Could I get into Swarthmore?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Swarthmore College
1

<p>Howdy CC friends,</p>

<p>I would appreciate your opinion on my admission chances to Swarthmore. </p>

<p>I'm a female from Virginia...which is, in my opinion, the middle of nowhere. I’m mainly applying to Swarthmore because of the liberal slant.</p>

<p>I would eventually like to study Biology, possibly with a neuroscience concentration, and journalism. I used to think I was really strong with regard to my left brain, but it seems I’m pretty balanced.</p>

<p>Quantitative data:</p>

<p>Old SAT: 730 Math; 730 Verbal; 1460 composite
New SAT: 720 Math; 740 Verbal; 790 Writing (11 essay); 2250 composite
SAT subject tests: 750 United States History; 730 Math IC; 740 Math IIC; 690 Biology (Molecular) <em>**I took the Bio test at the start of my AP Bio course, before we had covered Photosynthesis and Respiration ;-(
AP: AP US History 5; AP Calc AB 4; AP French Language 4
GPA: 4.8 (weighted); 4.0 unweighted; I've maintained straight As so far throughout my high school career.
Class rank: Top 2% of large, competitive high school (~500 per graduating class)
*</em>*I attend a math, science, technology magnet center, which is located within the larger high school. With regard to class rank, however, I compete with the regular high schoolers.</p>

<p>Junior year courses:
AP US History
AP Calc AB
AP French Language (highest level at school)
AP Stats
Honors Physics
Honors English
Journalism</p>

<p>I'm taking 5 AP classes as a senior, including Calc BC, Biology, Environmental Science, English, and Government. This is a very demanding schedule for seniors at our school. Basically, the only APs that I have not taken at my school are ones for languages I have not studied (Latin, Spanish, German, etc.) and AP Chem and AP Physics. I am taking Bio and Environmental concurrently this year, however…</p>

<p>Extracurricular activities:
--Three-year involvement in prize-winning school newspaper; Staff writer; Front Page Editor; current Deputy Editor-in-Chief; requires more than 5 hours of work per week; We have a large staff and our newspaper is always very large…
--Four year member of French Club; current President; our club conducts regular French Club-esque activites such as Mardi Gras Celebrations and French movie nights as well as community service projects. We are doing a Salvation Army drive for hurricane victims.
--Multicultural club; four-year member; current President; outreach to minorities in school as well as fundraising for impoverished children in India
--Two-year member of Interact Club; active member; Angel Tree, Habitat for Humanity, local marathons, etc.
--12 years of classical piano (at least 5 hours per week); I have participated in local competitions as well as festivals and have received superior rating every year.
--Two years of competitive swim team (5-12 hours per week depending on time-consuming swim meets)
--Key Club, Robotics, track, colorguard, and FDA (Future Doctors Association) - (I participated in these for one year; Colorguard was a pain because it is a segment of the marching band of my school and required literally 30 hours a week; Robotics was not my thing, and Key Club was too big and unorganized).</p>

<p>Community activities:</p>

<p>--Gallery education/exhibit interpretation at local science museum; I have accumulated over 200 hours and absolutely love this job; I get to play with hissing cockroaches and liquid nitrogen; I wrote one of my college essays about my volunteer job and it how it relates to a future career.
--Volunteer at local nursing home (assisted with events, festivities, etc.); over 50 hours
--Volunteer at local botanical garden (horticulture, garden greeting, language translation, etc.)
--Volunteer at local university labs (over 200 hours of service); took care of lab animals and equipment; conducted lab experiments
--Piano concerts at local nursing homes</p>

<p>Work Experience:
--Job at local mall (~15 hours per week)
--Academic tutor at school (multitude of subjects); 1-2 hours per week
--Red-Cross certified babysitter (~10 hours each week); I love children and would like to become a pediatrician.</p>

<p>Awards and honors:
--First place in state-wide science fair; presented research to undergraduate-level fair
--Second place in regional science fair; progressed to state ISEF competition
--National Merit Commended Student
--AP Scholar with Honor
--High PSAT scores (3 consecutive years)
--Principal’s Scholar
--JHU Talented Youth
--National Honor Society (inducted as junior)
--Math Honors Society (inducted as junior)
--French Honors Society (inducted as freshman)
--Journalism honors society (inducted as sophomore)
--Beta Club (inducted as junior)
--Superior rating in annual piano competitions
***I have more, but they're kind of specific.</p>

<p>Independent scientific research is an important facet of my application. Since freshman year, I have undertaken research at local colleges and universities and have been mentored by accomplished professors. I have volunteered over 250 hours for this effort. My research revolved around alcohol tolerance and marijuana usage, which was pretty interesting. I now have a lot of experience dealing with various lab techniques and animals…I intend to continue conducting research in college. </p>

<p>For two summers, I have traveled abroad to participate in educational programs. I won't list the countries or the programs, but one was two months long and absolutely amazing because of the diversity of the participants. I actually wrote about this experience for one of my college essays.</p>

