So I’m a US citizen and have been studying in India for the last 13 years(pretty much all of school). The plan was always to finish undergrad here. The problem now is that very recent rule changes have prevented foreign students from getting into the top Indian universities, namely IITs. I have been preparing for these colleges for quite some time.
Right now I plan to come to the US for undergrad. The only problem is that I don’t have a very strong application apart from my academics as that’s what matters here.
SAT score:1950 (will take again should score about 2100+)
SAT Subject: to take math 2, physics and chem. expect a 750+ in all.
APs: None yet( learnt what they are only 3 months ago)
GPA: am from a cbse school we get it on a 1-10 scale. I got a 10 in the 10th grade but getting a 10 is not as hard as it looks.
EC:
Tennis 4 years (I’ve been playing daily but I can’t prove it, no awards, school didn’t play tennis)
Varsity basketball 2 years
Literary council member
Havent done any community service yet( was never a priority to me till now)
The dilemma I’m facing now is what should I concentrate on. I have about 9 months till I apply. I can possibly take a couple of AP exams… Not sure if I can broaden ECs.
My college choices are those with good engineering programs.
UC berkeley seems like a very high reach. Georgia tech and UT Austin are others I’d love to go to.
What are my odds? How do I increase them? Any other college suggestions?
Those are some good schools! It looks like your grades are fine, but the thing you should really broaden is your ECs. I know you said it’ll be tough, but colleges in the US focus on those a lot. It’ll be hard to get some well developed ECs now, but if I were you I would add a couple more to your list. You really need to show colleges that you’re doing things you’re interested in and that relate to your intended major. Get some community service done (I’d say a significant number of hours since your list of ECs isn’t that big).
Definitely take APs. The best ones to take if you want to go into engineering are BC Calculus, Chemistry, and Physics. You could also take one or two liberal arts APs like World History or AP English Language and Composition just to have a diverse background. If I were you, I would study for four or so APs and take them before you go to college. Colleges here accept APs even after you’ve applied and gotten in.
Do they offer the ACT in India? Even if you plan on getting a 2100+ (which is a terrific score) you may want to look at the ACT as an option. I know I do much better on the ACT than the SAT and it could really improve your chances. The ACT is just another standardized test option that pretty much all colleges equate with the SAT. It’s actually a lot easier for me (and a lot of other people I know) because it has four (five including an optional essay which you should take) sections- English, Math, Reading, and Science. It’s broken up so you finish one section and then move on to the next one unlike the SAT in which you can go from a Math section to a CR section and then back to Math. Take a look into that. The best prep book is the Real ACT Prep Guide by Peterson’s. I studied by doing each section over and over again until I was satisfied with my results, and make sure to ANALYZE the mistakes you’ve made. You have to know why you made a mistake.
Last thing- essays are important for colleges too. Start thinking and researching essay topics and come up with some good writing before you have to apply. Then compiling essays will be much easier for you. Work on your writing skills and develop interesting and unique topics to write about now, because if you wait until the last minute, they won’t see your full writing potential.
Good luck! Just focus on broadening your ECs, studying for APs and the other tests, and work on your essays. I think you have a solid academic background, so work on all the other stuff. Message me if you want any other advice! I’m here to help
You might consider some of the other [url="<a href=“http://theaitu.org%22%5DAITU%5B/url”>http://theaitu.org"]AITU[/url] schools (besides MIT and Cal Tech). They have really strong STEM programs and ECs are important but not overwhelmingly so.
