<p>I am a student of class 10th CBSE board living in Delhi. I am interested in pursuing an undergraduate course in economics form one of the top 5 B schools. As i understand for admission to a stellar engineering college like MIT, one would need an Olympiad medal or something close to that like winning GSF, so my question is, what kind of EC are top B schools like Harvard or Stanford looking for in an international student from India? Like maybe founding a successful start up?
I am not talking about stellar grades/SAT scores, i am asking what EXCEPTIONAL achievement do i have to do to get in..</p>
<p>Keep in mind i have about 2 years to work towards some thing of that stature.</p>
<p>Also, how many undergrad students did Harvard admit last year from India? Is there any data available on the people who got admitted, like their stats/portfolio?</p>
<p>I hear that they are need blind, is this actually true that IF i get admission, i would get some soft of a scholarship to help pay the tuition?</p>
<p>Yes, Harvard is need blind for internationals and so are MIT, Yale, Princeton, Dartmouth, Amherst and Cornell (sorta…). You are admitted regardless of your ability to fund your own education, and will receive as much aid as you can demonstrate that you require once you gain admissions. But are you planning on pursuing business as part of your undergrad education (bba) or are you planning on getting an mba? If it’s the former, then bear in mind that Stanford, Harvard et al do not offer BBAs. The top undergrad B-schools are Wharton (upenn), Sloan (MIT), Notre Dame etc. while the top grad B-schools are Harvard, Stanford, Booth (UChicago) and Wharton (upenn). If you’re planning on majoring in economics as an undergrad however, the top schools aren’t necessarily b-schools (Princeton, one of the top econ schools doesn’t even have a b-school; stanford, chicago, harvard don’t have UG b-schools etc.). </p>
<p>The few people I know at Wharton (undergrad) were numerically strong applicants (GPA and score wise) and had enough ECs to show that they were well-rounded, but didn’t really have any “stellar” ECs. For grad school your undergrad degree/GPA, GRE/GMAT scores, LORs and work experience would be the most important factors, but take what I say with a grain of salt…</p>
<p>@jak So basically well rounded people with great grades, that all it takes to get into such a school?
Based on whatever i have learnt especially for engineering especially top schools like MIT where the competition is staggering (International Olympiad Medal!!!) so I am pleasantly surprised :D</p>
<p>@quiverfox
I am not sure if anyone in India gives internships to high school studentz - certainly haven’t heard about it in India altough its quite common abroad. Any ideas on how to apply for aforementioned internships? My parents are engineers so no connections lol</p>
No. By “enough ECs to show they were well rounded” I meant School President positions, Sports team captains, a few regional/national awards and recognition in national olympiads. Not that those things are required and not that they’ll guarantee admissions. And UPenn may be the easiest to get into of the colleges I am about to mention.</p>
<p>If I may ask again, if you are planning on majoring in econ why are you
Is there any specific reason that it has to be a b-school? Or is econ from any top school acceptable? If the latter, consider Princeton, UChicago, UC Berkeley and (to a lesser extent) Stanford and Columbia. They are all just as good as Harvard/MIT (and some are arguably better) when it comes to econ. </p>
<p>MIT is considerably more selective when it comes to internationals (esp. from India), and your admission there will be a crap-shoot until you get an IMO gold… At schools like UPenn, UChicago and even Princeton and Stanford, conventional genius garnished with some good essays will usually cut it.</p>
<p>To summarize, to get into top 5 econ schools (except Harvard and MIT) you should be numerically strong (top 1-2%, 2200-2250+), you should have good ECs (lower olympiads, regional competitions, internships, research, leadership), and you should have excellent essays. An amazing essay could perhaps make up for any shortcomings in the first two (esp. at UChicago)… For Harvard and MIT, you’ll need (even more) stellar ECs and quite a bit of luck (who am I kidding, you’ll need luck at all of these universities…).</p>
<p>Well that is your field of <a href=“mailto:view@robot…Look”>view@robot…Look</a> around you,you will definitely find stuff to work out( I search 4 months to get an awesome internship…:))</p>
<p>Robots156- I have the same question as yous about ECs. Cannot figure out what to do to get into Ivies with Aid.