<p>Because of journalism, I have numerous publications; I have also written for the major local newspaper. I also was selected for a prestigious workshop this past summer. I was rated the best journalism student, so my work was nominated for advancement to the national competition level.</p>

<p>Essays: I think I'm a pretty decent writer, so they're okay. I'm not sure if they will POP OUT to the admissions office, however, since everyone that applies to Yale is mind-boggingly accomplished. Nonetheless, one's about my volunteer job and the other about my overseas camp experience. I enlisted the help of some older people, and they liked them a lot…</p>

<p>Recommendations: One from two-year Calc teacher; one from Chemistry teacher; I think they should be pretty good; the one from the Chemistry teacher will be better though because he thinks I'm a "poster child" and apparently likes me a lot. Whatever...I also submitted a supplemental recommendation from my newspaper adviser, which I thought was well-written and nice...He related me to "Emerson's Scholar," which sounds like a complimentary thing to say.</p>

<p>Supplementary materials: CD of piano playing (Chopin!), journalism articles; science project research abstracts</p>

<p>Thanks for your assessments!</p>

<p>Also, does anybody know anything about journalism, biology, or neuroscience at Swat? Do students take advantage of the partnership with Haverford, Bryn Mawr, and U Penn?</p>

2

<p>I'd say they're plenty good, although you may need more of a reason to apply (for the admissions office that is) than a "liberal slant." Did you apply yet? Or is this for RD?</p>

3

<p>I'd make sure not to let slip-ups like "...everyone that applies to Yale..." make it onto your app ;)</p>

<p>Otherwise, you sound very accomplished, but I agree with NJPitcher that you need to articulate why Swarthmore is special to you and convey that in your essay. Also, this list is kind of overwhelming, so maybe try to boil it down to the salient points so they can get a handle on what you're really about.</p>

<p>Just my $.02 and it's not worth much considering I'm in the same position as you. Wait for interesteddad to make it to this thread.</p>

4

<p>Your laundry list of stats and ECs is certainly lengthy enough and impressive enough. However, as I read through it, I'm struggling to get a sense of what lights your fire or why Swarthmore would be a specifically good fit. This is compounded by your somewhat shotgun list of target schools which only share high USNEWS rankings and a vague notion of being "liberal" (and not even that, for W&L). </p>

<p>For example, I have no idea if you envision yourself swimming competitively in college. Or, being heavily involved in music. The journalism and research interests do come through, but are a bit lost in the clutter.</p>

<p>I mention this because my impression is that "laundry list" applications do not generally fare well at Swarthmore -- enough to get a waitlist maybe, but not an acceptance. They seem to respond to kids who have researched the school, can communicate specific reasons why they would thrive as Swatties, and do a good job of presenting a few areas of genuine enthusiasm, often connecting academic and non-academic interests. There's a "personality" component to admissions at Swarthmore that seldom works out if you are just adding Swarthmore to your college list for the sake of having another college.</p>

<p>They pay particular attention to the "Why Swarthmore?" essay and, like NJPitcher, I think it would take going a little deeper than the fact that the school is generically "liberal". Now, write an essay on "ethical intelligence" and you might have something.</p>

<p>Do you have the raw materials for an application that would get you accepted at Swarthmore? Yes. Are you there, yet? I don't think so. I can't even tell for sure if I'd recommend the school to you.</p>

<p>To answer you other question. Biology is one of Swarthmore's largest and strongest departments. The school produces an incredibly high number of research scientists -- a higher percentage of Swarthmore graduates get PhDs bio and health related fields than any other college or university on your list. Over the most recent ten-year period, 4.4% of all Swarthmore graduates have gotten PhDs in Biology or heath-related science fields -- a number that does not include the high percentage of grads who go to med school.</p>

5

<p>Hey, thank you for your assessments! How should I improve my application to make scientific research and journalism stand out more? I didn't want to do extracurricular activities centering only on these two subjects because I DO have other interests, like the French language, other cultures, community service, etc. These are just the two areas which I like to pursue academically in college. </p>

<p>I have a good friend that goes to Swarthmore now...and he has many good things to say about it. I visited back in March and I really liked the school, even though I visited during a miserable, rainy day. I dropped in on a class on molecular biology taught by Professor Elizabeth Valen (I think that's her name), and was impressed by the emphasis on discussion the students had. One thing that particularly stood out to me was the intense intellectual vibe at the school. Just by walking through the cafeteria, I could see students studying together in a highly concentrated and focused manner. When I had visited other schools, I saw football players walking around, girls jogging with their friends, etc. The atmosphere was completely different, in a good way...and I liked that a lot.</p>

<p>Anyways, that's just a bit more elaboration on Why Swarthmore. I know it's not very convincing. And I don't really want to apply to W&L...it's sort of a safety since I'm in-state for Virginia. </p>

<p>I would appreciate tips on how to improve the application, make it seem less like a laundry list and more focused.</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

6

<p>Oh, haha, I forgot to get rid of the Yale part. I applied there EA, and I am in LOVE with that school :-)</p>