Official Brown Class of 2021 ED Results Only

[anponpon]

Decision: Accepted - ED

[aB]Objective:**
SAT I (breakdown): Didn’t take
ACT (breakdown): 34 (32 Eng, 35 Math, 34 Reading, 33 Sci)
SAT II: 740 US History
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): My school does it out of 4.33-- I have 3.88
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): No class ranks
AP (place score in parenthesis): APUSH 5, WHAP 5, Lang Comp 4
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Lit/Comp, AP Calc BC, AP Gov and Politics, AP Chemistry, AP Biology, AP Studio Art, Gym
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): None

[aB]Subjective:**

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):

• Key Club 10, 11, 12 (recording secretary senior year and publicity committee board member junior year)
  Over 150 hours altogether and arrange a ton of events/meetings

• Odyssey of the Mind 11, 12 Made backdrops and props and costumes for an 8 minute performance 3rd place regionals (11) 2nd place states (11) 18th place worlds (11)
• National Art Honor Society 11, 12 (VP) Involved in a ton of events/meetings and do a lot of volunteer work
• National Honor Society 11, 12
• Social Studies National Honor Society 11, 12
• French National Honor Society 11, 12
• Helping Another Wonderful Kid Succeed 11, 12 Mentor to freshman - meet every week and help them adjust to high school/talk about any problems they have Homeroom facilitator - go to freshman homeroom monthly to give lessons to help them adjust to high school
• Society for Creative Anachronism 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 Historical reenactment organization Involved in calligraphy, illumination, Helped cook Coronation and German medieval feasts for 150 and 200 people, respectively, Shot archery, served as retainer for King and Queen, babysat children, scorekeeper for heavy weapons fighting tournaments, and water bearer for fighters Got highest award for children for service - Tigers Cub Award Been involved since 4th grade
• Architecture, Construction Engineering 9, 10 Helped design a renovated school library and town community center using AutoRevit and CAD
• Bridge Building Competition 9 Designed (using CAD) and built weight-bearing bridge structure using popsicle sticks, as part of team

Job/Work Experience: None
Volunteer/Community service:

• Veteran’s Home : 9, 10, 11 – 250+ hours
  Helped transport residents and did activities/conversed with them

• Key Club: 10, 11, 12 -- 150+ Hours See above
• High School Heroes 9-- 20 Hours Taught elementary school students about the importance of money and the community

Summer Activities: Volunteered at Veteran’s home and worked on summer work for school LOL (spent like 2 months doing assignments for my art class this summer)

Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Common App: 7.5 - I think it was really unique (I wrote about cutting potatoes at a soup kitchen after Hurricane Sandy). I tried aiming for that whole like blowing up a small insignificant moment into this huge motivation thing. Had like 20 different people read it… easily revised it like 40 times. Spent a long time on it… could’ve been better I think the ending wasn’t the best it could’ve been.
Supplement Essays: 9 - I SPENT LIKE 8 HOURS PER QUESTIONS. I truly put my heart and soul into the Brown Supplement essays.

1. I made the “talk about why you chose your major” one really artsy and like about the significance of shading circles is. I also mentioned how i want to do an independent concentration - Brown loves that
2. My Why Brown response was definitely the best - I tailored it specifically for Brown and tried to talk about everything they want in students - self directedness, independence, diversity, political activeness. I spent like 10 hours researching all these specifically Brown things like events they have ONLY AT BROWN (i.e. the taiko drumming).
3. My “where I have lived” essay further was meant to appeal to Brown. I live in a completely Asian town (easily 70% of my classmates are Indian American and the other 30% are Chinese American) so I talked about my love for cultural diversity
4. The community essay was my weakest one - I wrote about my OM team but I couldn’t fit all that I had to say in the 100 words.

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 8-9; Didn’t read it, written by my precalc teacher - he absolutely loved me since MP 1 and like he came with us to worlds and we hung out there too; I gave him cookies at the end of the school year and he still remembered the kind of cookies they were (ginger molasses, lemon lavender, and double chocolate brownie)
Teacher Rec #2: 6-7; Didn’t read it, by my eng teacher who I had for 2 years. she liked me… I didn’t really talk in her class but I think she likes anyone who had her twice.
Counselor Rec: No idea… probably like 5-7 - Got new guidance counselor this year we have never really talked/bonded before. He seems nice I sent him my stuff really really early so I think he saw how like diligent I am
Additional Rec: 6.5 - Written by my art teacher who I’ve had for two years. I read it and it mostly focused on how I use art outside classroom. It kind of rehashed things in my app but also included like classwork where I used art - I think it helped a lot I was trying to go for like the idea of I use art everywhere in my complete app

Interview: 7; she was really nice (said it would only be 20-30 mins and ended up being 30) we bonded pretty well and she instantly said she liked me when I told her about how i refused to do things no later than 2 days before any big assignment is due

[aB]Other:**

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Studio Art/ Biology
State (if domestic applicant): NJ
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Chinese
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: I don’t know
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Applied as art major (submitted portfolio and everything), primary legacy (mom has never donated money though, but is involved in alumni networks and does interviewing)

[aB]Reflection:**

Strengths: Definitely the fact that I’m legacy, supplements, and art everywhere

Weaknesses: ASIAN, ECs aren’t that special, GPA, could it be that I said art major when I could’ve easily applied to RISD or done Dual Degree?
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I think my supplement essays are really what got me in. I tried extremely hard with those to make them appeal to specific things that Brown wants in their students. Also the art – Brown doesn’t really have any art majors but at the same time I was also nervous about it.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: This is the first one I got back

General Comments:
The most important thing in my opinion is the supplement essays. If you want to go to Brown, PERFECT them. See above for how I made mine as if Brown was screaming my name. I know a lot of people just like reuse other supplement essays for another college, but I did my Brown app first so mine were solely based off of Brown and I think it definitely made a difference. Something I also did was have art EVERYWHERE in my application - like 80% of EC’s had art, I stressed to all my recommendation writers to talk about art, I wrote about art very strongly for my supplements. Brown really wants to see passion in students… if you could hone in on one specific thing it’ll look amazing to admissions. Being a legacy, my mom has always talked about Brown since I was little (my dad thinks she brainwashed me into HAVING to go there) and when I saw the acceptance today I was like crying hysterically for 30 minutes for accomplishing my life goal. For future applicants/RD applicants, whether Brown is your first choice or a safe school, you won’t regret applying - Brown is amazing and I can’t wait to be a part of the Brunonian Community for the next four years

[Rjayc101]

