I am an Indian citizen looking to major in math (and minor in CS) in the US
My stats: 3.97 unweighted gpa (max. 4.0); 1530 SAT; 800 Math II SAT; 790 Chemistry SAT
Was School Captain in 10th grade, Founder Editor of school magazine & published 1 research paper in pure math
My top colleges are- NYU, Carnegie Mellon, U-Chicago, U-Michigan, Berkeley, UCLA, UC San Diego
The last four don’t offer ED. And three people from my high school are already applying ED to U-Chicago, so it makes no sense to apply Early Decision there.
After some consideration, I chose to NYU for ED because of-
1)Acceptance to international students, multicultural environment, etc.
2)the weather is good and city is great (NY City!)
3)Courant has the No.1 Applied Math program and one of the best faculties in Analysis, Differential equations, etc.
Was this a good decision or should I reconsider it? Should I ED somewhere else? Or just stick to ED?
“And three people from my high school are already applying ED to U-Chicago, so it makes no sense to apply Early Decision there.”
Without knowing more about how your total app package will look (essays, how you describe ECs, LoRs) there is no way to predict your chances to any school, but your basic grades and scores put you in the competitive mix for the schools you listed.
UChicago (just like most of the top selective unis) is looking at much more than just stats, though. Of my son’s school, last year there were 7 who applied early and of the 7 he had by far the lowest GPA. UChicago accepted 2 of the 7 and one of them was my son. Obviously, if they were choosing solely on grades, he would not have been selected; so clearly UChicago is basing their decision on the other things and how well you fit with what they’re looking for. Very different decision making process than countries where your class rank and/or test scores determines where you go to college.
If you’re really interested in UChicago, do some research to figure out what type of student they are looking for to see if you’re a fit. If you’re a fit, make sure that fit shows in every single part of your application - from the way you describe your ECs to your essays. And if you have a choice and some input for your LoRs, try to get those to mention the qualities that show you’re a fit as well.
But don’t make your decision whether or not to apply based on how many people from your school are applying; decide based on fit, not pure stats.
The University of Chicago, lone among your group, appears in a Princeton Review sampling, “Great Schools for Mathematics Majors,” a list that focuses on undergraduate programs.
However, your criteria for selecting NYU seem generally quite valid, and it makes sense that this school would appear at or near the top of your own list.
To repeat @CWRU’s first question: can you afford these schools?
According to Berkeley’s 2016-17 CDS, it does not offer any institutional scholarship/grant aid to internationals.
Ditto for UMichigan: no institutional aid to internationals.
Same for Carnegie Mellon: no institutional scholarship/grant aid to internationals.
NYU’s FA is notoriously stingy even for US citizens.
Regarding NYC’s climate, the OP might 1) like seasonal changes, yet nonetheless recognize that New York’s winter mornings average about 7 degrees warmer than Chicago’s, or 2) be misinformed.
bopper, I have chosen Stony Brooks, U-Washington, U-Minnesota, UCSB as safeties
milee30, I certainly agree with you that U-Chicago has a very holistic approach towards accepting students. Their essays are super wacky and need a lot of consideration before I write a good answer. However, after lot of thought, I preferred NYU and CMU over U-Chicago because of a better Computer Science program, since I would like to keep options open and would love to minor in Comp Sci. But I’m still applying Early Action to U-Chicago anyway.
merc81, yeah, it does seem like U-Chicago is the most reputed Math college in my list, but I feel a lot of it has to do with prestige and the alumni over the last 60-70 years.But again, like I said to milee30, I think I would prefer NYU/CMU.
tk21769, I am not really looking for financial aid since most US colleges don’t offer aid to international students anyway and I think I am relying on educational loans and money saved over many years
intparent & merc81, well, yeah, I haven’t personally been to New York, but based on what I read I like it. When it’s warm, the sunshine is good and it looks good during autumn. I have lived in india all my life, so I am okay with humid or continental climate and I wouldn’t mind weather changes either.