<p>My sophomore year is ending and i havaen't done any math/science clubs yet. Junior year is the most important year and I was wondering if it would be too late to join. If I only do Math clubs Jr+ Sr year, how badly will that hurt me? The reason for this is that swimming is very important to me, and I do both my YMCA team and HS team, which eats up about 4-5 hours a day. I know I can pwn in my math club, but would MIT favor a mediocre student who was dedicaed to the Math club for 4 years or a kid who was pretty good but just stared junior year?</p>
<p>Shouldn’t be a problem. Just work hard in the club and leave an impact.
Don’t sweat it.</p>
<p>My D was a swimmer and sang in the choir. That was it for ECs. She was admitted. Really, do what you love. The admissions people know how many hours there are in a day and that committed athletes may not have time for a lot of club activities.</p>
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<p>Seriously, nobody cares, unless you base your application around a long-time commitment to math ECs.</p>
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<p>This will mean far more to MIT than what year you started Math Club.</p>
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<p>MIT favors people who they believe will be able to pass the required classes and complete a major. So, they will favor the good student over the mediocre one. Being dedicated to Math Club for four years is nice, but in <em>addition</em> to studiousness and math ability, not in place of it.</p>
<p>This was one of my first posts on CC. It is not directly about this, but it is relevant, because it explains something about how MIT looks at ECs. Read through it:</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/massachusetts-institute-technology/205635-problem-looking-stats-alone.html?highlight=problem+stats[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/massachusetts-institute-technology/205635-problem-looking-stats-alone.html?highlight=problem+stats</a></p>
<p>Like jessiehl says, no one cares how long you’ve been on math team. It’s more important to actually do well at it. </p>
<p>Consider taking the AMC test. (Google it if you don’t know what it is.) It’s just a one-time test unless you qualify for the next round, and is not a time commitment so it won’t interfere. Qualifying for the AIME is a bigger deal than the typical district math competitions that math teams compete in, anyway.</p>
<p>Most math team practices are pretty worthless. You should see if you can be on the math team and just go to the competitions if practices don’t fit in your schedule.</p>
<p>Right, the most crucial point in Jessie’s post that was referenced (which I have seen a few times) to me is that a school like MIT (I believe this is similarly very true of Caltech) chooses to admit those students who will benefit most from its environment. </p>
<p>I think this criterion is somewhat noticeably more distinguishable in the case of MIT and Caltech than in the case of other top universities, in fact. This “4 year” business may apply to other schools, but MIT is looking for legitimate technical ability and the attitude that says the given student is fit to be nurtured by it. </p>
<p>Something I posted on the Caltech forum said that I think the one and only thing I wish MIT and Caltech both would do is to conduct interviews somewhat based on the student’s academic interests if the student is already has some sort of inclination, and with actual academic terminology thrown around. This means, ideally the alumni will converse a little pointedly in technical language, just to get a flavor for the given student’s passion. Turning math/science/engineering passion into something somewhat more abstract is not something I favor. </p>
<p>Sorry for making this digression OP, but my answer to you is the same as what has been said. Your outside commitments will say something about you, and so will your mathematical talent.</p>
<p>I see. Both math and swimming are enjoyable to me, but I chose swimming over math because since you spend the whole day in school, it’s nice to be able to do some active stuff and relieve some of that lethargy and tension. I hope I’ll be able to do both next year and succeed. Thanks for the answers.</p>
<p>Also, what are the orders of AMCs or w/e? IIRC, its AMC->AIME->IMO? Was there a USAMO there somewhere? Also, I just found out there’s AMC 10 and 12. I could’ve destroyed the AMC 10 test this year…<em>sigh</em>. Oh well. The AMC 10/12 actually looks pretty easy. Nothing really past precalc. The proofs in AIME will kill me though. Oh well.</p>
<p>AMC –> AIME –> USAMO –> MOSP –> IMO</p>
<p>You can also qualify for AIME through USAMTS. USAMTS is where you mail in answers to problems. It might be good for you since you can do the problems whenever you want.</p>
