Dream over for me?

Applying to College
1

<p>My situation:
[ul]
[<em>]Chinese, non-U.S. citizen, will apply colleges as International student, will ask for partial (25%) Fin. Aid. (family probably will afford whole tuition if accepted by top colleges)
[</em>]came here last year in June, finishing freshman and sophomore years in China
[<em>]currently attending a solid public school in LA, but will leave for a prestigious (relatively) boarding school in Tennessee
[</em>]will repeat Junior year in the boarding school, which means I will apply for college in 2008 (class of 2012)
[<em>]4.0 GPA, no honor/AP classes taken for the whole 05-06 junior year (unfortunately...because I enrolled late, and this is a populous public school...though I definitely have the ability to handle advanced courses)
[</em>]crappy SATs: barely 2000. (I will definitely improve that. But I have no confidence in guaranteeing 2300 or above. Same goes for TOEFL)
[<em>]no sports so far
[</em>]little ECA: Gomoku Club (Prez), Key Club, Science Team, DECA; volunteer in UCLA hospital; teach elders to use computer in a senior center; internship for Eletronic Arts starts in April
[<em>]few awards: AIME - 4, AMC12 - 115.0
CSF member
[</em>]summer experiences: ESL program (EF) in Cambridge University/Europe (2003); Study-abroad program in Europe (2004); ESL program (EF) in Los Angeles (2005 winter); UC Riverside extension program (2005) <em>Note: will go to NSLC this summer
[</em>]non-legacy
[/ul]</p>

<p>Things done in China:
[ul]
[<em>]varsity basketball and swimming;
[</em>]debate team (Captain in sophomore year; Champion of interclass tournament)
[<em>]Science & Technology Club (Prez in sophomore year)
[</em>]director of student-run flea market; donated all the profit to kids in impoverished rural area
[<em>]International English Skills Test - High Distinction (freshman; placed in the 99th percentile among Asian-Pacific students)
[</em>]citywide contest of English stage performing - First place
[<em>]paid internship at a PC hardware store for 2 years
[</em>]countless so-called leadership clinics/conferences sponsored by school...
[/ul]</p>

<p>Desirable major: economics
Major desirable colleges: Stanford, Duke, UChicago, Northwestern, Emory, NYU</p>

<p>Generally, I think what kills me is my unstable/inconsistent education status. I never settle down for one single school (even since the elementaries...). How am I going to build up a strong resume if I can't even study in a school for more than 3 years?! Soon I will be in a tatally strange environment again, which means I will have to build everything again. I HATE this... From what I had learned, I seem to be the least appealing applicant to the colleges I listed above in anyway.</p>

<p>I also have some major concerns...
1. Does what I had gone through in China count?
2. Does Asian+international status really hurt that much?
3. I am taking an extra year of high school, since I feel that I am not ready for the game. Will it be considered a disadvantage?
4. Considering my status and desirable major, what other schools would be more realistic one with good economic undergraduate program?
5. Despite the test scores, what else should I improve in order to be more competitive?</p>

2

<p>yes u can. i changed 2 elementary schools, 4 middle schools, 2 high schools, and managed to build an okay resume.</p>

3

<p>I think Emory is a match. When you get to Tennessee, be sure to take the ACT (it's much easier to take it here). It's easier for some people, plus Emory would probably like it.</p>

<p>What region of TN are you coming to? I doubt it's Eastern (no prestigious boarding schools here!), which is a shame, because it's GORGEOUS!</p>

<p>Make sure you take some AP classes and take the tests. From what I've seen, triple 700's and 4's/5's on a few AP tests provides a very solid background for an applicant.</p>

4

<p>I think the reasons for switching schools is important</p>

<p>I mean if you moved with family, and then decided to do a boarding school great</p>

<p>its the moving schools because of discipline problems that raise flags</p>

<p>People move, and switch schools</p>

<p>Just get your letters of rec in your file just in case</p>

5

<p>Are you still international if you live and go to school here?</p>

6

<p>It is too early for me to really tell you your chances in my opinion. The super selective colleges are reaches for everyone. There are about 3400 4-year colleges in the US and it seems that everyone aims for the top 15 or so. Because of that, getting into one of the super-elite colleges takes a bit of luck anyway. Some comments...</p>

<p>If your status is "Permanent Resident - Alien" (you have a green card), then I believe that you are eligible for need-based aid just like US citizens. The aid will be based on your ability to pay and the total cost of attendance at the college. You can find out your estimated EFC (Estimated Family Contribution) at many places on the internet.</p>

<p>At most colleges, being asian does not help you or hurt you. It is like being white for admissions purposes. There are colleges where asians are under-represented but they don't tend to be the elite colleges. There may be some in the South.</p>

<p>If you are considering Emory, you might look at Vanderbilt, Wash Univ in St. Louis, and Tufts. These are still reach schools. You should find more matches and safeties.</p>

<p>In applying to schools like Emory, Vanderbilt, WUSTL, and Tufts, make sure you demonstrate interest in the colleges. You don't want them to feel like you are trying to use them for a safety.</p>