Decision: ACCEPTED

SAT I (breakdown): 1480 (770 E, 710 M) - first time
ACT (breakdown): 33 (36 E, 34 R, 31 M, 31 S, 23 W) - didn’t send
SAT II: 730 United States History, 710 English Literature
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 98.4/100
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 5/520
AP (place score in parenthesis): World History (5), European History (5), US History (5), English Language and Composition (5), Music Theory (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): None
Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics, Health, AP Calc AB, IB 20th Century History, Troubadours (an a cappella group), Mandarin Chinese 5, Gym, AP Literature and Composition, Performing Arts Studies
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National AP Scholar with Distinction, NYSSMA Level 6 perfect scorer, All-State Conference Admission, Frederick Douglass and Susan B. Anthony Award, National Honors Society, Principal’s List (all 3 years)

[aB]Subjective:**

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): In 9th grade I wrote and performed a song on guitar to underscore and accompany scenes in a student written play. In 10th grade I wrote a 45 minute musical which was produced at my school, I was the musical director and the pit leader/pianist. A local theater company has offered to produce the show this year and has asked me to direct. In 11th grade I wrote a 10 minute wind symphony which my school’s ensemble performed and which I conducted. All throughout my high school career I’ve been involved in my school’s theater ensemble, being in six school shows and having leads in three of them. I have also done five shows with local theater companies, having three leads, including Tony in West Side Story. One of these theaters is free for everyone in my city and allows people to see theater even if they normally wouldn’t be able to afford it. Overall I have spent about 2000 hours doing theater. I am also on the Theater Board in my school as Marketing Director. I was asked by Jordan Ruddess to create a promotional music video for the new X-Key air midi keyboard. I wrote a choir piece which will likely be performed by my school’s chamber choir next year and I arranged an a cappella version of “The Circle Of Life” which may or may not be performed. Other than music and theater, I did a little bit of speech and debate freshman year, but nothing too major.

Job/Work Experience: I have busked (played music on the street) every summer since I was 9 and I have done quite well, I’ve also been paid to play and sing at parties, restaurants, and retirement homes. I was hired by a prominent member of the nonprofit that runs the Erie Canal to arrange an a cappella version of the Erie Canal Song. Over the summer of 2015, I worked as an usher at Park Playhouse, a local nonprofit theater group with presents free shows to the community.

Volunteer/Community service: For three years I played piano and sang at an old folks home about twice a month. Also, I started a nonprofit organization that helps to connect education to community and builds a larger bond between the two, in hopes of teaching kids how to apply their learning outside the classroom.

Summer Activities: Covered above

Essays (rating 1-10, details): I would rate my common app essay about 9/10, it was my third attempt and everyone who read it said it was very unique (in a good way). It was about how I fulfill my need for adventure and discovery by shopping at yard sales. As for my supplements, I would give them 8.5/10. I worked hard on them, and made sure everything I wanted to say was said.

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): Counselor Rec - 8/10: I haven’t read it, but she has gotten to know me very well over the past 3.5 years. Teacher Recs - I got three. The first was 10/10, from my drama teacher, who has been my mentor throughout high school. The second I would put as 9/10, from my music theory and choir teacher. The last one is 8/10, from my AP Language teacher. She knows me fairly well, but not as well as the previous two.

Interview: 10/10 - We met in a cafe and talked for a good long while. We went off on tangents about global issues and life in Albany, and speaking with her sincerely strengthened my already-high perception of Brown, and my drive to get accepted.

[aB]Other:**

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Music (Composition) and possibly psychology in addition
State (if domestic applicant): New York
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Large Public, ranked very poorly
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: About 75K
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None

[aB]Reflection:**

Strengths: Definitely my devotion to music and theater, as shown through my extracurriculars, and I think I had strong recommendations
Weaknesses: My SAT Scores
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I think other students with my interest in music are probably applying mostly to conservatories, whereas I knew a while ago that a conservatory is not the place for me.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: None

General Comments: It’s been a long road reaching this point. As soon as I visited Brown I knew it was where I wanted to go. I used these forums on CC to motivate myself, so here’s a word to all those who were in the same position as I was a year ago: Never give up, never think you can’t do it, even if that’s what people tell you. Don’t wait to be successful in opportunities that happen to come along, go out into the world and create your own opportunities for success. And most importantly, do what you love, what you’re most passionate about. It’s the passion that will show in your application. To everyone else who was accepted, I can’t wait to meet you all and share in a wonderful college experience! For those who were deferred, hang in there. And for those rejected, don’t worry, there are many more great options for colleges. As long as you put your heart into whatever you do, you’ll be successful, and more importantly you’ll be happy. Have a great winter everyone!

[appcolleges7]

Decision: Deferred - ED

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): Didn’t take
ACT (breakdown): 33
SAT II:
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 9/376
AP (place score in parenthesis):
IB (place score in parenthesis): All IB classes (no tests taken yet)
Senior Year Course Load:
IB History of the Americas
IB Mathematics
IB Biology
IB Chemistry
IB Spanish
IB Literature and Language
IB Theory of Knowledge
AP Environmental Science
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): One national honor/award (JKCF Scholar)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): SciOly (Varsity), Photography, other smaller stuff
Job/Work Experience: Work 4 days a week
Volunteer/Community service: At hospital, library, an elementary school weekly (Had a lot of total volunteer hours)
Summer Activities: Summer programs each summer
Essays (rating 1-10, details):Personal Statement (Some people like it, some don’t, about my background (religion specifically) and passions) - 8/10?
Sups: 8.5-9/10
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 9/10
Teacher Rec #2: 8/10
Counselor Rec: Idk generic… 7/10
Additional Rec: Really good… 10/10 (someone I’ve known for 5 years)
Interview: not very good, but not extremely bad… 6 or 7/10

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Biology
State (if domestic applicant): NC
Country (if international applicant):
School Type:
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: F
Income Bracket: Under 70k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): first generation college, sorta URM

Reflection:

Strengths: Academics
Weaknesses: Other stuff
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I don’t know… I’m not extraordinary
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: First decision

[Eublepharis]

Decision: Accepted - ED

Objective:
ACT (breakdown): 34 (34 math, 34 sci, 33 reading, 33 eng)
SAT II: 780 Math 2, 750 Bio
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.82
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): NA
AP (place score in parenthesis): Bio (3, not submitted), BC Calc (5), Comp Sci A(5)
Senior Year Course Load: AP Spanish, AP Stats, english elective, and Math35 (Honors Multivariable Calc) and CS181 (Computational Molecular Biology) at Brown
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Improv, robotics
Job/Work Experience: Research assistant in a Brown lab during the summer before my senior year
Volunteer/Community service: 40 hours at various places
Summer Activities: moving states, summer@Brown, working in a Brown lab
Essays (rating 1-10, details): 9/10, Very passionate about Brown and my interests, but it could have come across a bit corny

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 10/10, teacher really connected with me and understood me as a learner
Teacher Rec #2: 8/10, knew me pretty well and thought highly of me
Counselor Rec: 7/10, don’t really know, but I think it was fine
Additional Rec: 10/10 got a letter of rec from the prof I worked with over the summer
Interview: 8/10, seemed to go pretty well

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: No
Intended Major: Chemistry, Comp Sci
State (if domestic applicant): Rhode Island
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Legacy, current sibling attending

Reflection:

Strengths: academics, recommendations
Weaknesses: extracurriculars
Why you think you were accepted: academic rigor and having already taken Brown courses as a visiting student.

