<p>My best friend got has this killer internship this summer with a famous hospital in Los Angeles. He gets paid a lot of money and will be doing legitimate work with well-known doctors and researchers. Meanwhile, I'm working as a waiter and taking a stats class at a local community college. But enough about me. In my jealous mind, my friend's internship is so rare for high school students, it could open doors for him at good schools. He's an otherwise good candidate (2240, top 1% of class, great ec's, no hook (he's Asian)) but certainly no shoe-in at the Ivies. The only IVY he's planning on applying to is Cornell (he's convinced he has no chance at the top Ivies). I think he should apply to HYSP based largely on the quality of his internship (he'll apply pre-med). </p>
<p>He's a frequent CC poster and he's agreed to let you guys influence his decision. Do you think his internship would give him an edge at HYPS?</p>
<p>Well it couldn’t hurt. Colleges just like to see that students aren’t sitting on their behind all summer. An internship like that would probably be a good push toward the Ivies :] Tell him he’s setting himself up in a good position! You win, hands down Sorry, best friend lol</p>
<p>Why wouldn’t he apply to better ivy’s than cornell? Top 1%, 2240? Seems strong enough tht with a little bit of luck can make it into some of the better ivy’s. That internship definitely cannot hurt either.</p>
<p>Your friend should apply to colleges that he actually wants to go to, regardless of whether or not they are Ivies. If they are, though, he should definitely apply and just make sure to right some awesome essays.</p>
<p>sg12 has a point.<br>
If your friend likes Cornell but isn’t attracted to the other Ivies, or other top schools too (they’re not all Ivies, you know ;)) then perhaps that would be the best fit for him. Ithaca is so different from Philly, NYC, Providence, and Boston, so if your friend likes a smaller town, then Cornell (or maybe Dartmouth or Princeton) might be what he wants in that respect. Good luck to you both.</p>
<p>My friend’s brother graduated number 1 and had a 2380 and was rejected from Harvard, Yale, and Princeton (he ended up at UCLA). With a lower score, he doesn’t feel that he has a chance (what’s funny is that his parents were kind of disappointed with his SAT score; my parents would have thrown me a ticker tape parade had I broken 2200). But his brother never worked in the summers. He just took more classes. I’ve been trying for two weeks to convince him that his internship is more important than another 100 points on the SAT and that he should apply to at least one of the HYPS schools. I mean how many kids get to put on their app that they did research at a place like Cedars Sinai while in high school? </p>
<p>As for Cornell, I don’t know if he really loves the score or not. He’s never left California so I know he’s never been to Ithaca. His math and CR score is 1580. Cornell apparently looks only at math and CR scores so that’s why he’s applying to Cornell. I’m pretty sure its no more deep than that. His family are immigrants and I think he just wants to go to a school with the best reputation.</p>
<p>Why not try?? I mean - he of course should visit them and see which suit what he wants to get out of university but with the internship and his SAT score I dont see why he wouldnt have as good a shot as anyone else?</p>
<p>Yeah, he should most likely take advantage of the internship and use it as a application boost… and see how it helps out. Does your friend have interest in UCLA?</p>
<p>Collbreeze: He seems to think the UC system is his fate. It’s relatively inexpensive and close. I’ve never heard him say anything about UCLA specifically, however. </p>
<p>Banana: Are you serious? Our school is crazy competitive and only about three or four of our grads end up in Ivy schools each year. It’s seriously twisted how hard it is to get into HYPS. </p>
<p>DougBetsy: I don’t know. His brother is the oldest child and more of a father to my friend than an older brother. He never just wanted to hang out together or anything. He always just told him to study hard and make his parents proud. Kind of a creepy relationship. They get along fine but aren’t really close. I don’t think he’d avoid HYPS because his brother got rejected, but I don’t know what he’s really thinking. There may be some weird Asian tradition involved here, but he’s never mentioned it to me. </p>
<p>Guylian: I’m with you. What’s the harm in trying? You lose $75? So what?</p>
<p>Like I said, I just wish he would open his eyes and see how this internship could help him. He’s treating it like he’s working at the mall or something.</p>
<p>^I think it shows a lot about character that he didn’t do this internship do have a better shot at the very top schools (because he didn’t plan on applying). Is my assumption correct? That he is doing the internship because he is truly passionate about his work? Because, imo, that would set him apart from a lot of other applicants with extremely high stats.</p>
<p>Banana: My friend’s mom calls him a banana because she says he’s yellow on the outside and white inside. Does your name mean the same thing? </p>
<p>I get what you are saying. The Ivy leagues always seem to accept some kids who no one would have guessed would be admitted. So if you look at these kids you can say that there is always a theoretical chance of getting in for anyone. But aren’t these kids like the people who hit the lottery? And aren’t most of these HYPS lottery winners get in because of legacy, athletics or race?</p>
Sorry, best friend lol</p>