and LeadAmerica Inauguration
Admissions Essay (rating 1-10, details): 7. It was mostly a narrative of my experience volunteering playing guitar for veterans. I talked about how performance for such a unique audience helped me to be more outgoing and confident in my talents, and how my love for music has influenced me as a person.
CV Scholarship Essay (rating 1-10, details): 6-7. I just listed the various things I wanted to study and how I’d take advantage of Vanderbilt’s resources. It was horribly dry but it was honest. (I think variety helps here! They want to know that you have diverse academic interests, at least that’s what the admissions officer that visited our school told me)
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 7 (haven’t read)
Teacher Rec #2: 7 (haven’t read)
Counselor Rec: 7 (haven’t read)
Additional Rec: n/a
Interview: n/a (didn’t ask for one, apparently it didn’t hurt)

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Physics/Philosophy
State: AL
School Type: International Baccalaureate (Public)
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: Upper
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Ball is life

Reflection

Strengths: Good test scores (AP tests, SAT subject tests, GPA, ACT Composite), national merit (Vanderbilt values more than most), well rounded academic interests (again, think this is a big thing for Vanderbilt), lots of ECs. My songwriting’s kind of a cool hook, though I didn’t get to send Vanderbilt an arts supplement.
Weaknesses: Didn’t take an interview, my essays were honestly mediocre/sub-par, my academic interests might’ve been too broad/undefined in my application, PE senior year (lol)
Why you think you were accepted/rejected: Test scores, diverse academic interests, national merit, and luck.
Where else were you accepted/rejected: Accepted to Oxford, UCL, LSE, WashU. Rejected from Stanford. Waiting from lots.

General Comments: College admissions is all about what the admissions officers are looking for, not what you are. Don’t let something like college admissions dissuade you from your potential or your achievements in any way, just do your best, and if the fit isn’t right then there’s a better path for you somewhere else.