[IneffableMaestro]

Decision: Accepted - ED

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2210 (didn’t send)
ACT (breakdown): 36
SAT II: 800 math II, 740 chem, 750 USH
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.9
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 9 (I said I was top 10%)
AP (place score in parenthesis): calc BC 5, whap 5, english language 5, chem 5, bio 4 (lol but independent study so whatevs), euro 5, apush 5,
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: Logic and Reasoning (It’s basically the only math class my high school has after multivariable calculus, so whatever), AP Macro, French VI, Independent Study Organic Chemistry II, AP English IV, AP Compsci (worst decision of my life lol), Orchestra
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Quizbowl player of the year, Best Delegate at MUN, TASP Finalist (lol maybe I shouldn’t have put that on my app, but whatever)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Quizbowl president. My high school is one of the top 10 quizbowl teams in the nation. I’m definitely going to play quizbowl at Brown. Yep. Model UN also pretty big, pretty fun yeah.
Job/Work Experience: Tutored people for cash
Volunteer/Community service: Not much lol except those required for NHS
Summer Activities: Did biochemical research at local university
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common App, 10- I spent three months on this essay- it was the essay that got me through the first round of TASP. I spent like a month over the summer editing it. It was about my sense of identity and philosophy and how it changed throughout my life. Brown supplements were alright, 7/10 maybe. Honestly I felt they were all flash and not much substance. Like I liked a lot of the phrasing and way I crafted the sentences; I don’t think they were saying much at all honestly.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 10- my sophomore AP chem teacher. We were his first class, so he really loved us.
Teacher Rec #2: 8- Euro/World History teacher. She thought I was a good student I guess. I don’t think I stood out in her class as much as I initially thought. She was an amazing teacher though, so that’s why I wanted her to write my rec.
Counselor Rec: Alright I guess. I barely interacted with her. I sent her chocolates with the letter asking her to write my rec, so maybe that’s what did it?
Additional Rec: Nah.
Interview: It was fine. I really liked my interviewer, and I have a feeling he liked me too.

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yeah not sure how much money I got
Intended Major: Chem or Biochem not sure. Definitely going to take a lot of philosophy classes though.
State (if domestic applicant): TX
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public Magnet High School
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: M
Income Bracket: 200k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None lol

Reflection:

Strengths: Essays, Extracurriculars, Test Score, GPA, Asian interested in philosophy (very apparent in my supplements)
Weaknesses: Not much volunteering, my recs are probably worse than i think.
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Honestly I’m super thrilled! I really loved Brown and put a lot of work into this application, so if I had gotten rejected I would have been screwed lol.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: UT Austin, but no more applications! Woot woot.

General Comments: Yay glad to be done!

[lavenderquartz]

Decision: Deferred - ED

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): didn’t submit
ACT (breakdown): 31C. 35 English, 29 Math, 34 Reading, 27 Science (i know it’s pretty low for Brown…surprised I was deferred!)
SAT II: n/a
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.9 Weighted: 4.4
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): top 10%
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Euro (3) APUSH (5) AP Lang (5) AP Bio (3)
IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
Senior Year Course Load: Model United Nations (it’s a class at my school), AP Psych, AP Lit, AP Calc AB, AP Art History, and AP Gov/Econ
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): i’ve won awards in MUN, i’m in NHS and CSF.

[aB]Subjective:**

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): club founder and president, involved in multiple other clubs at school, music (I’m in a band), Girl Scouts
Job/Work Experience: psychology intern
Volunteer/Community service: over 100 hours of service
Summer Activities: internship
Essays (rating 1-10, details): 8-10 this sounds a little poky but I was really proud of my essays. I thin
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: hopefully 10–I wasn’t allowed to view it
Teacher Rec #2: hopefully 10–I wasn’t allowed to view it
Counselor Rec: hopefully 10–I wasn’t allowed to view it
Additional Rec: n/a
Interview: 7? My interviewer was a graduate student at Brown, so my questions couldn’t really be answered by him. He barely asked anything about me and it was more of a Q & A session about Brown with him. Could have gone better definitely.

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: no
Intended Major: psychology
State (if domestic applicant): California
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public High School
Ethnicity: white
Gender: female
Income Bracket: upper middle class
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): n/a i’m pretty average lol

Reflection:

Strengths: essays for sure, maybe letters of rec?
Weaknesses: test scores, GPA maybe??
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I think I was deferred because my test score was so low and perhaps I didn’t stand out as much as I could have.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected:
I’ve been accepted to University of Denver so far (safety school obviously) and I’m hearing back from Colorado College soon.
General Comments:

[donutsarefun21]

[asize=4][acolor=#008000]Decision: Accepted - ED[/color][/size]

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1530 super-scored (760 Math, [790 Critical Reading, 750 Writing - averaged 770])
ACT (breakdown): 33 (31 science, 31 math, 35 English, 36 reading)
SAT II: 730 chemistry, 700 Spanish, 730 math II
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.95
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 2/315
AP (place score in parenthesis): Human Geo(5), Stats(5), English Lang(5), APUSH(5), Chemistry(5), Calc AB(5)
Senior Year Course Load: 5 APs, 1 HN, 1 ADV/Photography(each half year)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): nothing outstanding!

Subjective:

Extracurricular: Key Club (Treasurer, Junior Rep., Senior Rep.), Math Club (President), Science Club (Treasurer), NHS
Job/Work Experience: 2.5 months before Junior Year @ amusement park, about 5 months ice cream stand this year, paid tutoring (recently)
Volunteer/Community service: Key Club stuff and some tutoring in an independent study group
Summer Activities: Just work
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common App (8/10) was pretty unique and genuine, not braggy at all which scared me
Supplements (7/10) I was a little rushed, definitely unique but could have been more coherent. Also I found two typos in my app which scared the bejeezus outta me

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: Math teacher, was really close to her, 10/10
Teacher Rec #2: Language teacher, didn’t know her that well but she saw my work ethic 5/10
Counselor Rec: Didn’t know him super well but he’s a cool dude 5/10
Additional Rec: n/a
Interview: I felt like I came off super nervous and she told me hardly anyone she interviews get accepted. I made sure to ask tons of questions though.

