***Official Duke 2019 RD Results ONLY Thread***

[xFirefirex]

Decision: Rejected

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 2160 (760 CR, 680 Math, 720 Writing) - Did not send
ACT (breakdown):33 (36 Reading, 35 English, I don’t remember my Science/Math sections, but they were both over 30).
SAT II:760 US History, 660 Biology
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.8
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 10%
AP (place score in parentheses): AP Macro (5), AP Bio (5), AP US History (5), AP Euro (5)
IB (place score in parentheses):
Senior Year Course Load: Religion, Psychology Honors, AP Comparative Gov, AP US Gov, AP Calc AB, AP Literature, AP Physics, Spanish 4 Honors
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National AP Scholar with Honor, National Hispanic Merit Scholar, National Commended Student

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses):

• Debate Club (Founder, President, National Forensics League Student Life Committee Member)
  -Model UN (Vice President): Attend 5 competitions
  -Environmental Club : Started a new school wide recycling program
  -NHS (President): Started a new international student mentoring program at school for students on semester abroad trips. Service Chair for weekly Ronald McDonald events. Planned yearly induction ceremony.
  -Creative Writing Club (Vice President): In charge of designing and publishing quarterly literary journals. Headed publications of writing competitions at school.

Job/Work Experience:
Worked part time for a company where I was in charge of their inventory logistics

Volunteer/Community service: Over 150 hours at various organizations.
Summer Activities:
Essays: I would give my common app essay an 8. I wrote about going against the family grain and making my first political decision.

Teacher Recommendation:I asked my AP Comp/AP US History teacher and my English 3 Honors teacher. Both of them really like me (and the English teacher is the NHS moderator) so I think they wrote good recs.
Counselor Rec: I think it was fine. She knows me pretty well and says I’m among the top of my class. She also told me I had the hardest course load of anyone else in the Senior class.
Additional Rec:
Interview: Didn’t submit my app in time for one
Supplementary Material:

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
State (if domestic applicant): Florida
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Private (Catholic)
Ethnicity: Hispanic
Gender: MAle
Income Bracket(mention if FA candidate): <75k, applied for FA.
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM

Reflection
Strengths:Common App Essay, Letters of Rec, ECs,
Weaknesses:Low test scores (compared to College Confidential standards), I didn’t accomplish anything super big.
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: It was a very competitive year. My Duke specific essay was pretty lackluster compared to my other essays. I also didn’t interview for the school.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Accepted- FSU, UF, Cornell, Vanderbilt
Rejected- Duke
Deferred SCEA from Yale
Waiting on Brown, Columbia, Harvard, Johns Hopkins, Princeton, Stanford, Yale, Dartmouth, UPenn

[co2015int]

Decision: Accepted

Objective:

[ul]
[] SAT I: 2280 (800 Math, 760 CR, 720 Writing)
[] ACT: Didn’t Take
[] SAT II: 780 Math II, 710 Chem
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): None Available (probably top 10%)
[] AP (place score in parenthesis): World History (4), Chemistry (4), Stats (4), Calc AB (5), English Lang and Comp (4)
[] IB (place score in parenthesis): None
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP Economics (Macro and Micro), AP Calc BC, AP Studio Art 3D, AP French, AP Computer Science, AP Physics 1, World Literature
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): none
Subjective:

[list]
[] Extracurriculars: Service in Vietnam (president of club at my school), NHS, SNHS, Mu Alpha Theta (I tutor a lot during my free time), FHS, NAHS
[] Job/Work Experience: Worked at a tutoring centre for math during the summer
[] Volunteer/Community service: Service in Vietnam, every year
[] Essays: Wrote my essay about service, but tried to make it not generic
[] Teacher Recommendations: Math and English - math teacher and I are very close, english teacher writes well
[] Counselor Rec: Good, new counsellor this year so not sure how well she knew me
[] Additional Rec: From the founder of the NGO that supports the school I work with in Vietnam
[] Interview: Went extremely well, the alum who interviewed me was super charismatic
Other

