<p>I'm aiming to be a research scientist in the field of cancer immunology/stem cells. I've received basic lab training under a mentor (not internship) and recently went to the Intel ISEF for my research in improving targeted cancer immunotherapy. However, my mentor's lab is too busy at the moment and I haven't been able to get internships or a lab anywhere else to continue my work. A lot of my friends whom I've met through science fairs are all getting internships at research institutes like the NIH, and a major reason is that they all have connections there (im not being bitter, it's the truth). Do colleges know this? If I'm marketing myself as an aspiring scientist, will my lack of internship experience make me seem not as motivated/competent and affect my admission to selective colleges like Stanford and Columbia? </p>
<p>If you have no other science related ECs, then yes it will hurt you. You can get a job in your local community. A lot of times, the guy who worked at his local grocery store comes off as more appealing than the kid who studied coral reefs in Australia for an entire summer. Have you looked at local aquariums? Plant shops? A local hospital? It may not have a big name, but colleges know that not everyone has the sake opportunities and won’t hold that against you.</p>
<p>^^I disagree with the statement above about the grocery store, unless you are low income and have to work to help support your family.</p>
<p>In terms of ECs I’m the founder and captain of Science Olympiad at my school, with several 2nd place medals at the state level. I’ve won some grand awards from the US Public Health Service and Virginia Dental Association. I’m also a volunteer for the National Foundation for Cancer Research and will be attending Governor’s school for life science+ agriculture. I applied (and got rejected from) three internships, so at the time I didn’t think of applying anywhere else and the deadline for summer positions everywhere I’ve looked have passed. I did manage to meet and get contact info from several NIH and FDA scientists at a recent conference (woohoo!) and they seemed interested in me as an intern. However, positions will only be available after this fall when i submit my college apps… Thanks for the feedback though. I’ll try looking for some local jobs. </p>
<p>@BrownParent Some admissions officers at elite schools have said that no kid should go through high school without a paying job. </p>
<p>@AnnieBeats I definitely disagree. Many people don’t get that sort of opportunity. I had no research experience and got into nearly every excellent school I applied to (Granted, wait listed @ Stanford and Columbia so maybe you should not listen to me hahaha)…
Still, you’ve tried your best to acquire these opportunities. It didn’t work out. Don’t fret and don’t dwell on it. Do something else to make yourself better. If colleges are going to penalize you for these missed attempts, why would you want to go there? It just speaks to how INSANELY competitive their school is and how miserable the students end up becoming. It’s a bit off topic, but take a look: <a href=“The myth of the Ivy League | Parenting”>The myth of the Ivy League | Parenting;
<p>It’s a great article. I’m not sure if I’m allowed to post the link though. Sorry moderator if I’m not allowed to!!</p>
<p>@noel597 You disagree with what? We just said the same thing…</p>
<p>@AnnieBeats You said OP NEEDS science-related EC’s. I disagreed with that.</p>
<p>@noel597 I didn’t say OP needed an internship. But if you are into science, at least be apart of a club or a group. Those are always accessible unless you are homeschooled in the middle of nowhere. I know that finding and internship is hard, but OP should be able to find one thing related to major or school the want to be admitted to.</p>
<p>Like what? Be in the “science club”? I don’t know. I’m double majoring in Biological basis of behavior and compsci with a pre-med track @ Penn in the Fall and had no science EC’s. My EC’s did have a trend, but they didn’t have much to do with my major. I don’t know, that’s just my take.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone, gave me a lot to think about </p>
<p>The colleges would rather see major-related ECs @noel597 than regular ones
It also varies per college, because a very competitive science programs would rather pick the guy with experience than the guy who appears to be doing it out of the blue…</p>
<p>Neither of my kids was able to get an internship while in high school. In fact, neither of my kids was able to get an internship during their first two years of college, as everyone seemed to want rising juniors and seniors in college. So, I think Admissions understands that often high school students get their internships through family connections. </p>
<p>If you can’t get an internship – and most high school students cannot – look for a job, as many admissions offices have stated that they “honor and value summer jobs.” </p>
<p>@WotAreMyChances That isn’t true. At all. My Aunt is an admissions officer at a top 20 school and I have asked her MANY questions about EC’s</p>
<p>Actually @WotAreMyChances is correct. </p>
<p>@noel597 Your aunt is admissions officer who gets paid to sell the idea that every student has a chance at schools and that any student can get admitted while just being apart of a few distinct activities. The reality is, that is not true. Now that doesn’t make her a bad person. But it is her job to get as many applications as possible. That includes misleading thousands of kids into thinking they have a shot when they really don’t. Colleges want specialist. ESPECIALLY top 20 colleges.</p>
<p>@AnnieBeats Okay, believe what you want. Maybe they want that too. But they don’t want a class of only specialists.