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Computer Science
State (if domestic applicant): NJ
School Type: public
Ethnicity: white
Gender: female
Income Bracket: 70k this year (sold asset), usually around 35k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): first generation college

Reflection:

Strengths: First generation, one great teacher rec, grades, some leadership, SAT scores, relaxed common app and supplements

Weaknesses: Over-represented state, could have had better community service, ACT science/math scores, no outstanding awards

Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I am still in shock and so thankful. It feels like I should wake up at any second. All I know is that I will work super hard and give back to Brown in every way I can.

Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: N/A (ED)

General Comments: I am so shocked to get in. After creeping around college confidential I thought I had absolutely no chance. Please believe in yourself, don’t compare yourself to others and go about essays in a relaxed way.

[wheatgerm]

Decision: Accepted - ED

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): Old SAT 2130, I think it was something like 740 math, 730 reading, 660 writing.
ACT (breakdown): Nope
SAT II: Literature 720, Math II 650
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): My school doesn’t give GPAs, but I think it was somewhere around 3.7 or 3.8.
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Nope
AP (place score in parenthesis): 5 on English Language. Got 3s on a couple others.
IB (place score in parenthesis): Nope
Senior Year Course Load: An English class called “The Interview,” Directing, Biomedical Research, French, A class on Modern China, and Linear Algebra.
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Nope lol

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):

• I run a podcast for my school! (Leadership, I guess.)
• I’m in a student-run organization for rebuilding and distributing computers to families and schools in need. (Leadership)
• I’m the head of electrical engineering on my school’s FTC Robotics team. (Leadership)
• I help run our school’s outdoor ropes course. (Leadership)
• I’m in a couple tutor/buddy programs at my school.
• I do “storytelling” at venues around my city in theaters, which is pretty fun. (Leadership, in a way. I mean, it’s a solo thing, so I guess I’m in charge.)

Job/Work Experience: Nope
Volunteer/Community service: I guess some of my EC’s count for this.
Summer Activities:
Kenyon Young Writers Workshop (after 10th grade)
Iowa Young Writers Studio (after 11th grade)
Essays (rating 1-10, details): My brown essays felt like a 9, maybe? I worried that some of them were a little vague, but I tried to keep them lighthearted and funny. My common app essay was probably also a 9, but depending on who read it. It was a little out there, and had a bunch of weird jokes and sarcastic product placements. It’s very possible that someone could’ve hated it, but the essay felt very much “me,” so I felt like putting it out there.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 10! My English teacher knows me pretty well, and he’s a wonderful writer. He also wrote me a rec for IWYS, so I knew that he was on top of this stuff.
Teacher Rec #2: Probably a 9. My history teacher and I never had a particularly special connection, but he seemed to like me and is also a great writer.
Counselor Rec: 10. My counselor is like an anthropomorphic smiley fry. Y’know those fries that look like smiley faces? Yeah. One of those. He’s awesome. I have no doubt that he wrote something equally awesome.
Additional Rec: This one was probably pretty weird. I got it from my ropes course instructor, who likes to, uh… smoke that jazz cabbage, if you catch my drift. It was probably really philosophical and abstract… but hey, right up Brown’s alley, right?
Interview: 9. It went pretty well, I think! My interviewer was lovely, and we were able to chat about a bunch of things pretty easily. He was also familiar with the storytelling programs that I worked with, so that was something to talk about.

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Nope
Intended Major: Literary Arts
State (if domestic applicant): Maryland
Country (if international applicant): US
School Type: Independent. Crunchy granola.
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: Don’t actually know. My family is fairly wealthy but we don’t have a steady income.
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Nothing specific that I can think of. My dad wrote for the Simpsons, so they might’ve been interested in that.

Reflection:

Strengths: Writing, Recs, ECs
Weaknesses: Scores, I guess. And maybe grades? I didn’t do spectacularly well in 9th and 10th grade.
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: The one thing that I’m really good at is being able to convey my voice and personality through writing. Luckily, that seemed to be important here.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Nowhere. I’m rescinding all my other applications.

General Comments:
Alright, wow. I genuinely didn’t expect to get in. After reading this website obsessively, I figured I had no chance. That said, maybe take this as a lesson: don’t compare your application to ones like this that you find online. In fact, modeling your application after them is just going to weaken it. Though I might not’ve had the best numbers, I did try my darnedest to make my application feel unique. I tried to give it a voice. And certainly, that was a bit of a risk – my essays were unconventional and didn’t fit into any sort of model. But it paid off. Just make your app shake the admissions officers by the shoulders and scream, “Here I am! I’m a person. There’s a person behind these words. And sure I have my flaws, but goddamnit, I’m real.”

[johnwayne8321]

Decision: Accepted - ED

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 2220 (780M, 690CR, 750W) Didn’t Send
ACT (breakdown): 34 (35E, 35M, 31R, 36S) (32R on previous test yields 35 superscore)
SAT II: Math 2 (750), Bio M (730), World History (730)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 4/302
AP (place score in parenthesis): Art History (4), Calc AB (5), Chemistry (5), English Lang (5), European History (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc BC, AP Lit, AP Macro/Microeconomics, AP Physics 1, AP Stats, AP Latin, Guitar 2
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Latin Exam 3-time medalist (39/40 correct last year), qualified for US Geography Olympiad but did not attend

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Business/Econ Club (President); NHS (co-president); Latin Club (Secretary); Astronomy (Treasurer); Varsity XC until injury; soccer until injury (used to be so athletic lol RIP); piano/guitar on side
Job/Work Experience: N/A
Volunteer/Community service: volunteer youth soccer referee and NHS
Summer Activities: CDC Disease Detective Camp in Atlanta, summer classes via local community college for fun, travel
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Honestly IDK how to rate but all were decent IMO and well-received by editors.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): I haven’t read any recs but my teachers and counselor love me and probably wrote amazing letters. They have seen me grow inside and outside of the classroom a lot and carry a desire to learn, to teach, and a general positivity.

Teacher Rec #1:
Teacher Rec #2:
Counselor Rec:
Additional Rec:
Interview: Interview was fine. We connected over our love over mythology and the Classics. We were both a bit rattled by Trump’s victory the previous night haha.

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Economics
State (if domestic applicant): California
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: Higher
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Legacy

Reflection:

Strengths: Academics, Scores, Recs, Legacy, felt well-rounded
Weaknesses: Maybe Essays? None of my achievements or ECs seemed “Ivy-good”
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Strong academics, extremely positive recs, legacy, and a clear love for Brown
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: I find out from MIT tomorrow and UChicago Monday but IDC now lol.

