<p>ohk, i just saw this India discussion page being here on CC for like an year! :|
i was going through the threads and i saw one stating Indians in Ivys and someone said that he got into berkley and brown or smthing! what i really wanted to know that is it that u have to be a TOPPER in every academic criteria to get into Ivys? ohk , am a grade 11 enthusiast and have already started working for my application, as in extra currics and stuff! have to work hard on SAT but am sure, ill manage 2100 + ...btw guys, temme more abt how people got into Ivys? oh come on, dont be mean. in THAT thread i also read the post by Indians who got selected in Ivys and very all hyped abt it, not wanting to share anything! CC is a forum where u ARE supposed to help each other!! and trust me THEY DO! .. besides, we are from the same community! ... help me with it? the indians selected in the Ivys , help?! :</p>
<p>haha it was me who started that thread…too bad there were no responses :(</p>
<p>OP, seems like you are talking to yourself in your convo lol. Oh the irony: You also mentioned berkeley…which is not an ivy. Ivies are just some really old schools that have gotten prestigious over time - rustic way to put it, right? Let me rephrase your question: “What ways to get into top schools?”.
I was admitted to one of the two ivies I applied to, and it was a blast doing the app. Why? Because when I wrote my essays, I wrote it from the heart. I usually love to write this way so that everything comes out less fabricated and rather more of me shines out than anything else. I think this is gold if you’ve taken some important experiences to memory and your feelings.
Secondly, top school admissions is in statistical terms: a random chance after admissions selects a top pool to choose from.
Thirdly, you don’t have to try for the international olympiads (as some have mentioned in this board) to try to impress the fellows at adm. So then what do you have to do? Well for starters…If you are a poet, get your work published. If you want to be a doctor/scientist/engineer, do a project and internship. You get the picture. There are a billion indians in india wishing to make it in the intl olympiad…how many actually do?? Only the amount that is needed to make up the team. So don’t run yourself endlessly if that is not what you want to do. Again…be realistic and focus your energy in something you WANT to do.
Fourthly, start a club that has international connections. If you want to begin a local organization, then be completely sure that one or more advisors are there to say that it was some substantial work and that you didn’t just sit on chairs and talked about how your tutoring classes are going.
Fifth: WHO ARE YOU??? Try to answer that.
Sixth: Grades. class GPA needs to be pretty good in terms of indian standards.
Seventh: SAT: for intnls, make sure that it’s above 2200 for sure. I intentionally placed this last b/c why should you even waste 50k/year if you haven’t even become an accomplished individual by doing the previous steps, right?</p>
<p>As someone above put it, pour your heart out in the essays. 99th percentile SAT scores and national level accomplishments won’t help you the slightest if your essays aren’t up to the mark. I speak with experience.</p>
<p>hmm, agreed! the essay is a very VERY important criteria for the admin process!
@liveulife… woah! nice~ my target and goal is to get into Princeton! :)… i guess u made into THAT right?..thats not exactly what I ASKED but still answered pretty much of it! i do get it that it isnt easy at all! i read that prince acceptance rate for the international students is less than 2%, i could figure out the rest! lame mistake at the berkley thing! HYPS are more to be considered the ivy (cornell is like OK-ish) … I KNOW WHAT I WANT TO DO (i guess?!)…</p>
<p>lol cornell is an awesome school, and lots of its program offerings are very innovative. I guess internationals just don’t see it THAT great? I dunno. Check your inbox. ;)</p>
<p>“Sixth: Grades. class GPA needs to be pretty good in terms of indian standards.”</p>
<p>Yes, Grades will be the MOST IMPORTANT part of your application. Make sure they dont fall (esp drastically) in the 11th.</p>
<p>“Seventh: SAT: for intnls, make sure that it’s above 2200 for sure. I intentionally placed this last b/c why should you even waste 50k/year if you haven’t even become an accomplished individual by doing the previous steps, right?”</p>
<p>I disagree. You dont have to have a 2200 to get into any ivy. I know many people who were rejected at all the ivies they applied to with 2200+ / 2300+ SATs…, and I also know others who were accepted (Incl. Me) to ivies and the like. However, I am not saying that you shouldnt try for a great score - it will obviously help… but its not that important as long as youre above 2000/2100.</p>
<p>And, as everyone else said… put in a lot of effort in your essays. They can make(upto a certain extent) or break your application.</p>
<p>the thing is i need to see a sample of the essay to as to make out the standard of the essay as for written for an college app! :\ … somebody selected should atleast show his essay sample! … how would i know otherwise, what is MY standard if compared to that of others applying!?</p>
<p>Lol why dont you go online and search for sample common app essays. They’re cheaper by the dozen.</p>
<p>upon mystic’s suggestion, I’ve sent you some help lol. But of course, you could have found this by a google search lol. :)</p>
<p>But beware that you need to have your personal touch to the essays you see online. They’re only indicative pieces to help you start.</p>
<p>@mystic : i DONT search for it online! i know its all cheesy as well as cheap! … i asked one from the people who HAVE been selected for the Ivys! just to see!</p>
<p>Hey no need to get aggravated man. Reading other people’s essays is not as fantastic idea as it superfluously might seem. You need your personal voice, just pick up style and some guidelines from online.</p>
<p>100% agreed with mystic. I specifically noted this in the samples I sent. Some for most part are not fantastic…and quite frankly I think that those ppl got in due to their academic achievements rather than just their writing. Plus, you can only make a good judgement if your own writing is up to par with the ivy leagues too.</p>
<p>I agree with Mystic. Each essay is unique and you have to develop your own style to write it. I recently experienced this. At first, it takes a lot of time, but you improve your pace as well as your writing skill. It’s worth creating your own style rather than copying off another’s.</p>
<p>Yaa… Totally agree with u … The essays i read was like soo nt good and those guys wud have got into bcz of academics excellence or mAybe they might have been fake, publicising their websites… Yea , agree with u mystic and life… Each one has his own writing style but i wanted to chk the essays bcz i am in grade 11 nd wanted to knw how do i have to write the essay like, as in whether to write in a simple or hi-fi using harcore vocab or being novice simple in it!! Hmm… Nyways, thanks guys 
and also if ur academic thing isnt THaT strong and good but otherwise ur essay; sat score and extra-currics are all good, is the bad transcripts a drawback??</p>
<p>Rewant, your writing needs to be good. Ill be honest with you, eloquence requires flowery language like it or not. Though there is a fine line between contrived and intelligently placed. Also, there is no substitute for good grades because you are, for all intents and purposes, finally a student. So yeah study hard. All the others are embellishments to your profile although one cannot be complacent enough to downplay their importance.</p>
<p>ah, ohk… not even if ur SAT scores are like super impressive?? still would it be a drawback? :\ …</p>
<p>and how do i know that if i have the capacity to get into ivy or not?! i mean, am like too determined to get into one, although sometimes i think i make goals which are superficial, but then am like i (will) work hard enough to get into one! and its so confusing, i REALLY do want to get into one, but i DUNNO if I CAN?.. ermm… how do i explain that?! :</p>
<p>Well firstly and most importantly dont be a prestige whore. Dont hanker after the Ivies for their name. There are other colleges just as good and often better in their fields. For eg, GATech is a fantastic eng school and will probably kick any Ivy’s butt in eng. So choose well and no harm in trying for colleges. Just have a balanced list. How to judge balance? Well that depends on how good you are :P</p>