***Official Columbia University Class of 2018 ED Results ONLY***

Colleges and Universities A-Z Columbia University
21

<p>Decision: Accepted - CC</p>

<p>Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2340 (1 sitting), 800 Crit Reading, 800 Writing, 740 Math
ACT: none
SAT II: 800 Lit, 800 Math Lv. 2, 750 US Hist, 710 Bio M
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.94
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A; not very high though i think
AP (place score in parenthesis): English Lang (5), APUSH (5), BC CALC (5, subscore: 5), French Lang (4), Studio Art Drawing (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): none
Senior Year Course Load: AP English Lit, Comp I & II (dual enrollment), Calc III (dual enrollment), AP Art History, AP Studio Art, AP Physics C (Mech, E/M)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
Scholastic Art and Writing Awards: Gold Medal in Drawing, Silver Medals in Drawing and Poetry, 13 Gold and Silver Keys
YoungArts Honorable Mention in Visual Art, Creative Nonfiction, Merit Award for Poetry
New Jersey Scholars Program alumna, 2013
3rd Place, Anthem Essay Contest
1st Place Drawing, Congressional Art Contest
AP Scholar with Distinction
National Merit Semifinalist
a bunch of other miscellaneous art/piano awards</p>

<p>Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): School GSA (president), Mu Alpha Theta, brief stint on Model Congress/UN teams (hated it, didn’t really accomplish much!)
Job/Work Experience: 3 months student teaching at Kumon
Volunteer/Community service: peer tutoring, ZAMbassador (museum volunteer thingie)
Summer Activities: CTY, art classes, NJSP, charity art exhibition (sold a bunch of prints and things, raised ~$200 in support of orphaned/displaced youth overseas)
Essays: Good! I slaved over the supplemental essays, wrote a bunch of stuff about the value of art, humanistic learning, etc. My common app essay also won some writing award so I assume it was pretty decent; about experience as a Chinese transwoman and the cultural/identity conflicts involved.
Teacher Recommendation: Great! Both of them were dears and I think they were pretty fond of me :slight_smile:
Counselor Rec: Also good! She’s also my adviser for the GSA so we got to know one another pretty well.
Additional Rec: Got one from my research adviser at NJSP; she was happy with my work I think.
Interview: Pretty good. We were able to have a nice conversation about interests, the city, and so on. </p>

<p>Other
State (if domestic applicant): NJ
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Large Public
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: dmab transgendered (had to list as “male” on CA, which I wasn’t thrilled about)
Income Bracket: >$100k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM for gender stuff?? I’m not sure if they take too much stock in that though tbh. I also published a poem in the Columbia Review so that might have been a thing.</p>

<p>Reflection
Strengths: Art/Writing accomplishments, essays, recs.
Weaknesses: Grades (they were okay but not stellar; I’d estimate my GPA was maybe top 15-10%?), leadership (nothing big), volunteer stuff (ditto)
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Probably the art stuff. I was pretty proud of my art supplement :slight_smile: Also the NJ Scholars thing was supposedly a “feeder” so that probably helped a lot too! I also think I just “fit” well with the school; like the Core felt custom made for me and I think I’d do really well in it! So yeah, some of the admissions cliches might actually have some substance behind them!
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: accepted into Rutgers, SAIC</p>

<p>General Comments: Congrats to everyone who made it!!! I look forward to a remarkable 4 years with you :slight_smile: To everyone else, please don’t be discouraged!! You are all wonderful, smart, and talented people regardless of the schools you get accepted to. tbh getting accepted feels like a total fluke and I’m waiting for the phone call that tells me it was all a clerical error or something! Best of luck everyone!!</p>

22

<p>Decision: Accepted - CC</p>

<p>Objective:</p>

<p>SAT I (breakdown): 2220 (690 CR, 760 M, 770 W)
ACT: 34
SAT II: 730 Math I, 720 Math II, 680 French Listening
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.61
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A
AP (place score in parenthesis): German (5), French (5), US History (5), World (4), Language (4), Macro (4), Calc AB (4), Micro (3), Stat, Comparative Gov’t, American Gov’t, Enviro, Lit
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: Finance, Peer Group Leader, AP Lit, AP Enviro, AP Gov’t/Politics, Drama II, AP Stat
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Achievement Scholar, German Language Diploma</p>

<p>Subjective:</p>

<p>Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Quite a few, mostly involving sports (crew) and community service. Devoted to them all.
Job/Work Experience: None.
Volunteer/Community service: LOADS, too much to list and very in-depth and meaningful too.
Summer Activities: Service projects throughout the community and country.
Essays: Killer.
Teacher Recommendation: 2 - great
Counselor Rec: 1 - very good
Additional Rec: No
Interview: Yes, couldn’t have asked for a better conversation!</p>

<p>Other:</p>

<p>State (if domestic applicant): New Jersey
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: African American & Native American
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: $200k+
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM, connections</p>

<p>Reflection:</p>

<p>Strengths: Great ECs, good work ethic, very well-rounded
Weaknesses: GPA is below average
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Diversity in terms of race, way of thinking, etc.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Fordham (accepted) and Rutgers (accepted)
General Comments:</p>