<p>Taking an extra year of high school will not be held against you in any way. They look at you as you are when you apply, and don't care if you graduated a year early or a year late.</p>

<p>Your EC's are extremely strong, and everything you did in China and other countries would be very attractive to colleges. You also have a strong gpa.</p>

<p>There are two things that weaken your application. One are your SAT scores, and the other is the lack of AP courses. You also tend to think that TOEFL might be low.</p>

<p>You said that your SAT score was about 2000. This is low for the super-elite colleges, but the breakdown matters alot. At least this year, colleges did not put very much emphasis on the Writing. The scores that matter are the Math and Verbal. Since English is not your native language, they would give you a lot of leeway with the Verbal. Be aware that you should also take the SAT II Subject tests.</p>

<p>Colleges do not expect you to take AP courses if your high school doesn't offer them. The college will receive a profile of your high school along with your transcript and so they will be able to tell how many AP courses are available at your high school. Taking the most challenging curriculum available is VERY important. If you have had trouble with this because of changing high schools or because of language, then make it clear to the college in an essay or supplemental essay.</p>

<p>It is my own understanding that the only important thing about the TOEFL is that you pass it at the required level. I don't think you get extra credit for a higher than necessary score. If you do well enough on the SAT, they can waive the TOEFL.</p>

<p>Whatever happens, remember that the fact that everyone is trying to get into such a small number of colleges is totally insane. The benefit of graduating from a brand-name college is debatable. It will work out fine for you no matter where you go.</p>

7

<p>austinj: I know... that's why I put "relatively"... It is in Chattanooga. Since I am repeating Junior year, I think my schedule would be loaded with AP classes next year, as long as my counsellor allows... Is ACT that important though?</p>

<p>citygirlsmom: I am switching to a boarding school because my parents are heading back to China in June. I came with them with a J-2 Visa and studied in a public school. As soon as they leave, my J2 visa would expire as well, because it is bound to their J1 visas. Plus public schools don't offer student visa, while boarding schools do. I am still an int'l student because, I am neither a US citizen nor a PR. </p>

<p>dufus: Thanks a million for the feedback. I will study like CRAZY for the SATs and TOEFL. Though colleges would give me leeway with the verbal part, I heard that as long as I apply as an int'l student, I am put in a different pool (seperated from native student), in which the acceptence rate would probably be single-digit, because that's where all the students with flawless test scores and GPA are. That really freaked me out.</p>

<p>more questions:
1. "American colleges care about your persistency in doing work, especially when it comes to ECA." I switched to 3 different high schools in 2 different countries, how is that possible for me to maintain a persistent ECA?!
2. Is multiracial considered URM? My grandma is Russian, which means I am 3/4 Chinese, 1/4 Russian. My nationality is Chinese. (I feel opportunistic to put in application that I'm multiracial; I look pretty much Asian)</p>

8

<p>Your EC's are extremely strong, and everything you did in China and other countries would be very attractive to colleges.
I took 5th place on over all Russia Programming competition and got denied from UCSD :)</p>

9

<p>You would go into a separate category as an international student. I'm not sure what the acceptance rate for international applicants are at different colleges. </p>

<p>The % of attending internationals at some random colleges are:
Harvard 7%
Emory 4%
Yale 10%
Princeton 7%
Duke 7%
Washington U in St Louis 4%
UPenn 9%
Northwestern 5%
Stanford 5%</p>

<p>These are not really low numbers but it depends on how many internationals apply. One thing holding down the % of internationals is money. Very few US colleges are need-blind for internationals and they are the super-elite colleges. Internationals can not get money from the US government for college, and before an international can attend, they have to be able to prove that they have the resources.</p>

<p>Being multiracial won't help you. In US society, the only people who are going to have an advantage are African-Americans and Hispanics because they are under-represented. However, internationals bring diversity to the campus and colleges look for that.</p>

10

<p>toast to one of my favorite ccer......A TOAST TO DUFUS</p>

11

<p>You asked about the ACT. There are two competing admission tests in the US, the SAT and the ACT. Most high school students on the East and West Coasts take the SAT. The ACT is popular in the middle part of the US. Colleges do not show preference between the two tests and they will take the best score from either if you take both. There is a conversion chart to convert from SAT to ACT and vice versa. Most people take one or the other but not both. The tests are pretty different and some people do better on one than the other, and so some people take both.</p>

<p>In addition to either the SAT or ACT, some of the super-elite colleges also require SAT II Subject Tests. In this case, people who took the ACT also have to take SAT II's. Sometimes the ACT substitutes for both the SAT and SAT II's.</p>

<p>Thanks, Bestmiler1.</p>

12

<p>Thanks again, dufus...
How are the attending percentage calculated, though? </p>

<h1>of attending students divided by # of accepted students?</h1>

<p>I knew that multiracial thing doesn't help... That's why whenever it comes to race, I always put "Asian - Chinese"</p>

<p>Irbis: what are your other stats though? Test scores are the king.</p>

13

<p>The "attending percentage" I listed is just the percentage of that group in the student body. </p>

<h1>of internationals at the college divided by total # of students at the college</h1>