<p>As far as grades go, I should have a fairly solid GPA when I'm applying next year (currently a Junior) at around 3.7 or 3.8 (bad Freshman year). I should have decent SAT scores of about 2100. I've taken the most challenging courseload available without taking early classes in 8th grade before I went to this high school. I haven't really taken the AP exams except for AP World History which I didn't do very well on, but I think I should be able to manage a 5 on APUSH this May.</p>
<p>Anyway, I've read a lot about how Stanford admissions are a bit unpredictable, but they do like to see unique students with passion in something. I really found my passion about a year ago when I laboriously put together a website on my favorite video game. A year later, and the site has accumulated millions of page views and hundreds of thousands of visitors. In turn, I've made a few thousand dollars and I will probably continue to earn at this rate for awhile. To boot, I've just launched a similar type of site that could to equally as well.</p>
<p>In the process of building these two sites, I've gained a lot of knowledge in a number of web-based programming languages and even in Java, which can definitely be regarded as a full programming language. This past summer, I interned at a local web design company which could turn into, more or less, an actual job over the school year. I am in the process of organizing a much larger-scale internship with an analytics company in DC. I would likely be doing some actual programming work and would have the chance to make a decent impact there. There is also a small chance that this internship could lead to a VERY valuable connection with and perhaps reccomendation letter from a successful Stanford graduate. Just a thought, not going into specifics though.</p>
<p>The last thing that I'm going to say is that although the two sites I have are just simple informational sites with smart SEO tactics, there are many other more impressive kinds of sites (interactive, have the chance to take off a bit) that I could make in the future. I'm already nearly finished with a third site that focuses on a much larger "market" and would thus have a good chance at garnering some impressive traffic. It's a lot more interactive (uses loads of JS, PHP, ect.) and is looking fairly nice.</p>
<p>Please let me know what you think. I'm just working towards some kind of project that will take off in a relatively big way way - take the YouTube</a> Instant story for instance. I know it sounds like I'm doing this just for admission here - but I promise you that's not the truth. Although I would do lots of crazy things to get into Stanford, if I didn't absolutely enjoy programming, I wouldn't be doing this.</p>
<p>Thanks in advance. Sorry for the long post!</p>
<p>I would say it’s pretty good by itself, but other applicants might have done their fair share of programming websites so the applicant pool might be competitive. You’ll never know unless you apply.</p>
<p>Mark23, PunjabX has it about right. It’s always good to pursue your interests for their own sake, but loads of applicants are adept programmers, have created successful websites, started businesses, etc. These are not “hooks” for admission, but they do show commitment and focus so to that extent, they are valuable. Good luck to you.</p>
<p>@StanfordCS- not necessarily. A hook is essentially anything that is special about your app that could make the college want you. If you read the Stanford Daily article on their college admission process (in the SCEA thread) you’ll see that the kid with decent grades but with a passion for compsci was admitted over two other candidates who were more well rounded. OP’s description makes it seem like he really cares about comp sci, and will further explore his passion. Granted, for a school like Stanford, it will be a good hook, but not something that they haven’t seen before.</p>
<p>girlrocking, your definition of a hook is broader than what is usually used on this site but, even if you use that broader definition, what Mark23 described really isn’t likely to fall into that category, since it isn’t very unusual at all around here. I’m not trying to discourage him (or anybody) from applying if they want to, but just trying to give an honest answer to his question. Every year hopeful students post in this forum about the websites, apps, internet businesses, etc. they’ve created, expecting to get an admission boost from it, and then it turns out not to have been much of a factor in the outcomes. So, just letting people know how it is. These are sort of common ECs these days at lots of schools.</p>
<p>It’s definitely interesting. If you can talk about how this has helped you in life or made you more prepared (which it definitely has) then it’s probably something Stanford is interested in. :)</p>
<p>And as for your freshman grades, I’m under the impression that Stanford does not look at your freshman grades. (Stanford rep came to my school)</p>
<p>The institution has traditionally had a major focus toward individuals with entrepreneurial experience. The Graduate School of Business has a Center for Entrepreneurial Studies. While the technical aspects of developing your website may be of interest, the entrepreneurial aspect of evolving it into a profit-making venture may be of greater importance to relate as you put together your application. Whether or not it is of great enough significance to be considered as “a hook” could only be answered by the adcomm</p>
<p>I also branded my self a web devloper, oriented towards interactivity, so i did alot of flash, which i know is not that impressive, but I also am familiar with php, C++, and others i can’t think of, and i am still learning JS and messing around with html5 - im looking for a replacement for flash because I also do alot 3d design so flash works well with 3d incorporation. But my passion was entreprenuership, and i plan on launching 4 sites with are also businesses one by mid december and the others im not really sure but soon. One is a novel sms site, another an novel custom interface for the company im part of, another a resource for app development, and the last one is a twist on crowd funding, i’m not going in detail to minimize competion. But those are things i plan to do, well the sites anyways. My grades are the same as yours so i hope i atleast have a chance. If your passionate about it, they will notice that, and that is a big influence. Also the fact you already experience a level of success, speaks of what you are potential of in the future. So if you ask me i wouldn’t say its a hook, but you would be a good candidate.</p>
