Official 2015 RD results thread

scratchthat · March 16, 2011, 11:50pm

Decision: Accepted

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I (breakdown): 790 M, 720 R, 680 W (2190 total)
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown): Same (one sitting)
[] ACT (breakdown): N/A
[] ACT superscore (breakdown): N/A
[] SAT II: 800 Math II, 700 Bio M
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.9ish?
[] Weighted GPA: 5.2ish?
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1
[] AP (place score in parentheses): World History (4), Calculus AB (5), Biology (5), European History (3), Language and Composition (5), Calculus BC (5), Chemistry (5), English Literature and Composition (4), US History (5)
[] IB (place score in parentheses): World Geography (4)
[] Senior Year Course Load: 7 IB classes
[] Number of other RD applicants in your school: 3-5?
[li] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Finalist, National AP Award, Intel ISEF Finalist, name on a scientific paper that is in the process of being submitted to journals and was presented at an international conference [/ul] [/li]
Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): Math club (president), robotics club (president), soccer, newspaper (copy editor)
[] Job/Work Experience: Research intern in genetics lab, research intern in physics lab, intern in computer&cognition research center
[li] Volunteer/Community service:Teaching elementary programming language to kids, organizing middle-school math competition[/ul][/li]
Writing (Write a brief description and Rate Quality on 1-10 Scale; 10 as Best):[ul]
[] Essays (Include Subjects):[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: Soccer (7)[/li][] Department at MIT: MechE (7)
[] World You Come From: My family, etc. (7)
[] Significant Challenge: My age (8)
[] Other:[/ul]
[li] Teacher Recommendation #1: 9[/li][] Teacher Recommendation #2: 7
[] Counselor Rec: Pretty standard, although good.
[] Additional Rec: From my physics research mentor (8-9) and from my internship supervisor at the computer&cognition research center (8-9)
[] Interview: Now that I got in, I think it went really well! Haha we talked for like an hour and a half. Really cool guy.
[] Art Supplement:[/list]

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: Morning of deadline day I think haha
[] State (if domestic applicant): FL
[] Country (if international applicant):
[] School Type: Public
[] Ethnicity: Asian (Indian)
[] Gender: Female
[] Income Bracket: prolly not eligible for financial aid, but Imma try
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): I suppose scientific paper? Other than that, none.[/ul]

Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: Essays, recommendations, transcript, extracurriculars (especially volunteer projects and internships), interview?
[] Weaknesses: Ethnicity, age, not really any huge hooks, lack of significant awards
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I think at the end of the day, it really comes down to your fit with MIT. I’ve visited and never felt so at home at any other college. I know people will say that they felt this as well and they got rejected, but believe me, you are amazing and you will find your own niche. I think the importance of essays are underestimated. It is with them that you can show MIT that you are the perfect fit for the school. Also I submitted some nerdy/not-so-nerdy jokes in the midyear report that hopefully lightened the mood.
[] What would you have done differently?: I worked really, really hard because this is what I’ve always wanted. I was never one of those precocious geniuses. I don’t think I could’ve pushed myself much more, so I don’t have many significant regrets academically. Maybe never placing in a math competition even though I studied for hours on end? Guess it turned out alright in the end. [/ul]

Other Factors:
General Comments/Congratulations/Venting/Commiserations, etc: You are all amazing and I am humbled to have been in the same applicant pool as you. I did one of these because last year as a junior, reading these posts motivated me and inspired me. I hope all you aspiring soon-to-be-seniors keep your spirits high and keep working hard. And for those that were rejected and really wanted to get in, I don’t need to hope; I know you’ll find your place and have an amazing college experience. Just keep being awesome!

Dmoney11 · March 17, 2011, 5:43am

Decision: Waitlisted

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I (breakdown): 2170 (CR: 740, M: 730, W: 700)
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown): 2230 (CR: 740, M: 730, W: 760)
[] ACT (breakdown): 34 (E: 32, Essay: 10, Combined: 31, M: 34, R: 36, S: 35)
[] ACT superscore (breakdown): only took once, same as above
[] SAT II: Math II: 800; Chemistry: 800; BioE: 800; French (w/o listening): 690
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.5
[] Weighted GPA: 3.96
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 10% (only ranked by decile)
[] AP (place score in parentheses): Chem: 5; Bio: 5; Calc BC: 5; English Lang: 4
[] IB (place score in parentheses): None
[] Senior Year Course Load: Economics, AP English Lit, AP CompSci A, AP Statistics, AP Physics B, AP French (dropped 2nd semester because of terrible teacher)
[] Number of other RD applicants in your school: 4
[li] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):[/ul] Pretty much none, won 1st place regional science bowl in Bay Area this year only, 2nd place regional ocean science bowl, National Merit Commended, AP Scholar w/ Honor (though it the second two probably counted for almost nothing…)[/li]
Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): Teacher’s Assistant for APChem teacher/Science Bowl coach(); Science Bowl Team 1 only senior year, Team 2 junior year, Ocean Science Bowl Team 1 only senior year; Caltech SHArK internship (too lazy describe here; just use google if you’re curious); Math Club/Mathletes; Chemistry Club (vice-president senior year); Leo’s/Lions Club (secretary <—likely worthless); other activities I was interested in but no leadership or significant accomplishments such as Earth Team, Track, Cross Country, etc.
[] Job/Work Experience: Considering background, none ironically
[li] Volunteer/Community service:[/ul] Leo’s Club, helped run town events, lot of tutoring for free because I don’t think people should have to pay for help with school, but apparently that made it worth less than if I got paid…[/li]
Writing (Write a brief description and Rate Quality on 1-10 Scale; 10 as Best):[ul]
[] Essays (Include Subjects):[list] Used QuestBridge so subjects a little different from normal app:
Life essay: 6/10 wrote about one day I got fed up with our unluckiness with the foreclosure and background in general and confessed my pent-up feelings to my mom, came out thinking that I would change the world so that people will get equal opportunity >>>> science bowl coach responded and thought it was terrible, but only after the deadline; wrote in one night because of procrastination just like other essays
Job Shadow Day: 7/10 visit to Lawrence Berkeley Lab and learned about how engineers can provide resources to developing countries to better their lives and the environment, coach liked a little better
Science Bowl: 3/10 really, really bad essay I wrote in 30 minutes describing my first science bowl competition, didn’t even bother showing to coach since I already knew it was terrible
[] What You Do For Pleasure: Baking, everything I mentioned above (a few I did in 10th grade because I thought they would help for college, but they quickly became f-ing boring and pointless)
[] Department at MIT: 1-E, environmental engineering
[] What You Do That’s Creative?: Baking
[] World You Come From: immigrant parents who work as full-time waiters, been a latchkey kid all my life with older brother (who’s now at Cornell, very proud of him), split up responsibilities with him, lot of translating for my parents who don’t have time to learn English
[] Significant Challenge: Had to take on most of the responsibility of dealing with my family’s foreclosure and bankruptcy sophomore year by myself since my brother was already at College, trying to get back out house junior year
[] Other:[/ul]
[li] Teacher Recommendation #1: AP Chemistry Teacher/Science Bowl coach, known 3 years (10th-12th), pretty good, always bragged about how good her letters were even though I found out hers was only half the length of ones she wrote for my Science Bowl team members, only seemed to like me after finding out I’m the only on the team not in Model UN[/li][] Teacher Recommendation #2: French teacher for 3 years (9th-11th), also had my brother and cousin, absolutely loved me and I loved her (she was my favorite teacher), unfortunately retired, but definitely a great letter, she told me how she mentioned how I grew from a shy boy to a passionate French scholar
[] Counselor Rec: Decent? I’m not sure, people say the counselor I had tends to be the worst, she seemed to be fed up whenever I visited up, retired last semester
[] Additional Rec: None
[] Interview: Went alright, he liked my baking, but I was right after a guy who got accepted early, so hard act to follow
[] Art Supplement:[/list] None

