<p>Sat 1-2050/1360
sat2 maths 2c-800,phy 790
toefl-110
rank- top 10%
gpa- i dont study in IB.doing CBSE and we dont have gpas. scored 93.4% in 12th.
nationality-indian
dunno why i was rejected. dint expect this.</p>
<p>accepted!!! OMG!!!
SAT 1340/2120 SAT2: Math 2 800 Physic 760 Chemistry 790
TOEFL-108
rank-top 10%
GPA: The system is different in my school…I think it should be approximately 85/100
And I’m from China…
By the way, ais, best of luck to your decisions from other great universities ;P</p>
<p>@surabhi19991 :
best wishes to u for further admissions…
My stats were pretty average though,
SAT 1390/2050, SATII 2300 MPC (math2 700, I know… and I really don’t suck at math)
Toefl:104
GPA:around 93 and ranked top 10% in a very competitive school
but I really did write a several very good essays. (I believe or else I would definitely not be admitted)</p>
<p>looking at the stats of accepted students it looks like it wasn’t my weak area. i really wanna assess the reason why i was rejected by bucknell. so guys im posting my essay, tell me honestly is it upto bucknells standards or not. especially the accepted students who have theirs to compare with.</p>
<p>TOPIC-Topic of your choice.</p>
<p>Thud! Thud! It feels like I’m being attacked! No, not by my sister, but by my bookshelf, which has been
in complete disarray all through grade 12. I guess it finally decided to pay me back! After I grapple with
the falling books for a while, I sort out the things that had fallen down - a few notebooks, a few hidden
letters (Ssshhh), and a geometry box. I open my math notebook and notice many crossed out solutions. It
brings back memories of struggling with problems on my own, because I refused to directly copy
solutions from the board. As I progressed falteringly, hesitantly, from one problem to another, I equated
the experience with learning how to ride a bicycle. Just like cycling down a rough path, solving new
math problems was an adventurous process; working a problem, crossing it out, and then solving it
correct with sudden strike of the trick. As each bruise and fall made me a better rider, all the wracking of
brain and frantic scratching of pen enhanced my understanding of math and helped me remember the
lessons. Pedaling after months and still able to maintain balance, I realize that knowledge is something
that should stay with us forever and should not be just about clearing one more exam.
“Surabhi”, a voice interrupts my thoughts. It is my mother. “Finish cleaning up quickly. We need to go
out in an hour”. ‘Yes mom”, I reply. While cleaning the first shelf, I’m pleasantly surprised to locate a
telescope that I had been searching for the past few months. When I was a little girl, I used to focus it on
the moon in the hope of discovering a crater or even spotting Neil Armstrong! Sadly, my science text
books in school never held the same fascination for me. My poor alarm clock always fought a losing
battle to awaken me for an exam, but I would be lured back to sleep by the cold weather and the warm
blankets. However this was never the case with the Homi Bhabha Science exam, which provided me an
opportunity to escape from the drudgery of my textbooks and read about other exciting ideas. And when I
discovered that Schrodinger proved Rutherford wrong, I chased him all the way from the books in my
library to video lectures by MIT professors to my dad who has his master’s degree in physics. Even
today, I chase him in Schrödinger’s Cats and Discovery shows.
Now, I am almost done. I pull the chair near the study table and climb it. My bag, which is lying on the
top shelf, has put on some weight. I wonder about the possible things that could be hiding in it. When I
open the bag, I find several sheets of maps with tiny named dots sprinkled across them. While science and
math energize me and give me the ability to create, social science brings a steadiness to my life. Many of
my classmates complained about learning the past, however for me the victories of kings and patriotism
of people under colonial rule is fun as I could relate it very much to my society which shares many
common challenges with its ancestors . These stories give me a sense of my roots and the sensibility of
how to live in the present. As I dig deeper in the bag, I take out chocolate wrappers and oil stained plates.
Oh my god! I had forgotten all about these again! Whenever I used to travel by train, munching
something, and would extend my hand outside the window to throw the wrappers or plates, the Kyoto
protocol and Fundamental Duties would pull them inside…and into my bag. They have now finally taken
their rightful place in the garbage.