<p>I don’t think this qualifies as a hook but these are definitely great extracurriculars/job experience. I think you’d have a really good chance at Stanford if you talk about this experience. Then again, I’m not a Stanford admissions officer, so what do I know.</p>
<p>Is it also important to consider context in Stanford Admissions? Several people have stated that these are “common ECs nowadays” but I think it may also be important to look at where the OP is from. Say, if he lives in Silicon Valley or something of that sort, then this may not be too impressive, but if he lives in a remote town in Montana (sorry if anyone’s form there) then couldn’t this be considered a hook, as he would be taking full advantage of his resources?</p>
<p>Thanks to everyone else who replied, I really appreciate all of the helpful responses. I’m currently too busy studying to respond but I will try to get back and do so soon. </p>
<p>I guess I wasn’t entirely sure what a “hook” exactly was, I just assumed it was something impressive and unique that would have some level of weight in admissions. </p>
<p>I was also just notified that I will be doing the internship in D.C. this summer Will be working under the guidance of some incredibly brilliant people, so that will be an awesome experience.</p>
<p>AstroPhy, I think this may be a case of semantics and confused terms. A “hook” is something that a college finds very valuable in and of itself for meeting its own objectives. Every applicant is expected to make the most of his available resources in order to be competitive for admission; doing so doesn’t convert an EC into a hook. </p>
<p>On the other hand, coming from a somewhat underrepresented state like Montana can be a bit of a boost for an otherwise-qualified applicant, since every top college wants to include students from all 50 states in each class whenever possible.</p>
<p>While Mark23’s “hook” may not be unique in and of itself, a great deal rests on how he spins it. If he just says “I like programming and website design. I think it’s cool. Look at the pretty websites I’ve made!” then yeah, his application probably isn’t going to go anywhere. However, if he can grab the reader with an interesting narrative of why he got interested in the first place, what he’s learned from it, and what he hopes to accomplish with it as a student and a future professional, then I think he’s got a much better shot (no guarantees, of course). </p>
<p>I can’t think of an example off the top of my head, but say you’re interested in some sort of social issue/problem. You’ve done volunteer work or you have personal experience dealing with the issue. You’re also interested in programming, and your dream is to find a way in which you could use that interest to help solve the problem. Tell them about that dream, why you’re passionate about it, and (if the question prompts it) how Stanford can help you achieve that dream. </p>
<p>I hope that makes sense. I’m a few years removed from the college application process, so feel free to correct me if my understanding of the whole admissions process is off. Good luck!</p>
<p>DrPheno, that’s great advice for creating an integrated, persuasive application based on an interest. The OP was asking about hooks, though, and hooks are things that are so desired by a college that they can even compensate for less-than-stellar other aspects of an application. The OP can spin his interest and experience in several ways that might make his application more memorable, but it’s not the kind of thing that, by itself, would fulfill a particular need of Stanford’s (there are already loads of people here who came with backgrounds in programming, website design, open source activities, etc. etc. ) nor would it help the college further any particular institutional goals. I am not denigrating the OP’s chances in any way nor discouraging him, or anyone, from applying, just trying to help people understand what distinguishes a real hook from things like interesting ECs. That way people may have more realistic ideas of their prospects. Ciao.</p>
<p>@zenkoan It seems to me that the definition of a hook has changed since applied, or the forum has adopted a very specific definition of the term. When I was applying to colleges, a hook was anything that made you stand out from the field. It could be something truly outstanding in and of itself (summiting the world’s seven highest peaks before your 18th birthday O.O) or something that defines you that may not be really unique but that you could spin in a way that will grab the committee’s attention. By that definition, I think the OP could possibly make his interest into a compelling hook if he spins it the right way. </p>
<p>I think that when you’re considering a school’s institutional goals, you need to think about how the school identifies itself. An important part of Stanford’s identity is the Renaissance man/woman. They love their well-rounded students and place a high premium on interdisciplinary thinking, which is embodied by the Silicon Valley gurus who combine technical know-how with social awareness and business smarts. I think you could argue then that this is an institutional goal for Stanford, and with more work and the right spin the OP could, by your definition, have a hook.</p>
<p>I’m not trying to offer the OP encouragement that will inflate his expectations to unrealistic levels, but I do think that he can improve his chances using what he has, whether it’s a hook or something that just makes him memorable. At the very least I hope we can agree that it’s better to be memorable without a hook than to be unmemorable and hookless :)</p>
<p>^DrPheno - this is my understanding of “hook” as compared to what you are suggesting. A hook is essentially an attribute of some sort that is almost a “guarantee” for admissions or carries significant weight and increases the odds of admissions significantly. </p>
<p>What you are suggesting is just what it takes to get accepted to highly selective schools at this point and time.</p>
<p>crazymomster is correct about what constitutes a hook in the current hypercompetitive admissions environment. DrPheno’s advice is excellent w/r/t considering appropriate spin in the context of a college’s culture but, as crazymomster said, that’s something that all applicants need to do just to be a realistic contender at the top schools. Again, it is never my intention to be discouraging to anyone. But this is the current reality, at least at Stanford and peer colleges.</p>
Will be working under the guidance of some incredibly brilliant people, so that will be an awesome experience.</p>