General Comments: I’m pleased to be a Brunonian in the Class of 2021. If you’re interested in Brown but don’t feel confident, APPLY! There is no harm in applying. I’ve seen people get in to selective schools they applied to on a whim. Truth be told, odds are against you, but odds are just odds, and anything can happen. You will not regret applying regardless of the decision. I was planning on applying to Brown but I didn’t think I had a shot. Last year he interviewed 30 people and a recruited athlete was the only one to receive admission of those interviewees. Regardless of where you end up, you’ll be successful so long as you maintain, if not improve, your work ethic and motivation. This is not the end of the journey, but rather another beginning of many more to come. Good luck to all prospective applicants, and to those not admitted I know you’ll be extremely successful at your future college and have the time of your lives. Thank you all for your support

[thelions]

Decision: Deferred - ED

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): N/A
ACT (breakdown): 34C (36E, 32M, 34R, 34S)
SAT II: N/A
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 10% (schools doesn’t officially rank)
AP (place score in parenthesis): US History (5), English Lang (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Stats, AP US Gov, AP Modern European History, English 4, Theology (requirement)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): None, except a state history award

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Varsity Swimming (captain), Model UN (USG for Logistics), Community Service Club (president), Quiz Bowl (3x state champions), Theatre Club (president), founder of Humans of New York like Facebook page for my school (got over 1100 likes), Peer Counselor, Peer Orientation Program, Relay for Life Team Captain, various graduation committees (prom, yearbook, etc)
Job/Work Experience: Lifeguard (all summer 40h/week)
Volunteer/Community service: with club at school, at least 100 hours
Summer Activities: Working
Essays (rating 1-10, details): My Common App essay was probably a 9/10. It was about when I went on a game show when I was younger, and everyone who read it loved it. My Brown supplements were probably a 8/10, with some being stronger than others
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: APUSH teacher. Probably a 10. He loved me and said I was one of the best students he’s had in 25 years of teaching.
Teacher Rec #2: English teacher from junior year. Probably a 9. My college counsellor said it was a really good rec and he really liked me as a student.
Counselor Rec: Probably a 9. He really likes me and I know him well. He also insisted on the fact that none of what I did as ECs was to impress schools but because I genuinely enjoyed it.
Additional Rec: N/A
Interview: Had it last week, so it probably didn’t matter.

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes, needs lots of it
Intended Major: International Relations, put down American Studies as 2nd choice
State (if domestic applicant): N/A
Country (if international applicant): Canada, but I go to boarding school in New England
School Type: Private
Ethnicity: White
Gender: F
Income Bracket: 90K
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none

Reflection:

Strengths: Grades, test scores, essays, recs
Weaknesses: No ECs made me stand out, but I think my major flaw is that I’m an international kid who needs lots of FA and colleges usually don’t like that
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Financial aid, not special enough
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Got into McGill with a scholarship, will probably attend

General Comments:
I have to say that I was a bit surprised by the decision, but I feel really at peace right now. I’m not sure if I’m gonna apply to other American schools (American politics make Canada seem so much more appealing). It’s frustrating to see people from my school who are less qualified but have legacy or all full pay get in, but that’s life I guess. McGill is great and will allow me to go to grad school debt free.

[anaheim]

Decision: Deferred - ED

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): N/A

ACT (breakdown): 34 (35M 35E 34R 33S 10W) (35 superscore)
SAT II: N/A
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.83 UW, 4.45 W

Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 10%
AP (place score in parenthesis): World History (5), US History (5), Lit (5), Art History (5), Chemistry (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Biology, AP Gov, AP Lang, AP Stats, AP Psychology, H Molecular Genetics, required religion course
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Hispanic Merit Scholar, National Honor Society, AP Scholar with Distinction

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Debate Club (Secretary 10, VP 11, President 12), Model United Nations (Founder and President, 11 + 12), Mock Trial (12), apart of school’s STEM Program (11+12), apart of school’s accelerated business program (10-12), Piano (statewide testing up to level 9; 9-12), Tutor at school’s writing center (11+12), Freshman peer counselor (Group leader, 11+12),
Job/Work Experience: Intern at the Democratic Party of my county (12), Internship with Power Crunch (nutrition bar company; 11), Internship at aunt’s law firm (9-12)
Volunteer/Community service: Peer Court juror (served as jury on cases for non-violent, first-time juvenile offenders; 9-12)
Summer Activities: Online religion courses, UCLA MUN summer camp, and stuff above
Essays (rating 1-10, details): CA Essay – 9/10. Was a little bland at points, but I think it was a true explanation of who I am and what I stand for.
Brown Essays – 8/10. Not the best, but were solid.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 10/10. English teacher for sophomore and junior year. She loved me honestly.
Teacher Rec #2: 9/10. AP Chemistry teacher. Saw me grow as a student, but we weren’t particularly close. Known for writing good essays, though.
Counselor Rec: 10/10. Counselor knew me better than most of her other students, which helped a lot.
Additional Rec: N/A
Interview: AMAZING. We had so much in common, from our background to our interests, career aspirations, and political ideology. Couldn’t have asked for a better interview.

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Psychology
State (if domestic applicant): CA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Parochial/Private
Ethnicity: Hispanic
Gender: Male

Income Bracket: $200k-$250k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM

Reflection:

Strengths: Internships, interview, awards
Weaknesses: GPA (lord), pretty normal extracurriculars?
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: My essays seemed generic. GPA probably also
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected:

General Comments:
Honestly wish I could have gotten in early, but a deferral is better than a rejection. Hopefully I can better my app with supplementals before they review in the regular pool.

[njk345]