[list]
[] State (if domestic applicant):
[] Country (if international applicant): Singapore
[] School Type: Private
[] Ethnicity: Indian
[] Gender: F
[] Income Bracket:
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None
Reflection

[list]
[] Strengths: Essays, GPA, commitment to service
[] Weaknesses: Test scores on AP, nationality
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Duke places a lot of emphasis on service, so maybe that’s why
[] Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:[/ul] Waitlist: Harvey Mudd, Accepted: Duke, Case Western, Umich, Waiting: Cornell, Stanford, Harvard, Carnegie Mellon, Columbia, UPenn
General Comments:
So happy :))

[theice]

Decision: Accepted

Objective:

[ul]
[] SAT I: Did not submit.
[] ACT: 33 Composite
[] SAT II: Chemistry 710, Physics 740, Math II 740
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1 out of 296
[] AP (place score in parenthesis): Chemistry (5), Physics B (5), APUSH (4), Language (4), Biology (4), Euro (5), BC Calculus (5)
[] IB (place score in parenthesis): We don’t do IB at my school.
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP Literature, AP Environmental, AP Stats, AP World History, AP History of Art, AP Computer Science A, AP Psychology, AP U.S Government
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):[/ul] Okay, I actuall have zero major awards, which is why my acceptance confuses me. My quiz bowl team has won county and regional competitions, I have placed at Model UN conferences, and I have some school awards for AP Chemistry and AP Physics my sophomore year.
Subjective:

[ul]
[] Extracurriculars: Model UN (10, 11, 12), Moot Court(10,11,12), SummerVentures- 200+ hours of laboratory research over the summer in molecular biology (11), Track and Field- Regional athlete (9, 10, 11, 12), Cross Country- regional runner (9, 10, 11, 12), Quiz Bowl (10, 11, 12), National Honors Society (11, 12), Interact Club (10, 11, 12)
[] Job/Work Experience: Work at Subway since August 2014- about 20-30 hours per week.
[] Volunteer/Community service: I tutor students after school as well as elementary students, NHS and Interact require volunteer hours. That’s about it.
[li] Essays: 10/10. Personal Statement: About overcoming drug addicted mother and homosexuality and how pursuing perfection is futile due to the subjective nature of the word. Why Duke: Compared Duke to an ecosystem where everyone has a niche, discussed how, even though everyone in my family is a UNC fan, I know where I belong. Optional essay: Discussed my transition from living in northern Virginia to the Charlotte area and what impact was made on me.[/li]
[] Teacher Recommendations: 10/10. Close relationship with all 3.
[] Counselor Rec: Probably really bad. My counselor is incompetent.
[] Additional Rec: 10/10: My friend from Dartmouth who is an editor of their law journal and my other friend who is a Park Scholar at NCSU wrote them
[] Interview:[/ul]: Didn’t do one.
Other

[ul]
[] State (if domestic applicant): North Carolina
[] Country (if international applicant): USA
[] School Type: Public
[] Ethnicity: White
[] Gender: Male
[] Income Bracket: >50,000
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):[/ul] First Generation, Gay, Survivor… that’s about it.
Reflection

[ul]
[] Strengths: Good teacher and additional recommendations, strong essays, hard senior year, homosexual diversity.
[] Weaknesses: Everything, lol. I do no volunteering or extracurriculars and have no national recognition for anything. My test scores weren’t stellar, either.
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I have no idea but I have no complaints.
[li] Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:[/ul] Accepted: UNC Chapel Hill, NC State.[/li]Waitlisted: None
Rejected: Berkeley
Waiting: Rice, Yale
General Comments: I have NO idea how this happened, but I am so excited!!