23

<p>Decision: Accepted - CC</p>

<p>Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2280 (730 R, 750 M, 800 W)
ACT: 34
SAT II: 800 USH, 740 Lit
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.98
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 3/241
AP (place score in parenthesis): USH 5, Euro 5, Psych 5, Chem 5
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Stats, AP Bio, AP Macroeconomics, AP English, AP US Gov’t & Politics, AP Calc AB, AP Art History, Honors Mixed Chorus
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):National Merit Semi-Finalist, Bruce Springsteen Fan of the Year (kidding!)</p>

<p>Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Key Club, NHS, Varsity XC, Student Council, Environmental Club, Academic Quiz Team, etc. etc. (president/team captain in all)
Job/Work Experience: Summer as a biomed intern, teacher for elementary students K-2 (after school program)
Volunteer/Community service: TONS, 800+ hours, chairperson of many successful fundraisers, founder of community garden, etc. etc.
Summer Activities: Traveling, one summer as a research intern at a local university, relaxing, running 40 miles a week for XC, swimming, having fun :wink:
Essays: Oh man, these might’ve been my golden ticket in. Super quirky, chock full of pop culture references and puns. Playful and dare I say witty.
Teacher Recommendation: 3, two of which were probably magnificent and one very, very good
Counselor Rec: Probably very good, even though she is new to the school
Additional Rec: My megawatt smile (haha)
Interview: None, unless you count my imagination!</p>

<p>Other
State (if domestic applicant): O-H-I-O
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public baby!
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: Rather not say
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): I bake a mean chocolate cake? </p>

<p>Reflection
Strengths: Essays, personality
Weaknesses: ECs, scores
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I’ll be damned if I know
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Well, since this is ED I deleted the rest of my applications, so only Columbia!
General Comments: F YEAH COLUMBIA!!! Cannot wait to meet you all, this is going to be one of the best journeys of our lives, and I’m looking forward to very minute of it!</p>

24

<p>Decision: Deferred - CC</p>

<p>Objective:[ul]
[<em>] SAT I (breakdown): 2370 (800 CR, 790 W, 780 M) first and only sitting thank the lord (though I don’t think it actually mattered because of score choice)
[</em>] SAT II: 800 Math II, 770 French
[<em>] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.96, weighted 4.72
[</em>] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Not too sure, I asked my counselor and she said I was in the 13th percentile according to last year’s stats
[<em>] AP (place score in parenthesis): all 5s-US Government (freshman); BC Calc, USH (sophomore); English Lit, French Lang, Euro (self-study…that was a struggle), Macroeconomics, Microeconomics (junior)
[</em>] IB (place score in parenthesis): didn’t send!
[<em>] Senior Year Course Load: IB History HL, IB English HL, IB Math HL, IB French 7 (HL A2), IB Physics 2, IB Social Anthropology, IB Theory of Knowledge (S1)/Law (S2)—full diploma candidate
[</em>] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): NONE AHHHHHH! Only National AP Scholar, National Merit Semi-Finalist, All-County/All-State Orchestra—listed NHS as an “Honor,” kind of pathetic haha
[/ul]Subjective:[ul]
[<em>] Volunteer/Community service: MY FAVORITE THING TO DO—I volunteer as a swim coach for children with developmental disabilities each week for a few hours. Run the mini swim team for older kids, requested for paid private lessons in the summer. On committee for summer team fundraiser (raised 9,000+), helped directors with small business marketing and fundraising. Social program, camp counselor, recently expanded to track/indoor gym. Absolutely love it. Have really grown within the organization, listed it as my numero uno. Grades 10-12
[</em>] Job/Work Experience: Paid junior coach for my local swim team in the summer (spend about 27 hours/week at the pool!)—coach AND swim, plan practices and pep rallies, clerk-of-course at meets. Been on the team for 7 years <3
Writer for local town paper—paid per-article.
[<em>] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): School paper (Staff Writer 9, Editor-in-Training 10, Features Editor 11, Centerspread Editor 12), Varsity Dance Team—competitive, 2-season (MVP-didn’t list, just found out!) (11-12); contemporary dancer in Select/Conservatory program (9-12); violin since 5th grade (competitive youth orchestra 9-11, now in more vocal/musical theater-accompaniment-based orchestra; All-Counties and All-State 9—school orchestra participation required to audition…but I stopped after freshman year); school lit mag copy editor (12); county-wide student newspaper Arts and Culture Editor (12)
(National Honors Society, French Honors Society, Mu Alpha Theta, Model UN, Model Congress, but those were really just for fun, I didn’t list them on my app)
[</em>] Summer Activities: reading, swim team, enjoying life, Poms, practicing violin, writin’ for the paper
[<em>] Essays:
Common App—pretty unique! Worked very hard on it, everyone I asked seemed to like it
Supps—Why Columbia was alright, talked a LOT about how much I loved the Core soo…honest?
Why Econ was a little abstract…either love or hate
Book supplement scared me. Wrote about Joy Luck Club and how I related to the language barrier
A little all over the place with “list your most enjoyed…”s—Time, Elle, Colbert Report, NPR, Love in the Time of Cholera, Calvin and Hobbes, Pulp Fiction…etc., you get the picture haha
[</em>] Teacher Recommendation: from English/ToK and History teachers—English reallllllly seems to like me, History thinks I’m moderately insane, but in an amusing way I think
[<em>] Counselor Rec: Probably generic. Big public school, lots of kids. She said I had a great personality, but you know that’s what they say when they want to let you down gently…
[</em>] Additional Rec: DIDN’T SEND ONE. I WISH I COULD!!! I would’ve sent one from the directors of the organization (with whom I am very close), but alas, they only wanted one from research mentors, and I wanted not to **** Columbia off :’(
[li] Interview: Ehhh it was probably alright, he was nice, but I didn’t feel much chemistry. Lasted about an hour and 15, but he kept mentioning that we were pushing Columbia interview protocol (he said it was 30 minutes)</p>[/li]
<p>[/ul]Other[ul]
[<em>] State (if domestic applicant): MD
[</em>] Country (if international applicant): Ameeeerica
[<em>] School Type: Large public, part Magnet
[</em>] Ethnicity: Asian-American
[<em>] Gender: XX
[</em>] Income Bracket: 170ish
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): absolutely none</p>[/li]
<p>[/ul]Reflection[ul]
[<em>] Strengths: truly love Columbia (but who doesn’t), decent stats, Common App essay?, fairly good range of activities
[</em>] Weaknesses: absolutely nothing outstanding, no national awards, don’t really have any academic ECs or major-related ECs
[<em>] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: just didn’t stand out enough (well-rounded but not well-lopsided), ooo also apparently there’s an awful relationship between my school and Columbia because of some big blowout a couple years ago…may have been blacklisted (0 Columbia accepts, amidst accepts from all other Ivies and ridiculously amazing schools?), may be urban legend?
[</em>] Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: nowhere, waiting on UChicago</p>