Glancing back at the now sorted out things on the table, I cannot help but wonder what I am leaving
behind as I now move towards the next stop of my education. I feel a pang of nostalgia as I look at my old
textbooks, some newspaper cuttings, a broken badminton racket, a pen stand made of ice cream sticks
during the art class and my collection of the Tinkle magazines. Whenever I clean my bookshelf, I take
some of these things out to throw away, but end up keeping them somewhere safe. It’s hard to throw out a
part of myself…each item has captured some part of me and is woven with stories and aspirations. They
all represent my freedom. When I didn’t have to choose a career or start living on my own, I happily
pursued one interest after another. However, now that I have to choose a major in college, I wonder…do I
still have the option of keeping them all with me?</p>
<p>AND THE SUPPLEMENTAL ESSAY
The other day when my mom fell ill and I was washing the dishes I couldn’t help but draw a parallelism between me and the sponge. Just as the sponge takes in the soap and water and swells, even I like to absorb and grow. I am fascinated by the huge world around me, and always look forward to learning more about it. The optional field trips or books suggested by my teacher to enhance the understanding of the subject were as important to me as my school text. Even amidst the huge course load at school I wouldn’t mind making projects or representing the school at quizzes. They never seemed to add any burden despite I had many notebooks to complete and many tests to study for. Education is a two-way process; it works best when both parties, the teacher and the taught, participate equally. Hence I want my professors to know that I will always have questions to keep them busy and their enthusiasm in sharing knowledge will be equally reciprocated by me. </p>
<p>New school uniform and strange faces;students generally undergo this ordeal once or twice, but I have experienced these five times and counting. I was born in a North Indian family in the southern state of India, Tamil Nadu. Since my father had a transferable job, I was fortunate enough to travel around the country and absorb the various styles of Indian culture. Many people are surprised to discover that I am a North Indian because of the distinctive South Indian touch to my features. On the other hand, my relatives can’t fathom my fondness for vada pav(a Mumbai snack) and sambhar (a South Indian dish)!. However, I feel that this mixture has made me an Indian in the true sense of the word. Just as the intermingling tones of various musical instruments create harmonious music, so does the different cultures and student backgrounds in a university make the whole college experience a colorful one. With my living experiences in India, I will add the saffron and green bit to the colorful mosaic. </p>
<p>The extra care with which glasses are handled shows the extent to which they are sensitive to the forces around them. A small mishap leaves a permanent mark on them. I too am like the glass- sensitive to the things around me. When I see the turmoil on my friend’s face due to a problem in her life or when I see the weaker sections in society being exploited, a storm surges within me. I remember the first time I visited the orphanage and a cute little face recited me “Johnny Johnny yes papa”. Wow! , I clapped and appreciated the sweet song, but the irony of the situation couldn’t escape my notice. I wondered did he mean those words the same way as I meant them when I recited them with twinkling eyes years ago in my parent’s arms. Moreover, I couldn’t sleep for hours the night I read The kite Runner. As I see the world and read books with my maturing eyes, I feel compelled to voice my concerns. n fact I teach at the orphanage with the hope that one day these kids can stand up and speak for themselves, and have the opportunities every child has a right to.</p>
<p>I would really appreciate if you post your honest comments to help me realize my mistakes!. Thanks in advance</p>
<p>Rejected… Congrats Harmon! =D
Looks like i’m gonna be taking a gap year.
stats:</p>
<p>1330 SAt , 2250 SAT 11
A-levels Avg 96%
O-levels 4th highest average in the world </p>
<p>essays really good.</p>
<p>:( pretty upset but i’m ok with it…</p>
<p>i jus wanna post 1 quote-
‘greatness of a man is not in never failing but on rising every time he falls’.
take for example, harmon himself, he came out of 5 rejection n now has been accepted to 1 of the very best of universities. keep up the good spirit guys.</p>
<p>congrats harmon.