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: 12/14
[] State (if domestic applicant): CA (Bay Area, even…)
[] Country (if international applicant): not international
[] School Type: Small public
[] Ethnicity: Asian (D:<)
[] Gender: Male
[] Income Bracket: <$20,000 last year, ~$30,000 before, $60,000 this year
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):[/ul] first generation college student, low-income with foreclosure

Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: decent AP&SATII test scores and grades, come from school with good reputation in Science Bowl so that probably made my position on the team seem stronger
[] Weaknesses: Asian, male, SF Bay Area, engineering. Procrastinated on college apps and especially essays, French SATII that I didn’t bother studying for at all, SATI scores, low math scores (not sure why), lack of leadership which even my Science Bowl coach pointed out
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Interest in baking and french, background, rec letters
[] What would you have done differently?:[/ul] NOT PROCRASTINATED, if I could start high school over again, would’ve not been so timid and would’ve taken more initiative, not done certain things just for college

Other Factors:
General Comments/Congratulations/Venting/Commiserations, etc: Seems like I vented quite a bit above. Guess I should be grateful, but I’m pretty ****ed that I’m the only applicant from my school this year who didn’t get accepted, especially when I have the 1st-generation and low-income hook.

bonchon · March 17, 2011, 12:41pm

Worst pi day of my life

aedladie · March 17, 2011, 7:32pm

Decision: Accepted

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I (breakdown): 2080 - 760 Math, 670 Writing, 650 Reading
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown): same
[] ACT (breakdown): 33 - 34 Reading, 34 Science, 32 Math, 32 English
[] ACT superscore (breakdown): same
[] SAT II: 650 Math II, 680 Chemistry, 700 Physics
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.92
[] Weighted GPA: 5.4
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 8/801
[] AP (place score in parentheses): World History (4), US History (5), Chemistry (4), Eng. Lang. (4), Psychology (5), Human Geography (5)
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP Stat, AP Physics C, AP Calculus BC, AP Music Theory, AP Government/Economics, Dual Credit College English, Jazz Band and 1st Concert Band
[] Number of other RD applicants in your school: 1 (was rejected)
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Hispanic Merit Scholar, National Merit Commended, AP Scholar with Distinction[/ul]

Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): Concert Band (principal horn for two years), Marching Band (head section leader for two years), Academic Decathlon, National Honor Society
[] Volunteer/Community service: Chartered a knitting club for underprivileged elementary school students[/ul]

Writing (Write a brief description and Rate Quality on 1-10 Scale; 10 as Best):[ul]
[] What You Do For Pleasure: I talked about how I am entirely too obsessed with The Office (US edition) and how I can quote pretty much all of season 2 from memory. (8)
[] Department at MIT: UROP! (10)
[] World You Come From: I talked about my Hispanic family and about my entire family’s struggles with managing to stay afloat in the world. I talked about how far I’ve gone with my education compared to the rest of my family and wanting to be a role model for my younger relatives. Also about the animosity I’ve faced from some of my relatives for choosing to go a different path with my life than others in my family. (10)
[] Significant Challenge: Watching my mom kind of fall apart after she and my dad separated when I was in 8th grade and having to take care of the both of us even though I was so young. (10) 
[] Teacher Recommendation #1: My world history/gov/economics teacher wrote this recommendation and focused mostly on my abilities at school.
[] Teacher Recommendation #2: My sophomore year chemistry teacher wrote this recommendation and wouldn’t let me see it, but told me that it was really good and I trust him. I know he at least talked about how my AP chemistry teacher (not him) last year was terrible and how I taught myself the entire course in two weeks before the AP exam and managed to still get a 4. He got his degree in chemical engineering and that’s what I plan on pursuing, so I’m sure he worked that in somehow too.
[] Counselor Rec: Unfortunately my counselor has a lot of students and doesn’t know me as well as she could at a smaller school, but we sat down and wrote my recommendation together, so it was fairly representative of me.
[] Interview: I think my interview went really well. It was definitely nerve-wracking and a bit awkward at moments, but we had a lovely chat about Proust and that made me feel more comfortable haha. We also talked about how Heart of Darkness is my favorite book and about sailing.
[li] Art Supplement: I sent in two videos of me playing some pieces on horn. With that I sent a letter of recommendation from my lessons teacher of three years.[/ul][/li]
Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: December 24, 2011
[] State (if domestic applicant): Texas
[] School Type: Public
[] Ethnicity: Hispanic/White
[] Gender: Female
[] Income Bracket: middle class (70k a year)
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM, first generation college, first generation high school[/ul][/li]
Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: difficulty of course load, number of leadership positions, degree of talent with French horn, being Hispanic, being first in my family to graduate from high school
[] Weaknesses: standardized test scores, grades for first semester senior year
[] Why you think you were accepted: I honestly am not sure…I am excited, nonetheless! I keep checking the letter to make sure they really accepted me because I just really really really really can’t believe it.
[] What would you have done differently?: I would have prepared more for the SAT subject tests (including getting more sleep). I would have taken both the SAT and ACT at least once more to make sure I had better scores. I actually signed up to take the ACT again, but I ended up having an orchestra concert/rehearsal that day and I felt that was a better opportunity…[/ul]

Other Factors: I think the videos of me playing French horn that I sent were probably extremely helpful because they could see how much time I’ve put into mastering my instrument…I really don’t know what I did right, but I’m happy!!!
General Comments/Congratulations/Venting/Commiserations, etc: Congratulations to everyone else who was accepted! I am excited to get to meet all of you And to everyone who was waitlisted, good luck! And to everyone who was rejected, I don’t want to tell you that everything will be alright and great and happy because I’m sure you’re upset, but it really will be fine. To say that you even applied to MIT is a fantastic accomplishment and you’ll manage to be successful wherever you end up. MIT is not the end-all-be-all of colleges.

