International kid. Cornell ED, and a few others. Give me your worst.

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

Demographics :

  • Indian
  • Male
  • International Student
  • School : Private school in India
  • Income : Will need some aid

Intended major(s) :

Cornell - InfoSci - College of Engineering

  • Discrete Math / CS / IS *

TOOK A GAP YEAR

Academics

  • SAT 1 : 1500/1600 800M 700WR
  • SAT 2 : Math Level 2 : 790 , Physics : 760 , Chemistry : 740
  • Class Rank : School doesnt offer but it should be 5th or 6th out of 81
  • Coursework : Indian Standard 12 (CBSE) - English(91%) , Mathematics(95%), Physics(92%), Chemistry(94%), Computer

Science(92%)

  • Grades : CGPA: Class 8: 9.33 Class 9: 9.2 Class 10: 10
  • UW/W GPA: School doesnt offer/calculate, 92.8% Agg
  • Academic Awards:
    • National merit certificate for 10/10 CGPA in Class 10( CBSE Indian Standard 10 )
    • 93% in Indian Standard 12(CBSE) final exams
    • Dozens of distinctions and high distinctions in IAIS exams (International Assessment for Indian School) conducted by

Macmillan and UNSWGlobal Australia.

  • High Distinction in ANCQ ( Australian National Chemistry Quiz ) ( they also did mention the top % of students I was in,

but I dont remember that right now. I was in the single digits for sure )

  • (Not sure if this counts) Selected to National level of the Spelling Bee competition held in 2008. Couldnt attend due to financial reasons
  • Report card has been filled with all A1’s and a few A2’s for the last 12 years ( For reference : A1 : 91-100 range, A2 : 81-90 range). Literally zero B’s along the way.

Extracurriculars:

  • House captain for 1 year (Student Govt)
  • School secretary for 1 year (Student Govt)
  • Computer Club president for 2 years
  • School's waste management head for 1 year
  • Track and field: have marathon'd for school and independently. Completed over a dozen full marathons, won multiple medals. Best time: 10k in 35mins flat.
  • Extensive animal rescue work, have nursed over 30 and 15 cows back to health (>300 hours: 12 weeks, 6 days a week, 6-7 hours a day) with an NGO (Been bitten dozens of times lol)
  • Part of drive to makeover the dirtiest spots in the city. Did dirty work, literally. Me and 15-20 other volunteers converted an open air defecation site to a playground/parking lot. We paid for the equipment ourselves, and cleaned the place ourselves. No outsourcing.
  • Summer work experience working at a power tools manufacturing factory. Operated a CNC Machine, did some welding etc.
  • Worked on a farm for 3 months. Tilled, fertilized crops, operated bullock carts and other farm machinery.
  • Tutored Math and Physics underpriviliged kids ( grade 9-10 level) at a government school for 2 months.
  • Have been playing tabla for 10 years now and have finished 4 certificate courses.
  • Loads of certificates from Computer and Theater clubs
  • Political campaigning for Bharatiya Janata Party during national elections in 2014 (They won, Narendra Modi is now PM :) )

Misc

  • Essays: My commonapp essay is a heartfelt one. It's about how my family was forced out of our ancestral land by Islamic militants and how we fled and settled on the other end of the country, and how I've lost an uncle and two cousins to this violence in the last 10 years alone. Facing economic hardship, having to go hungry as a kid, and being on the brink of homelessness. My takeaway from the entire essay is that moving away from all the mayhem has granted me the power of objectivity, as in how all the elders in my family are blinded by the pride of the ancestral land but I know deep down that we can never go back because it just isnt going to happen. (sidenote, this is what I'm talking about https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethnic_cleansing_of_Kashmiri_Hindus )
  • Secondary Essays CORNELL SUPP: About how my agrarian background gives me a deeper understanding of farming mechanisms, and how with the help of large scale Data Analytics, I hope to maximize output and minimise environmental damage in developing countries
  • Multilingual : Can read, write and speak fluently in 6 languages (English, Hindi, Kannada, Sanskrit, Marathi, Tamil)
  • Multilingual : Can code in 5 languages ( C++, C#, Java, Javascript, Python)
  • Counselor recommendation Haven't read, but she's a sweetheart so I'm sure she's written something nice <3
  • Teacher Recommendation #1 Haven't read, but she likes so me
  • Teacher Recommendation #2 He's written that I'm one of the best students he's seen in 8 years
  • Optional Recommendation From my Coach, he's written loads about how dedicated to running I am (havent read it)
  • Going to submit a portfolio of my school projects/research work ( Includes: 3xComputer Science projects(C++), 1x Game created by in C++, 4xPhysics research project reports, 3 of which have been performed and certified by the Indian Institute of Science, 4xChemistry research project reports )