Decision: Accepted - ED

Objective:
SAT I: N/A
ACT: 35 (35 M, 35 E, 35 S, 34 R, 24 W)
SAT II: 800 Math II, 800 Chemistry
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): N/A
Rank: N/A
AP: Computer Science A (5), Latin (5), Physics 1 (3), Physics 2 (4)
IB: N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calculus BC, AP Chemistry, Latin 5 Honors, Classical World History, Trimester English Electives, 20th Century Music History, Wind Ensemble
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Latin Exam (Summa cum Laude 9,11; maxima cum laude 10), AP Scholar with Honor, Scholastic Arts & Writing Awards (Regional Honorable Mention, Poetry Category), NYC Inter-school Music Association Honor Band (12)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars: FRC Robotics (member of programming & electronics dept.), Trumpet (1st chair school band, city-wide honor band), Varsity Soccer (Goalkeeper), Programming Club & ACSL Team, Co-Founder & Co-EIC of school technology publication
Job/Work Experience: N/A
Volunteer/Community service: Teach kids in Bronx public schools fundamentals of robotics and programming through school’s community service club
Summer Activities: Columbia University Summer Program for High School Students 2015: Introduction to Programming in C; National Youth Brass Band of Scotland summer course 2016; counselor at middle school robotics camp; independent programming projects; soccer camps
Essays (rating 1-10, details): CA—8/10. Was about my great experiences with growing up playing in British-style brass bands, going to brass band summer camps, playing an instrument in general and what music means to me, and culminating in my trip to Scotland last summer to play with local kids in a true European brass band setting. BROWN SUPPS—9/10. By and large very genuine, warm tone, plenty of injections of my personality, but also good objective academic stuff such as in the extra supplements they had me do when I selected CS and Engineering as interests.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 9/10. Latin teacher 9-12 grades and advisor. Understands me better than any other adult in the school and really knows my interests, strengths, weaknesses, and how passionate about learning I am.
Teacher Rec #2: 8/10. APCS teacher grade 11 and robotics mentor grade 10. Got to know me outside the classroom in robotics before she even became my teacher, so we had special bond in APCS. I think she viewed me as one of/the top student in class—had lots of prior knowledge, participated well, helped others, did assignments well and quickly.
Counselor Rec: 7/10. Only met her last spring but we’ve met about 6 times. I’m guessing she mostly incorporated comments from other teachers and a rec. I got from my Columbia summer program, so couldn’t be too bad.
Additional Rec: N/A
Interview: 6/10. Interviewer went to my high school too, so we had lots in common! I was nervous and a bit closed off, but I kept a consistent tone and talked a lot about my experiences in robotics and why I’m excited by Brown CS.

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: No
Intended Major: Computer Science and/or Applied Mathematics
State (if domestic applicant): NY
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Private, NYC
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: 1-2 mill.
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Legacy from mother

Reflection:

Strengths: I have extremely diverse and wide ranging interests and I have kept with almost all of my extracurricular activities that I entered high school with, in addition to adding a few in the STEM realm. I’m also a STEM applicant to Brown with strong test scores (they seem to be recruiting a bit for math/physical sciences), I play an instrument and could help out the wind ensemble/orchestra, I can pay full tuition and give after graduating (or my parents can, at least), I’m a legacy who applied ED.
Weaknesses: No significant leadership positions except tech magazine (I like to dabble between activities, rather than take root in a single one and get power), B+ in math grades 10-11 (although my school’s honors math program is devilishly hard)
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: academically qualified legacy who put Brown first
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: N/A

General Comments: Can’t wait for next fall!

[maddiearonson]

Decision: Accepted - ED

Objective:
ACT (breakdown): 35 Composite (36M, 36E, 33R, 34S)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.99
Weighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.24
AP: Calc AB (5), English Composition (4)
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc BC, AP Biology, AP Macroeconomics, AP English Literature, Statistics, Theology Class (I go to a parochial school)
Major Awards: National Merit Semi-Finalist

Subjective:

Extracurriculars:

Job/Work Experience: Summer Internship with a Professor of Math Education at a local college, brief receptionist job for family’s company, babysitting

Volunteer/Community service: Lots of work with kids with disabilities, frequent volunteer at children’s summer art camp

Activities: Club and high school soccer (varsity level, senior year captain, state champions junior year), high school lacrosse (league champs, Most Improved Player Award), part of my school’s winter musical (junior year, part of the ensemble)

Essays: Personal Statement was fairly good (talked about soccer and the musical, basically me taking initiative, challenging myself, and working hard to improve my skills in the various activities that I participate in)
Shorter essays were pretty great, I especially liked my “Where I’ve Lived” (I talked about loving my quirky city, Portland, OR) and extracurricular one (I took a bit of a creative approach to talking about my work at kid’s art camp)
For my additional information section I snuck in another essay (because it allowed 650 words), and in it I talked about my intended concentration (secondary teaching) and what drove me towards wanting to be a teacher, with specifics about my passion for math as well as my summer internship

Recommendations:

Teacher Rec #1:10, we are very close and I asked her for a letter early this summer so I know she took a lot of time and care into making it great
Teacher Rec #2: 8.5, another teacher I’m pretty close with, also an English teacher who is known for writing a good letter
Counselor Rec: 8, not very tight with her but I think she likes me and probably wrote a decent letter
Interview: 7, I live in Oregon so I had an alumni interview, and we didn’t connect on a very personal level but I felt like my answers were ok and there weren’t any super awkward moments

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: No
Intended Major: Secondary Education
State: Oregon
School Type: Parochial
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: >$200,000
Hooks: none

Reflection:

Strengths: I did a good job describing my passion for teaching, which is not a very popular major and probably helped just in terms of diversity of academic interests. Also being from Oregon probably didn’t hurt. I also have solid test scores and a good GPA
Weaknesses: Being a white female isn’t great as far as college admissions go. Compared to the other kids I’ve seen I don’t think my EC’s were outstanding, and I could certainly have more job experience.

[bigdaddydragon]

Decision: Deferred - ED

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): N/A
ACT (breakdown): 31 (34 English, 29 Math, 33 Reading, 29 Science) (26 W)
SAT II: N/A
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.77
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Doesn’t rank (put technically 13/55)
AP (place score in parenthesis): US History (5), Statistics (5), Chemistry (3), Calculus BC (test in May), Biology (test in May), Psychology (test in May), English Literature and Composition (test in May)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calculus BC, AP Biology, AP Psychology, Economics, Ethics, Media Literacy
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): International Biomedical Olympiad 2014 Gold Medal Winner, AP Scholar

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Class Leadership (Secretary), MUN (Chair, Secretary General), Cross Country, DJ, Tutoring, Volunteering, Fundraising Spokesperson for CMF
Job/Work Experience:None
Volunteer/Community service: Tutored a group of Pakistani refugee children, volunteered with the IT Department at my school,
Summer Activities: Observership in Singapore with Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, Soliciting charitable donations on behalf of a Christian organization, Laborer for Sounds of Language Foundation working to build an adobe earth house with my friend
Essays (rating 1-10, details):

Common App-: 10/10 I thought it was a great essay. I wrote about my quest to find out the fate of my great uncle during the Korean War and the historical research that I have done. I also talked about how one of the Korean War veterans I contacted still suffered from PTSD, and how I wish I could let him know about the freedom that comes with letting go. I ended with a nice tribute to the families of those lost in the Battle of the Chosin Reservoir.

Extracurricular:7/10 I wrote about how I declined the invitation to join the debate society at my school and how I though MUN was far superior. It wasn’t my favorite essay out of the bunch, but my college advisor liked it.

Why Brown?: 8/10 I wrote about the need for a worldview to be thoroughly vetted and how I wanted to engage in challenging discussions about peoples’ worldview at Brown in the “spirit of free inquiry.”

