<p>You should put honor roll/NHS and such only if you don't have anything else to put. If you have something more prestigious (like the award you mentioned), and you can fill up the remaining slots (I think they give you 10+), don't put things like that on. If you don't have enough, then something is better than nothing.</p>
<p>K thx for the info everyone. I think i'll apply to these nine schools first seeing I have at least one match :). If I get rejected at all of these (which hopefully I won't), I'll just apply to OSU.
I think the app deadline for fall 08 is going to be April seeing the deadline for Summer 07 is Feb so I'll have time to apply after seeing all those rejection letters.</p>
<p>Also, I plan on writing my essay on my move to another city/high school during Junior year. It goes something along the lines of my old school was below average so I slacked off, and my new school was much more challenging which brought me to realize how little I knew.</p>
<p>Bad idea? Or is it okay? I really can't think of any good topics since I don't have anything really significant in my life to weave an elaborate story around.</p>
<p>^Not a good idea. If you write about how you screwed up at one HS etc., you've just wasted your personal statement. Not only does it come off as trying to make an excuse for your grades, it also does not at all strengthen your application with something the adcom doesn't know. Obviously they can see what happened with your grades, so effectively the personal statement, which is the only intimate moment and adcom will share with an applicant, is wasted.</p>
<p>Instead, write about something you truly have passion for. Even if its piano, if you have passion, it will show, and it will make MUCH more of an impact than apologizing with 1,000words. You also want to make your essay unique. When the day is done, you want adcoms to be able to remember your essay for some unique flare it had, something that will make it memorable when they make their decisions. Write about events that really impacted you, no matter whether or not you think they're boring or uneventful. If you think it matters, and if (and this is the part where most people get killed at) it ANSWERS THE PROMPT, then that is what a good personal statement is.</p>
<p>Ok thanks. I guess I'll have to come up with some bs on how piano has affected my life then seeing it's probably the only thing worth mentioning that I can really think about. That should answer MIT's prompt about things that affected me and I guess I could always mark the other section for the Common App's essay prompt :)</p>
<p>"My friend at Harvey Mudd says the average SAT II Math of incoming males is 800. Whether I choose to believe that or not, one can't discount the fact that you have close to no science-related ECs. "</p>
<p>It is very near this value. I believe it is something like 790 or 795 (mean)</p>