<p>[/ul]General Comments: I do love Columbia, and of course this really hurts. I was very much hoping to be the bottom of the Columbia barrel. But some things are meant to be, and I know that I will settle into a school that I love…eventually. I knew from the beginning that the chances were almost zero: I just wanted to give it a shot, because it has been my dream school for years. Congratulations to everyone accepted!
Advice to future applicants: DISTINGUISH YOURSELF! Also, don’t focus so much on scores, I presume. Get passionate about something. Actually, even though I didn’t get into Columbia, getting passionate about things has made me just a happier person in general and it makes this slightly more bearable</p>

25

<p>Decision: Accepted - CC</p>

<p>Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2300 (800 M, 720 R, 780 W)
ACT: N/A
SAT II: Math II 800, Physics 760 Bio (E) 740, US History 730
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.85
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): school doesn’t rank
AP (place score in parenthesis): Bio 4, calc ab 5, world history 5, computer science A 5, US (5) , Calc BC (5), physics b 5, physics c mech 5, statistics 5
IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
Senior Year Course Load: Multivariable calculus, AP econ, AP Physics C, ap chem, AP English Lang, AP Chinese
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Semifinalist, national ap scholar, Siemens Semifinalist, highest school AMC scores</p>

26

<p>[ size=+2][ color=green][ b]Decision: Accepted - CC**[/color][/size]</p>

<p>[ b]Objective:**[list]
[ *] SAT I (breakdown): 2290 (R800, W760, M730)
[ *] ACT: didn’t take
[ *] SAT II: Bio(770) Spanish(750)
[ *] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.93
[ *] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): school doesn’t rank
[ *] AP (place score in parenthesis): school doesn’t offer
[ *] IB (place score in parenthesis): school doesn’t offer
[ *] Senior Year Course Load: Advanced Calc, Advanced Modern Euro, Advanced Physics, Advanced Spanish Lit II, Studio Art, Literature
[ *] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
Finalist in international Russian Contest
Grand Concours National Recognition (Silver Medal) </p>

<p>[ /list][ b]Subjective:**[list]
[ <em>] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Debate team (captain), Litmag (editor-in-chief), Varsity track (3 years), School Musical (2 years)
[ *] Job/Work Experience: Sunday School Teacher
[ *] Volunteer/Community service: Volunteer ESL teacher at senior center
[ *] Summer Activities: Painted a mural at a school in Tanzania
[ *] Essays: I think they were really good. I found one little typo though after submitting 0_0
[ *] Teacher Recommendation: Excellent. My teacher told me it was the best rec shes written in 16 years of teaching.
[ *] Counselor Rec: Probably pretty good
[ *] Additional Rec: none
[ *] Interview: I don’t think it went exceptionally well, but I don’t think it went horribly.
[ *] Supplementary Material: none
[</em>] EXTRA: I went on a semester abroad in Russia and am fluent in Russian and Spanish.</p>

<p>[ /list][ b]Other**[list]
[ <em>] State (if domestic applicant): PA
[</em>] Country (if international applicant):
[ *] School Type: Private
[ *] Ethnicity: White
[ *] Gender: F
[ *] Income Bracket(mention if FA candidate): 1%
[ *] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): I speak Spanish and Russian fluently and didn’t learn either one at home. </p>

<p>[ /list][ b]Reflection**[list]
[ *] Strengths: Speaking three languages, semester abroad, teacher rec, essays
[ *] Weaknesses: Didn’t take most advanced math classes offered at my school
[ *] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
[ *] Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: nowhere else. Waiting on UChicago but it doesn’t matter because I’m Columbia 2018!!! </p>

<p>[ /list][ b]General Comments: ** Congratulations to everyone who was excepted, and to everyone that was rejected, I’m really sorry. I truly am. This process is really hard and I deeply empathize with you.</p>

