<p>I WANNA GO BACK TOOOO!!
Most amazing experience ever!!
We are seriously in love with each other! We just had our fifth (???) reunion!!
I concur with sunshine (she was MY ROOMIE) i cannot wait to smother the next generation with scholarly love. I will answer any questions too!!</p>
<p>AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH girlie you didnt tell me you responded to this! facebook attacking you… even though i already wrote on your wall whateva…</p>
<p>and that was definitely not the fifth. including the mini reunions, there have probably been like 8 or 9. if not more…</p>
<p>and i heard you all made fun of my posts here -___- gonna kill you all. expect a strongly worded message on the njsp fb group. something like “hate you guys” might suffice.</p>
<p>hello 
I am one of the three nominees from my high school and I am applying to njsp Reading from all the posts, it seems like its an AMAZING program. I have a strong passion for human rights and international relations. I am in many extra-curriculars such as student council, mock trial, model un and model congress (won awards at both). I am also a boy scout and have reached the rank of life scout. I also play varsity soccer. </p>
<p>Despite all of this, my gpa isnt so great (about 3.7ish unweighted) and my sats are TERRIBLE. Does the program look at sat scores? On the transcript that my counselor sends, will it show some of my junior grades or does it only show sophomore grades?</p>
<p>Do I have a chance at at least becoming a semi finalist in this program? I love topic and it is my dream to attend this program.</p>
<p>Soccerboy, honestly do not worry about your stats. EC’s and demonstrated interest are much, much, much more important in the long run. The first cuts of the application process will look at your stats, resume, and essay, all that good stuff, but honestly I’m betting you will make it past that if your essays are strong (again, demonstrating how passionate you are in those essays will get you through). Judging by your EC’s, I’m going to guess you’re like me and you’re a people-person (shmoozing at MC and MUN conferences is so much fun) and confident speaking in front of other people. Those are the skills, along with that passion, that will get you through the interview. Don’t worry though, you’ve applied now and it’s out of your hands until interviews. Anyway, a 3.7 isn’t that terrible, and I don’t know what you mean by terrible but you seem like you still have a shot.</p>
<p>By the way, we’re not all as weird as butterfly and sunshine.</p>
<p>Agreed. I’m more of a numbers guy, so here’s some rough stats. They usually take about half the candidates to the interview (as semi-finalists) and they look at test scores very roughly, if at all. Actually, I don’t think I ever sent those in, so the only way they’d see them is if your school puts in on a transcript. Like vphilosophile said, it’s mostly passion, essays, recs, and such things. You totally have a chance. If (and when) you get to the interview, that’s really the only thing that matters, so scores and GPAs really don’t matter for the more selective second half of it. Good luck to you, and I hope to see you at the interview!</p>
<p>I’m yet another former scholar, btw.</p>
<p>Hey yall.
So I’m a crazy tall chic with a Stalin-complex. I pretty much run errthang at my magnet school and make and score my own incredibly difficult standardized tests, all of which I scored a perfect Alpha-Gold-Niner on. I write my school’s newspaper, while rowing crew, on a ship built from a strain of lightweight pines that I engineered. </p>
<p>Yeah, you could say I got it made in the shade. I’m pretty sure that I will make it to the interview round, but I am worried about one thing. </p>
<p>I have a not-so-hidden Shakespeare fetish that makes my knees buckle at its every reference. You should see me sweat and my eyes twitch in English when we did Macbeth this year. My political enemies have exploited this fact and so far its kept me from ruling a number of Latin American countries. </p>
<p>I really want to go cuz Step 12 in my 15 step plan to take over the world is to attend NJSP and hold madd reunions where I would convert them into my minions. What are the interview rounds like? Is there any mention of <em>shudder</em> the Bard of Avon?, because I won’t be able to deal. What do you guys talk about?</p>
<p>do you by any chance love the word antidisestablishmentarianism, especially when spoken in a pirate accent?</p>
<p>Also, I should probably throw in my two cents -</p>
<p>I’m a NJSP grad as well. I think the number of NJSP grads on this post speaks to how committed to the program you become after going through it. There is nothing quite like it. It’s about as difficult to get into NJSP as it is to get into Gov school, and colleges assign about the same prestige to both programs. I would argue that NJSP is superior because (1) it’s longer [5 weeks as opposed to 3, at most of these programs], (2) more varied [4 different classes - touch topics spanning the humanitarian to the scientific], (3) better teachers / next to Princeton, (4) social activities [from my friends that attended Gov school, I think I can make a fair comparison that NJSP grads ended up being much closer / had much more fun!!]</p>
<p>As far as standardized tests go, I would not really be concerned with them. This year’s applicant pool is supposed to be even more competitive than last year, because Gov school keeps getting cut. I believe the most important part of the process is the interview, honestly. I had the director of the program interview my group last year, which I bet helped significantly, but no matter who you have, it is important for you to stand out in the interview. The reason: NJSP consists of a lot of talking!! Also, try to make friends while your on the tour, and relax as well. </p>
<p>I wish you all the best of luck! I’m sure NJSP grads will be checking here periodically to give advice, make inside jokes, etc. hahaha.</p>
<p>hey everyone!