@surabhi nice essay, thumbs up frm my side…
@rico- which colleges have decisions pending??</p>
<p>surabhi:well I looked into your essays word by word, honestly, looking at your stats and essay especially, I am suprised by the rejection. Then probably I guess it wasn’t the essay problem, or the essay may not be the AO’s taste. And, another thing is, how much FA have u applied for. This is a major factor for international students.</p>
<p>Although I was kinda confident that I would make it into buck in the beginning, but I would definitely not be had I read your stats and essay along with the decision ahead of time.</p>
<p>So believe yourself, the decision is really not a reflection of your ability. I sincerely wish you the best as an international friend chasing our dreams.</p>
<p>I have washington and lee university, trinity university in san antonio, and yale… My Dartmouth deferral from ED is also still pending.</p>
<p>i got waitlisted by Colgate, Middlebury, Colby, Washington Uni.</p>
<p>Rejected by Bucknell.</p>
<p>hey guys those are really kind words. You people have definitely lifted my spirits!especially irondragon. you have been generous enough to say this taking into consideration that u are accepted to bucknell.
btw my financial need was between USD 25k to 30k.</p>
<p>i think at times things are unexpected and u just cannot reason them. however,irondragon, you must be proud of your achievement and you must have definitely been better than me in some other area to earn the acceptance.</p>
<p>@ricochet99999@ais2014-i hope we soon have reasons to smile. best of luck:)</p>
<p>Surabhi, what more do u have?</p>
<p>Accepted to USC,UVA,Ohio State,WPI,Purdue,BU.I definitely need scholarships or aid and no news on that front. Only WPI waived my tuition by 60%.
Rejected-Stanford,Bucknell,Lafayette
Wait-listed-Wash U
Waiting-Dartmouth(which I really wanna get into but have less hopes)</p>
<p>so ricochet99999 and ais2014 did u hear back from any other colleges?</p>
<p>Well, five of my rejections are: Stanford, MIT, Gatech, Brandeis and UC Berkeley…And probably I will add USC since I still haven’t received anyting from it…Hey Surabhi, I think Bucknell probably rejects you just because of financial aid…I mean, 2 or 3 people in China who are wailisted by Bucknell have applied more than $25k, and a guy in my city is rejected. He applied $33k( But he is accepted by Stanford without Financial Aid==#. It’s really a good thing that Bucknell rejects him!! He actually comes from a very wealthy family)…Anyway, best of luck to everyone!!! And let’s all hope that on April fool offers will show up at our email</p>
<p>Good, the rejection letter from USC just showed up at my email XD…</p>
<p>Hey Surabhi… I just got waitlisted at Williams. I asked for too much aid i think and thats bringing me awful luck. But don’t worry about DMouth - it’s need blind. Since you got into USC, i’m guessing your application is pretty strong anyway. </p>
<p>But aid counts a lot i think. Like i told harmon, there is this girl from school who applied without aid and got ALL the unis she applied to till now… Stanford, USC, NYU, BU, and Duke too and all these are need aware… </p>
<p>But it depends. i just have 3 left… Dmouth, Yale and Trinity uniersity… My hopes are ~~…
I’m getting ready to work on the waitlists…</p>
<p>Damn our countries they cannot pull a decent edu system and we have to go running to US that too asking them for money 
@ricochet99999-even u must be having a strong application for being waitlisted by dartmouth. and im not less hopeful abt dartmouth because of my need but by the competition i have to face. it must be tough being waitlisted but keep your fingers crossed.</p>
<p>@Harmon- i guess FA backlashed. maybe i should have applied ED, but was never so sure about Bucknell. btw u shouldnt really care abt USC as its very costly n cannot be afforded without a scholarship which is very competitive to get. </p>
<p>I hope atleast one of my accepted uni rewards me a scholarship!</p>
<p>@surabhi
Well, I guess FA need backlashed a bit, and thanks for saying me generous :), but still, Wish you the VERY VERY BEST for Dartmouth. And yes, damn our countries for providing us some tiresome and nearly useless education, and thank CC for providing us a place to say these words because if I wrote what I wrote in a Chinese bbs/forum, my post will be deleted right away… Lol…
@Harmon, would u mind sending me a message in CUUS. or possibilly add me in renren if u have one. I do want to know who you are though. the id is also irondragon</p>
<p>By the way, did any of u accepted recieve the admission package yet? especially from somewhere Asia.
I’m anxious about my FA because the actual FA I got after admitted by another college was 11k USD less than what I asked for…</p>
<p>@irondragon-so very true! Best of luck for bucknell. u will enjoy ur time, its a gr8 place:)</p>
<p>Okay, iron, no problem</p>
<p>accepted
SAT: 1550/1600 2350/2400
SAT2: Chem 800 Math2 800
GPA: 3.75 UW, 6.56/7 W
from new jersey
mechanical engineering</p>