:) If you have time, please chance me! Lower stats, unique background!

Colleges & Universities A-Z Cornell University
1

<p>Hey I'm applying RD to Cornell <3 ... What chance do you think I have of getting accepted?</p>

<ul>
<li><p>US DUAL CITIZEN (European and American passport), living in the Middle East</p></li>
<li><p>School Type: REALLY Competitive Private American International school (over 80 nationalities)</p></li>
<li><p>Ethnicity: African American</p></li>
<li><p>Gender: Female</p></li>
<li><p>Bilingual- German/English</p></li>
<li><p>Graduate HS at 16</p></li>
<li><p>Major: Premedicine</p></li>
<li><p>SAT I: 1910 (600 M, 650 CR, 660 W)</p></li>
<li><p>SAT II: Biology-E (620), Math I (680)</p></li>
<li><p>Took the ACT (was sick :( ) Got a 27, but retook it today, Dec. 13, and think it went a lot better! Hopefully 29/30...</p></li>
<li><p>Unweighted GPA (out of 4.4): 3.7</p></li>
<li><p>Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): No rank at my school, top 20% ?</p></li>
<li><p>Full IB Diploma, predicted score of 39/45-- Probably Four 6's and Two 7's plus one bonus point</p></li>
<li><p>Junior and Senior Course Load:
IB Higher Level Biology, English and Psychology
IB Standard Level Math, Arabic, Physics
+Theory of Knowledge</p></li>
</ul>

<p>*High honor roll grades 9-11</p>

<p>*Extracurriculars:</p>

<ul>
<li>Varsity Track and Field (3 years, won medals, attended international meets in Egypt), </li>
<li>Model United Nations (2 years, attended international conferences in Egypt)</li>
</ul>

<p>*Volunteer/Community service: </p>

<p>-Cofounder and Vice President of Conservation Club (Raise money and awareness, give talks etc. about animal conservation),
- President of Operation Smile Club (2 out of 3 years),
- Volunteered/ Shadowed doctors at a hospital in Oman for one week (winter break)</p>

<p>*Summer Activities and Job/Work Experience: </p>

<ul>
<li>Volunteered at a pediatric hospital/charity in India for one month, </li>
<li>Summer job: Assistant at a daycare in MA</li>
</ul>

<p>*Essays: I think they're pretty good- show my passion for Premed and the environment :)</p>

<p>*Teacher Recommendations: </p>

<p>-One from my IB Higher Level English teacher (REALLY nice, She let me read it) and one from my IB Higher Level Biology teacher (counselor said it was good but I havent seen it)</p>

<p>*Counselor Rec: Really nice, he let me read it...</p>

2

<p>Random question: can you speak Arabic?? Because if you can you should put that lol. Not sure how you would live in the Middle East without knowing Arabic though o_O.</p>

3

<p>Pre-med is not a major…but a series of courses you take. What college/major did you apply to?</p>

4

<p>Herostar: Haha Im learning Arabic in school, yeah :] But actually it’s totally possible to get around almost all of the Middle East without a word of Arabic (a few places are still primarily Arabic speaking) :] For example in the two Arab countries where I live/lived, I have NEVER used my school arabic out of school… The Middle East is really changing and developing, but unfortunately media in the US doesn’t always represent that fairly…</p>

<p>Dewdrop: True :slight_smile: I know its not but I just wanted to make it clear that I plan on going on to Med school… Im applying to the College of Human Ecology and thinking of selecting Human Biology, Health and Society as my major… What do you think?</p>

<p>Oh I should probably mention my ultimate career goal is Pediatric Surgery… That’s why I’ve centered alot of my ECs and activities around Kids and Medicine haha :P</p>

5

<p>Bump! Any advice?</p>

6

<p>Kleiner, don’t worry I’m Egyptian, just haven’t been there in a while. I know it’s changing, just the last time I was there, I definitely needed to know Arabic (which I do lol). Good luck learning the coolest language XD. Anyways, I would still put that you’re learning Arabic if you haven’t. Just present it in a nice way since it adds to your diversity. Just my opinion.</p>

