We cannot post links for a discord server. Instead do the standard discord link and then do
/dFS9rr
The discord server is for anyone by the way. Rejected, Waitlisted and Accepted people are all welcome.
do the standard discord link and then /dFS9rr
or comment your tag and I’ll add you.
@penguinandcats I did something like
Music
Clarinet- (years + awards)
Piano -(years+ awards)
In the activities part
Did everyone who got rejected get a generic email like “although your application was impressive, …”
snip
Accepted into UCD cluster 6: Mathematics
accepted ? cluster 3 @ uc davis, if anyone has been there already, what does the schedule typically look like?
Got accepted into UC Davis for cluster 5: Computers in Biophysics & Robotics. I honestly had no idea UCD was the hardest campus, and was super surprised that I got in
Here’s some stats:
GPA: 4.0 uw, school doesn’t do weighted
Rank: 1/670ish people (Based off of uw GPA though, a hundred kids could be tied for the spot)
PSAT: 1460
SAT: 1420(lol)
Switched schools so not a lot of AP’s due to difference in curriculum
EC: I only put two. Charity club officer & Tutoring in STEM, would rank 4/10 tbh.
Essays:
This is actually why I’m surprised I got in. Aside from having mediocre EC’s, my essays probably aren’t the best either since I applied to many programs and nearly forgot the COSMOS deadline. I rushed all the essays out the day before.
Why Cluster: 6/10 Talked about how my love for observation led me into being interested in Biology, and subsequently for creating things w programming.
Personal Statement: 6/10 Basically provided a very integrated view of myself. I described myself using three words at first (not the generic “responsible, creative, humorous” kinda stuff) and dived in on how these qualities prepared me for studying in STEM.
Honestly surprised I got in!! But I’m not sure I’ll go yet since the tuition (4K, oops) is too high. I want to though and hope they don’t cancel it 
Also I’ve heard that COSMOS gives a huge boost at UC? Can anybody clarify for me? Is it likely to be true?
@charviahoy I was waitlisted for cluster 7 let me know if you decide not to go pls <3
waitlisted at idk clusters at UCSC (I forgot lol). Can’t say I’m too surprised, I did not have proper time to devote to the application. Plus I’m a freshman so I can’t imagine that helped my chances. Hopefully I get off of the waitlist 
Congrats to everyone who got in! I wish you guys the best of luck and fun during this summer 
Is it a thing to waitlist/reject freshman just based on seniority?
honestly, I don’t think cosmos rejects/waitlists you just because you’re a freshman; rather, it’s the limited experience in extracurriculars, gpa, and essay writing that puts you at a disadvantage in comparison to the upperclassmen (confounding variable amirite, jk don’t roast me). I just got into uci cluster 2, and I would have most definitely not been able to write the same personal statement / cluster paragraphs as a freshman. to further back this up, I didn’t mention anything about “machine learning” or specifically stem in my personal statement. I wrote about my sport and certain experiences I’ve had / what I’ve done in the past couple of years related to that, which I felt showed my strengths/qualities and who I was as a person pretty well (which is far more important than just talking about a math competition with nothing else). I was able to tie it into my vision for the future and the reasons I was interested in my pursuits (cs) ig?
these past 2 years, I’ve had more life experiences (honestly learned to enjoy life more tbh), had more time to think about what I might want to do in the future (left the med track), and had more time to solidify my gpa, etc (ooh and know your teachers better!). if you’re a freshman rn and got rejected, it’s ok! you still have plenty of time to build who you are and opportunities to apply to different summer programs + kinda figure out what you want to do in life.
???: UCSC
???: (2) Nanochemistry and Nanotechnology
???: 4.0 UW, 4.3 W
(PSAT: 1520, SAT: 1560)
???: 11
??? ??? : Accepted
??? ??? :
- 1st Choice Cluster Essay: 8/10 (Nanochemistry and Nanotechnology, wrote about how I found an interest for chemistry because it’s applicable to the real world and I want to study it in the future + I like reading about developments with nanotechnology and cancer research. Talked about how I’ve taken on a lot of opportunities at my school but nanochem is a niche subject that I’d like to learn about hands-on.)
- 2nd Choice Cluster Rating: 7.5/10 (Microbiology and Environmental Toxicology, I talked about how I liked reading about superbugs and diseases, etc. and my 9th grade bio class that helped me learn about algal blooms in Florida and other environmental stuff. Also talked about my place in a school publication and a waste sorting article I wrote that taught me about how microorganisms affect the earth.
??? ???: 9/10
- I wrote about how my interest in chemistry started with skincare + how an accident where my mom suffered chemical burns due to a facial product led me to read more about skin and harmful chemicals. Acknowledged my privilege due to living in the Bay Area + how COSMOS could help me step towards a medical career and helping others (a little cliche, I know).