27

<p>Objective:</p>

<p>SAT I (breakdown): 2140
ACT: None
SAT II: Math II - 800; US History - 730
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.899
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): NA
AP (place score in parenthesis): US History (5) Biology (3)
IB (place score in parenthesis): NA
Senior Year Course Load: AP English, AP Government/Economics, AP Environmental Science, AP Calculus AB, Spanish 4 Honors, TA for AP US History/World History
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): FBLA 2nd Place Business Plan in CA, FBLA 7th Place Business Plan USA, Most Valuable Senior of the League-Varsity Field Hockey, Most Valuable Offensive Player, MVP, Scholar Athlete, Optimist International Award, Academic Awards in American Literature/Writing Honors, Literature/Writing 9, World History, International Business</p>

<p>Subjective:</p>

<p>Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Varsity Field Hockey (Captain), Future Business Leaders of America - FBLA (National Competitor), CSF (member)
Job/Work Experience: Paid Tutor
Volunteer/Community service: Internship for Congressman Mike Honda, various environmental conservation projects, volunteer tutor
Summer Activities: Internship for Congressman Mike Honda
Essays: Compelling to say the least. I wrote about my struggles with my father’s death, my mother’s alcoholism/abuse, and living in foster care, and how these incidents/experiences culminated into a path of my own development.
Teacher Recommendation: Most likely compelling because these teachers are aware of my domestic situation.
Counselor Rec: Written by my school’s assistant principal. It should have been a moving letter because this administrator guided me through an immense amount of tumult in my life while I maintained an academic demeanor.
Additional Rec: None
Interview: It seemed to go well. I didn’t feel an extraordinarily strong connection with the alum, but it was an enjoyable, informative encounter. </p>

<p>Other</p>

<p>State (if domestic applicant): CA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: Low Income
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Foster youth, daughter of a widow</p>

<p>Reflection</p>

<p>Strengths: I’m skilled at writing. I have a penchant for teaching. I’m academically strong.
Weaknesses: Mediocre SAT (2140), minimal leadership roles other than Varsity Hockey Captain and leadership in interning.
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I was rather astonished to find out I was accepted to Columbia. I knew that my essays were compelling and that my background was intriguing, but I believe my level of perseverance and my expression of that perseverance in my writing were the most prominent factors in tipping me into the acceptance pool.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: None</p>

<p>General Comments: I’m extraordinarily grateful to be offered a place in Columbia’s Class of 2018.</p>

28

<p>Decision: Rejected - SEAS</p>

<p>Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): R - 760, W-800, M- 800 (2360)
ACT: N/A
SAT II: MATH II: 800 Chem: 800 USH: 740
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): top 10%
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP CAL AB(5), AP CAL BC(5), APUSH (5), AP English Lang (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Stats, AP physics C, orchestra, linear algebra, AP Span Lang, AP English Lit
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Scholar with honor, Cum Laude, NSE level 3 gold, Qualified for AIME
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Math Club (President) for 3 years, Debate Team (member) for 3 years, cross country and track (runner) for three years, FBLA (member) for 2 years, Orchestra (first violin second chair) for 4 years
Job/Work Experience: light accounting in Onnuri Tour over the summer before senior year
Volunteer/Community service:
Habitat (Fundraising Chair) for 3 years, Sunrise Senior Center (Vice Chair) for 2 years
Summer Activities: N/A
Essays: really good, all the teachers I’ve shown it to said they liked it very much.
Teacher Recommendation: good, but I feel like they are not the very best they could be, the teachers liked me so-so.
Counselor Rec: I was not the counselor’s fav kid, but i think it was okay.
Additional Rec: N/A
Interview: had it with an alumna, and it was fine… I walked away with mixed feelings tho.
Other
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant): Korea, (but going to a international high school in CA)
School Type: International boarding prep school
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: F
Income Bracket: >100K
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): cousin goes to columbia, if that counts?
Reflection
Strengths: Good gpa and SAT
Weaknesses: not so many science-related APs, not very solid extracurriculars
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
just too many Asians who have as good numbers as I do at the same time having a standing-out personality (which I kind of lack)
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: waiting on Uchicago EA
General Comments:
Can I just say ethnicity matters a lot… My friend who is hispanic, has 2150 SAT and GPA <3.8 got in. I don’t mean to say numbers are everything that define you, but just looking her getting exuberant in front of my face when I’m rejected (and knowing that her profile probably wasn’t as strong as mine or other Asians/Americans who got rejected from Columbia in my school) was pretty demeaning and annoying.</p>

29

<p>Decision: Accepted - CC</p>

<p>Objective:• SAT I (breakdown): CR-670 W-710 M-770
• SAT II: Chem-740 Math 2-770
• Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.9
• AP (place score in parenthesis): Psych (5), Lang (4), Chem (4), U.S. History (4), World History (4)
• Senior Year Course Load: AP Bio, AP Calc BC, AP Gov, AP Econ, AP Lit, Yearbook, Physics Hn
• Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Achievement Scholarship Semifinalist</p>

