Crush my hopes of HYPSM

Chance Me / Match Me!
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Colleges: Stanford, MIT, CMU, Ivies, and UCs. I also need to be reverse chanced for matches, if y’all would be so kind.

Intended Major: Computer Science

Demographics: Indian Male from Missouri, upper-middle class, pretty high-ranked and competitive public school. LGBT (bi) if it matters.

GPA: 3.9 UW, 4.4 W

SAT: 1500: 800 physics, 700 math ll

ECs:

  • Tech startup that currently has low six-figures in profit (can't be too specific for privacy reasons)
  • Semifinalist at Intel ISEF and Google Science Fair for a project I did on deep learning
  • Programmed an app that has has about 3000 downloads
  • Went to 5 hackathons, won 1 of them.
  • Varsity baseball (2 years JV and 2 years varsity from a senior perspective): qualified for state twice
  • Model UN, multiple gavels
  • Screenwriting. Wrote a script that was a semifinalist at Bluecat and Austin Film Festival.
  • Made a short film that was shown at LA Film Festival.
  • Editor for a political magazine
  • 1st-degree black belt in Taekwondo

Essays: I think I’m going to write about how I bring together programming and storytelling/imagination to create technology.

What chance do I have at Stanford, MIT, CMU, Ivies, and UCs? What are some good matches? Thank you in advance.

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Please do not bump after one minute. It is appropriate to bump if your post falls to the next page.

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I see. What chances do I have?

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Looks like 11 minutes @happy1, but OP got the message. :-/

OP, you might need to bump up the SAT, although your ECs are intriguing. If you’ve looked though the threads here at all, you are aware that every school you asked about is a crap shoot. I don’t think you would be wasting your time or money by applying, but you are not a shoo-in. What are you really interested in? What school(s) appeal to you and why? If you’re just looking for HYPSM “prestige,” you need to get past that and start thinking about what matters to you about the place you will spend four years.

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Hey man, nice resume! If I may ask, where are you from, St. Louis? I’m from STL, but I’m a rising junior. Your GPA is good, SAT could be bumped up a little bit. The startup you started will definitely get you places, it’s an incredible EC! The Intel semifinalist is also a huge deal. Overall, those are your two major ECs that you should highlight, the others are all okay. Regarding LGBT, I wouldn’t say anything about it unless you’ve had tough experiences that you OVERCAME. Then you could incorporate that into your essays and maybe show your resilience and getting through a tough situation. Btw, can I PM you? I would like to learn a little more about you and your ECs!

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The irony is most would want to go to your school list to get a great job at a great company and you already have a successful company of your own. Thoughts about growing that. Do that and you can always hire a Harvard grad :slight_smile:

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I think you have a chance at all of those schools, but the place where I immediately picture you bringing all of your interests together and taking the world by cross-disciplinary storm is USC. First of all, it’s one of the most flexible schools as far as making it easy for students to pursue and blend many interests. Secondly, it has extensive connections both to the entertainment industry and to tech entrepreneurship… both directly through the school and its programs, and indirectly through the alumni network. Thirdly, it is strong in STEM (including the CogSci aspects), and in arts/media/screenwriting, and in business, and in poli sci. And lastly, it is connected to the city of LA in a way that no other school but UCLA is (and the “silos” at UCLA make cross-disciplinary stuff more difficult at UCLA than at USC). I feel like USC would be a great incubator for the growth of your already-impressive pursuits. JMHO. (And I’m not a particular USC enthusiast who recommends the school to everybody; that’s just where my mind went, reading about you.)

Tufts is another top-tier school with a terrific film program (although less “industry” oriented than USC’s), excellent STEM, top-notch social sciences (poli sci, IR) and humanities - basically strong across the board, with a flexible and interdisciplinary bent. This would be another great “incubator” school, with perhaps a somewhat less extroverted vibe than USC’s. (No value judgment one way or the other on that point - just a matter of temperament and preference.)

The fact that you lump HYPSM together, when they are so different in culture and vibe, hints that what interests you about them is the “trophy school” aspect rather than the particular attributes of each. Bragging rights are nice, but do look for a place where you’ll be able to make the most of all of your interests and passions. Surely, certain of these schools must be a much better fit than others, if you look deeper than the “name.”

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@AboutTheSame, good point about the SAT. As for what I’m interested in, I’d say Stanford is my top choice: an extremely strong and well-regarded STEM program, but with a wider variety of students than, say, MIT. Also in California with good weather.

@nvb123 Thanks. I’m actually from Kansas City. Sure, feel free to PM me.

@rickle1 Yeah, true, but nowadays, I’ve seen lots of startup founders applying to Top 20s.

@aquapt I haven’t considered USC, but I’m going to add it to my list now.

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HYPSM should be considered high reaches.

HYPS favor legacies, so if your parents are alumni, that can significantly help, but if not, they become even higher reaches. MIT does not consider legacy, so it is more meritocratic (by its definition) and less explicitly aristocratic.

CMU CS should also be considered a high reach.

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OP, be careful about contact with anonymous people on the internet. The prior poster joined this forum and within approx one hour posted exactly enough messages to allow him/her to send/receive PMs and offered to “network” with other minors.