AHHHHHHHHHHH three days later and I still can’t even believe it…

boomshakalaka · March 17, 2011, 8:03pm

Waitlisted. Too lazy to post stats. Maybe later. Congrats to all acceptance, you all deserved it. I’m rather disappointed because MIT is my #1 choice, but I’m sure there are others who deserve to get in MIT more than me

azndarkvader · March 17, 2011, 8:29pm

just a small little comment for any people looking into mit. don’t count on siemens and intel semifinalist! Maybe FinALIST but not semifinalist. i got rejected even though i was semifinalist for both…

kxman2923 · March 17, 2011, 8:42pm

Decision: Accepted

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I (breakdown): 760 (math) 670 (verbal) 630 (writing)
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown): 2060
[] ACT (breakdown):
[] ACT superscore (breakdown):
[] SAT II: 740 (math II) 710 (chemistry) 590 (literature)
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.6
[] Weighted GPA: 4.208
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): top 5 %
[] AP (place score in parentheses): computer science (4), ap language (4), ap lit, bc calc, physics c, chemistry, us history
[] IB (place score in parentheses):
[] Senior Year Course Load: rigorous
[] Number of other RD applicants in your school: 1
[li] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):math olympics first place awards, nj chemistry olympics first place, science olympics eight place[/li]
Subjective:[list]
[] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): robotics, academic clubs, national and science honor societies
[] Job/Work Experience: summer research internship
[li] Volunteer/Community service:soup kitchen, breast cancer fundraising, tutoring[/li]
Writing (Write a brief description and Rate Quality on 1-10 Scale; 10 as Best):[list]
[] Essays (Include Subjects):[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: play guitar, program board games [/li][] Department at MIT: computer engineering/science, math
[] What You Do That’s Creative?: take risks
[] World You Come From: childhood in newark, nj (describe through sounds)
[] Significant Challenge: dissenting from family
[] Other:[/ul]
[] Teacher Recommendation #1: math teacher, great
[] Teacher Recommendation #2: english teacher, great
[] Counselor Rec: great
[] Additional Rec:
[] Interview: ok
[] Art Supplement:[/list]

Other[list]
[] Date Submitted App: 12/31/10
[] State (if domestic applicant): nj
[] Country (if international applicant):
[] School Type: public magnet school
[] Ethnicity: african american
[] Gender: male
[] Income Bracket: 80000
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):first generation

Reflection[list]
[] Strengths: rigorous course load, consistent grades, coming from rough city
[] Weaknesses: did not accomplish much
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: for diversity on campus and to represent the newark, nj community.
[] What would you have done differently?:nothing.

Other Factors:
General Comments/Congratulations/Venting/Commiserations, etc:
Congratulations everyone! Can’t wait to see you guys at CPW! :)

asdfqwerty765 · March 17, 2011, 9:08pm

Decision: Accepted

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I (breakdown): 2380 (R: 800 M:780 W:800)
[] SAT II: 800 Math IIc, 800 US History, 790 Chemistry
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
[] Weighted GPA: 4.715
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/440 for my application (it dropped due to my choosing to take band classes =/)
[] AP (place score in parentheses): 5s in Calc BC, Chemistry, Biology, US History, World History, Psychology, Statistics, Music Theory, and English Language, 4 in French
[] Senior Year Course Load: Post AP Scientific Research, Post AP Internship, AP Physics C, AP Government, AP Economics, AP Lit, Band, French 6
[] Number of other RD applicants in your school: I know of only two others. I was the only RD admit; one other girl was accepted EA.
[li] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):[/ul] National Merit Finalist, National AP Scholar with Distinction, Presidential Scholars, will be coauthored in a paper that will be submitted to journals[/li]
Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): Helping Hands (Co founder, president, winner of the Martin Luther King Jr. Humanitarian Award), Leadership Club (founder of tutoring service for math and science, co VP, Tutoring Coordinator), French Club (president), National Honors Society (president), Flute (number of state and regional awards), Refugee Outreach (hundreds of hours, advocate, and fundraised a trip to Burma to teach English and music at a school)
[] Job/Work Experience: Three research internships
[li] Volunteer/Community service:[/ul] Perhaps my main strength? Some of my best moments (and countless hours) in high school were from organizing service events for my clubs. [/li]
Writing (Write a brief description and Rate Quality on 1-10 Scale; 10 as Best):[ul]
[] Essays: Submitted my QuestBridge application. Described my work with Burmese refugees, my interest in chemoprevention, and challenges growing up (moving over 14 times, etc.)
[] Teacher Recommendation #1: 9; she let me read it.
[] Teacher Recommendation #2: 8 is a guess.
[] Counselor Rec: 8
[li] Interview: One of my favorites! Interviewer was so down to earth, and we had many things in common.[/li]
Other[list]
[] Date Submitted App: Via QuestBridge
[] State (if domestic applicant): GA
[] School Type: Public (in Magnet program)
[] Ethnicity: Asian
[] Gender: F
[] Income Bracket: <60,000
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):[/ul] Quest Bridge finalist? [/li]
Reflection[list]
[] Strengths: ECs, Test Scores and Transcript
[] Weaknesses: No standout national awards ie Intel/Siemens/etc.
[li] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I am not entirely sure. I am very glad I decided to pursue what I loved doing, and that my hard work was rewarded! Thank you God! [/li]
General Comments/Congratulations/Venting/Commiserations, etc: I am so grateful for this opportunity to learn at MIT and am so excited meet the new class of 2015 at CPW! To those who are perusing this thread as a prospective student, best of luck in the admissions process! It may be daunting, but work hard and I know you will end up exactly where you need to be.

michaelwiggins · March 18, 2011, 2:35pm

Decision: Rejected

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I (breakdown): 2230— Math 760, Reading 700, Writing 770
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown): 2240— Math 770, Reading 700, Writing 770
[] ACT (breakdown): Didn’t take
[] ACT superscore (breakdown): Didn’t take
[] SAT II: Math(2) 780, Physics 710
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.95ish (made first B on midyear report)
[] Weighted GPA: 4.56
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Valedictorian (out of ~100)
[] AP (place score in parentheses): Bio self study (5), English Literature (5), World Hist (5), only ones school offers.
[] IB (place score in parentheses): N/A
[] Senior Year Course Load: All dual credit; Anatomy and Physiology, Chemistry 1, Calc Based Physics, Multivariable Calculus, Linear Algebra, English Comp, and a couple required HS electives.
[] Number of other RD applicants in your school: 1
[li] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Nada. National merit finalist is all.[/ul][/li]
Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars/Volunteer Work: (place leadership in parentheses): Editor of Newspaper, founder of school’s online publication, environmental research club (major com. serv. project that we present at national conference), Hackey Sack club founder, president of National Honor Society, Volunteered at dog adoption center, other minor things.
[] Job/Work Experience: Electronics repairman(manmanmanmanmanman) lol.[/ul]

