Decision: Accepted
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): N/A
ACT (breakdown): 34, 35 superscored
SAT II: 800 Math, 710 Chemistry
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): Converted, around a 3.6 unweighted
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A… guessing I was in the top 25-30th percentile
AP (place score in parenthesis): N/A
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: English, Calculus, Genetics (Intro and Molecular), History, Religion (Social Ethics), Advanced Chemistry, Sports Science, Health, Varsity Swimming
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): N/A
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Varsity Swimming (Co-Captain), Student Council (Senior Class President, Secretary, Grade Rep), Wildlife & Conservation Club (Co-Head), Ceramics Empty Bowls Club (Co-Head), Stage Band, International Student Orientation (Leader), Relay for Life Planning Committee. Outside of school, Church / Soup Kitchen (Volunteer), Local Supermarket (Line Chef / Server).
Job/Work Experience: Line Chef and Server at a supermarket, Ceramics Studio Proctor, Lifeguard.
Volunteer/Community service: Student Council, Wildlife & Conservation Club, Relay for Life, Volunteer Swim Coach in school, Church program (meal prep and service), Music performances at elderly care facilities.
Summer Activities: swimming, cultural and service trip to Costa Rica in 2015, volunteering and working a job.
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Probably an 8 or so. Thought they were well-written and showed different sides of me as an applicant/person, but they were not out of this world by any means.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): Between a 9 to 10.
Teacher Rec #1: My Chemistry teacher taught me the whole year and liked me as I led class discussions, willingly explained solutions on the whiteboard, visited her during office hours and did well.
Teacher Rec #2: I had my English teacher in the spring-- she noticed my class presence, enjoyed my essays and appreciated the effort I put into the class. Both teachers were fond of me.
Counselor Rec: He was not the most helpful throughout the application process and we are not that close. However, I know he wrote a decent rec for me.
Additional Rec: N/A
Other: I interviewed on campus during the summer. It went very well; it seemed more like a genuine conversation than a tense interview.
Applied for Financial Aid?: No
Intended Major: Engineering or Math/CS
State (if domestic applicant): N/A
Country (if international applicant): Canada
School Type: Prep school
Ethnicity: W/A
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: >$150,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): “Recruited” athlete
Reflection:
Strengths: My swimming hook, extracurriculars, ACT & Math II scores (though for Mudd they are not that extraordinary), possibly my essays.
Weaknesses: Without a doubt, my GPA (I am proof that a 4.0 is not required to gain admission to a place like HMC!) and Chem SAT II score.
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: My swimming, along with my academic course-load from a tough HS and my EC’s. I also showed demonstrated interest (applied last year, was waitlisted, applied again in the ED1 round during my current gap year).
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Nowhere, applied ED1 to Mudd.
General Comments:
First of all, congrats to everyone who was admitted to Harvey Mudd, and for those that were deferred or rejected, I am sorry. I was in your shoes last year and I know it sucks. Work hard on those RD essays and trust yourselves for everything you have accomplished. Don’t compare yourselves with others; it can be toxic and stressful. There are so many great colleges and I am sure you will do well at the one you ultimately enroll at.
I am surprised and blessed to have been admitted to such an amazing school. Not only am I an international student, but my UW GPA was low (with a Junior year downward trend) and my Chem SAT II was not the best. I did attend a difficult HS, which contributed to my relatively subpar grades.
That being said, my advice to future applicants considering Mudd / any highly-ranked school would be to find your spike or niche. It can be anything: academics, a music talent, your background… for me, it was swimming. I was able to have support from the coach that likely pushed my application into the ‘accepted’ pile. Find something you can excel at and bring that passion to whatever university you end up attending.
I have read countless College Confidential threads over the years and cannot believe the time has finally come for me to sign off with a post like this. If anyone has any questions or comments about what I have written, feel free to shoot me a PM. Best of luck.
Cheers!