Schools :
ED Cornell
RD : Imperial College London, University of Warwick, Dartmouth RD, GATech

So. What do you think? Am I looking at a bunch of rejection letters?

2

I think you are looking at a big fat acceptance letter to Cornell to be completely honest

3

Wow - what a wonderful story. I think you have an excellent shot at many of these schools. Just note that Cornell is not need blind for internationals, so you will be up against some stiff competition.

When reading through your list of activities I was simply amazed. However there were a few points where I caught myself thinking that you were inflating things. Especially the fact that you are ‘fluent’ in 5 different indian languages. This would require learning 3 entirely different scripts. It is almost impossible to be fluent in Sanskrit because it is not widely spoken outside of the temple. Even in religious circles the Sanskrit that is used is mostly chanting. So to say that you can read/write/speak all of these languages is somewhat of a stretch. Is this really true? Even if yes, do you expect others to have the same reaction as me (that you are exaggerating a little?).

I did like your essay topic about being subject to ethnic cleansing, and this may tug at the heartstrings of admissions people. I also liked the part about being bitten by a cow - I wonder what that must’ve felt like.

Best of luck

4

You’re in. Hope I get in too as I would love to meet you there! But all we can do is wait… :slight_smile:

5

@sgopal2 Sanskrit was taught in school as a third language for 5 years, and being a brahmin I’m around very religious people. English is medium of instruction, Kannada is my mother tongue. Hindi also from school but who doesn’t know Hindi in India? Tamil because I live in South India ( Karnataka ) and Marathi I happen to have quite a few Marathi relatives( okay I lied, I can only speak Marathi xD )

6

You can read and write tamil script despite having grown up in K’nataka? Being brahmin has nothing to do with being fluent in sanskrit. You are probably quite versed in the vedic sanksrit chants, but does that mean you are fluent in colloquial everyday sanksrit? Could you carry on this conversation entirely in Sanskrit? I highly doubt it. Saying you are “fluent” and can read/write/speak these languages is somewhat of an overstatement.

My point is that you are a kid. They’re not expecting you to walk on water. But just be honest about your abilities and don’t give into the temptation to pad your achievements, as this will diminish your entire application.

7

What did you do in your gap year? A lot of US colleges do not like students applying after a gap year. They want you to be accepted prior to it.

8

^^ I’m not sure the above is true.

OP, I agree with sgopal2 – don’t exaggerate on your application. Colleges are very attuned to so-called resume padding, and you risk having your entire application questioned with a few over-the-top claims.

9

Man with that story, I want to found a college just so that I can accept you. I think you’re going to be getting an acceptance to Cornell this week, but regardless be proud of what you have accomplished.

I live in Atlanta, Georgia, and I can guarantee that you get into GaTech, and that is not a bad school at all my friend.

Best of luck!

10

@connorf13 D’awwww you’re too kind

11

wow youre deffo getting in

12

You are in.

13

Wew. Thanks for the support guys @bigred1985 @LV98xx @connorf13
Hoping everything goes well on Thursday!

14

I’d be very, very surprised if Cornell rejected you. You’re definitely in. Good luck!

15

As an Indian, I know Kashmir thing is getting you in. Any tips? I’m a junior so I’ll be applying next year.

16

As a fellow Indian, I believe you should be applying to more schools to keep your options open.

You have a great chance of getting in at Cornell but you should have a backup in case you don’t (since international admits are very competitive in top schools)

There are tons of other schools out there and maybe you should check them out.

Good luck!

17

@peskid Did you get in?

18

No he effing didn’t. It’s really sad.

19

@peskid did you get in? @seeadmit how do you know? :slight_smile:

20

@IsoDidact I PM’ed peskid and asked him. He didn’t get in. Got rejected. I was expecting deferral in worst case but it’s strange how college apps work.