How much will lack of major awards/competitions hurt my EA chances? (chance thread)

Colleges & Universities A-Z Harvard University
1

<p>I've applied early to Harvard, and I'm very proud of all of my accomplishments; however, after viewing the EA threads of past years on this forum, I've realized that my application lacks one key component: awards/competitions. At my school, the only competition offered for mathematics students like myself is the AMC, which I haven't been able to take since freshmen year due to my role in the Math Honor Society (I emcee and coordinate the whole event, booking the space required, etc.), so I haven't qualified for AIME. Other competitions, like Intel ISEF are unheard of at my school. So my question is: given my stats, how much do you think my lack of major awards/competitions will hurt my chances? I'm very passionate and excellent at what I do, but my opportunities haven't allowed for many awards (especially in mathematics, my area has creative arts competitions, but that's my specialty). Please give me your ideas from what's below </p>

<p>Objective:[ul]
[<em>] SAT I (breakdown): 720 CR / 800 M / 800 W (1 sitting, 2320)
[</em>] ACT:
[<em>] SAT II: 800 Math II, 800 Chemistry, 780 US History
[</em>] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
[<em>] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): No rank, but counselor insinuated #1 in recs and SSR.
[</em>] AP (place score in parenthesis): 5's on: Euro, Comp Sci, Chemistry, Calculus BC, English Language, Statistics, US History // 4's on: Bio, Enviro
[<em>] IB (place score in parenthesis):
[</em>] Senior Year Course Load: AP Government, Economics, Theatre I, AP English Literature, AP Physics C (Mech), Academic Decathlon (inaugural year for my school's team), Math Tutoring
[<em>] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Semifinalist, National AP Scholar, California Scholarship Federation (Honor Roll), Outstanding Junior Scholar (school award), Outstanding Math Tutor Medal (school award, given to 5/140 math tutors/year. only Freshmen to ever receive it).
[/ul]Subjective:[list]
[</em>] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Math Honor Society (various positions leading up to President 2013-2014), Weather Ballooning Organization (co-founder, we have a website and documentation and video and such), Study of the Japanese Language (2007-Now), Business that imports/exports Japanese anim</p>

2

<p>for gods sake you have a 4.0</p>

3

<p>@ilovediannaagron, at schools like Harvard, admissions are holistic. So about 80% of candidates have comparable test scores/GPA to me. It comes down to things like awards, extracurriculars, recs, and essays, and that’s what I want people to chance me on. Thanks for the kind words, though!</p>

4

<p>CercaTrova, I realize ang920 was being sarcastic, but I’m not making the thread under those pretenses. I legitimately think I am a qualified applicant in all areas except major awards. I was hoping someone could provide some insights as to if my awards suffice given my other states. ang920, unfortunately, did not contribute for this. His sarcasm was noticed but not humorous, so I responded accordingly, haha.</p>

5

<p>I’m an adult, not another kid. We don’t know how you presented yourself, vis a vis the holistic review, but you are absolutely qualified to apply. As you know, competition is fierce. The weather ballooning will get their attention, probably pique their curiosity. The rest will be a matter of their institutional needs- how many from CA, your part of CA, your major, how your misc interests/activities/experiences fit their sense of what sorts of non-academic engagements they are looking for, and on and on. Holistic is not a matter of sitting at the top of some mythical awards pyramid, no matter how many times kids repeat that on CC. It’s about how you come across, in full. Congratulate yourself for what you have done- and for pulling it together for the early app to H. Breathe. Best wishes.</p>

6

<p>Why are you asking us? We can’t tell you. Your scores and GPA are all well within range of Harvard’s accepted pool - you’re a competetive applicant. You think all ~2000 of Harvard’s admitted students have major awards, major research publications, major science fair wins, etc.? Fitzsimmons (Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid for the College) said himself that the majority of students are what one would consider to be “well-rounded.” They’re not all geniuses, world class athletes, etc., but they are all great, motivated kids (like you). </p>

<p>Your best bet is to dig through the threads from previous years’ decisions; that’ll give you the most insight you could possibly hope to gain from this website.</p>

7

<p>Even with awards, your chances would still be the same: slim. But almost everyone has a slim chance at Harvard, some slimmer than others. Although your chances are slim, you are as solid an applicant as any, so just calm down and wait for your decision to come in December, whatever it may be.</p>

<p>Best of luck to you!</p>

8

<p>You have a decent chance, but don’t get your hopes up. Your application is good, but not great; nothing really jumps out. And don’t take ang920 seriously; he’s been trolling Harvard chance threads recently.</p>

9

<p>academically, ur very solid. every thing on your app is very, very solid. but do you have anything special? im guessing thats what harvard looks for. oh ps if ur really poor, you have a significant advantage, and i would hope your lack of major awards wouldn’t hurt you at all. </p>

<p>P.S. do you think my chances are down the drain for harvard with a 3.89UW 4.74W GPA? My school doesnt rank, but if i had to i’d say somewhere in the top 5%(but probably lower end of it…)?? my sat is like a 2390…? im really worried… oh and btw im asian…</p>

10

<p>^^ Seriously -_- your gpa is perfectly fine, and your sat is near perfect. for Harvard, that’s not what matters though</p>

11

<p>it wont hurt you. i guess the only thing that stands out if your business. just wait and see if u get admitted. stop worrying.</p>