<p>hey Teslesnake, chill....</p>
<p>I'm also Asian and have great acheivements such as Student Council President in an international school....</p>
<p>I really dont understand how u didn't get into michigan...</p>
<p>You're right. Some people on this post are racially profiling you. Of course they wouldn't admit it, but they know that if a minority candidate or even a white one was in your situation, the posts in reply would be different. Many people accuse Asians of not standing out from the crowd and of having generic stats but they never seem to apply this to other races... Hell, virtually everyone applying to top colleges these days have clinched stats that it's not even funny. Demanding a spectacular activity, something short of a miracle at this point seems utterly pointless and very unhelping. </p>
<p>I'm sure that some of your safety schools were intimidated by your stats and didn't want to be a safety net that you wouldn't eventually attend. I know you'll get into great schools eventually and that your hard work will pay off. I'll be following your progress and later reply with a "I told you so..." PM.</p>
<p>
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Hard for me to imagine that a high C in calculus would have caused Mich. to defer you with your scores and gpa.
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</p>
<p>I thought Mich. was very GPA centered? That's what I've heard. Class rank may give a more complete picture here. I've heard that kids from schools with grade deflation have had less luck with Michigan because of it, that could just be an excuse or whatever, I don't know much about the Michigan process. </p>
<p>If you class rank is lower, even though you're taking hard classes and that may account for it, they may see a grade/SAT disparity. Your grades are high though. I just don't know if your school doesn't weight much and that could bring your rank down because of easier schedules, etc. If they see SATs that high and a lower class rank they may interpret it as not having applied yourself enough. </p>
<p>I don't think anyone is trying to bash you, they are just trying to comment on the situation that you brought up. Just take the good with the bad. You aren't required to believe any of us. Also keep in mind that AFAIK most undergrad b-schools (probably MBA programs as well) have more males applying. Maybe not to the effect that engineering does, but IME the female applicants <em>may</em> have an edge, depending. Things like that are why it's nearly impossible to compare applications. You would have to really know the person and also really know exactly what the school is looking for. That person may fill some sort of niche or have something unknown to you, etc.</p>
<p>Wow, tesla, talk about having stereotyped ideas! I didn't really think at all about your ethnicity when I wrote the post. I was writing based on my experiences as a parent and a quiz team coach as well as a student in the past. When I spoke about the American Dream, I was thinking about the people <em>I</em> went to school with, or that my son goes to school with, not about ethnicity or cultural background. Right now, every day, where I live, I talk to and spend time with friends and aquaintances who are sad, angry, or just disappointed that they spent their lives working hard with the expectation that they would reach a certain level of acheivement and be able to buy a house, afford the life their parents had, etc. Unfortunately, because of the housing market pricing far beyond the means of everyone I know, that's not going to happen. I'm the leading edge of a generation that doesn't have what their parents had, that won't have the retirement benefits their parents had -- and that, to me, is exactly analogous to what's going on in schools and with students I deal with. You know what? Those schools are not full of immigrants, and those students are not immigrants or Asian, by and large. So when I wrote, I was writing about real people, real experiences, and not some sort of "Asian student" stereotype. </p>
<p>I think you owe <em>me</em> an apology, for such accusations.</p>
<p>I just want to reiterate that I wrote my response as if I were writing to one of the students I work with in academic circles, or my own son. When I talked about cultural ideas, I was speaking of the societal ideas of Americans-who-plan-to-attend-college, or perhaps even "low to middle class people in the US", and not about some sort of expectation that people of any particular ethicity have. My response had nothing to do with racism, stereotyping, or advice based on ethnic heritage, but was about something I see in a lot of very high achieving students that I deal with. There was absolutely no "bashing", "name calling", or "rude stereotyping" going on -- I wrote a serious, heartfelt response based on serious, heartfelt experiences I've had dealing with students with this problem. </p>
<p>But hey, I guess there are always going to be people who want to stereotype me, huh?</p>
<p>teslasnake: IMO, college admissions is a crapshoot. You need a little bit of luck...I attended an admissions seminar last year and a rep from a competitive public college said that they're "creating a class." She explained it like a pyramid where they take different students at different levels.... You're a smart kid; go to school that really wants you. You'll probably be offered more than one scholarship! :)</p>
<p>I'd like to throw in another thought if it hasn't come up yet (I didn't read the entire thread). What did your teacher recs say?</p>