7

<p>Yeah you’re right, will do :smiley: Thanks for the advice :)</p>

8

<p>I can read Arabic, but can’t write it or speak it. I’m also fluent in Urdu, but can’t write/read it it. I’m also learning to speak/read/write another language…where would you put this kind of stuff on the application? Isn’t it irrelevant?</p>

9

<p>No wayy it’s not irrelevant! It shows diversity and also skill- not any one can learn multiple languages.
I put my languages that DONT come up in my transcript in additional info.
I also speak German fluently for example so I put that in there…</p>

10

<p>Your GPA, SAT and class rank are low. Your extracurriculars are so-so. However, you can boost your chances by taking advantage of the fact that you live in the Middle East and write an exciting essay about it.</p>

11

<p>You are so in. ECs are well focused. Your SAT is only low by CC standards–everywhere else it’s decent. And @ the poster above me: since when is a B average at a highly competitive school bad?</p>

12

<p>^A B? She said 3.7UW, that’s like an A- or at least B+ at most schools. There are tons of people who get in with less than 3.7UW averages.</p>

13

<p>Yeah at my school a 3.7 is exactly an A-… And Im doing full IB too, so weighted its probably over a 4.3 or so :)</p>

14

<p>Mariam- I incorporated into my essay how raising environmental awareness is important to me because it’s not an issue often on the minds of many people in this region of the world… But the essay as a whole isn’t about living in the middle east. Do you think that’s still okay? My commonapp essay is pretty good I think, it’s about how I grew up loving medicine and still do :)</p>

15

<p>Oh, and I totally forgot: I also mentioned on my app that I’ve had alottt of travel experiences (Egypt, China, India, Nepal, Oman, Pakistan, Malaysia, Thailand, Turkey, France, Germany, The Netherlands, Oman, Switzerland, United Kingdom and Mexico) and how I think they’ve increased my understanding for humans etc.</p>

16

<p>Ok. It’s very hard to chance people because A LOT of the decision is based on the Essays/Recs. You seem focused on your EC’s and your grades aren’t too bad considering you are from a presitigious school. If you can ace your Essays and Recs you have a good chance. But other than that, there’s not much left to say. Good luck though, I really do hope you get in =)</p>

17

<p>It sounds your a great candidate to get in. Since you already sent your application in (I’m assuming), do you have any interviews coming up? I think personal stories about living in the Middle East would boost your chances greatly. :)</p>

<p>Also, I’m learning Arabic too, it’s my favorite language thus far! Close to it is Seneca though. Both are great languages!</p>

18

<p>Thanks so much you guys! :]
Nope, I havent sent in my app yet, Im sending it in on Sunday :slight_smile:
But yeah, talking about my experience in the Middle East would be a really good topic to hit on at my interview if I get one… </p>

<p>Any suggestions for last changes I should make to the app before I send?</p>

19

<p>Bumpie Bump</p>

20

<p>You have a good GPA considering you’re in such an ultra competitive high school. And don’t diminisht he accomplishment of graduating at 16. but your SAT is very low. It probably represents around the 20th percentile of Cornellians. A 600 in math for a potential doctor is probaly a red flag. Your score might cancel out your impressive academic acheivements.</p>

<p>As far as your essay: It sounds trite. We’ve all ehard the Peace Coprs/Teach for America/multiculturalism essay beofre. We understand that you’ve traveled to so many places and how despite vast cultural and language barriers, people are just people. They are innately good everywhere. We udnerstand your compassion for the oppressed, the diseased, the poor. We understand how these long travels have shaped your worldview of a unified humanitym, without regard for nation or race. We get that you’ve attempted to reach out to those unlike yourself, to learn the norms of a foreign state or two, and how this has enriched your outlook. Please save it Ghandi.</p>

<p>Don’t write a bunch of bromides bundled together. It won’t look good. I do however bleieve your unique background can be a huge plus and the main topic of your essay. Adcoms love people who love other cultures. But you can’t just do the typical essay. I don’t have an advice on what particular you should write, but don’t write a “we are the world” essay. Sorry I couldn’t be more specific.</p>