The only thing I think you should is pursue your passion.They see your dedication to your passion rather a plethora of ECs</p>
<p>Well, most most firms/mnc’s don’t really value and undergrad business degree that much unless you go to Wharton. Economics at undergrad B-schools is more business oriented and companies look for students who have in depth knowledge of other fields such as engineering, science or anything else at the Undergrad level. Out of the top 10 schools(us news and world report) in the USA, only penn offers and undergrad degree at Wharton. So i suggest you major in economics (not in a b school unless it’s Wharton). Also, school’s like harvard are as competitive as MIT/ Caltech if not more competitive for indian students. Harvard usually accepts 4-5 indian citizens out of at least300-400 who apply(keep in mind that only top students even bother applying).</p>
<p>Coming to EC’s, there are loads of students in india who try “doing” stuff just for the sake of impressing colleges and boosting their apps. Honestly, that stuff won’t really help at top 15 schools (us news) as they can see right through you. with a 2400 sat, rank one in class and good extracurriculars, you may still end up getting rejected at HYP. So don’t try doing stuff for the sake of getting into college but continue or build up things that you are already passionate about. Don’t do community service if you’re not passionate about it, don’t start up a business if you’re not 100% into it. </p>
<p>At my school, students get into Harvard, Princeton and yale and Wharton almost every year and these students have been talented and passionate about certain things for more than 7-8 years now. Even though they’re all american citizens, none of them did anything for the sake of getting into college. They just worked on what they truly passionate about.</p>
<p>I seem to have made an error- I wanted to ask what is needed to get in to BEST economics program and incorrectly assumed that would be at the top 5 B schools.</p>
<p>As far as passion/EC’s go, my point is i am extremely passionate about a lot of stuff- about robotics, computers, physics, chemistry and economics/finance but the thing is finding EC’s to show for that passion/knowledge.
For example, MIT asks for IOM gold medals, i wanted to know the Harvard equivalent of those.
I am trying to increase my chances of getting into the Ivies/HYPSM so i am asking for things to spend my time on do in the next 2 years. Thanks a ton for the help and suggestions, please keep them coming</p>
<p>@Robots156
I’m sure Harvard wouldn’t disregard an IMO entirely. Quite to the contrary in fact, for any school, an IMO is probably the best thing to have on your CV. As I mentioned earlier, for all but Harvard and MIT, conventional genius coupled with excellent essays will usually cut it. By that I mean be numerically strong (top 1-2% of your class/ 2250+ SAT), have some good ECs (enough to show that you’re well rounded but excel in a few fields), and have unique essays that convey passion and individuality. I don’t know about any specific competitions (Intel, Siemens, Google come to mind) however. Any other CC’ers care to chime in?</p>
<p>@jak What about a Physics Olympiad medal, how much weight would that give?
Also, how many Indians does Stanford take in every year, and relative to these two, how tough is that to get into?</p>
<p>I haven’t read the entire thread as I’m too lazy. Sorry.
But a medal in IPhO won’t necessarily help your cause as an aspiring Eco major. You’ll appear misguided. I’d recommend doing VERY well in Eco in 11th and 12th(90+ all the time), interning with an economist/bank/newspaper’s economy and business wing, doing research in mathematics/game theory, writing an app and selling it, winning a medal in mathematics, starting a club related to Eco and doing something unique with it(launch a website suggesting eco reforms, promote research) etc. There’s little you can do as an EC related specifically to Eco to help you get into B schools.
I’d say doing ECs for the sake of a school is a stupid idea; do what you want to do and do it well. No school has a list of ECs tailor made for applicants.
Also, most of my peers studying eco complain that it has a lot of grade deflation and sucks in general. So don’t take eco if you don’t love it.</p>