curious: which one would the colleges take?

Applying to College
1

<p>Apologies in advance if there are other threads like this floating out there or if this is too long, but I was curious about everyone's opinion on this. </p>

<p>So here are three East Asian kids at the top of their class looking to apply to HYPSM/ivies. A lot of stuff is tentative since they're still juniors, but this is basically the direction they'll be going in for the next year and a half. Everyone keeps saying the competition between these three will be hardcore, so I'm interested in what you guys think. </p>

<p>Student A: Math/Science-oriented, talented pianist with awards, decent leadership credentials, Valedictorian, likes business.
SAT: Not taken yet but probably at least 2300
Best case scenario: Responsible valedictorian (esp if w/ 2400), insanely talented musician excellent in math and science (mayyyyyyyybe RSI).
Worst case scenario: Chinese kid who likes math and plays piano. </p>

<p>Student B: Well-rounded, athletic, talented artist, piano, pretty good leadership credentials.
SAT: Not taken yet but probably at least 2250
Best case scenario: Verrrrrryyy enthusiastic, incredibly well-rounded, lots of leadership, amazing artist, excellent student, maybe even recruited (unlikely...)
Worst case scenario: Immature, did too much and spread self too thin, mediocre writer, good but not good enough. </p>

<p>Student C: Excellent^2 writer with awards, fairly good artist, preference for humanities, decent leadership credentials.
SAT: 2400
Best case scenario: Literary genius (depending on awards), thoughtful and insightful (possibly TASP), academically flawless.
Worst case scenario: Boring, same old extracurriculars, mediocre achievements to back up focus. </p>

<p>They're all Asian, but they're also three of the most competitive types - the academically superb valedictorian, the well-rounded passion kid, and the incredibly gifted intellectual. No legacy, no first-generations, all unhooked except MAYBE the third one. </p>

<p>Which of these nerds do you guys think will fare the best?</p>

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<p>How can you determine which will fare best? What's your defn of "best"? X got into Princeton so he's better than Y who's going to Harvard who's better than Z who's going to Yale? Of course USNWR is scripture, right?</p>

<p>Rather preposterous, dontcha think?</p>

<p>Of course each will be admitted to fine programs. If you're speaking about the ultra-elites, then almost no one is above the "crapshoot" selection process.</p>

<p>Frankly don't worry about it.</p>

<p>BTW: which one are you?</p>

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<p>So which of the three are you?</p>

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<p>These are kids in my class, I'm not quite on their level lol. </p>

<p>Don't misunderstand me, I'm seriously not saying what they're doing is exactly right. It's just that I know that's what they're going to do regardless of fit. Perhaps "best" wasn't the most appropriate word; my question was which one, in the opinion of CC, would actually have the most success in their - however misguided it may be - goal of acceptance to the select group of institutions they'll inevitably aiming for. Everyone at my school is always glorifying the first and are almost certain he'll get in anywhere, I was merely wondering if you guys shared the same sort of opinions.</p>

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<p>I think they'd all have an equal shot, so long as each was applying to a certain school (math/science school for first, etc) inside the university that matched them.</p>

<p>The top schools really are a crapshoot for everyone.</p>

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<p>All three will probably admitted to top schools. I'm a little shaky with the middle one, but you don't have to be a demigod to get admitted to top schools. However, I like student C best. But again, they'd probably all have an impressive list (3 or more) of top schools to choose from.</p>