<p>^^True. But I feel it must just be a case of bad luck. I'm SURE you'll get into one of your reaches man, don't sweat it and good luck.</p>
<p>To the OP: Don't be so sensitive. There isn't any overt basing or stereotyping going on in this thread, unless they have been deleted before I read those poster's replies. My comments about boring essays were not restricted to Asians, as I have stated in my post. As for adcoms believing that Asian applicants are more boring that others, that is merely what I have read and heard. I can not help if that has some truth to it in the real world. My comment about your essay seeming boring to me was solely based on your description of it, and it was NOT based on the fact that you were Asian. In fact, I didn't even see that you were Asian until I reread your first post. I myself am asian, but I have no problem stating that I find a lot of them to be boring. My dad is the epitome of the hardworking, play by the rules, studious stereotype. However, I realize that everyone is human and has things that seem interesting. </p>
<p>Even with your added ECs, I still do not see anything that seems interesting. Does that mean that you are not interesting...no. I mean, what exactly were you looking for when you made this thread. For people to say that they are so heart broken that someone with perfect everythings couldn't make it into the schools he wanted? I am sure that you knew where you stood in terms of acceptance based on your stats, so were just looking for reassurance as to what a great injustice these colleges have done by not admitting you. If you wanted a sobfest than you should have stated so in your first post, but if you wanted to have some discussion as to why you should, could, or couldn't have got into those schools then why are you getting so sensitive. If this is the level of overreaction you show in response to some of these replies, then this really puts your essay in perspective.</p>
<p>So what, exactly, makes an applicant interesting? Anyone can show up to 50 student clubs and sit around doing nothing. Is this what teacher recommendations and essays are for?</p>
<p>I don't know if anyone's said this or not... but it's possible that because of your high SAT scores that these colleges think that you may have seen them more as a safety than as a match that you'd like to attend. (Did you show some interest in your matches though?) Just a thought.</p>
<p>"So what, exactly, makes an applicant interesting? Anyone can show up to 50 student clubs and sit around doing nothing. Is this what teacher recommendations and essays are for?"</p>
<p>Anything that is funny, unusual, introspective, or shows originality. I think the recs, essays, and ECs are there to show your personality based on your past accomplishments/behavior/experiences. I mean yeah, anyone can sit around in a million clubs, but what does that say about the applicant. Someone can tell if someone is really interested in the clubs they go to because usually they ask you to say how many hours per week you spend in each club and they way they might mention it in an essay or rec. There is a difference between someone who is apart of the Science Honor Society, Astronomy Club, and founded the Future Scientists of Tomorrow Club and someone who is in 6 different clubs that are completely unrelated. One shows that the applicant is very dedicated (based on the hours he says he spends at each), has leadership qualities by taking the initiative to create a new club, and is passionate about something. The other shows a lack of interest in any one topic, and it doesn't say much about the them.</p>
<p>As for aquamarinee comment: Since he said he applied for these schools honors programs I would assume the colleges would think that he is serious about attending.</p>
<p>Off the top of my head these things could have compromised your chances for admission:</p>
<p>SAT I: 800/800/760 (2360)
SAT IIs: USHist 800, Chem 780, Math IIC 740
GPA: low 90s/100 w, ~90 uw
12 APs taken by graduation
School: Central NJ, one of, if not the top public in the state</p>
<p>There is a disconnect between your grades and scores. While scores are taken into consideration, you have stated that you have been on a downward trend (ouch). The fact that you have near perfect SAT scores can state a number of things; you are good on standardized test, you spend a lot of time prepping for standardized test. However, your grades are inportant because the best predictor of future behavior is realative past behavior. The combination of the 2 show do a disconnect that you not putting the same level of "work" into both; you are a strong test taker and can pull things out in the clutch but "slacking" in the day to day stuff in the classroom. </p>
<p>Also you are from NJ so please keep in mind that the admissions committees are not at a loss for apllicants from the tri-state (NY, NJ, CT) especially at schools like Michigan, NYU, the Ivies & top 20 schools along the Elite LACs, who are bringing comprable scores but better grades.</p>
<p>You are also part of the boomlet, where there are more students than ever applying for colleges, so "competition" is fierce with so many great students applying to the same schools and schools not increasing their class sizes. Overall, colleges are crafting a class even at a school like Michigan, the process is a little more holistic than it would be at other public schools that may be a little more straight out numbers driven.</p>