Writing (Write a brief description and Rate Quality on 1-10 Scale; 10 as Best):[ul]
[] Essays (Include Subjects):[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: Hackey Sack, 7[/li][] Department at MIT: Biomedical engineering, 8
[] Favorite Attribute: Flexibility of personality, 7
[] World You Come From: My experimental high school, 8
[] Significant Challenge: Overcoming weight problem, 10
[] Other:N/A[/ul]
[] Teacher Recommendation #1: AP Lit teacher/ homeroom for 4 years: Outstanding, best it could have been.
[] Teacher Recommendation #2: Chemistry Teacher: Loves me and wanted me to get in, smart lady, but no idea if she struck a chord with the adcom.
[] Counselor Rec: Written by my Dean: Glowing recommendation, she adores me, but i think she dwelled too much on my academic achievements since its a small school with few National merit scholars and such. She knows my personality extremely well but sort of forgot to talk about it.
[] Interview: OUTSTANDING. Led me to believe my chance was decent. Lasted over 2 hours, she said she thought I was a perfect fit and that she hadn’t interviewed anyone quite like me in a long time. Played pingpong with her and her husband afterward.[/list]

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: 11/1
[] State (if domestic applicant): Tejas
[] School Type: Public Charter, 100 kids in class.
[] Ethnicity: White, but I think I left it blank?
[] Gender: XY
[] Income Bracket: <60k
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):Sadly, none. [/ul][/li]
Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: I went farther in math than anyone at my school ever has. While my credentials aren’t nationally competitive, they’re almost unheard of in the context of my school, so that should have helped me since they take the context of your school into account.
[] Weaknesses: 700 on CR (TWICE) will probably do me in at the hyperselective schools, but maaaybe not at MIT. These were the first college essays I wrote, so probably a little rusty. I’m pretty funny but I didn’t let it show but in one of my essays. Also I didn’t have any justification of my math skills via AMC/AIME. Definitely would have helped. Also no research experience.
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: As it turned out, Mathematics is my real passion, but I didn’t find out till junior year when it was too late to do much with it. My school has no interest in math and science so I couldn’t do much extracurricularly with it other than study it on my own time, but I think MIT would have preferred to see something more like a club or competition.
[] What would you have done differently?: Hmm, probably nothing. I wish I’d gotten into math sooner, but other than that, I gave it my all.[/ul]

Other Factors: Nada.
General Comments/Congratulations/Venting/Commiserations, etc: Wow, can’t believe its finally over. I saw it coming a mile away, and even as I spent a half hour trying to get through the stalling decisions servers on 3/14, my heart rate was entirely normal. I thought I was in the running, and my EA deferral (expected rejection) upped my faith a little, but in the end they can only take 1 in 10, and there was never really a point when I thought I was that 1. My advice: be really passionate about something. I’ve found in the past year that the 50s are over (Lol) and its no longer ideal to be the well rounded kid like Carlton from the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Care about all of your grades, but invest the most time in what you truly love, even if its kicking around a hackey sack. If you’re the right fit for MIT, they may have a space for you, but if not, you’re in good company. Congrats to everyone who got in; I had a good time posting in the MIT forum this year.

-Michael

MCS735 · March 18, 2011, 2:56pm

Pick one:
Decision: Rejected

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I (breakdown): 2020 (610 CR, 740 M, 670 W)
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown):
[] ACT (breakdown):
[] ACT superscore (breakdown):
[] SAT II: 760 Math II, 730 Physics
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.7ish
[] Weighted GPA: 4.17
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 50/501
[] AP (place score in parentheses): AP Stat 4, APUSH 2
[] IB (place score in parentheses):
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics, AP Calc AB, AP Macroeconomics, AP Gov, AP Human Geography, English Honors, Web Design 3 Honors
[] Number of other RD applicants in your school: 0
[li] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):[/li]Local: Pathfinders[/ul]

Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): Varsity Baseball, NHS, NTHS (Treasurer)
[] Job/Work Experience:
[li] Volunteer/Community service: Local minor stuff[/ul][/li]
Writing (Write a brief description and Rate Quality on 1-10 Scale; 10 as Best):[ul]
[] Essays (Include Subjects):[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: 7 (Talked about baseball, how it’s a huge commitment, and my team is nationally ranked)[/li][] Department at MIT: 7 (MechE, how I want to do something groundbreaking)
[] Favorite attribute: 9 (Composure, and poise. Related to baseball and academics, as well as how playing baseball has made those traits strong in me)
[] World You Come From: 8 (Supportive family, baseball background, playing in HS with future major leaguers, grade skipped)
[] Significant Challenge: 9 (talked about how grade skipping, and overcoming that in school and in baseball.)
[] Other: In my mid-year I pretty much expressed that MIT is my top choice.[/ul]
[] Teacher Recommendation #1: Didn’t See
[] Teacher Recommendation #2: Didn’t See
[] Counselor Rec: Didn’t See
[] Additional Rec:
[] Interview: I thought it went really well, it was like a casual conversation.
[] Art Supplement: —[/list]

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: Late November
[] State (if domestic applicant): FL
[] Country (if international applicant):
[] School Type: Public
[] Ethnicity: White
[] Gender: Male
[] Income Bracket:
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):
Baseball Recruit[/ul]

Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: Essays (might have been too harsh in my own ratings), SAT II, Math SAT I, Baseball
[] Weaknesses: Class Rank, amount of spots in the 2015 class.
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Not enough spots, bad luck
[] What would you have done differently?: Do better in 9th grade, and not start off HS with a poor class rank, GPA. Get luckier.
[/ul]

Other Factors:
General Comments/Congratulations/Venting/Commiserations, etc:
On March 14th at 9:26 pm I was at dinner with my HS baseball team after a heartbreaking loss in a major tournament. They all knew I was getting my decision, and were about go nuts if I got in. I didn’t, and found out in front of my team. I’m glad I held myself together, and have remained to. I guess that relates back to my personality attribute essay. I faced so much rejection during the college baseball recruiting process and felt that i was “due” for something good to happen to me. I guess this adds to that. I will most likely end up playing baseball at another school in the Boston area, pending April 1st decisions.

completegraph · March 18, 2011, 4:07pm

Decision: Rejected

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I: 2200
[] SAT II: 2380 (3 subjects)
[] Unweighted GPA: N/A
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 1%
[li] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): USAMO 23, AIME 11, top 10 in country in two different science subjects[/ul][/li]
Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): math, computer science, music
[] Job/Work Experience:
[li] Volunteer/Community service: considerable amount [/ul][/li]
Writing (Write a brief description and Rate Quality on 1-10 Scale; 10 as Best):[ul]
[] Essays (Include Subjects):[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure:[/li][] Department at MIT:
[] What You Do That’s Creative?:
[] World You Come From:
[] Significant Challenge:
[] Other:[/ul]
[] Teacher Recommendation #1: pretty good, not generic
[] Teacher Recommendation #2: pretty good, not generic
[] Counselor Rec: generic
[] Additional Rec:
[] Interview:
[] Art Supplement:[/list]

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App:
[] State (if domestic applicant):
[] Country (if international applicant): Canada
[] School Type: public
[] Ethnicity: asian
[] Gender: male
[] Income Bracket:
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):[/ul]

Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths:
[] Weaknesses:
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
[] What would you have done differently?:[/ul]

General Comments/Congratulations/Venting/Commiserations, etc: damnnnn. Congrats to everyone who got in!