i just got my acceptance letter as a semi-finalist and I am overjoyed! I am nervous for the interview though so I was wondering what types of issues I should be prepared to discuss. Also, what does topical issues mean?
Thanksss!</p>
<p>hi 4peaceandlove! I got the acceptance letter too! I’m both excited and a bit nervous for the interview though… when’s your interview day and time?</p>
<p>if past participants could at least give us clues to what they usually throw in for us to discuss, we would greatly appreciate it :)</p>
<p>Also a semifinalist.
Looking forward to the interview!</p>
<p>I’m also a semi-finalist and would really appreciate any input past participants can put in. Especially about the interview, am really not a shy person but this interview has me really nervous…</p>
<p>quick question: does NJSP notify you if you’ve been rejected for an interview as well?</p>
<p>Hello past nj scholars! I have my interview on Monday and I was wondering if anyone had any advice/ideas about what the discussion topic might be about. Thanks1</p>
<p>Hi all!
I’ve gotten a couple of pm’s about the interview process, so I’ll answer the general questions I’ve been getting on this thread for all the semifinalists.</p>
<p>First of all, congrats if you made semifinalist! And if you didn’t, don’t worry, this year was very competitive from what I hear. Not getting this far isn’t an indictment of your personality or your resume or your essays etc. It just means the program wasn’t right for you, and vice versa!</p>
<p>So semifinalists, your interviews are fast approaching. I forget how much they told you in your letter, but I’ll tell you as much as ethically possible. When you arrive on your interview date, you’ll first get a tour from an awesome group of Scholar alums. I might be biased, but they’re all very cool people. When I had my interview I wasn’t that enthusiastic, but the interview totally changed my opinion. The campus is amazing, and the people are great and very involved. The tour is your opportunity to get a feel for the atmosphere of NJSP. Take the time to relax a little bit (if not get excited!), and talk to the alums. Ask us questions, engage us, be sociable. </p>
<p>That last bit is really important; be sociable and get to know the people on your tour, because some of them will be in your interview room, and if you’re comfortable with them your interview will go much more smoothly. The thing you’ll hear from the alums and probably your interviewer is that often entire interview groups (or at least close to the entire group) will get in, while other rooms won’t get anyone in. What you should take away from that is that your group dynamic is really important, and you should try to engage your entire group! Having a bad group can hurt you, but not if your good enough to raise the level of discussion in your group; likewise having a good group can help you but not if you’re not an active and contributing part of the discussion. </p>
<p>The interviewers aren’t just looking for you to be smart or knowledgeable, because you all have to be to have gotten this far. They’re looking for the person who adds something to a group discussion–someone who says something interesting; someone who builds off of other people’s points; someone who engages other people; someone who is challenging and interesting! For the most part, being honest, you can’t fake that. Plus, if you have to fake that, then NJSP isn’t for you. I’m confident that almost everyone who’s made it this far <em>is</em> that person though. The single biggest thing that kills people in that interview room is nerves. That’s why I really recommend relaxing on the tour and getting to know people. Everyone gets nervous though, so here are <em>my</em> tips for what to do and not to do on your interview.</p>
