<p>A lot of people have been telling me recently that Brown is a lot different from the other Ivies and good colleges in that its admissions people look mostly towards one’s essays and recommendations as compared to his or her SATs and GPA. I have heard that it although a strong SAT and GPA are obvious recommended, and almost always required, Brown admissions officers focus strongly on one’s essay and recommendations, allowing for some with lower scores to get in. </p>
<p>Is this true?</p>
<p>That's the claim/my understanding. It's not that we allow for people with lower scores to get so much as the admissions department strives to have a more holistic process in selecting and tries to judge the whole person beyond just the numbers.</p>
<p>At least, that's what I've always been told. I'm willing to bet the difference is less than ... say 5% if you could quantify such a thing. I'm sure most Brown admission counselors still go largely the smae amount by the numbers as other places, but we may be more inclined to go with someone with lower scores that has done something exceptional in their life than some other places.</p>
<p>I really don't think that's the case. It only seems that way because Brown has a reputation of being the most liberal, 'laid-back' ivy. The open curriculum creates this false appearance because there are only a handful of ppl who abuse it but unfortunately those ppl 'brag' about abusing it. In actuality, just about all brown undergrads are really passionate, interesting ppl. </p>
<p>So, don't get your hopes up. To get into Brown, you need amazing numbers, but on top of that, you need to show that you have real passions. Ivies like Upenn and Cornell seem more 'number-based' buts saying that is as true as saying Brown is more 'essay-based'.</p>
<p>As an admitted student of 2011, all the people I have met have had high test scores and a high GPA. On the Facebook group people started posting their essays and a lot of them were really amazing, so I'm guessing the essay is probably important. Personally, I think the Why Brown short essay is pretty important because it establishes your intentions in attending Brown and can show the university your intellectual curiosity, an important quality to have in attending a school like Brown.</p>
<p>3.8 community college gpa</p>
<p>took sat in college: 1760 </p>
<p>transferring next year. im betting on that holistic approach. the rest of my app made up for my low score.</p>
<p>Definitely not true. In fact, Brown looks at SAT and GPA even more than schools like HYP, where every applicant pretty much has near-perfect scores.</p>
<p>What PosterX just said, essentially saying Brown students don't have great SAT scores, is patently false.</p>
<p>I work as a summer science tour guide through the admissions department and have chatted several times with adcoms-- if what posterX is saying is true he knows so only on his/her own speculation since that's definitely not what Brown Admissions is saying or even remotely suggesting.</p>
<p>posterX has a reputation of being full of ****</p>
<p>case in point</p>
<p>Yea poster x constantly lies about other schools....</p>
<p>Not true. All I'm saying is that from what I've heard, Brown looks at GPA and scores even more than the very top tier (HYPMC). Think about it - schools ranked lower have an incentive to "catch up" with Harvard, Yale, Caltech, MIT which have the highest average scores. So in order to boost their rankings, they give preference to students with higher scores. HYCM couldn't boost their average scores much more even if they tried.</p>
<p>how creative was everyone's photograph of themselves for the application? (or maybe that is just for brown transfers?)</p>
<p>Well I think unless you're a URM or a recruited athlete your scores and grades have to be stellar to even have a chance just due to Brown's selectivity. In response to posterx, at any school the higher your scores are the better your chances of getting in to the college so I'm really not sure of your argument there because it is not just specific to Brown. </p>
<p>But I just wanted to say that nowadays with the growing number of incidents of cheating on the SAT and ACT and the use of classes, really test scores are becoming more and more meaningless. So I think Brown is smart to place more emphasis on the essay because you really get to see more of a student. Remember a 2400/36 doesn't mean you're getting a star student who will work their hardest and contribute to the intellectual atmosphere of a college, all you know is that they are a good test taker. </p>
<p>But then again I think this thread is kind of pointless because I have been told for the past 4 years that with top schools your essays have to be just out of this world amazing (on top of a good academic record) to be accepted nowadays. It doesn't matter if we are talking Harvard, Brown, Stanford, MIT, etc. they all attract top students and the admissions office has to find some way to separate students outside of grades and scores to create a successful, intellectual university community.</p>
<p>Despite what anyone will tell you, the difference between students admitted at those schools at the top is marginal at best, in every single aspect that you can imagine "judging" a person (if that could even be done).</p>
<p>Anyone telling you otherwise is a liar.</p>
<p>my pic was black and white...just because it was more flattering</p>
<p>i believe wholeheartedly that my essay was what got me in (fall 07 transfer). I had good grades as a freshman, but I wasnt the guy with the 4.0 or a 2400 SAT. i wrote passionately and honestly. i guess it paid off</p>
<p>ps. my photo was just one of me at some off-campus party</p>
<p>"Well I think unless you're a URM or a recruited athlete your scores and grades have to be stellar to even have a chance just due to Brown's selectivity."</p>
<p>I'm an URM and I had excellent SAT scores and grades in high school. To the user I am replying to, getting into Brown is incredibly difficult regardless of one's race or athletic ability. Let us not forget that white applicants with "subpar" numbers gain admission into the Ivy League as well. </p>
<p>I feel strongly obliged to make this point, because when we begin to dilute the stakes of admission for a Brown student due to his racial group on account of our speculation of the admission process, we simultaneously devalue that student AND (although on a slighter level) his race. In fact, it is for this reason that many URMs and athletes are faced with the burden of having to proove themselves to their colleagues. </p>
<p>To sum it all up, if you're not sitting on the admissions board of Brown University, when it comes to evaluating it's candidates, SHUT THE HELL UP!</p>
<p>"Let us not forget that white applicants with "subpar" numbers gain admission into the Ivy League as well."</p>
<p><em>Raises hand</em></p>
<p>I don't buy it. I think that essays and recs matter a lot at Brown, but grades and SATS matter just as much as everywhere else.</p>
<p>Brunonian -- I agree. </p>
<p>It irks me when people refer to the "stupid football recruits," etc. Let's remember that 1. often times those football recruits are among the smartest students. We sent a star football player to Harvard Law last year, 2. It takes something special to be incredible at a sport. That talent should be considered and appreciated when it comes to admissions, the future success of the team aside! 3. Athletes spend inordinate amounts of time training and practicing, making school work all the more challenging.</p>
<p>Is that because you could easily be a "stupid rugby recruit?" :)</p>
<p>In my classes, the people I tend to be annoyed with most aren't athletes who sometimes ask questions that may seem fairly obvious to the rest of the class (hey, we can all use the review), it's usually the people who for whatever reason, didn't do the reading or didn't go to class, but feel the need to speak up anyway, even though what they're saying is rarely on point, and they basically just want to hear themselves talk.</p>