<p>Subjective:• Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Yearbook (Team Leader/Section Editor), Science National Honor Society (President), National Honor Society (Secretary), Model UN (Co-creator and VP)
• Volunteer/Community service: Volunteer at Children’s National Medical Center for a year so far, awesome place :slight_smile:
• Summer Activities: Interned at a neuroscience clinic
• Essays: one about how much I love the core (a conversation with Homer on Greek mythology), one about how much I love neuroscience and yearbook, and one connecting all of my interests in Greek mythology, superheroes, and the brain
• Teacher Recommendation: awesome one from my Chemistry teacher of two years and my junior year English teacher
• Counselor Rec: she’s new, but we fill out a form to give to our counselors so I’m sure it was fine
• Additional Rec: none
• Interview: My interviewer was a really nice and young lady. She said she really enjoyed my interview and would write a “glowing review” lol</p>

<p>Other• State (if domestic applicant): Virginia
• School Type: public (HUGE and VERY competitive)
• Ethnicity: African american
• Gender:female
• Income Bracket: pretty low
• Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM, first generation college</p>

<p>Reflection• Strengths: my essays were really creative and I think they showed my devotion to my volunteering job at the hospital. I show huge interest in neuroscience and want to go into pediatric neurosurgery, so I made sure to highlight that passion. And I’m a pretty humorous person in writing (in person too hopefully!)
• Weaknesses: Wellllll I must say compared to a lot of people, my GPA and SAT scores ain’t all that great, and I never stuck to a sport (did track, field hockey, and lacrosse but quit halfway in the year lol)
• Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: probably my volunteering job, its a pretty prestigious program I’m in where I get to basically dress up as a bear. It also helped me talk about my passion which is always a bonus.
• Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: this was my first decision back!</p>

30

<p>Decision: Accepted - SEAS</p>

<p>Objective:[ul]
[<em>] SAT I (breakdown): 740R 770M 690W
[</em>] ACT: 34 (35 superscore)
[<em>] SAT II: 750 Chem, 800 Math II
[</em>] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.9
[<em>] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): top 10%
[</em>] AP (place score in parenthesis): Human Geo 5, Chinese 5, World History 5, Chem 4, Calc AB 4, Calc BC 4, Lang and Comp 5, US History 4, Bio 4, Music Theory 4
[<em>] IB (place score in parenthesis):
[</em>] Senior Year Course Load: H Anatomy, AP Physics C, AP Lang and Lit, H Microbiology, AP Econ Micro/Macro, H Advanced Math II, Academic Decathlon
[<em>] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): ABRSM Piano Level 8, National AP Scholar (is this a major award???)
[/ul]Subjective:[ul]
[</em>] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Cross country (jv 9-10, varsity 11-12, captain 12), piano (10 years), chamber ensemble club (founder and pres), yearbook (graphic designer 9-10, graphic design editor 11-12), academic decathlon, math team
[<em>] Job/Work Experience: research internship with American Cancer Society summer 2013. worked 320 hours, $2000 stipend, project on histone acetylation
[</em>] Volunteer/Community service: volunteer at hospital every week 11-12
[<em>] Summer Activities: cross country, piano, research (summer 2012 and 2013)
[</em>] Essays: common app-poignant, pretty good. activity essay- about cross country, pretty good. book essay- about Outliers by Gladwell, okay/good. why columbia- okay. why engineering- good.
[<em>] Teacher Recommendation: math teacher- good? english teacher- okay?
[</em>] Counselor Rec: counselor- mediocre, generic (she didn’t like me much)
[<em>] Additional Rec: none
[</em>] Interview: it was alright. my interviewer and i were pretty similar but i didn’t make that connection with her. she had recently graduated from CC. we covered the basic interview questions, lasted about an hour. it was alright and pleasant but not chummy and amazing. she seemed impressed with my extracurrics though.</p>

<p>[/ul]Other[ul]
[<em>] State (if domestic applicant): IL
[</em>] Country (if international applicant):
[<em>] School Type: large public
[</em>] Ethnicity: Asian…
[<em>] Gender: F
[</em>] Income Bracket: ~$70,000
[<em>] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none
[/ul]Reflection[ul]
[</em>] Strengths: female applying to SEAS, research internship during summer 2013 (i sent in the abstract for the paper i wrote), commitment to cross country
[<em>] Weaknesses: asian, my bs-ed why columbia essay
[</em>] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: see strengths
[li] Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: waiting on UMich EA, USC RD, WashU RD. guess i’m done with the college app process… i really wanted to know if i could get into Stanford though. poo.</p>[/li]
<p>[/ul]General Comments:
i’m absolutely mindblown. i was betting on the fact that i wouldn’t get in, but i did. i honestly think i got in mostly because of my sex and the unbalanced gender ratio in SEAS. i actually do not know how much aid i will be getting, since the website isn’t letting me log in (i never got to activate my fin aid account…) so i will be calling tomorrow. i’m numb with shock. maybe i’ll be excited tomorrow. </p>

<p>to those still waiting, good luck!!! and to prospective students, don’t stress too much! just wholeheartedly pursue your interests!</p>

31

<p>Decision: Accepted - CC</p>

<p>Objective:• SAT I (breakdown): CR-800 W-800 M-740
• SAT II: French w/ Listening- 780 Math 2-800 US History- 770 Literature- 780
• Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.98
• AP (place score in parentheses): French (5), Calc BC (5), Bio (4), U.S. History (5), Lang (5)
• Senior Year Course Load: Multivariable Calculus, AP Physics B, AP US Government, AP English Literature
• Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): None</p>