<p>I think it’s significantly harder to get in through USMTS (unless you love proof). AMC is so much quicker and easier. 75min test and that’s it.</p>
<p>Also, how much of a part do sports play in the applicaation process? I know MIT swimmign is DIII so its not as competitve as the Ivies, but if I had decent times would that greatly help me or just a little? I checked out some of the results of MIT’s team and I think by my freshman or sophomore year there I could easily make all the A Relays and such.</p>
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<p>They’re like other ECs. If you’re really good (i.e. the coach wants you), they’re like really good ECs.</p>
<p>As long as you have some extracurriculars, MIT doesn’t really care. I mean yeah, they want you to do the stuff you love, but you don’t have to be in all STEM stuff. I was in choir, debate, French, Anime, and other things and it was fine. However, I was also the leader in many of these activities, and leadership qualities are pretty important.</p>
<p>Anyone know how much MIT would care about a semester D in english? I switched teachers and now am freaking out, it’s like one D in a sea of As. And how am I supposed to explain it to them?</p>
<p>@fontaine: Can you honestly explain it to yourself? Give the explanation and describe what you’ve learned from the experience. I know a young women who wanted to major in chemistry at U.C. Berkeley. She entered her junior year with a 4.0 unweighted GPA but then received a “D” in Calculus AB. Of course she was devastated and believed she’d have no chance in admissions. But she wrote an essay about problems with her pacing, explaining that she never managed to finish more than half of the problems on the calculus tests. She explained that she planned to review over the summer and practice working more quickly.
She was admitted to Cal two years ago with that D on her high-school transcript and is perfectly happy and successful there. </p>
<p>I have no idea how admissions officers at MIT would react, but it seems to me that providing an explanation is better than submitting the transcript without comment.</p>
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<p>Its actually changed. Its a bit complicated starting next year (2010)
for AMC 10 takers, it will be
AMC 10–> AIME –> USAJMO (notice the J) –> Red MOSP –> IMO
For AMC 12, it will be
AMC 12–> AIME –> USAMO–> ? All MOSP –> IMO</p>
<p>Theres also a way for AMC 10 —> AIME —> USAMO if you get like a certain score on AIME if you only took the AMC 10 (I believe 11, which is extremely hard so this case will be very rare, if it indeed does happen)</p>
<p>So for 11th and 12th graders, it wont matter since they are forced to take the AMC 12. This proposes an interesting dilemma for a few 10th graders and under who have the capitablity to reach the index with AMC 12 + AIME.</p>
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<p>Hey man dont worry about it. Heres my advice to you. Later in the thread, you expressed interest in the AMC competitions. You even said the AMC 10/12 doenst look that hard (which if you are telling the truth, is very impressive because many people that get an 800 on Math II cant even pass AMC 12).</p>
<p>If you really want to get better at math, go to AOPS (art of problem solving) this summer and look through the forums and do every single problem you can find (if you are not busy with swimming). To be honest, I was never that good at math, but once I went to AOPS and saw all those great people and the harder math problems, I was really inspired and those people and problems helped me alot.</p>
<p>Personally, that website is a big factor for where I am in my math ability today—you just have to work hard—dont worry about what you did in the past with Math Club, you still have 1 1/2 years to make a difference. </p>
<p>I also go to a math circle in the local university and that has helped…but those problems might be a little harder (USAMO, IMO proofs), but if you are really really interested, and especially if you live in Cali (I dont live in Cali, but most math circles are there, Im just lucky one of my friend’s dad is a math professor) you might consider that?</p>
<p>Oh yea if you go on AOPS, I have an account (different username, so youll have to pm me), and I can help if you like after college applications but right before AMC next year.</p>
<p>EDIT: one more thing, AIME isnt proofs (like you said). Its all computational, and the biggest advice I would give is not to be intimidated. Every problem can be worked out with enough time—after all they dont require any concepts above pre-calc (yes they are very hard concepts but every basic step is straightforward-its for you to put them together). You dont have to be good at proofs to be good at computational things.</p>
<p>EDIT2: you can also do math research, but thats kinda hard, to be honest. I am doing it this summer and I am still having trouble understanding some of the formulas.</p>