<p>So this post is going to sound really odd and you'll probably think I'm a crazy person overtaken by the college apps process. i probably am. but anyway- i go to a big public high school that typically gets 1-3 students into my dream school, Stanford, each year. so needless to say you need to be one of the best students in the class to get in. i think i am- i have the highest SAT score of the senior class, i'm ranked #2, and been dedicated to several ecs for 4 years. but there's this other girl that has gone through high school doing much less- she's got straight A's but a much lower SAT, far fewer ecs and leadership positions, and no dedication to sports or anything beyond one year. But midway through junior year she decided she wanted to apply to stanford too. ever since then, with the help of her parents, she's started volunteering like 4 hrs a week and searching out nice resume builders. This year its gotten even worse and her dad helped her get a nice lawfirm internship, she went on one of those like $6000 summer "leadership" trips, and again she is doing everything she can to find resume items that can be done real quick and easy. So now, being my paranoid self, I'm worried that my 4 years of thorough dedication will be uprooted by her 11th hour "passion" for a bunch of new things. There are already a number of classmates I think have better shots than i do of getting in, and I am a believer in the whole quota/only a few get in from each school thing. Will colleges be able to see through her? Will they look and see that she has only been doing these flashy activities for less than a year and realize that she's just doing them to look good on an app? Or should I be worried that she'll be able to make it look like she really is a top student. By the way I'm sorry if this post sounds really mean but I just am really annoyed at her because I can think of like 10 people whose work throughout high school makes them deserve stanford much more, but I'm also jealous of the great opportunities she's found to polish that resume. Thanks for the input; sorry for the long post.</p>
<p>Don't stress about how she does- concentrate on presenting YOU for Stanford, because her behavior is obviously beyond your control, and worrying about it won't help you one bit. You sound like you're on the right track, and I'm sure your stats are nice, so just focus on presenting yourself to the adcoms. Rumors or not, the adcoms just want great people, regardless of where they attend HS. The quota thing doesn't even make sense, because if it were true, Stanford could be depriving itself of some great minds (besides, I saw a group of 16 (!) at admit weekend from the same HS). So just focus on building a stellar app for yourself and maybe take a few more initiatives to polish it (do whatever you fancy). After all, schools want to see genuine interest, and the typical resume filler stuff isin't going to do anything. So I suggest you keep your cool, "coolapplicant." (Sorry, couldn't resist) =]</p>
<p>simple answer: yes, i believe that they will see through her if you portrayed her correctly in your post. </p>
<p>i was in a similar situation, where the other girl form my school applying had way more leadership (president of several clubs, but they were mostly BS clubs).. and she had paid to go to Harvard Secondary school. Just in general, she only worked to build her resume. She was rejected SCEA. The readers know the difference between a merit-based summer camp, and a $6000 rich kid leadership camp where the only requirement is being able to pay.</p>
<p>but again, don't worry about this girl. like ^he said. concentrate on your presentation, and make no comparisons (in your app or anything to this specific individual). stanford carefully chooses its admits.</p>
<p>dont worry.</p>
<p>I would also like to chip in and say that I agree! Please don't worry about her performance because there does not seem to be any sort of quota. I don't think 11th hour passion can truly exist because true passion - not lust - takes time to nurture. Starting an internship this summer that "seems pretty cool" isn't really a passion; it's a new interest to be explored further. I believe that passion and commitment go hand in hand, and it sounds like you've been committed to some ECs. In your essays, show why you love what you do, what you have learned, and how you have grown. Don't just give summaries of what your activities have entailed. Stanford wants to know who you are, not just what you did.</p>