Decision: Accepted into College of Human Ecology via Diversity Likely Letter
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 1360 (630M, 730W&R, 18/24?)
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): Same as above, but 24/24
ACT (breakdown): 30 (35R, 35W, 25M, 26S)
ACT superscore (breakdown): Same as above
SAT II (subject, score): Biology E (680), Spanish (800)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.98
Weighted GPA: 4.48
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1
AP (place score in parentheses): Bio (4), Literature (4), Spanish (5), Art (3)
IB (place score in parentheses): -
Senior Year Course Load: Government/Econ, T.A., AP Physics 1 (ruined my 4.0…), Psychology, AP Calculus, AP Language, Human Biology (Dual Enrollment [DE] 1st semester), Medical Terminology (DE, 1st semester), Chemistry (DE, 2nd semester), Public Speaking (DE, 2nd semester)
Number of other EA applicants in your school: I was the only one who applied to Cornell
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): Scholastic Art & Writing state awards
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): Some regional and school stuff, for example Violet Richardson Award and Excellence in AP Literature
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): Interact - Rotary International (9-12, Treasurer, community service oriented), Success (10-12, Community Service Officer, community service oriented), Creative Writing Club (12, Vice President, we write for fun), Senior Capstone (12, N/A, took a class on human diseases and gave a presentation to some of the school community on it, super fun)
Job/Work Experience: Agriculture Worker (10, about 1 month), Library Page (10, to present)
Volunteer/Community Service: See extracurriculars, reader at St. Anthony’s Parish
Summer Experience: Don’t think I mentioned this in my app, but here you go: Summertime Success, study for ACT using PrepScholar (it worked!), 2 Dual Enrollment Courses, worked on Capstone
Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Essays: I thought they were pretty strong. Hands down, my best writing was my Cornell essay. Here’s a writing sample:
Please briefly elaborate on one of your extracurricular activities or work experiences.
As a mentor/tutor in Success, I help kids 6-14 years old with their homework, but also with the trials of growing up. As a high school student, I was in their place not long ago, so I can give them advice on things they may not feel comfortable discussing with their parents. Mentors can give mentees advice on academics, something especially vital, as most mentees’ parents have limited to no schooling. This organization has taught me the importance of reaching out to others and sharing my knowledge. Many times people overlook the inner problems others have because they don’t physically see them, and this program has taught me that those problems are the ones that weigh down on people the most. Although I was technically only teaching kids how to do basic algebra, I learned how to help people with any inner dilemmas they face.
Teacher Recommendation #1: English teacher for 9 & 10th grade, GREAT recommendation (the woman can write!)
Teacher Recommendation #2: Spanish teacher 9 &10th grade, very good recommendation
Teacher Recommendation #3: Think I had a 3rd one. Math teacher 10th-12th grade, okay recommendation
Counselor Rec: Didn’t read it but I think it was good; we know each pretty well
Additional Info/Rec: I think I sent in two. 1st - Head librarian, great recommendation, really complemented the teacher recommendations 2nd- CA state assemblywoman or something like that. I barely know her, but she loves me because I read at church. Probably stereotypical recommendation but I’m sure her title only helped.
Interview: I told my twin sister, “I’m not getting in with this interview.” Enough said.
Art Supplement: -
Other
Date Submitted App: January 1st
U.S. State/Territory or Country: CA
School Type: Small, rural public
Ethnicity: Hispanic
Gender: Female
Income Bracket Range: <90K
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athlete, development): URM, 1st generation, underachieving school/area?
Major Applied for: Health, Human Biology, and Society
Reflection
Strengths: Essays, Dual Enrollment?
Weaknesses: Test scores, amount of extracurriculars
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Good essays is all that comes to mind. I guess they saw I was motivated and that I was a good investment?!
What would you have done differently?: Not send all of my test scores, further editing my essays, joining more extracurriculars
Where else did you apply? UCD (in w/honors), UCSC (in), UCLA (in), UCB, Brown, Harvard, USC, Stanford EA (rejected), Bambi (AKA Vanderbilt)
**Other Factors: ** The interview doesn’t hold a big weight. Thank God! It was pretty bad because every time I asked her a question she either didn’t know the answer or would just make these sounds like “this is such a stupid question.” (The interview was via phone.)
General Comments & Advice: From what I’ve seen at my school, a good SAT/ACT won’t really help, but a bad one will definitely hurt, so study! Focus on your essays and have a lot of people look over them. Also edit them yourself. I think I made like 15 different versions of the same essay. A lot of editing! Also, even though this is overused, be yourself! I think that was my biggest downfall for Stanford, though there’s no way to know, of course. Just make sure that your voice shines through. Like if you dropped your essay, someone could pick it up, read a bit of it, and immediately know it was yours.