<p>If there have been any changes since you first submitted your application; better grades on your mid-year report, new awards, etc. I would recommend that you speak with your GC and have this stuff sent over. I wuld also recommend that your GC give a call to find out about any "deficiencies"in your application and way could be done to move you out of waitlist limbo (if admitted to Mich, would you definitely attend?)</p>
<p>I know that March can be very tension filled but hang in there because when it is all over you are going to end up where you were meant to be and it will be a great school for you.</p>
<p>good luck</p>
<p>I agree with sybbie719 and obiag89 here. There's a difference between listing your commitments and detailing your passions. I know a junior who I think of as a sort of archetypal "little nerdy kid"; ADD meds, weighs maybe 115 lbs, can answer any quiz questions on Schrodinger and Star Trek. He's got perfect grades and probably will have SAT's in the high 700's. And if you put him on paper some ways, he'd be like a zillion other LNK's. And he might have a list of EC's that included "running" and "volunteering in Asia". </p>
<p>Here's the thing, though. If his application is about his great stats and his lists of achievements, there are going to be a lot of schools he doesn't get into next spring, because he's another LNK. On the other hand, if his application is about his <em>passions</em>, is about what drove him to spend time almost every year in Thailand, and why he feels powerful doing the particular obscure sport he does, and how the involvement in those things has been the fire that forged his nascent adult identity, that's something else. </p>
<p>So, you posted stats, and you say, "I have great essays, they're about something good", well the very fact that you sum yourself up as your stats and "I wrote a good essay", that's what I'm talking about. You didn't describe yourself as anything else. If you do it here, if you do it every time you're defending yourself, then I have a feeling that some of that comes through in your applications.</p>
<p>sybbie,
I agree that a downward trend could hurt him, but how is a 90 avg combined with 2300+ ACT a disconnect. Would he be better off with a 98 average and a 1900 SAT? Then he would probably be accused of grade inflation. With a 2300 SAT, what GPA would be considered "not a disconnect"? What if he only took the SAT once instead of multiple times, would that make a difference?</p>
<p>One of my friends got rejected by George Washington and got into CalTech, so it could just be that these "safety" schools know that they're safety schools...</p>
<p>Prefect makes a good point: a high gpa and ok SAT's make the student look like his grades are inflated....But some kids do better in class than on standardized tests given early in the morning!</p>
<p>Your grades, ECs, and test scores look fantastic to me. A slight downwards trend is negligible as it can be the result of any number of factors, only one of which being you slacking off. </p>
<p>I'm really leaning towards your essays, as that's the one variable I can see that might not be solid (as your other stats are). I would reread them and see how you feel about them now that some time has passed between writing them and sending them in.</p>
<p>To clarify what I'm saying: the essays are the one way of directly communicating with the schools to which you applied. Accordingly, you need to make sure you show the school what kind of person you are in a manner that's distinctly 'you'. If they feel that what you demonstrate on paper hints that who you are in real life would be a good match for the school, then I'm sure you know what happens. There's no way it was your other stats thank sank you as any school short of the Ivies and top tiers would claw and fight over someone like you.</p>
<p>The OP was asking for specific reasons as to why he would not be accepted and I've seen a lot of people say "well, you're special, but just not special enough" which I think is an absolute load of bull. There are hardly enough "special" people to fill a freshman class. </p>
<p>I definitely see people implying that the OP is somehow an uninteresting applicant, which while not necessarily race related, is disturbing to me, considering to me, it seems as though he stands out very far from the pack; if he isn't special what does it take? A BSed essay about "passion" that anyone can fake? Just because some of his activites may be considered "ordinary" or "boring" doesn't mean he was any less passionate about it than someone who did an unorthodox activity.</p>
<p>To the OP who probably isn't even here anymore, but ... the only things I can think about is that maybe the colleges place a very low weight on SATs or that the lower grades may cause the colleges to perceive you as a "lazy smart kid." Also, some schools do a rather rigid point system; really there's no way to know, and there are better things to stress about that something that's already happened.</p>
<p>:/ No, you're not a sub-par applicant nor "dime a dozen" ... I really wouldn't worry, it may just be a fluke, don't start worrying until you get all your acceptance back.</p>
<p>Maybe the schools didn't think that your ECs/essays/whatever showed any sort of passion for business. Did you ever explain on your application WHY you want to go to business school? If not, send a letter to one of the schools that deferred you telling them about your passion/whatever for business. If you implied that you only want to go to B-School to make money, even your amazing stats won't really impress them.</p>