<p>Subjective:• Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Journalism (Managing Editor), Varsity Tennis (Co-Captain), Speech and Debate, French tutor
• Volunteer/Community service: Taught beginning French to elementary school students
• Summer Activities: Went to the California Scholastic Press Association workshop
• Essays: Common app- Teaching French (to little kids and to an 88-year-old lady). Extracurricular Activity- My love for journalism. Book- Emma
• Teacher Recommendation: From my French and APUSH teachers, both of whom knew me fairly well I suppose.
• Counselor Rec: He was my English teacher Freshman year!
• Additional Rec: none
• Interview: None</p>

<p>Other• State (if domestic applicant): CA
• School Type: Public
• Ethnicity: Asian
• Gender: Female
• Income Bracket: N/A
• Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None</p>

<p>Reflection• Strengths: I guess my essays showed my love for French, journalism and history! I applied as a major in both of those subjects, so it probably wasn’t quite as competitive. Also my SAT scores and grades weren’t too bad.
• Weaknesses: I don’t have many major awards.
• Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Probably just because I wasn’t applying in very competitive fields.
• Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: First decision!</p>

32

<p>Decision: Accepted - SEAS</p>

<p>Objective:[ul]
[<em>] SAT: 800 Reading, 750 Math, 790 Writing
[</em>] ACT: Didn’t take
[<em>] SAT IIs: 790 Math II, 780 Physics, 780 Literature
[</em>] GPA: ~95 UW ~106 W
[<em>] Rank: 10%/650
[</em>] AP (place score in parenthesis): Physics (5) Chem (5) APUSH (5) Human Geo (5) Psych (5) English (5) WHAP (4) Latin IV (4)
[<em>] IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
[</em>] Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics 2, Latin V, AP Macro Econ, Lunch, AP Stats, Organic Chem, AP Calc BC, More AP English)
[<em>] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Academic All-American Athlete, National Merit Semifinalist, Girl Scout Gold Award, Some Latin and AP Scholar awards?
[/ul]Subjective:[ul]
[</em>] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Varsity Lacrosse (captain), Destination Imagination, Latin Club (webmaster—sent them a link to the site I made), Venture Crew (communications officer), Girl Scouts (webmaster), Mu Alpha Theta, National Honor Society
[<em>] Job/Work Experience: Childcare, interned at veterinary clinic and in a physics lab
[</em>] Volunteer/Community service: Traveled with an adaptive diving organization, taught science fair at local elementary school, assorted volunteer activities through girl scouts and church
[<em>] Summer Activities: Physics internship mentioned above, Duke TIP camp, volunteered with that adaptive diving org., lacrosse skills camp, traveled with family
[</em>] Essays: I wrote about how I am most content in the ocean for the common app (talked about the mystery and how that got me interested in science, my love of volunteering through SCUBA) and about an amazing lab my physics teacher showed me to kick off the engineering essay, got specific about certain programs for why Columbia
[<em>] Teacher Recommendation: Physics Teacher (I’m usually quiet, but I know she knew how much I loved her class.) Latin Teacher (had the same one for years, sure it was awesome)
[</em>] Counselor Rec: I don’t know her very well and we only talked when I was stressed or being an airhead haha… But I think it was good :stuck_out_tongue:
[<em>] Additional Rec: Professor from Duke TIP (know it was amazing)
[</em>] Interview: None
[/ul]Other:[ul]
[<em>] State (if domestic applicant): Texas
[</em>] School Type: Large, Public, Nationally Ranked
[<em>] Ethnicity: White
[</em>] Gender: Female
[<em>] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Nope… female in STEM?
[/ul]Reflection:[ul]
[</em>] Strengths: Definitely essays, standardized test scores, variety of interests
[<em>] Weaknesses: Rank, could probably have had more leadership
[</em>] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I honestly think my essays may have been what pulled me through. I love to write and I capitalized on what little opportunity I had to create a real person out of all those lists and scores! You do the same!
[li] Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Texas A&M (accepted), Baylor (accepted) haven’t heard from any others yet[/ul][/li]General Comments:
Good luck! I’m posting because I remember being so glad to have results from old applicants when I was a wee junior… This college confidential business will suck you in so be careful lol</p>

33

<p>Decision: Accepted - CC</p>

<p>Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2320, 800 Math, 770 Writing, 750 Critical Reading, 9 Essay
ACT: 36C, 35E, 36M, 36R, 36S
SAT II: didn’t take
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.76
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 12/301
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Calculus AB (4), AP Music Theory (5), AP US History (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP French, AP English Literature, AP Economics, AP Calculus BC, Advanced Problem Solving (Math), AP Physics C, AP Human Geography (audit), Orchestra (audit)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Semifinalist, nothing too incredible, some school awards, Academic Decathlon Medals, Allstate qualifier four years in a row, AP Scholar
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Students Ending Environmental Destruction, 80+ hours logged testing water for the Department of Environmental Protection
Math Team Scorer, 4 years
Academic Decathlon, State Gold Medalist in Essay Round, Silver Medalist in Music, Bronze Medalist in Math
French Club (Cofounder)
Orchestra (Principal Violist, 9-12)
Job/Work Experience: no job really
Volunteer/Community service: Key Club, 200+ hours logged spending time talking to and performing for Alzheimer patients, many other volunteer opportunities
Summer Activities: Internship at City Hall last summer
Essays: very good, most included richly detailed anecdotes and related back to other parts of my app very nicely, passion came through well
Teacher Recommendation: French teacher who oversees French club, the other from my English teacher, haven’t seen either, probably good
Counselor Rec: my principal helped write part of it, I assume it was good enough
Additional Rec: my internship boss, wrote about how I spearheaded a project for the City and showed leadership
Interview: very good, related well, showed my innate desire to learn
Other
State (if domestic applicant): Maine
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Good Medium Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: ~90,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none!
Reflection
Strengths: test scores, EC’s, essays
Weaknesses: GPA, possible comments from teachers about how I often get work turned in late, no hooks
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I think I really showed my genuine interests and they were quirky enough that I stood out, that 36 ACT probably helped a little, too
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted to Northeastern and Fordham EA. Not going to apply anywhere else!
General Comments: Shocked, ecstatic! The feeling you get when you press your mouse and see the letter load in front of your eyes is unimaginable. I feel like I’ve become a legend. Hope everyone else gets in wherever they wish!</p>