jbrown93 · March 18, 2011, 6:46pm

Decision: Accepted

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown): 710 CR / 740 M / 730 W (2180 / 10 E)
[] ACT (breakdown): 32 (did not send)
[] SAT II: 760 Math II, 730 Chem
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
[] Weighted GPA: 5.55
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 5/~590
[] AP (place score in parentheses): 5553
[] IB (place score in parentheses): 76
[] Senior Year Course Load: Full IB Humanities (tested in Physics SL and Math Studies), Wind Ensemble and AP Calc BC
[] Number of other RD applicants in your school: 3, with one other accepted
[li] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Achievement Semifinalist, AP Scholar w/ Honor? Nothing too special [/li][/ul]

Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): Band 9-12 (Section Leader 10-12, Vice President 11, President 12, Qualified to Area 2x, State Solo and Ensemble Medalist 2x), NHS 10-12 (President), Mu Alpha Theta 12 (Co-founder, Secretary), Student Council 10-12 (Overall Treasurer 12), Key Club 9-11 (Treasurer 10)
[] Job/Work Experience: none
[li] Volunteer/Community service: ~150 hours? Church, Mu Alpha Theta, Library [/li][/ul]

Writing (Write a brief description and Rate Quality on 1-10 Scale; 10 as Best):[ul]
[] Essays (Include Subjects):[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: hanging out with friends for movie nights occasionally. 7[/li][] Department at MIT: Computer science. 7
[] Attribute of Personality?: Intellectual curiosity from watching Jeopardy! with my great-grandmother when I was four and five. 9
[] World You Come From: The rural town where my parents grew up in Georgia versus my suburban upbringing in Texas. 10
[] Significant Challenge: Biochemistry at MITES. 7
[] Other:[/ul]
[] Teacher Recommendation #1: Typical rec, but pretty good.
[] Teacher Recommendation #2: Did not see
[] Counselor Rec: Did not see.
[] Additional Rec: MITES Evals. Humanities, Calculus, Biochem all good. Digital Design was ok. Physics was not that great
[] Interview: Awesome! He and I spent a lot of time just talking about MIT since I knew a lot from being at MITES just four months before.
[] Art Supplement: did not make one.[/list]

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: Part One in late November; Part Two maybe the day before it was due s:
[] State (if domestic applicant): TX
[] Country (if international applicant):
[] School Type: Semi-competitive public
[] Ethnicity: African-American
[] Gender: XY
[] Income Bracket: Enough for Financial Aid
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):URM, MITES [/ul]

Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: Commitment to band, course rigor (compared to school), attending MITES.
[] Weaknesses: I kind of slacked off a bit at MITES and thought it would kill my chances at MIT more so than other schools. My math SAT and both of my SAT II’s seemed a bit low for MIT also. My class rank has also declined since freshman year, although my cumulative weighted GPA has stayed at 5.55 for all four years of high school.
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I suppose they just saw what they wanted in me. And they saw what I did at MITES and I suppose were happy enough with it to want me back for undergrad.
[] What would you have done differently?: Tried tons harder at MITES, but it worked out anyway.[/ul]

General Comments/Congratulations/Venting/Commiserations, etc: I had just touched down in New York for a high school band trip and was waiting for my decision. I checked it on a bus en route to the hotel we were staying at. I was excited that the first people to hear about my admission decision were the people who have meant so much to me for the last four years (:

Congrats to everyone who got in, and good luck to the waitlisted. For those who didn’t get in, I’m sure that you have many awesome places to spend the next four years. (:

Mao · March 18, 2011, 9:58pm

Decision: Waitlisted

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I (breakdown): 2350 750 CR / 800 M / 800 W (10 essay)
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown): Same^ (only took once
[] ACT: Didnt take
[] ACT superscore (breakdown): Didnt take
[] SAT II: 800 Math II / 800 Chem / 770 Bio M / 740 World History / 740 Lit
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0/4.0
[] Weighted GPA: 4.7436/5
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 2/847
[] AP (place score in parenthesis): All 5s, 6 tests
[] IB (place score in parenthesis): School doesnt offer
[] Senior Year Course Load: 4 AP classes, 1 Honors class, 1 performance group (second semester I had to take PE for credits to graduate)
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Semifinalist, 2nd place Nationals in Future Business Leaders of America[/ul]

Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Future Business Leaders of America (State officer, regional (region spans across 6 states) officer, various lower officer positions), vocal music, NHS (Vice president), Math Club (Founder and president), Beta Club (Founder and president
[] Job/Work Experience: Unpaid internship with state senator since Summer 2009
[li] Volunteer/Community service: 200+ hours with Key Club, 100+ hours with NHS[/ul][/li]
Writing (Write a brief description and Rate Quality on 1-10 Scale; 10 as Best):[ul]
[] Essays (Include Subjects):[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: Growing mushrooms I didnt get the question, so I wrote about a hobby that I do with my parents. I shouldve written about competitive Pokemon. 1[/li][] Department at MIT: Business + Math. 4
[] What You Do That’s Creative?: I dont remember this question for the personal quality prompt I wrote about optimism, 5
[] World You Come From: I wrote about living in the chaos that stems from a pursuit of a logical life. 8
[] Significant Challenge: Losing a club adviser, 6
[] Other:[/ul]
[] Teacher Recommendation #1: Extremely personal and full of anecdotes, positive
[] Teacher Recommendation #2: Extremely glowing but impersonal
[] Counselor Rec: Impersonal but good
[] Additional Rec: None
[] Interview: Average, it was the night after I was rejected from Stanford (early) and he expressed how he thought I didnt deserve rejection
[] Art Supplement: None[/list]
Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: Last day
[] State (if domestic applicant): CA
[] Country (if international applicant):
[] School Type: Public, sends around 3-4 students to top schools each year
[] Ethnicity: Asian
[] Gender: M
[] Income Bracket: Wealthy
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None[/ul]
Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: Scores and GPA, well-rounded
[] Weaknesses: Nothing that stands out, essays are sloppy
[li] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Im very well-rounded and have strong numbers, but my essays were a bit sloppy[/li][/ul]General Comments: I will be pursuing the waitlist if I dont get any good news on 3-30. Gratz for everyone else!

swimmerb · March 19, 2011, 12:05am

Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I superscore (breakdown): 730 CR / 770 M / 700 W
ACT (breakdown):
SAT II: 770 Math II, 720 Bio, 750 Latin, 800 US History
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Weighted GPA: 4.37/4
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/280
AP (place score in parentheses): AP Statistics (5), AP Human Geography (5), AP Calculus BC (5), AB Subscore (5), AP US History (5), AP Latin Vergil (5)
IB (place score in parentheses):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Biology, AP Chemistry, AP English Language, AP Microeconomics, AP US Government, AP Physics B, Physics
Number of other RD applicants in your school: 3, only one accepted
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Commended Scholar, AP Scholar of some sort, Perfect score on National Latin exam, Summa Cum Laude both years, All State in Swimming 3 years, All district in swimming 3 years

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): NHS (president), Mu Alpha Theta, Latin Club (Co President), Latin Honor Society, Rho Kappa Honor Society, Varsity Swimming (Co-Captain), Key Club (Project Chair)
Job/Work Experience: Lifeguard for 3 summers, assistant swim coach
Volunteer/Community service: key club, swim assistant coach, mu alpha theta, latin honor society, others