<p>First off, eye contact. It seems like a silly thing, but when you’re talking to someone it’s a lot more effective if you’re making eye contact! Even when someone else is talking, make eye contact with them. If you look interested and engaged, chances are that person will end up talking to you, and then you can build a good rapport. Second, be confident in what you’re saying, but don’t phrase things as “here’s why I’m right and you’re wrong.” Being able to see multiple viewpoints and discuss ideas with people you don’t necessarily agree with is a really important skill. Again, address your responses to people, and be sure that you’re listening to other people and building off what they’re saying. The more the interviewer sees you talking <em>with</em> people rather than <em>at</em> them, the better. Plus, the more you actually communicate with people, the more they’ll want to listen to you. Don’t worry about being right or wrong, just add your interesting thoughts, because you definitely have them. </p>
<p>There’s no parliamentary procedure in this interview, nobody’s raising their hand, it’s just a group of people chilling and talking about something interesting (pretty much a good summary of NJSP itself!). With no one deciding who speaks next, it’s up to the group to decide. This is where making eye contact and talking <em>to</em> people will really help you out. If people respect your ideas and can tell you respect theirs, they’ll defer to you. Plus, if they’re making eye contact with you when they finish speaking, protocol dictates in a way that you should be the one to speak next! Don’t feel you need to talk the most, or be the aggressive person in the room. There are some people who are just natural discussion leaders, but NJSP isn’t only for them. Still, get a handle on the group dynamic in your room and try to work within it. Lastly, and really, most importantly, <em>SMILE</em>. The interviewers want to see that you’re enjoying this! If you treat it like a cool intellectual discussion with your friends, then I can pretty much promise you’ll do very well, because you’ll enjoy it and the interviewers will see that.</p>
<p>The last thing I’ll address is the question you’ll get. In short, don’t worry about it at all. As long as you’re smart, interesting, and don’t live under a rock, you won’t feel out of your depth or like you needed to do research before you came. There will always be people who are really into history and can kick your ass at it (my roommate); there will always be people who are way more into politics or international relations than you; there will always be people who love philosophy and quote philosophers in latin. You don’t have to be any of those people–be you! You have your own interests and perspectives that will add substance to the discussion. </p>
<p>In summary: relax and have fun! NJSP isn’t about competition, it isn’t about knowing the most, it isn’t about controlling a room. It’s about being intellectual, interesting, and unafraid to show it!</p>
<p>Hopefully I’ll see some of you on your tours; good luck all!</p>
<p>^Thanks so much! Looking forward to it.</p>
<p>To all the NJSP alumni here- is there any way to prepare at all? My interview is this Sunday and I want this program so badly. I will read dozens of magazines and newspapers in the remaining time if I need to! Also, if I do not receive acceptance into both this program, and the NJGS, what alternative programs would you suggest?? I dont like to have bad thoughts, but one must look at the worst case. Thanks any help will be greatly appreciated! :)</p>
<p>To parags3: I just had my interview yesterday. For some reason I thought the interview question could in some way be about human rights, so during the car ride to Lawrenceville I read up on a philsophical interpretation of human rights as a crutch, in case I ran out of things to say, and my group’s question was about the academically enriching experience which we had written about in our essays. I think everyone in my group felt that talking about their academic passions was more impressive than throwing out an Ayn Rand quote could ever have been. Your question will most likely be a different one, but nonetheless I don’t think preparing is going to help you. My tour guide said his interview question last year was on whether or not it’s right to impose democracy on other countries; you’re either going to have something to say or you won’t. Like vphilosophile was saying, if you have fun with it then you will enjoy yourself. It was honestly so much more informal than I’d expected, and I had a great time. </p>
<p>Good luck to everyone!</p>
<p>thanks! Good Luck to you too!</p>
<p>I got in i am so excited i got my letter today i hope you guys get in too… let me know :)</p>