Northwestern MMSS qualifications

<p>I really want to apply to the mmss program at northwestern. I love economics, and I have always considered myself a good math student. I am wondering how good at math someone has to be to get into MMSS. I have gotten straight A's in math, with a couple A minuses. As a junior I took Calc BC and scored a 5 on the AP exam. As a senior, I will take AP Statistics and Advanced Senior Topics (a college level math class that is only offered to a few students). I scored a 36 on my ACT in math and an 800 on the Math II SAT Subject Test. I also won an award for scoring the highest on the AMC 12 out of anyone in my school (3000 students) as a junior, and I qualified for the AIME exam. I did not qualify for USAMO.</p>

<p>Is this good enough, or is mmss prestigious enough that they can only take USAMO kids or
kids that have done some crazy research or have won crazy math team competitions. I am wondering how good at math someone has to be to go to mmss.</p>

<p>Clearly you have some great math credentials, so you are “right there” in terms of what you need. There are more than a few MMSS kids who didnt do as well on their exams. However, be wary that MMSS is not a pure math program. </p>

<p>You have to get into NU before getting into MMSS. So you need to have SAT CR, grades, other APs, extra-curriculars, etc. that will be enough to gain admission. </p>

<p>I am not positive about this, but I would hazard a guess that MMSS kids have higher SAT CR than non-MMSS kids. MMSS is generally considered to be “an honors major” so the students should be all-around all-stars, even by NU standards.</p>

<p>Short version:
If SATs are sub 1300, you arent top 10% and you have weak ECs, then forget about MMSS. Getting in to NU will be hard enough.</p>

<p>If you are a 1500+ SAT student, have APs in multiple subjects, high SAT IIs in multiple subjects, and good ECs, then you have a good shot at NU and at MMSS</p>

<p>thanks a lot. compared to kids from my school who have gotten into northwestern in the past, i think i stand a pretty solid chance in getting in. i have a solid overall act and gpa as well, and have pretty good ec’s. thanks for the insight, i was really unsure how competitive the program was.</p>

<p>There are two types of entrance levels for MMSS:</p>

<p>Freshman: Based mainly on your SATs. APs maybe.</p>

<p>Sophomore: Based on performance in your freshman level math classes. Sophomore entry is a crapshoot and much much more difficult than freshman entry.</p>

<p>The sophomore entrees usually performs stronger than the freshman entrees, because the selection process is more difficult.</p>