Writing (Write a brief description and Rate Quality on 1-10 Scale; 10 as Best):
Essays (Include Subjects):
don’t really remember essays. i didn’t think they were awesome

Other:
Teacher Recommendation #1: didn’t see any, but good relationship with all who wrote
Teacher Recommendation #2:
Counselor Rec:
Additional Rec: none
Interview: really good
Art Supplement: nothing

Other
Date Submitted App: pretty last minute
State (if domestic applicant): VA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: competitive public
Ethnicity: white
Gender: female
Income Bracket: in the middle; might not get aid
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):female? less common major? (nuclear engineering)

I can’t believe I got in, but I’m not complaining. Congrats to everyone else! can’t wait to meet you all at CPW

pikacho · March 19, 2011, 6:14am

Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I superscore (breakdown): 700 CR / 800 M / 800 W Single sitting
ACT (breakdown): NA
SAT II: 800 Math II, 760 Physic, 760 Bio E
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Weighted GPA: 4.29
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/65
AP (place score in parentheses): three 5’s
IB (place score in parentheses): NA
Senior Year Course Load: I took many senior classes last year so my senior load was relatively light.
Number of other RD applicants in your school: None that I know.
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Scholar, National Merit Finalist, and many other regional awards.

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): National Beta Club (Vice President 11th grade, President 12th grade), Tri-M National Honors Society (Vice President 10th grade), Student Council 9th-12th grade, National Forensics League, Band (Section leader since 9th grade), National Society of High School Scholars (Ambassador), Spanish Club (Co-founder and vice president 11th grade, president 12th), and some others not listed.
Job/Work Experience: none
Volunteer/Community service: Not sure on exact number. Somewhere around 200-300 I’m guessing?

Writing (Write a brief description and Rate Quality on 1-10 Scale; 10 as Best):
Essays (Include Subjects):
What You Do For Pleasure: Music 5
Department at MIT: engineering 5
Attribute of Personality?: Perseverance and passion for math 6
World You Come From: The lack of educational interest which lead to my self study of many subjects. 5
Significant Challenge: Cross Country Race 7
Other:
Teacher Recommendation #1: Did not see
Teacher Recommendation #2: Did not see
Counselor Rec: Did not see.
Additional Rec: none
Interview: didn’t have one ):
Art Supplement: none

Other
Date Submitted App: Around a week before the deadline for EA
State (if domestic applicant): Guam (territory)
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Private
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: <60,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):First gen college

Reflection
Strengths: Self studying is probably the biggest one. Involvement in many different areas of study.
Weaknesses: My essays were not great at all.
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I’m guessing my self study had a big influence. My school only offers one AP class and a few honors. I actually self-studied all my APs, so I think that really helped.
What would you have done differently?: I would have probably spent more time studying than actually stay on facebook or cc
General Comments/Congratulations/Venting/Commiserations, etc:
Congrats everyone! I’m really looking forward to next fall! Good luck to all those applying next year!

popoagie · March 19, 2011, 6:28pm

Decision: Accepted

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I (breakdown):800 Writing/800 Verbal Reasoning/800 Math Reasoning
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown):800 Math 2/800 Molecular Biology/800 Physics
[] ACT (breakdown):35 Reading, 36 Writing, 36 Math, 36 Science
[] ACT superscore (breakdown):36
[] SAT II: 800 Math 2/800 Molecular Biology/800 Physics
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
[] Weighted GPA: 5.0
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1
[] AP (place score in parentheses): Average (4.67)
[] IB (place score in parentheses): N/A
[] Senior Year Course Load: College sophomore and junior course, online AP courses, privately taught courses
[] Number of other RD applicants in your school: None
[li] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):[/ul] Nat’l Hispanic Scholar, Nat’l Merit Scholar, NGVF Scholar, Summer Science Program[/li]
Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): Cello, Quiz Bowl, Science & Math Competitions
[] Job/Work Experience: Math Tutor, mostly college students; other
[li] Volunteer/Community service:[/ul] Technical assistance for elderly and disabled, music performance, assist teachers, other[/li]
Writing (Write a brief description and Rate Quality on 1-10 Scale; 10 as Best):[ul]
[] Essays (Include Subjects):[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: Music performance and listening, personal sports, travel, read[/li][] Department at MIT: Electrical and Computer Engineering
[] What You Do That’s Creative?: Music, Tech Problem Solving, Cooking
[] World You Come From: Well educated family but poor due to having to homeschool me
[] Significant Challenge: Poverty, single parent home, no schools who could challenge me till age 12 or so.
[] Other:[/ul]
[] Teacher Recommendation #1: Excellent
[] Teacher Recommendation #2: Excellent
[] Counselor Rec: Excellent
[] Additional Rec: Excellent
[] Interview: Must have been pretty good, but I didn’t sleep or eat beforehand for 16 hours so I was in a fog; didn’t do this at other interviews
[] Art Supplement:[/list] None

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: December 31
[] State (if domestic applicant): Texas
[] Country (if international applicant):
[] School Type: Homeschool
[] Ethnicity: Hispanic
[] Gender: Male
[] Income Bracket: Low
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):[/ul] URM, homeschooled, job was entrepreneurial, leadership in Quiz Bowl and orchestra, more advanced than peers in math

Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: Scores, recommendations, grades, interests, initiative
[] Weaknesses: My grades were very high, but they could have been higher if I didn’t take on so much at once.
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: My numbers were high and my recommendations were excellent; I’ve done this while facing many challenges.
[] What would you have done differently?:[/ul] Have more confidence. I always assume others have more strengths than I do.

Other Factors: I wanted to get into MIT since I was nine and looked ahead at requirements, making sure I met those well. When my mom called them five years ago to find out what it would take, they warned her that most of their admitted freshman had at least one perfect section on the SAT I. I already had that in the Duke TIP SAT taken when I was 13, so we knew I had a decent chance if I worked hard. It helps to have a clear view of your goal if you want to reach it. Also, I chose not to date or go to parties because I felt that could interfere with my college goals. I don’t regret that. You only have so much time and energy. If you’re serious, prove it with your personal choices.
General Comments/Congratulations/Venting/Commiserations, etc: When I visited, I stayed in a grad dorm and didn’t get as much of a warm fuzzy feel as when I visited the other colleges. We were kind of on our own while the host students did problem sets in our rooms in the evening. I’m going to visit in April and see how it is in an undergrad dorm. I’m not a partier at all, but I want to have a balanced life.

