Harvard / Columbia - Chance me?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

Hey there! Just wondering how my chances at Harvard will be like. I’m planning to apply Early Action this year.
I’m an international applicant from Singapore, and I am on a gap year now. I just completed my IB Diploma, got a score of 42/45. We don’t use the GPA scale at my school. SAT score is a 2300, Subject tests for Physics and Chem are 750+.

Here are my ECs:

  1. Scouts - I am the Secretary of my scout unit, and am now working towards the President’s Scout Award (equivalent of Eagle Scout in America, which is the highest scout award. My involvement in scouts also entails numerous opportunities to organize events, and also service opportunities.
  1. School newspaper - I was the Head Editor. My role involved putting together the school newspaper, and mentoring our student journalists on their pieces of writing
  2. Dance - this is something I am focusing on during my gap year, to become better at it. I do street/hip-hop, and also Bollywood dance (something cultural which I hope to bring to which ever school I go to). I hope to include some videos in my application.
  3. Internships - I'm really interested in current affairs and global issues. I will be starting an internship at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs soon, in the American directorate. So I'll be engaging with American foreign policy and America's bilateral ties with my country. Hoping to take on a journalism internship too, with my local newspaper.
  4. National EcoYouth committee - I am part of committee where we plan debates and dialogues on environmental issues in Singapore, the Asian region, and beyond. This is to engage the community and encourage discussion on environmental awareness and sustainability.
  5. Model UN - was quite active in this in high school. Was in my school club's model UN committee and received a few Best Delegate awards, one being for a university-level conference. This also led to me representing Singapore at the International Youth Leadership Conference in Dubai, where I was the youngest participant.
  6. Soccer - I play for an all-girls soccer team in my district. We compete in the national women's league annually, and in 2015, we achieved first place.
  7. Key Club - was really active in Key Club in high school, I was the President in 2012 and 2013.
  8. Online learning - ok, this isn't really an EC, but I think it is worth noting. I enjoy learning online, and some of the courses I have done are from Harvard. Not sure if this will be of any bonus.
  9. Youth Corps Singapore - this is a programme under our National Youth Council. It involves leadership development and then the youths planning a project or initiative to benefit the community.

Research-wise, I invested a lot of time into my IB Extended Essay. While it is best to write the essay on subjects we actually take in the diploma, I did my EE in an interdisciplinary style, combining history and politics to examine the significance of a certain multilateral defence treaty on the status of Singapore as a small state. In my entire cohort of 164 students, only 2 of us took on this interdisciplinary essay, which is supposed to be more challenging that writing an essay in a single subject. I am interested in politics and international affairs, so this drew my attention. While this first piece of academic writing I have ever done was indeed a challenge, it was nevertheless intellectually-stimulating and rigorous, and I got an A for it.

I think my letters of recommendation are strong, and would strengthen the application. My only concern is that my academic performance was not entirely consistent throughout the 2 years… there were personal reasons why (mainly the passing of a close relative) but I’m not sure how they will view this…

Thank you for your help! :slight_smile:

2

It is much harder for international students to get into your top target schools; but you have the start of a strong application, which at least gives you a decent chance. Your scores and strong IB exam results show that you are academically qualified and can handle the coursework. You have some interesting activities.

You say you are on a gap year now, but won’t be applying until next fall, so you will be 2 years out from graduation. You need to use that time wisely, and do something significant. 2 years is a long time, and you need to make sure that the things you do fit into your overall narrative, and show that you’ve taken advantage of that time.

3

Hey there, thank you! Sorry for the super late reply, I’m only checking my acct now. What are some things you would consider as interesting to do for a gap year? So far, I’m planning a trip to the Philippines to refurbish an impoverished community there, considering a 21 day course at Outward Bound Singapore (how do colleges view Outward Bound, by the way?) and potentially an internship at UN Women, alongside picking up a third language to continue learning in the meantime. It’s a lot, but sometimes I feel its not impressive enough for colleges (considering the calibre of Singapore students too, its quite a competition!)

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Also, just to mention that I’m writing an op-ed for the Singapore Policy Journal, coincidentally its a Harvard journal, so I’m not sure how this would stack up.