I applied to Duke ED...help me pick some back-ups, please!

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Duke is my first choice by far, but I won’t get my ED results until mid-December…and my guidance counselor wants all of my apps. in by Thanksgiving Break. I would really like 2 match-reaches, 3 matches, and 2 safety schools. Anyways, here’s my info:</p>

<p>Basic stats…</p>

<p>-female, Asian
-prospective Bio major (pre-med track)
-Rank: 3/ about 250
-GPA (UW): 3.93
-SATs: 2290 (750 CR, 740 M, 800 W)
-SAT IIs: Math (both levels), Bio (tests were rescheduled for this Sat. b/c of a crazy snowstorm… Western NY = love :))
-APs: Euro (4), U.S. (4), Language and Comp. (3), Bio (5), Physics C, Calc AB, Psych, Literature</p>

<p>ECs:
-Research Assistant (summer '06), world-renowned cancer research/treatment center
-independent research (jr. year) on the effect of compounds found in household chemicals upon the development of Danio rerio (zebrafish) embryos
-Job @ public lib. (since May '06, 10 hrs/week)
-300+ hrs. science/health related community service<br>
-Interact Club (community service-based school org.), President
-Cheerleading: JV (1 year, captain), Varsity (3 years, captain this year), UCA All-star
-Violin: Seven years in nationally recognized school orch. (stopped sophomore yr. b/c of scheduling conflicts), Area All-State Orch. member, Auditioned for All-State, private lessons since 5th grade (still continuing)
-Student Council Class Rep. (all 4 yrs.)
-NHS</p>

<p>Awards/Other:
-Youth Ambassador for town Chamber of Commerce ($750 scholarship, quite selective)
-AP Scholar with Honor
-Certificate for Achieving High Academic Honors (NY State Senate)
-Rotary/PTSA Student of the Month
-all the standard academic ones (National Honor Roll, Who’s Who, blah blah blah)
-various academic awards in my school (ex. Academic Pin, Medal, and Letter in 9, 10, 11 for making high honor roll…just little things like that)
-completed a Mini-Medical School program at a local state university</p>

<p>What I’m looking for in a school:

  1. VERY important
    -well-rounded students, “work hard, play hard” atmosphere
    -prestige (yes, I am a prestige-whore)
    -high acceptance rates into top med schools
    -many opportunities for research + volunteer work, preferably during all 4 years
    -not in upstate/western NY (I live on an island, and I’ve gone to school with these people since kindergarten…I like them well enough, but I need a break)</p>

<li>important
-excellent bio program, preferably with profs who are well-regarded in the field
-unified, friendly student body (not cutthroat)
-classes on the smaller side (with the exception of intro classes, mandatory classes, etc.)</li>
<li>would be nice
-pretty campus, nice weather
-attractive, intelligent guys (haha, had to say it :))
-easily accessible profs
-lots of opportunities to study abroad</li>
</ol>

<p>I know this was really long, and I salute all of you who made it this far :slight_smile: Please give me some feedback, I’m open to all suggestions!</p>

2

<p>first, i would be shocked if u didnt get into Duke ED w. those stats</p>

<p>i think that Rice is the perfet school for your, but unfortunately, it is not a backup for anyone, its just as hard to get into as is Duke</p>

<p>i would say that Northwestern, Wash U, Johns Hopkins would fit the bill, but none of these are safeties either for you</p>

<p>look at georgetown/tufts as well</p>

3

<p>Dartmouth, Brown, Washington & Lee, Vanderbilt, UVA.</p>

4

<p>You truly hate Cornell, don't you?</p>

<p>So how about Wash U, UVa, William and Mary, and Emory? All matches for you, and you need not bring your winter boots to any of them. For safeties, you might want to take a look at the University of Maryland. There's an ultra-elite honors/research program there called Gemstone that might interest you. Your admission to that program would not be a sure thing, but your admission to the university as a whole would be.</p>

5

<p>I get the impression that William & Mary is "work hard, work hard", not "work hard, play hard".</p>

6

<p>Might try some very good LAC's like Davidson, Bowdoin, and Holy Cross(very good pre-med).</p>

7

<p>gellino</p>

<p>Thats a myth started by UVA students who didnt get in. Life isnt all about the Frats like in C'ville. Play hard could mean go to Va Beach for the weekend and chill.Or windsurfing the James etc...</p>

<p>Good weather/Prestige/research opps:</p>

<p>Rice/William & Mary/Davidson/Emory are all good fits.</p>

8

<p>I wouldn't be shocked if you didn't get into Duke ED, but I would be shocked if you didn't get into any of these other schools I suggest you apply to: Princeton, Dartmouth, Cornell Arts and Sciences, Penn, NU. You should get into atleast one of these.</p>

9

<p>Thanks for all the feedback so far!</p>

<p>simbajune: I thought about applying to the Rice/Baylor program, but I couldn't picture myself in Texas for so long...I'll check out the other schools you mentioned, with the exception of Georgetown (isn't it's location/programs better for people interested in government, politics, etc.?) and Tufts (don't want to be a victim of "Tufts Syndrome")</p>

<p>gellino: I was actually considering applying to Dartmouth or Brown ED before I decided on Duke!</p>

<p>Marian: No, I don't hate Cornell lol. I don't think it's the school for me, though.</p>

<p>thethoughtproces: I don't think I could get into Princeton...I had an amazing impression of it after my visit and considered applying ED to boost my chances, but I felt, even then, that my chances were so slim that it would be like "wasting" my ED application. If I end up getting deferred/rejected from Duke, will it even be worth paying the app. fees to apply to schools like Dartmouth and Penn (which are relatively as selective as Duke is?)</p>

10

<p>I think it would still be worth applying to similar caliber schools if you get deferred/rejected from Duke. You don't know what each is looking for and there is a lot of luck involved. You clearly have the stats to be at one of the top schools, but that doesn't mean you're going to get into every one of them, even with the perceived ED advantage. You see people all the time get into Harvard, but not Yale, Princeton, Dartmouth, Amherst, so it's better to spread your net wider. I think it was probably a good move to avoid ED at Princeton and wish I had done that, rather than resultingly hurting my chances at the next level of schools (ie, Dartmouth) instead too.</p>

11

<p>i think if you loved princeton you should've applied to it. You would've had great chances considering your profile. I know CC can be depressing at times, but the average applicant to these schools, is not even of the same caliber, probably average 2100. and with a 2300 you wouldnt have had even remotely close SAT's. Im sure if you wrote great essays you wouldve gotten in.</p>

12

<p>Eh, I figured that I'm missing a hook that schools like that look for...aka I'm not like, an Olympic athlete/inventor/author of a novel lol. I will apply if I get deferred from Duke, but my hopes won't be too high if it gets to that point. Anyways, I would be more than thrilled to get into Duke, seeing as how it fits almost every one of my criteria.</p>