@luckystarwin7 I think the stats are out on a previous thread that shows the number of applications for each cluster.
@luckystarwin, put his name in quotes. So basically @ + “James Cai”
anyone applying to UCI cluster 4 (biochemistry) and cluster 8 (genes, genomes, and biocontrol) . anyone from previous years know the difficulty of getting into these two clusters?
ahahahah, I have the lowest admin rate because I’m a freshman and I applied to UCSD which is the hardest! @Mathophile26 My EC’s were not all related to STEM. I think like 3 of the 5 were closely related to STEM.
I’m applying to UCD Biomed… rip lmaoo
i have an internship on cryobiology at the University of Washington as my only STEM experience, is that good?
hey guys i’m kinda in a similar situation as @boahancock . so for the academic activities, a lot of my activities are not ongoing things, but different events and programs I’ve attended (science fairs/contests, internships). Except for one club I am a part of, my stem activities have lasted maybe 2-3 months max. is that okay, or do they want more extracurriculars that are ongoing?
@nzc1154, well, it does ask for how many weeks you have participated in something, and how many hours/week, so I think that if you have a lot of hours/week, but only 10ish weeks, that’s still great, because they can see how much time you put into a certain activity
Hehe, looks like the COSMOS buzz has started back again…
Some old info that I remember about COSMOS (for reference, I’m a UCSC alumni):
- UCSD is probably the most competitive; I heard they had 3% acceptance rates for some clusters, probably since they’re famous for their biomedical stuff.
- I remember my instructor telling me that our cluster had gotten over 2,000 applicants.
- There are FINAL PROJECTS. They vary from cluster to cluster (research essays for the more traditional math/science ones, robots and video games for the tech clusters), but all involved poster-making.
- My instructor also said the thing he cared about the most wasn’t your grades or academics, he was more focused on your essay content; of course, preferences vary since it’s the cluster instructors that choose who gets accepted (at least for UCSC, that is).
Good luck to all of you! COSMOS is definitely a fun and rewarding experience.
what are my chances?
Campus:UCI
Clusters:8-Genes Genomes and Biocontrol
4-Chmical Biology
UW GPA:3.87
W GPA:4.05
11th grade at a competitive bay area high school
my essay is very personal and it is kinda that “story” style, where i talk about a past experience and how it affected me. i also revealed the doubts i had about bio and chem in the beginning and how i was more and more fascinated by it… does that show passion?
@Mathophile26 alright, that makes sense, thanks! i am currently a teacher assistant for a stem teacher, do u guys think that would count as an academic activity?
@nzc1154 Do you know if the other activities referred to in “Other activities acceptable” includes nonacademic activities? I am very involved in service and would like to demonstrate this.
@luckystarwin7 im pretty sure we have to try to keep it STEM related, but yea other activities are acceptable i guess, so if u feel that u have shown a lot of growth, leadership, dedication, etc through ur service activity, then it should be fine.
Hi, quick question. My son submitted last night for COSMOS, but as of this morning, my H and I haven’t received the parent portal information. Does anyone know how long that takes to get?
I’m a bit worried, since it says we have to do some kind of e-signature by 5 pm today!
Thanks for any help or information!
Just realized my son put in the wrong parent e-mail for the parent portal. Can someone send me the parent signature paragraph block so we can sign it and send with the check? I’m freaking out about this.
Ok, never mind folks. Crisis averted! Wrote to COSMOS, thought at this late date they wouldn’t be able to answer, but they did and fixed the problem. Amazing she was able to do it so quickly. Thanks anyway!
Anyone applying for UCI’s Cluster 3: Tissue and Tumor Biology and Mathematical/Computational Modeling and Cluster 6: Biomedical Sciences – Clinical Translational Science: The Next Generation of Biomedical Research?
I put 1 STEM EC and some non STEM ECs in the academic activities section. In my personal statement I talked about rigorous STEM courses I took(not under my school but under universities and other accredited educational institutions), and I didn’t see a way to classify those as extracurricular (those technically weren’t extracurricular clubs/activities). Hopefully all goes well ^^
So far, I only have one teacher recommendation completed. Has anyone been accepted with only one recommendation? My stats are pretty good. 4.0 unweighted/ 4.5 weighted gpa. Junior and a few stem related extra curriculars. Applying Ucsd cluster 2 and 4. Good luck everyone!
@Jedimom OMG same, my AP Bio teacher got pneumonia so he can’t write my recommendation letter so now I only have one letter. Idk what I’m going to do.