Jimmy797 · March 20, 2011, 5:55am

Decision: Rejected

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I (breakdown): 2280
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown): 2380 (780 CR)
[] SAT II: 770 Math II; 710 Physics
[] Unweighted GPA: 94/100 (Highest possible is 98, with 96/97 being more common.)
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Not sure. Top 10-15% probably… had a few fluctuations
[] Senior Year Course Load: Freshman year courses, and then some. Most rigorous
[] Number of other RD applicants in your school: 1
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Nothing notable[/ul]

Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): Were mostly related to the arts.
[] Job/Work Experience: Tutoring
[li] Volunteer/Community service: Scouts and a few others[/ul][/li]
Writing (Write a brief description and Rate Quality on 1-10 Scale; 10 as Best):[ul]
[] Essays (Include Subjects):[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: Guitar, 8/10[/li][] Department at MIT: Engineering & minor in writing - 8/10
[] Personality Trait: Creativity. 10/10
[] World You Come From: Growing up with a fascination of concepts more advanced than my age level - 9/10
[] Significant Challenge: War. Very heartfelt, 9/10.
[] Other: Some quick extra info, nothing notable. I might mention that my essays were all above the limit, 2 within acceptable range (<280 words) and one not so much (slightly above 300, but that was the 10/10 essay and I stand by my choice to send it in without cutting it down.)[/ul]
[] Teacher Recommendation #1: Sort of generic, but had some insight. 7/10
[] Teacher Recommendation #2: Loved it. 9/10
[] Counselor Rec: Generic first part, insightful second part. 8/10
[] Additional Rec: English teacher, about my writing. Said I was the best writer he’d come across, so can’t complain. 10/10.
[] Interview: Went well, though I couldn’t read my EC, but at several points he mentioned ‘I like that about you’. Looking back, there were probably a couple things I should’ve said that I didn’t.
[] Art Supplement: None[/list]

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: 1/1/2011
[] Country (if international applicant): Int’l
[] School Type: Private, competitive
[] Ethnicity: Caucasian
[] Gender: M
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None[/ul]

Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: SAT I, well-rounded personality, match with MIT, emphasis on arts
[] Weaknesses: Rank (probably killed me), being international from a country that doesn’t usually send students to top colleges, lack of academic/math/science ECAs (but then my school doesn’t really offer but one - but not sure they knew that.)
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Blaming it on the first 2 weaknesses.
[] What would you have done differently?: Worked for a better rank I suppose. I was always lazy in high school though (just about no work at all) so I doubt I would’ve actually done this.[/ul]

Other Factors:
General Comments/Congratulations/Venting/Commiserations, etc:
Meh. I’m pretty disappointed… MIT was my one first choice, and had circumstances been different I might’ve been accepted, but oh well. Congrats to those accepted, and best of luck to you! To those waitlisted, hang in there. To those rejected, make the best of your coming years - define your own experiences. And to everyone, no matter the decision: always remember your goals, and make a difference ;)

Be seeing you all at MIT in 4 years, with any luck.

Anonymous1993 · March 20, 2011, 9:39am

Decision: Rejected

Objective:

<pre><code>* ACT superscore (breakdown): This is all they look at so… E:31 M:34 R:32 S:32

SAT II: Chemistry:740, U.S. History: 780, Math:710
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.84 (Major upward trend)
Weighted GPA: 4.72
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):6/420
AP (place score in parentheses): 3,4,5,5,3,4,4
IB (place score in parentheses):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Micro/Macro Economics, AP Literature, AP Calculus BC, AP Biology, Chemistry 2 Dual Enrollment Class
Number of other applicants in your school: 2
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):AP Scholar with Distinction
</code></pre>

Subjective:

<pre><code>* Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): Varsity Tennis (Captain), a few other things

Job/Work Experience: My own business
Volunteer/Community service: March of Dimes, My own charity, a tennis mentorship program, NHS (President), and some other activities
</code></pre>

Writing (Write a brief description and Rate Quality on 1-10 Scale; 10 as Best):

<pre><code>* Essays (Include Subjects):
o What You Do For Pleasure: I thought it was okay. It was about playing guitar. (7)
o Department at MIT: I really like my essay. I wrote about Economics. (10)
o What You Do That’s Creative?: I thought it was pretty good. (10)
o World You Come From: Okay. I wrote about the town I live in. (8)
o Significant Challenge: Pretty good. I wrote about a class I took in 10th grade. (9)
o Other:

Teacher Recommendation #1: Physics Teacher- He knew me very well, but he just copied and pasted a lot of my resume.
Teacher Recommendation #2: History Teacher- Did not see, but I did really well in the class and we often discussed history outside of school.
Counselor Rec: Probably pretty good
Additional Rec:
Interview: Went really well. It lasted an hour and a half. I really like the interviewer.
Art Supplement:
</code></pre>

Other

<pre><code>* Date Submitted App: 11/1

State (if domestic applicant): Florida
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public; sends some students to top schools
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: ]
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None
</code></pre>

Reflection

<pre><code>* Strengths: Extra Curricular activities, well rounded, essays, weighted GPA

Weaknesses: No Hook, ACT,
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: They may have not been 100% sure that I was the best fit.
What would you have done differently?: Studied for ACT more
</code></pre>

Owlish · March 20, 2011, 1:26pm

Decision: Accepted

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I (breakdown): 2270 (780 R, 690 M, 800 W)
[] ACT (breakdown): 33
[] ACT (superscore): 35 English, 33 Math, 36 Reading, 31 Science, 11 essay.
[] SAT II: 800 Chemistry, 680 Math II >.<
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 100): ~97.5
[] Weighted GPA: ~105
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):1/426
[] AP (place score in parentheses): European History (5), Literature & Comp (5), Statistics (5), Chemistry (5), US History (5)
[] IB (place score in parentheses): -
[] Senior Year Course Load: 6 AP classes: Spanish, Art, Physics B, Calculus, Macro/Microeconomics, Language & Comp. And orchestra. :]
[] Number of other RD applicants in your school: Um only one other I think, and I don’t think he got in. :[
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Bausch & Lomb Honorary Science Award from University of Rochester, a regional art award, AP Scholar with distinction, and a bunch of school-wide awards and NYSSMA medals (state music solo competition). The literary magazine I’m involved in has won 3 CSPA gold medals from Columbia University. Noting crazy, but I guess they’re pretty diverse! XD Oh and I think I may have included Honor Societies under here. I don’t remember! >.<[/ul]

Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): Literary magazine (editor-in-chief, secretary), senior orchestra (concert master, treasurer), chamber orchestra (first stand), newspaper (managing editor, art editor), pit orchestra for musical productions (principal first violinist), Science Olympiad Team (captain), Tri-M Music Honor Society (treasurer), Dance
[] Job/Work Experience: I’ve been working at a local store for nearly two years.
[li] Volunteer/Community service: Peer tutoring, volunteering at my local library, lots of community service events with the chamber orchestra.[/ul][/li]
Writing (Write a brief description and Rate Quality on 1-10 Scale; 10 as Best):[ul]
[] Essays (Include Subjects):[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: Birdwatching. xD 8[/li][] Department at MIT: Chemistry. Don’t remember if it was good or not. >.<
[] What You Do That’s Creative?: I don’t think this was an essay…
[] World You Come From: A little bit about my childhood. 9
[] Significant Challenge: My mom was very sick at the beginning of the year. She’s all better now though. :] 7
[] Other:[/ul]
[] Teacher Recommendation #1: Chem teacher of two years. She really liked me, so I’d assume it was good! I got into Yale with her rec too, so it really must’ve been great! =D
[] Teacher Recommendation #2: My English teacher/newspaper advisor. I think it was good, although I never saw it. She wrote a pretty good Common App rec, though. :]
[] Counselor Rec: Absolutely amazing. My counselor loves me. X3
[] Additional Rec: Nope!
[] Interview: It went really well! I think it was the best out of all the interviews I did. I brought in some artwork, and my interviewer happened to do art in his spare time, too, so we kind of bonded. XD
[] Art Supplement: Yes. I sent in a digital portfolio of some drawings, paintings, etc. that I did throughout high school. I also sent in some creative writing pieces I did through the school lit mag.[/list]