Why this study?: 9/10 I wrote about how history textbooks have changed over time, and how the social, cultural, and other factors reflect how we view history in retrospect. I suggested that I make it my duty at Brown to temper this with truth.

Where I have lived?: 9/10 I wrote about how I grew up in Thailand, a big plus I think in my application, and I had a really unique and interesting hook to this essay.

Community or group?: 10/10 I wrote a really tight, well-written essay on Thai fascination with white skin and racism.

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: Math- 8/10 He’s my class sponsor as well and was probably able to provide good details about my involvement in class leadership and student government. I had him for a number of years, and while I got A’s and B+'s in his class, I think he really liked me.
Teacher Rec #2: AP US History - 9/10 She really likes me, and she’s also the sponsor for MUN, so she likely talked about that as well. I have no doubt she only had good things to say, buy I
Counselor Rec: 7/10 Although I personally don’t like him very much, I think he likes me, and so his recommendation was probably okay. It certainly did not hurt, and may have been beneficial slightly.
Additional Rec: 9/10 I had the surgeon who I did the observership with in Singapore write a letter of recommendation for the PLME program, which I also applied to. I have no doubt it was superb because he really likes me and we had a great time in Singapore.
Interview: The interview went overall very well, I had my friend’s mom actually do the interview, though she didn’t really know us. There was a slight bit of drama with the logistics of this because I live in a small city in Thailand and thus she most likely was the only Brown alumnus in the area. My college advisor contacted Brown and told them about the circumstances, and it seemed to have been resolved. It lasted for the full hour, and it was rather formal. We talked about medicine, history, and ethics. It certainly did not hurt me.

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: History
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant): Thailand
School Type: Private, Christian
Ethnicity: White (Caucasian)
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: $40,000-45,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Not first generation, not minority, so not in this regard. However, I thought the international aspect of my application could have been a hook.

Reflection:

Strengths: Growing up overseas, unique extracurricular activities, letters of recommendation, essays (at least some of them)
Weaknesses: ACT score, GPA, AP scores (Chemistry), relatively low class ranking (even though we technically don’t rank), maybe my interview situation with the interviewer being my friend’s mom, white ethnicity, being a twin…
Why you think you were deferred: Kind of low ACT scores, no strong athletic hook, maybe the “drama” with the interview thing. It may have also been because I am a twin, and my brother also applied ED. Maybe they didn’t want to accept two students that were so similar in the ED round because they were trying to diversify, or they didn’t want to only accept one of us. We will never know.
Where else were you deferred: None for sure yet. I was really hoping for Brown.

General Comments: I’m going to keep my head up and keep trying. I still really want to go to Brown, and I will continue and be proactive in the deferral. Brown is still my first choice, and it will likely stay that way. Love the forum, been checking so much as of late because of this ED thread for Brown. Congratulations to all those accepted, it looks like you all deserved it very much. My heart-felt support for those rejected, and my sympathy for those also differed. I’m not giving up yet.

[mothtotheflame]

Decision: Deferred - ED

Objective:
ACT (breakdown): 34 (36 E, 35 M, 35 R, 31 S)
SAT II: didn’t send
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): only know my weighted is 4.464
Rank: 5/382
AP (place score in parenthesis): US History (5), Art History (5), Lang (5), Calc AB (4)
Senior Year Course Load: taking all classes at a local university (I know it’s probably less challenging than AP but offers classes my HS lacks)
American Gov, Arabic 101, Multicultural Lit, Enviro Sci, Microecon, Arabic 102, Macroecon, Intro International Politics, Intro Middle Eastern history
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Scholar w/ Honor, Eagle Scout

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Boy Scouts, American Youth Foundation National Leadership Conference, NHS (treasurer), 2-week foreign exchange with German student, French club, 2-year varsity swimmer, marching band
Job/Work Experience: Part-time Crew Trainer at McDonald’s for 3 years
Volunteer/Community service: nothing consistent but through Boy Scouts and a service trip to Guatemala
Summer Activities: work
Essays (rating 1-10, details): I wrote my common app essay about being gay in my Boy Scout troop and how the ban made me want to get Eagle even more, I made sure it wasn’t a sob story. My Brown supplements could have been better but the word maximum made it so hard for me.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): waived right to read

Teacher Rec #1: Art history teacher/AYF advisor was probably a 9
Teacher Rec #2: APUSH and DE Psych teacher was probably a 7
Counselor Rec: probably generic but good, 8
Additional Rec: N/A
Interview: Went well but was average enough that I bet it had little influence either way, 7

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: International Relations
State (if domestic applicant): Ohio
School Type: public suburb (1,800 students)
Ethnicity: white
Gender: male
Income Bracket: middle class
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none

Reflection:

Strengths: Eagle Scout, senior year classes show I could navigate the open curriculum
Weaknesses: nothing extraordinary, could have taken more APs
Why you think you were deferred: I understand that I’m not totally Ivy caliber and I don’t have any scientific research or big awards under my belt.
Where else were you accepted/rejected/deferred: accepted to Pitt as a safety, also applied to Reed, Oberlin, and Case. Now I’ll apply to others, probably Rochester, American, Cornell as a reach etc.

General Comments: I can’t believe I have to wait until March to know where I’m going, but I’m not surprised I was deferred. Solidarity with those rejected and deferred and congrats to those accepted!

[kendizzle]

I was deferred…
34 ACT, 800 Math II subject, 4.3 weighted, thought my essays were pretty good, although obviously that’s my opinion.
Im also a URM… Very disappointed, but I understand that there are so many qualified applicants.

[parka11]

Decision: Deferred - ED

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2230 (CR650 M800 W780, one seating)
ACT (breakdown): 34 (E34 M35 R32 S35, one seating)
SAT II: MathII 800, Chem 770, Korean 800
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.89
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A
AP (place score in parenthesis): APUSH(5), CompSci(4), Physics1(3), Stats(5), Chem(4), Psych(4)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Microeconomics, AP US Gov, AP Calc BC, AP Lang, Chinese 4, AP Physics C, Science Research 2, Advanced Science Projects (x2)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National TSA TEAMS presentation (4th, 2015) & problem solving (4th, 2016), Presidential Service Award (Bronze, 10th&11th), Univ of Rochester Xerox Award for Innovation and Technology (not sure about full name), AP Scholar with Distinction