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MODERATOR’S NOTE:

That should be standard, regardless.

The challenge with referring to a “prior poster” or a post number is that is makes no sense if a moderator deletes a post.

The “prior poster” as it appears now, is in fact a contributor whose advice has been both accurate and invaluable over the years. The post where a users was soliciting PM’s was deleted, and that user banned.

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Your SAT’s look fine, especially in light of your EC’s.

I do not agree that most go to these schools to “get a great job at a great company.” Many want a good education and good experience on a campus with wonderful peers.

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You probably know you’ve got a shot but also that those schools are reaches for everyone. Go ahead and take the shot but maybe diversify your dreams a little - you can get a great education and have a great time with amazing peers at many other schools, especially given your interests. I don’t want to start mudslinging but in CS the Ivys aren’t “all that”. Keep those schools on your list - why not - then spend time learning to love some matches and even safeties. Look into the programs at Wash U, UT, UI-Urbana, Purdue, Harvey Mudd. If you want location, location, location look at other schools in the Bay Area, LA or Boston. Forget about chancing on CC - you’ve built a great resume, go find some awesome schools that will love you rather than just chasing after a few that are pretty much random admits even for elite students. Build a diversified list of schools you love and your hopes won’t get crushed at all. :slight_smile:

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Agree with CaMom13, you should continue to expand your list, to have a wider range and some safeties. What’s the SAT breakdown? It will matter for the most competitive, you want strength in both parts.

It’s that 700 in Math 2 that can be the risk, most especially for CS or other STEM. And, do you have in-school collaborative math or sci activities? That’s important, too. Robotics or math team, etc.

It will be up to you to produce the best app/supps you can. The whole is a self presentation that goes beyond stats and an activity list. First, be sure you know enough about those targets to konw why you might be compelling to them. It’s not a matter of resting on your current laurels. Lots of kids (thousands) will have strong profiles. Lots will want CS and be from CA.

Imo, the tech start up is not a tip. Nor the popular app or the hackathons. It’s the sidelines, the MUN, screenwriting and political mag (on top of the STEM activities) that will pique their interest, that interesting breadth for a STEM kid. But, it’s up to you to pull this into a truly compelling package, one that makes them want you over other kids, makes them see your value to them and have that “Yes!” moment. Look into what they value and look for, what they say and show.

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Just a bit of real life numbers. Especially important for the Val level at every school who has done everything they can.

Harvard admits 50 percent of its class from directors list, Faculty, international,and staff and legacy. Add in athletes and you are somewhere in 65 percent of seats taken.

That leaves 588 seats for non special status students.

Since you split that by gender that leaves 294 seats for the USA.

There are 37000 high schools in USA.

Each with a val and sal with impressive stats for the most part.

Assume half of the vals (and I know that’s not the only kids they want. Just an exercise in expectations here) that aren’t at your level.

That’s 18500 students competing.

Half are males, So 9250 students competing for those 294 seats.

3.1 percent.

And we know they reach out into different levels to fill a class. And they need dancers musicians artists and from different states.

The percentage is probably half in reality. But that’s a guess.

So for every one/two admitted student 98 are rejected.

And that’s with nearly perfect stats and assuming you are stronger than over half the val. And you are stronger than 100 percent the sal level students in the country.

Built in as an assumption in the math above.

Is it impossible. Of course not. Are you qualified. Heck yeah. But the reality is that there are just so few seats that it is more of a lottery once you pass the first couple of hurdles.

You need someone to read your application and say this kid is the real difference maker out of the group. And will be good to have around on campus. I think the entrepreneurial things are excellent and may do that especially perhaps penn and Dartmouth. But there are so many other schools just as good in terms of delivering what you need to success I would suggest that you expand your horizons.

Good luck and keep up the great work.

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Please save this post and recycle it as needed, @privatebanker: It drives the message home.

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You are a competitive applicant. Your stats and ECs are great. Your ECs demonstrate your passion and interest in CS. Write good essays and you could get accepted to any of these schools

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What @doorrealthe says is true, but (s)he also cuts and pastes that identical comment on literally hundreds of chance threads, lol.

You did include UC’s in your initial query, and that hasn’t been discussed much.
If you are willing/able to full-pay the OOS costs for a UC, I can’t really see a candidate like you getting shut out of the CS programs in the UC system. Standards are high, for sure, but if anything getting in is a little easier OOS than in-state (because of the aforementioned $$$). Use your Personal Insight Questions to highlight how you stand out from the aspiring-CS pack, and you will do well as far as UC admissions. Just apply to as many campuses as you can see yourself going to, because no single UC can be considered a slam-dunk.

(I still like USC over UC’s for you, but since the discussion has turned to looking beyond the super-reaches…)

Also consider Northeastern, where you would find tons of entrepreneurial opportunities.
RIT could be a great safety. It is is a vibrant, creative place with tons of crossover between CS and the arts. Just look at the list of available majors http://www.rit.edu/emcs/admissions/academics/majors There’s a lot of exciting stuff going on there.