34

<p>Decision: Deferred - CC</p>

<p>Objective: 2360
SAT I (breakdown): 800 CR 800 W 760 M 12 E
ACT: N/A
SAT II: 800 Chem; 800 Physics; 800 Math2; 780 Bio
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/~330
AP (place score in parenthesis): 5 Chem 5 US History
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: All APs
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Too tired to list
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Many w/ leadership
Job/Work Experience: None
Volunteer/Community service: >200hrs
Summer Activities: Substantial
Essays: Great
Teacher Recommendation: Great
Counselor Rec: Great
Additional Rec:
Interview: Great
Other
State (if domestic applicant): NY
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Large Public
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: M
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):
Reflection
Strengths: SAT, Academics, ECs
Weaknesses: Asian?
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: ???
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
General Comments: Hopefully will do better in RD</p>

35

<p>Decision: Rejected - CC</p>

<p>Objective:[ul]
[<em>] SAT I (breakdown): Superscore 2210: CR 690, M 770, W 750
[</em>] ACT: N/A
[<em>] SAT II: Math 2 800, Chem 770, World History 740
[</em>] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): School does not calculate, but about 3.7; weighted GPA is 3.8
[<em>] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): School does not rank
[</em>] AP (place score in parenthesis): Calculus BC, Chemistry, both Physics C exams, Statistics, Microeconomics, World, US and European History, Comparative Government and Politics (all 5s)
[<em>] IB (place score in parenthesis): None
[</em>] Senior Year Course Load: 3 AP courses (AP Lit, AP Psy and APHG) and an honors linear algebra course (at college level supposedly) and other courses to fulfill national education requirements
[<em>] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Scholar w/distinction and a national chemistry award
[/ul]
Subjective:[ul]
[</em>] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Moot Court president, a student-run charitable society (founding member, active member and leadership; it does not have a president), chemistry society vice-president
[<em>] Job/Work Experience: N/A
[</em>] Volunteer/Community service: The charitable society mentioned above
[<em>] Summer Activities: Not really much
[</em>] Essays: Don’t really know, but at least acceptable
[<em>] Teacher Recs: Ought to be good
[</em>] Counselor Rec: Don’t know
[<em>] Additional Rec: none
[</em>] Interview: Not offered
[/ul]Other[ul]
[<em>] Applied for Financial Aid?: No
[</em>] Intended Major: History
[<em>] Country: China
[</em>] School Type: Public
[<em>] Race(s) (AI/AN, Asian, AA, NH/PI, White, not reported): Asian
[</em>] Gender: M
[<em>] Income Bracket:
[</em>] Hooks/tips (URM, athlete, legacy, 1st gen, etc.): None
[/ul][ b]Reflection**[ul]
[<em>] Strengths: Some leadership and fairly good academic recs
[</em>] Weaknesses: SAT (relatively…), GPA
[li] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/denied: Don’t really know, guess only by chance. Everything was so-so (like average) but nothing was outstanding[/li][/ul]General Comments: I want to get into Northwestern now.</p>

36

<p>Decision: Accepted- CC</p>

<p>SAT I (breakdown): 2180- 720 CR, 730 M, 730 W
ACT: NA
SAT II: 800 Bio E, 750 US History, 730 M2
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.85
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): NA
AP (place score in parenthesis): US History (5), World History (5), Calc AB (5), Bio (5), Lit & Comp (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): NA
Senior Year Course Load: 3 APs, the rest honors
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Scholar with Distinction, Commended National Merit
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Student Council (Vice President), Editor in Chief of School Newspaper, JV Basketball
Job/Work Experience: NA
Volunteer/Community service: over 200 hours
Summer Activities: Interned at my local hospital
Essays: They were great. By far my best peice of writing.
Teacher Recommendation: Also great. Both of my teachers loved me.
Counselor Rec: Awesome. We have a great relationship and he told me he spent a lot of time on it and it was great.
Additional Rec: NA
Interview: Didnt get one
Other
State (if domestic applicant): CA
Country (if international applicant): NA
School Type: Small Private (Im talking small here. Like, under 150 kids)
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: >100k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Legacy
Reflection
Strengths: Essays and Recs
Weaknesses: SAT and SAT II
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I thought I was a for sure rejection. I think I really touched the adcoms with my essay, and I know the recs were all stellar. Im sure legacy gave me a leg up too. Besides for that, Im a totally average applicant, with an OK GPA and not so many extracurriculars. That essay really counts!!
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Nowhere. And I dont need to worry about it anymore :)</p>

