I’m a gap year student from India.
My scores include
9th:-79 %
10th:-90%
11th:-75%(due to pandemic)
12:- 99%
SAT:-1550
AP Psychology:-5
My Extracurriculars
Anime:- Practising Animation and Scratch since 9th Grade. Participated In BRAINSTORM JUNIOR COMPETITION.
Where we explain STEM topics through animation.
Web developer:- I am a web developer by profession…know languages Html , PYTHON, database,MySQL,php,js,react, bootstrap and CSS. Build websites for Shaurya Enterprises and managing online orders. Worked as an Intern for 2-3 Indian Start-up.
Community Service:- Member of School social worker community. Worked with over 10 National NGOs as an Intern , Fundraiser, Volunteer. Leading Taare Zameen Foundation at my own state. Managing Drives and donations.
Own Initiative:- Founder of Programming World where I teach Children programming Languages for free. Taught over 100 children worldwide.
Work Experience:- worked as a HR manager/Analysist for over 3 companies.
COVID Initiative:- INVENTED sanitizer packaging using chemicals to prevent the use of plastics. Awarded as junior scientist award from shodh.
Additional Information:-
I also have diploma in Psychology.
Please rate them and provide the room for improvement and assume my chances.
What does full ride mean- that you can pay full tuition, living and travel expenses, or you NEED a full ride to attend?
What is your intended major? You have a lot of CS interests plus psychology, so not clear what you’re looking to pursue.
Can you elaborate on the diploma? Is that like an associate degree?
Are you applying to any other U.S. colleges? What is your backup plan if none of them accept you?
Are you saying that you want to come to college in the US, and that you need the college to pay for everything for you, meaning you need a scholarship that will cover tuition, room, board, books, everything?
If so, then your question is much more broad than just Duke and Wash U. There are very few people who get accepted from India each year to the few schools that offer full financial aid to international students. If you’re asking what your chances are of getting a full ride at Duke or Wash U, I’d say slim to none. Most people who are accepted from India to prestigious US colleges, with full rides, are the absolute top students in their country.
If your goal is to attend college in the US for computer science and psychology, and you need a full ride, you’re going to have to look to far, far less selective schools - and even then, it is unlikely to happen. So your best bet is to simultaneously make options at home for college, too. Your activities sound very impressive - I’m sure you will do well no matter where you attend college.
To be entirely honest - you will almost certainly not be accepted to either Duke or WashU. Your GPA is simply not high enough. You would have needed to have solid grades above 90% for all four years for that.
Then there is the fact that you need 100% financial aid. Both of these colleges are need-aware for international students. That means that you need to be MUCH better than every Indian students who is competitive, but who is able to be full pay.
If your diploma in Psychology is equivalent to an associate’s degree in the USA, that makes you a transfer student, and that is a different route entirely. On one hand, that means that admissions depends mostly on your grades in that degree, rather than you high school grades. On the other hand, as far as I know Duke does not provide financial aid for international transfers.
Forgetting the money and you’ve got a solid background but you have 9th and 11th grade in the 70% tile - i don’t see how you can get into a top school.
You are a gap year - how old are you that you worked as an HR manager for three companies?
Psychology
If you took a gap year after finishing HS in India, and then took courses towards a bachelors, you might be considered a Transfer student. This has big implications as the financial aid is much more generous for freshman.
The transfer admissions process is tilted towards students who can pay in full. As mentioned above, there are thousands of students from India who apply to American colleges each year. Most of them have >90% marks each year. So the two years where you dipped will be noticed. Its good that your 12th marks were high.
Apply widely. I would use the ED choice elsewhere besides Duke.
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