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: I don’t want to seem like a jerk, but I literally sent it in the day before it was due. XD
[] State (if domestic applicant): NY. Apparently, according to my interviewer, Long Island applicants tend to have a slightly higher chance than others of getting in. I dunno if this helped since I’m from LI.
[] Country (if international applicant): -
[] School Type: Public.
[] Ethnicity: White Irish/German. >.<
[] Gender: Female. I think that might’ve helped.
[] Income Bracket: ~80k, which is pretty low for my area, so I’m not sure if this was a hook or not. Probably not a huge one if it was.
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): First-generation to attend a four-year college (although not first-gen to attend college period.) Also, I think the art supplement helped A LOT. For anyone debating whether or not they should send one, DO IT! [/ul]

Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: Grades, AP scores, art supplement. I think it helped a lot that I want to major in Chemistry, and all of my chem scores are pretty much perfect. 
[] Weaknesses: Math scores, not very many science-related activities, few national awards. >.<
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I don’t know, but it feels awesome! =D
[] What would you have done differently?: Uhh probably nothing lol. Maybe I would have taken Math I instead of Math II. I probably would have done better.[/ul]

Other Factors: Umm I dunno. My interview went really, really well.
**General Comments/Congratulations/Venting/Commiserations, etc: I read something on the MIT Admissions Page that said something to the effect of “If you don’t apply, you’re chance of getting in is 0%.” So yeah, not to sound corny or anything, but even if you don’t think you have a chance, if you apply you have some chance, so just do it! =D Also, congrats to everyone else who got in!! **

nritya · March 20, 2011, 4:27pm

Pick one:

Decision: Rejected

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I (breakdown): 800 CR, 780 M, 800 WR (12 essay) = 2380
[] SAT I superscore (breakdown): 2380
[] ACT (breakdown): -
[] ACT superscore (breakdown): -
[] SAT II: 800 USH, 780 MII, 740 Bio M
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): probably 92/100, school gives us only weighted: 98.6
[] Weighted GPA: 98.6
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 14/450
[] AP (place score in parentheses): Calc AB (5), Psych (5), Lang (5), USH (5), Enviro (5), Comp Govt (5), Micro and Macro (3)
[] IB (place score in parentheses): -
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP Euro, AP Calc BC, AP Stats, AP Art History, AP Lit, AP US Gov and Pol, Computer Programming and Gym
[] Number of other RD applicants in your school: 1, but another EA kid who was deferred
[li] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):[/ul] nothing major: NMF, AP Scholar with Dist, rando leadership award from school, 2x NaNoWriMo winner, NJ HOBY, named most likely to be president (:[/li]
Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): Mathletes Captain (11, 12), Enviro Club VP (11), Enviro Club Co-Prez (12), liaison to township environmental council (11, 12), Director/Founder of local tutoring program (11, 12), Student Rep to library board (11, 12), March of Dimes Volunteer and NJ Youth Council Member (10, 11, 12), volunteer at library (11, 12), Library teen advisory group (11, 12), student instructor at dance company (9, 10, 11, 12), senior student at said dance academy for last 5 years of so-ish, temple youth committee (10, 11, 12), VP of Key Club (10, 11, 12), MUN youth secretariat (11, 12), Youth and Govt member and supreme court justice, editor on national editorial board for a national literary magazine designed for teenage age group, published poetry in national literary magazine (2010), summer camp counselor for two years
[] Job/Work Experience: none really
[li] Volunteer/Community service:[/ul] abput 200 hours at MOD, 50 at library, 300 tutoring; didn’t include hours on app though - major volunteer commitment to tutoring program I founded. [/li]
Writing (Write a brief description and Rate Quality on 1-10 Scale; 10 as Best):[ul]
[] Essays (Include Subjects):[list]
[li] What You Do For Pleasure: baking 6/10[/li][] Department at MIT: HASS - history, talked more about why I liked history than why I wanted to study it at MIT. the actual essay was one of my best, 8/10, but because there was little detail pertinent to MIT, I would say 5/10
[] What You Do That’s Creative?: talked about my leadership in mathletes…unconventional; I really liked it (7.5/10)
[] World You Come From: lameee (5/10)
[] Significant Challenge: how I suck at athletics/fail at fitness tests and gym in general; I reallllly liked this one and thought it showed a lot about me; 7/10
[] Other:[/ul] included a more detailed resume
[] Teacher Recommendation #1: from my history teacher; the guy likes me I guess?
[] Teacher Recommendation #2: from my science teacher; haven’t read it. ok?
[] Counselor Rec: meh, probably very rote/generic. has to write many so I’m guessing it wasn’t great
[] Additional Rec: -
[] Interview: I thought it went well! I think I came away from it leaving my interviewer with the general sense that I was very passionate about learning about new things, and that my interest in history doesn’t limit me from excelling in the sciences/math. Also thought I exhibited a pretty good knowledge about MIT and why I liked it even though I seemed like an atypical applicant (history major)
[] Art Supplement:[/list] -

Other[ul]
[] Date Submitted App: last day possible
[] State (if domestic applicant): NJ
[] Country (if international applicant): U-S-of-A
[] School Type: mediocre public, sucky, no one’s gone to MIT in quite some time
[] Ethnicity: south asian
[] Gender: f
[] Income Bracket: >150,000
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):[/ul] I think being from NJ and being asian pretty much precludes me from this category

Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: being different? very natural voice, unique essays, my application in general was well put together and highlighted my accomplishments and personality
[] Weaknesses: had an ISS sophomore year for truancy (later found out that I didn’t have to report it, and that counselor made no mention of it in her report)… lowish grades, essays had a few typos
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: my grades suck balls
[] What would you have done differently?:[/ul] I wouldve been a little more hardworking… I think trying to coast by on sheer brainpower did work (I mean… my grades are pretty good) but I probably could’ve been the freakin valedictorian if I just put in some effort. Oh welllll

Other Factors: dealing with mental illness (fun!) midyear report not available for review in application because I wasn’t done with my semester yet.
General Comments/Congratulations/Venting/Commiserations, etc:

I would be a liar if I said that I was expected rejection. I thought I had a PRETTY good chance and that I would have been really happy at MIT. I wasn’t too attached to MIT, however, and the rejection doesn’t really come as a blow. I think I only applied to MIT because of a general sense that I SHOULD apply, rather than any personal interest. So I guess this is for the best?

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