<p>Congrats to all the accepted and good luck to all of the defferals/rejections. Itll all work out!</p>

37

<p>Decision: Deferred - CC</p>

<p>Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2400 superscored
ACT: N/A
SAT II: 800 math II, 780 bio
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.9
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 4/350
AP (place score in parenthesis): 5,5,5,5,4
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: 5 APs
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): not really
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): internships, service, student government
Job/Work Experience: None
Volunteer/Community service: a lot
Summer Activities: internships
Essays: very good
Teacher Recommendation: didnt see
Counselor Rec: didnt see
Additional Rec:
Interview:
Other
State (if domestic applicant): MD
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Large Public
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: F
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):
Reflection
Strengths: SAT, Academics
Weaknesses: Asian
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: no clue; didnt get an interview, maybe they wanted to wait for that?
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted at Caltech EA! I’d be a lot more stressed about RD if i didnt have that.
General Comments: Hope i get in RD!</p>

38

<p>Objective:</p>

<p>SAT I (breakdown): 2280 (710 reading, 800 writing, 770 math)
ACT: N/A
SAT II: 800 Math II, 740 Biology
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.21/4.6
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 10 percent
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP World (5), AP Biology (5), AP US History (5), AP English Language (5), AP Photography (5), AP Chemistry, AP AB Calc, AP English Lit
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Chemistry, AP AB Calc, AP English Lit, Science Research, Advanced Physics<br>
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Winner of multiple international piano competitions, AP Scholar with Distinction, Cum Laude, Foreign Language Honors Society, Mu Alpha Theta (Math honors society)</p>

<p>Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Winner of AFAF International Solo competition, winner of AFAF international concerto competition, finalist in Yonkers symphony concerto competition, attended Manhattan School of Music precollege program, attended Columbia Science Honors Program, volunteered at Columbia Psychiatric Institute, completed research at psychiatric ward in Israel, and more related to science and music
Job/Work Experience: Tutor, worked as a cashier/waitress last summer
Volunteer/Community service: Volunteered at NYU Langone Medical Center, volunteered at Columbia’s Psychiatric Institute
Summer Activities: Above volunteer work, plus Yale University Summer Program
Essays: Stellar
Teacher Recommendation: Close with my teachers, I assume pretty good
Counselor Rec: Same thing
Additional Rec: From my piano teacher who probably wrote the best rec.
Interview: Went really well, interviewer told me I was in a “great place and had nothing to worry about” </p>

<p>Other
State (if domestic applicant): NY
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Competitive Pubic
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: +250,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None</p>

<p>Reflection
Strengths: Extracurriculars, scores, REALLY showed interest
Weaknesses: I’m white ha!!!
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Cuz I’m white.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: None yet
General Comments: Really am devastated about this decision. Columbia has been my dream school for ten years, and I have worked all of high school to get in. Not sure what else they possibly want me to do. Whatever I guess, on to da next one</p>

39

<p>@above rejected people. I’m glad to know I’m not the only one rejected (not even deferred!) with really good stats. We’ll all get in somewhere really amazing, so don’t worry about it. Princeton maybe?</p>

40

<p>Rejected-CC
SAT I (breakdown): 2240 (800 reading, 750 writing, 690 math)
ACT: N/A
SAT II: 730 Math II, 700 English Literature
CBSE system, India: 9th and 10th: 8.8/10 11th: 72% 12th: 66%(Grade deflation in 11th and 12th)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 5 percent
AP (place score in parenthesis): School doesn’t offer
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: N/A
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): 3 Best Delegates(1xIntl 1xNat. 1xSchool), Proficiency in Oratory Skills(School)</p>

<p>Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): 1. Secretary General of International MUN conference-400 participants. Head of school MUN community of 200 people+Secretariat of 50. School ranked as one of Top 25 best intl. MUN teams under my leadership.
2. Chief Editor-Business Club newsletter. Also organized two school level competitions
3. Research Paper on Private Equity in Emerging Markets. Not published, though.
Job/Work Experience: Intern at India’s largest Venture Capital firm. Only HS kid to ever intern there.
Volunteer/Community service: Week long rural sensitisation program in the foothills of the Himalayas, taught underprivileged kids after school
Summer Activities: Internship, Research Paper, Head of Intl. MUN Conference
Essays: Common App was way too risky in hindsight, supplement should’ve been better
Teacher Recommendation: Both were probably very good, Top 5% in Math. Econ teacher said I’m in the top 10% she’s ever taught in 14 years
Counselor Rec: Strong, probably generic. DIDN’T MENTION GRADE DEFLATION!!!
Additional Rec: From a very famous entrepreneur in India, who knows me extremely well. Had to do with my research paper.
Interview: Said I “blew his socks off”</p>

<p>Other
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant): India
School Type: Top Ranked Public
Ethnicity: Indian
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: $200k+
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Full-paying international? Idk </p>

<p>Reflection
Strengths: SAT score, ECs
Weaknesses: Didn’t talk about grade deflation properly, in hindsight my essays weren’t amazing
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Mainly school grades.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Applied to UChic, let’s see what happens. Probably going to be the same tbh.
General Comments: Won’t say I’m not upset, but I suppose there are other things in store. Congratulations to those who made it!</p>