???:
- Science Olympiad (2 awards from local comp and 1 award from norcal comp)
- Volunteering (site lead at math tutoring program for 2 years)
??? ???:
- Teacher 1 Rating: 9.5/10 (AP Chem, I’ve had this teacher for two years now and she’s known for writing good letters. I’m one of the better students in her class and I’m close to her.)
- Teacher 2 Rating: 9/10 (Physics Honors, first year with this teacher and he's also known for writing good letters. He previously asked me to be his lab TA next year and my grades were still high when I asked him for the letter. I think he likes me since I generally do well.)
???:
- Even if you don’t have a stunning resume and invented 30 million things by the age of ten, write a solid personal essay and you’ll have a good chance of getting in. I was rejected last year and my essays about math were pretty boring and of the “wow I just love this subject a lot” type.
- Subtly flex all your achievements but make sure to acknowledge that you still have room to improve.
TL;DR be the best version of yourself
COSMOS 2019 alum here. UCI Cluster 3 to be exact. COSMOS didn’t accept teacher recs last year, so the essays had a much larger weight, and looking back at my essays, they were kinda lame (think I love bio and math blah blah blah). My friends were all surprised that I was waitlisted, not accepted; to be fair, my ecs were really few and unimpressive-I was your typical school nerd then. If I had written those essays this year as a junior, they would be completely different essays.
Most of the people accepted in the first round highlighted something that they cared about in their essays (for many of them, music or a sport) or what their experiences taught them (performances, school classes, etc). They also tried to incorporate aspects of themselves into their essays. While many people at COSMOS were quite accomplished (we had many talented musicians, artists, etc), they all had great personalities as well. That being said, if you aren’t a funny person, don’t try to make yourself sound like one, but don’t write an essay that only lists your achievements or details what you do at school everyday. I’ve read several essays like that, and trust me, they’re really boring.
If any of you have questions about COSMOS, feel free to ask me.
Hi @boisterouscloud , do you have any information on when and how COSMOS accepts people from the waitlist? This year there is surprisingly many on the waitlist. Thank you.
@ millztea I think COSMOS will start accepting people from the waitlist soon after the first deadline for acceptance passes (that’s when I was accepted). It might be a little tougher this year imo due to the cancelling of many other summer programs.
It seems like my previous post got removed for some reason, so here’s a copy of it:
COSMOS 2019 alum here. UCI Cluster 3 to be exact. COSMOS didn’t accept teacher recs last year, so the essays had a much heavier weight. Looking back at my essays, I see that they were kinda lame (think I love bio and math blah blah blah). Many of my friends were surprised that I was waitlisted, not accepted; to be fair, my ecs were few and unimpressive. I was just another average school nerd with a high GPA and hard classes.
Many of the people accepted first round into COSMOS wrote about their experiences, how they shaped them as people and their takeaways (music, sports, school classes were all common topics). I do agree that many people who got into COSMOS are rather accomplished (we had many musicians, artists, etc), but they all had excellent personalities to complement their achievements. That being said, if you aren’t a funny person, don’t try to make yourself one, but don’t write an essay solely based on your achievements or your day-to-day school life. I’ve read a couple of essays like that, and trust me, they’re boring.
If any of you have questions, feel free to ask me.
@charviahoy congrats! I did as well - I hope they don’t cancel COSMOS this year
(apologies for the double reply here) When you get off the waitlist, COSMOS will notify you by email; it will show up on your portal as well. I remember getting it during lunch on the Monday after the acceptance deadline and jumping around for a couple minutes.
I’m a freshman who got into UCI cluster 9, Sustainable Civil Infrastructure. I honestly didn’t expect to get in because I’m a 9th grader and I go to a weird progressive school that doesn’t give grades to 9th graders and a spiriling math curriculum that follows math 1, math 2, math 3, and does a little bit of geometry, trig, and precalc, in each. I am taking math 2 but am going to go into calc next year bc i’m taking an online class. I am taking precalc online but I wasn’t sure if that would show up on my transcript .
Also its a super stem nerd school so I expected a lot of people were applying who were way more qualified than me and took calculus in like 8th grade. but the good thing about my wierd school is that we flip the sciences and do chem 9th grade and bio 10th which is opposite of most schools and I needed chem as a prerequisite for cluster 9.
I think I did pretty good on my essays where I talked about how I really like to read and my EC’s were robotics which basically half the school is in, computational linguistics comp, and soccer. I also think both of my teachers who gave recs like me.
@boisterouscloud if you get off the waitlist will you get into your top 2 choices or will they just put you in a random cluster?
@hichewsaretasty you will get into one of your top 2 choices. More often your top choice. I know someone who was put into their second choice though.