Defered from Harvard...what are my chances at RD?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>A little about me: I'm Chinese, female, and have lived in a small town (pop. 1200) in Pennsylvania for 11 of my 17 years.</p>

<p>Want to major in: Economics or Finance</p>

<p>Applications to:
Harvard (defered from EA!)
Columbia
NYU
PennState Honors College
University of Pittsburgh (backup)
Washington University at St. Louis (backup)</p>

<p>Still need to send to:
Cornell
MIT
Wharton</p>

<p>SAT highest combo: 740M/670V
SATII highest 3: 760Math IIC, 710Writing, 630Physics (worked my butt off in 3 weeks prior to test to learn material that my school physics did not teach!)
AP Tests: 5 for Calculus
Currently taking AP US History and AP Literature and Comp. My school only offers two other APs -- Biology and Psychology.
Only seniors allowed to take AP courses. I took AP Calc. as junior because it was the only math left for me to take at my high school.</p>

<p>Have taken college courses since the summer after 6th grade: completed 22 credits, 4.0 GPA.</p>

<p>High School career GPA: 98%
Rank: 1/91
Taken 4 years of French</p>

<p>Gone to the PA Gov. School for Global Entrepreneurship in summer of 2003
Founded a tutoring program for middle school students
I am going to present a presentation about my program at the 3rd Annual Hawaii International Conference on Education this January. I will be publishing a paper in the conference proceedings.</p>

<p>Who's Who Student
USAA History and Government Award
National Honor Roll
Rotary Club Student of the Week
Bloomsburg High School academic awards
Varsity letters</p>

<p>ECs:
National Honor Society, 11, 12: Vice-Pres. (12)
FBLA, 10, 11, 12: Chapter President (12)
FEA, 9, 10, 11: Chapter Treasurer (12)
Student Council, 9: Class Representative
Patchwork Project (Oral History Archive), 10, 11: Project Director (10), Senior Project Director (11)
Varsity Tennis, 10, 11, 12
Yearbook, 9, 10, 11, 12: Assistant Editor (11), Editor-in-Chief (12)
* i have more, but i can't think of them right now. i will consult my resume later.*</p>

<p>Interests:
International Traveling: have been to China 3 times, Canada 2 or 3 times, would love to travel the world someday when I have enough money to do so.
Photography: mainly ameteur stuff. I have published a photo in the International Library of Photography's 2004 anthology, "Endless Journeys"
Digital multimedia: photoshop, home video, dvds</p>

<p>Community Service:
volunteer at the local library
help out with the Bloomsburg Chinese Bible Study Group
help out with my church's nursery
Help out with community service in ECs like FBLA</p>

<p>I would really like some input on my chances; percentages, stats, what have you. My dream school is Harvard, but I've been defered and I'm kind of anxious. Is there anything I should do to enhance my chances in RD? Like send additional information? If so, what should I send? </p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

2

<p>WU St L is by no means a backup school for you. IN fact, it's quite a reach. Try some more reasonable schools like Boston College. Youre not gonna get into Harvard, Penn, or Columbia. Maybe Cornell and NYU. Definately PennState and U of Pitt, but thats it.</p>

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<p>I'm saying that WUSTL is my backup because it's not one of schools that I really want to go to on my list. Plus, I had never heard of the school until they kept sending me loads upon loads of stuff beginning in 11th grade after I took my PSATs, which were really bad because I didn't take them seriously. So I think I have a good chance at WUSTL, because they found me, I didn't find them.</p>

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<p>oh, and I find hope in my defered status at Harvard, unlike some candidates who are flat out rejected from Early Action.</p>

5

<p>I've read your discussion topic on vanderbilt, collegehopeful. You said you're from a top public school in your area. I'm not. My school is small, underachieving, and just barely gets by state standards. If it wasn't for my own drive to do well academically with the resources achievable in my area, my school would not allow me to do the things I have done. Our school does not even try to motivate students to do well. Just as long as they graduate people with passing grades, they are satisfied.</p>

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<p>That Harvard deferred you says you are someone they would seriously consider. That bodes well for the other schools. However, have some backups you really like, maybe something between Harvard and Pitt. WUSL is famous for having improved their ranking by blanketing college students with flattering letters, getting them to apply and then rejecting the vast majority of them. They are always ranked number 1 in college mail, so don't let such mailings give you false security. Your scores are iffy for your schools but strong for those just below.</p>

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<p>Son is deferred too. Better than a rejection on the ego. But I'm not really sure it is better in any other way.
Also, the request they make for more stuff on the applicant is throwing him off. All he is going to send is additional college class grade he will get at end of semester.
Good wishes to all.
From my screen name, you can see my own bias, but I still wish the best for him. Some other reaches which might reject him too in the reg cycle.</p>

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<p>Harvard didn't reject you because you are an interesting and thoughtful person, and somehow that came through on your application. I'm going to guess that your essays were very good. Because of this, I think you might have a shot at Brown and U Chicago. You have a small shot at MIT because you are female - but have you visited there? Its pretty intense. </p>

<p>I agree with kirmum that WUSTL is not totally above boards with their mailings. Have you thought about Smith?</p>

<p>Congratulations on all your accomplishments thus far, btw. You have done a lot with a little, and at least some of the adcoms will realize this!</p>

9

<p>Actually a deferral from Harvard doesn't mean much. It just means that you weren't so bad that they felt you had absolutely no chance of getting in. Of the 4000 or so EA applicants only 135 were actually rejected. Last year somewhere between 100-250 EA applicants who were intially deferred were later accepted, so don't put too much hope on being accepted later on.</p>

<p>After a re-read of the post that sounded pretty harsh..... But it is the truth.</p>

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<p>I don't know if this makes much of a difference, but Bloomsburg's population is actually 12,000. i missed a zero in my thread. :)</p>

<p>kirmum: what schools would you say are between Harvard and Pitt?
ohio_mum: I've thought about Brown and UChicago, but they are pretty far away from where I live and they don't have such a strong, STRONG academic record like Harvard for me to travel so far. WUSTL was actually a pre-mature mistake. I sent in my pre-app and check before really thinking about all the schools I really wanted to apply to. I guess I got sucked into their number fluffing scheme.</p>

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<p>You really need to raise that SAT verbal. Your Physics SAT II isn't good. I'm sorry, how many SAT II subject tests does Hahvahd request? Can you not submit your highest two?</p>

<p>It's those scores, most definitely. Raise them or I doubt you'll get in. If it were Penn or Brown, I'd say otherwise. Even with higher scores, I just don't know.</p>