Some kids DON’T HAVE the opportunity to figure out what they’d like to pursue in high school and that is OKAY. They aren’t at a disadvantage.
Some kids don’t even have the opportunity to pursue what they DO like because of certain circumstances.</p>
<p>So, no. It’s different for everyone. This situation in particular is not make or break if the OP is involved elsewhere and if that involvement is both meaningful to her and significant in the community.</p>
<p>@noel597 And those kids who aren’t specialists compensate for that with sky high test scores and GPA. If you don’t have those two things, you have to be a specialist or else you will nt get in.</p>
<p>It seems people are going to one side of the ring or the other and defending their point. If I may add something that falls in the middle:</p>
<p>So-called “top” colleges are in positions to cherry pick their classes. Once a certain threshold of academics is reached, unless it’s a very unusual circumstance, lots of soft factors come into play. That’s understood. Given the multiplicity of qualified applicants, the enventual decision process becomes very subjective – it’s definitely an art and not a science.</p>
<p>That being said: the applicant’s interersts, personal essay and EC list paint a picture. These tend to be re-inforced by the LORs. The question on the readers’ mind is: “Will Joe or Nadia be an asset to my college?”</p>
<p>That’s not determined based upon whether or not they could check off a data point of having hadd a paid job, did X number of hours of voluntarism, did intership A rather than another kid’s internship B, was President of the Math club or only the Treasurer, traveled to Haiti to build shelters, likes puppies or rainbows.</p>
<p>EVERYTHING paints a picture. And colleges know that internships are generally a function of the parents’ level of professionalism and connectiveness. How many blue collar families get their kids internships at banks? Reality is more like Camp Counselor or Burger King shift manager.</p>
<p>A profound anecdote about the applicant’s kindness or devotion to school/classmates/community/family, shared by the guidance counselor or teacher will trump all the discussions about “must have EC in intended area of study” or “gotta be a specialist” or “finshed ONLY 2nd place at national competition X”.</p>
<p>People wrack their brains looking over what they perceive as their meagre HS resumes. Guys: you’re only 16 or 17. Colleges know this. Sorry if this seems like rainbows and unicorns but top colleges truly want kind people (albeit very talented and proven scholars) who will contribute to their community. Focus on that aspect of your profile rather than stress that your internship/job/voluntarism doesn’t meet some super-human standard. Focus on being grateful, humble, kind and not entitled or subtley boasting about how you bested all the rest of the kids (one of the biggest turn-offs for file readers is arrogance and entitlement in applicant essays).</p>
<p>@T26E4 thank you for your thorough response. Science isn’t very big at my school, and we’ve never had a science club before I helped found Science Olympiad. The first time we competed we placed dead last, but I worked extremely hard to motivate my team and earlier this year we got 11th in the state, which is huge because so many schools here are scientific powerhouses. The teachers at my school don’t emphasize the amazingness of science, so no one really takes science fair seriously and I’m the only person in at least 5 years to go to the Intel ISEF. It was extremely disappointing and frustrating, but I got together with a teacher, also the Science Olympiad sponsor, and we’ve been working to make science big at our school… long story there. </p>
<p>The way I see it, it’s not about winning trophies but getting people involved and excited so they can fall in love. I’m thinking about including that in my essays, and a volunteer activity that’s been an insanely huge part of my life since middle school. I also want to write about my (sometimes unhealthy) obsession with vanilla ice cream, but that’s another story. </p>
<p>Lastly, I’m probably hijacking my own thread when I say this but I’d appreciate if anyone could give me feedback:
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1655535-neater-version-i-d-like-your-opinions-for-stanford-columbia-princeton-duke-upenn.html#latest”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1655535-neater-version-i-d-like-your-opinions-for-stanford-columbia-princeton-duke-upenn.html#latest</a> </p>
<p>I know Chance Me’s are stupid but I’d really like some advice or pro-tips. Thanks everyone and good luck in all your endeavors. </p>