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Math Team(President), Solar Engineering(VP), TSA TEAMS(Team Captain), community orchestra(VP), Archery(5 years)
Job/Work Experience: Sales clerk(short summer job), private tutor(4 years)
Volunteer/Community service: environmental service club(2 years), outreach with community orchestra(4 years)
Summer Activities: COSMOS(CA state science summer school, 12th), CASC(11th), TSA TEAMS national conference (11th, 12th)
Essays (rating 1-10, details): CommonApp(7)-wrote about my solar engineering club, how I started off as an engineering newbie but learned to love it & help club to grow…etc
supplements(8)-experience with orchestra; immigration; etc
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): (didn’t read any, just a guess)
Teacher Rec #1: Statistics & Math Team advisor (10)-known for writing great letters, known her since 9th grade
Teacher Rec #2: Physics1 & C (7)-submitted letter the day after I turned in papers to him… maybe bc he wrote my letter for summer program and used it again? idk, not super close w/him but I know he’s a good writer…
Counselor Rec: (7)-doesn’t really know me, talked with him 5?6? times throughout all four years. Had to submit detailed questionnaire & do an hour interview for him to learn and write about me. But then one of his best students so he chose me for the Xerox Award
Additional Rec: none
Interview: recent graduate(PLME), had to do facetime interview b/c she was away for a while, lasted for about 20 mintues… wasn’t the best

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: physical chemistry
State (if domestic applicant): CA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: large,suburban,public (VERY competitive)
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: F
Income Bracket: 100,000+
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none

Reflection:

Strengths: Stats (GPA, scores) were good. Ok recs
Weaknesses: essays?, interview
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: essays could have showed more passion
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: CWRU, results coming out in a couple hours…

General Comments:
To be honest, I wasn’t really upset to find out that I got deferred. I thought I would start crying and all that because Brown had been my dream school for years. But I’m trying to think of this as a better opportunity! Because I submitted my apps for UCs and USC already, I would be able to find out if THEY want me Sort of sucks that I had to cancel winter break vacation plans to work on regular apps, but oh well. I mean, there IS a possibility that Brown would accept me during RD so not giving up hope yet. Also, would be fun to receive packages from my safety school in Spring One thing I regret though is that I should have started earlier… I waited til school started

[easlisahin]

Decision: Accepted - ED

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1420 - superscored
ACT (breakdown): 30 (didn’t send)
SAT II: Math 2: 760 German: 660
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.8
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 32/198
AP (place score in parenthesis): AB Calculus: 5 German: 4 English Language: 3
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: only one AP course, but it is a strong curriculum for my school
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Harvard Book Award, Community Involvement Humanitarian Award, Community Involvement Distinguished Humanitarian Award

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): National Coordinator of Junior Achievement Alumni Turkey, Executive Board Member at Junior Achievement, Choir, Girls Soccer Team
Job/Work Experience:
Volunteer/Community service: over 300 hours . lots of leadership positions
Summer Activities: Babson College 5-Week Summer Study
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Personal Statement: 10 (it was about how I got beaten by the police in a peaceful protest and what I learned from that experience)
Supplement: 8 (
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 10, by the best teacher I’ve ever had who loves me, absolute genius
Teacher Rec #2: 9, had teacher for 4 years and she also loves me
Counselor Rec: 6, I’ve only met her a couple times but she likes me.
Additional Rec:
Interview:
Went well. Was only 15 mins but we hit it off. Really chill person.
Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Nope
Intended Major: Political Science
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant): Turkey
School Type: Private
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):

Reflection:

Strengths: essays, recommendations
Weaknesses: test scores!!
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I believe that my personal statement was really powerful.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected:

General Comments: Everyone told me that I would probably get rejected, because my test scores were not good enough. To all future applicants: Focus on your essays. That is what count the most. That is what makes you unique.

I am really happy to start next fall and meet everyone! Congrats to all who got accepted

[miyakoiwata]

[aB][asize=4][acolor=#FFA500]Decision: Deferred - ED[/color][/size]**

[aB]Objective:**
SAT I (breakdown): New SAT - 1440 (750 Reading/Writing, 690 Math), Old SAT - 2070 (750 Writing, 670 Reading, 650 Math)
ACT (breakdown): 32 composite (35 Reading, 34 English, 31 Math, 28 Science, 30 Writing)
SAT II: 780 Japanese, 740 Math I
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.98 and rising
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 10%
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP US History (4), AP European History (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Chemistry, AP Literature, AP US Government and Politics, AP Comparative Government and Politics, European Literature, Senior Seminar, Keyboarding, Jogging, Academics Unlimited (Study Hall)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): USRowing Scholastic Honor Roll (one of 36 in country), National Merit Commended Student

[aB]Subjective:**

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Research Associate on Youth Homelessness in my city, District Superintendent Student Advisor, Rowing Team (Women’s Team Captain, top Varsity Women’s coxswain), Newspaper (Editor-in-Chief, Managing Editor)
Job/Work Experience: Concessions cashier at 2016 Track & Field Olympic Trials, Cleaning crew
Volunteer/Community service (place leadership in parenthesis): Teen Court (Defendant Advisor - lawyer role), 15th Night Initiative on Youth Homelessness Youth Advisory Committee (school liaison), National Honor Society (Group Leader), Rotary Club (manager)
Summer Activities: Summer Enrichment Program at the University of Oregon (for TAG kids), rowing camp, Driver’s Ed

Essays (rating 1-10, details): 8/10 - I wrote about how the leadership skills I learned as a coxswain has helped me become a more effective and helpful leader in my other (seemingly unrelated) roles. I switched my Common App prompt a few days before my application was due, so it definitely could have used more polishing. I did have a lot of qualified people read and edit my essay, though.

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 8/10 - I got this letter from one of the best teachers at the school. I had her in both my sophomore and junior years in Psychology and AP European History, respectively. She’s a great writer. However, I didn’t do as well during my junior year because I was so swamped with classes and activities, so she probably liked me a little less than she did before, which is unfortunate.
Teacher Rec #2:
Counselor Rec: 10/10 -
Additional Rec: 10/10 -
Interview: 6/10 - I got a really last-minute phone interview and was sick with a cold, so

[aB]Other:**

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Psychology
State (if domestic applicant): Oregon
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public - Super competitive due to a large portion of university professors sending their kids here… My class (class of 2017) is especially high-achieving.
Ethnicity: Asian/White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None

[aB]Reflection:**

Strengths: Having 8 leadership positions - none of them being Student Government.
Weaknesses: My test scores are really average, plus my senior year course load isn’t challenging enough (I’ve exhausted most of the APs offered at my school at this point and trying to fit college classes into my schedule has been a real challenge).
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I’m half-Asian and come from a high-income family, so that didn’t help. Reading the Brown Daily Herald article on this year’s ED cycle, it looked like they were really looking for racial/socioeconomic diversity and I certainly didn’t provide that.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Accepted to University of Oregon Clark Honors College

General Comments:

[brown2024]

Any PLME ED accepted students willing to post stats to help aspiring high school freshmen?