[keyboard18]

Decision: Accepted

Objective:

[ul]
[] SAT I: 800-800-780 (superscore 2400)
[] ACT: 36
[] SAT II: 800 Lit, 770 Chem, 760 M2
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): school does weighted (4.41)
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):Valedictorian out of 100
[] AP (place score in parenthesis): Music Theory (5), Spanish (5), English Lang (5), World History (5),Euro (5), Stats (5), Calc BC (5), Chem (4…darn it)
[] Senior Year Course Load: Honors International Relations, Multivariable Calc, Honors Art, AP English Lit, AP Spanish Lit (independent study), AP Bio, AP Physics C (Mech), AP Gov (independent study)
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): NMF, National AP Scholar, Presidential Scholar candidate, lightweight AMC stuff[/ul]
Subjective:

[ul]
[] Extracurriculars: Rock music (played at Lollapalooza), cross country (3 year varsity letter, captaincy), Women’s Leadership Club (founder, 3 year president), etc.
[] Job/Work Experience: videographer and kept book for basketball team; private tutor
[] Volunteer/Community service: a program at my school where we educate disenfranchised youth about nutrition and physical activity
[] Essays: Common App about playing basketball and how I fell in love with it even though I wasn’t good, 9/10 and probably the right essay to send to Duke LOL. Why I want to go to Duke was about a bunch of programs and classes that appealed to me, pretty cut-and-dry, 5/10. The ‘diversity’ essay was the best one: it was a comedic story about being a feminist and how I started the Women’s Leadership Club. 10/10
[] Teacher Recommendations: My two faves, I assume they were both great.
[] Counselor Rec: She likely did a good job.
[] Additional Rec: Music theory teacher of 15 years; she’s like a family member.
[] Interview: Funny story, so I submitted my application Jan 1 at 11:58 pm…I tend to overanalyze. Definitely missed the interview deadline. Didn’t have one.[/ul]
Other

[ul]
[] State (if domestic applicant): OH
[] Country (if international applicant):
[] School Type: Small private all-girls
[] Ethnicity: Asian and white
[] Gender: XX
[] Income Bracket: Didn’t apply for aid
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Nah[/ul]
Reflection

[ul]
[] Strengths: Scores (although nobody cares), exuberance in school (shattered record for most courses taken at my high school, etc)
[] Weaknesses: SAT IIs and not ever accomplishing anything huge
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: My application was read on Taco Tuesday right after lunch.
[li] Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted Berkeley, UCLA, Caltech, UChicago, Williams (LL), Duke (obviously, LL) Cornell (LL, Tanner Dean), Harvey Mudd, Case (some merit money), OSU, Mich. Waitlisted MIT. Rejected Juilliard. Deferred Princeton SCEA.[/ul][/li]General Comments: When I got deferred, I applied to a bunch of schools I wouldn’t have otherwise. I was kind of blindsided when I got my Duke likely, as I had never imagined I’d get in so it was sort of like being accepted to the University of the Moon. Immediately I threw up everything and visited over spring break. Loved the campus, the vibe, everything. I dropped in on my admissions counselor and, to my utter shock, he knew exactly who I was and asked how my band was doing. (I responded awkwardly enough to make me worry they’d rescind my likely letter.) I’ve come to realize that, just like my LL said, I am “exceptionally well-matched” to Duke. Barring an admit to–I don’t know, Stanford–there isn’t much that could make me change my mind at this point… (Probably) Duke 2019!

[detwylder]

Decision: Accepted
Pratt School of Engineering

Objective:

[ul]
[] SAT I: N/A
[] ACT: 34-- 35 M 35 Sci 34 Wri 31 Eng
[] SAT II: 750 Physics 700 Math 2 700 Chemistry
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0 (4.44 Weighted)
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A (School doesn’t rank)
[] AP (place score in parenthesis): World History (5) APUSH (5) AP Physics B (5) AP Psych (5) AP English Lang (3)
[] IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics C: Mech and E/M, AP Calc BC, AP Bio, AP English Lit, AP Gov/Econ
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Scholar with Distinction, National French Scholar Award (10)
[/ul]Subjective:

[ul]
[] Extracurriculars: Cross Country (10-12, Captain Senior Year), Track (9-12), NHS (11-12)
[] Job/Work Experience: Small Restaurant, worked for all of Junior year, and half of Senior year, ~15-20 hours a week
[] Volunteer/Community service: Volunteered 150+ hours at a retirement home for the memory impaired, Worked at the Salk Institute this past summer for over 100 hours in a genomic analysis laboratory
[] Essays: Actually wrote a poem for my why Duke essay, which I think really helped me stand out among the engineering applicants, for the optional essay about background I described how as a young girl I watched my grandfather deteriorate from Parkinson’s and tied it in with my volunteer work. Definitely the poem helped me a lot to stand out, as it was quite catchy
[] Teacher Recommendations: AP Physics B and C teacher who I know very well and absolutely adore, he is a great teacher and I’m sure he wrote a wonderful letter. My other letter was from my APUSH teacher who was also the Cross Country coach, again, I’m sure it was a great letter as I have known him for the entirety of my time at my school, since coming in as a sophomore
[] Counselor Rec: probably generic, it’s a large school but she seems to genuinely like me
[] Additional Rec: N/A
[] Interview: I think it went pretty well, he was an engineering student and a double major so we had a lot in common, as far as what I want to do, didn’t go for too long, just about 45 min, which honestly scared me a little.

[/ul]Other

[ul]
[] State (if domestic applicant): CA
[] Country (if international applicant):
[] School Type: Public, Large (533 senior class)
[] Ethnicity: White
[] Gender: Female
[] Income Bracket: Not certain, Mom is retired (single parent household) but we have savings…
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Female in engineering
[/ul]Reflection

• [] Strengths: Essays, strong GPA, work at Salk and retirement home ties into my desire to work with neural engineering
  [] Weaknesses: No outstanding leadership in any clubs or anything
  [] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Honestly I think the poem helped me out immensely because it really helped to distinguish me from another ordinary essay.
  [] Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted to UCSD, UCSB Waitlisted at UCLA Rejected from Stanford (Early Action- I knew it was a long shot) and UC Berkeley, Still waiting to hear from Johns Hopkins, Columbia and Harvard

General Comments: I am so ecstatic to be accepted into Duke. I actually thought that I was going to be rejected when I was opening up the portal, but when I saw the first line I screamed and threw my phone. As i was at a track meet, I did manage to scare a lot of people before I started to cry from joy (hahaha). This school has been my top school for a while, and I was really mad at myself for not applying ED because I thought I lost my shot. For any future applicants: do whatever you can to set yourself apart from the rest of the applicants, don’t worry if the interview doesn’t seem to go well (I was very awkward for me interview). Also don’t be discouraged if you get rejected from a school. As long as you work hard and keep your head up, you can do anything, and you will do some amazing things! Can’t wait to meet the incoming class of 2019! Go Blue Devils!!

[predent]

** Decision: Accepted to Pratt and crying :’) **

Objective:

[ul]
[] SAT I: 2270 (680 CR, 790 M, 800 W)
[] ACT: 33
[] SAT II: 800 Math II, 770 Chemistry, 710 Spanish (no listening)
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.00
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 2/590
[] AP (place score in parenthesis): AP European History (4), AP Calculus BC (5), AP Spanish Language and Culture (5), AP United States History (5), AP English Language and Composition (5), AP Chemistry (5)
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP Statistics, AP Macroeconomics, AP United States Government, AP Biology, AP English Literature and Composition, PE, TA/Lab Aide (for AP Chem teacher), AP Physics 1
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): none[/ul]
[ b]Subjective:**
[ list]
[] Extracurriculars/Volunteering and Community Service:
Speech Team (Treasurer and Secretary (10), Captain (11,12))
Science Olympiad (Captain (11,12))
Marching Band/Music (Marching Leader and Section Leader (10,11), Formed band (11,12))
Tennis (co-captain 11)
Civic Leadership Institute (11) through Northwestern’s CTD (more of a community service thing)
Research at Cancer Center (11)
Founder of Social Activism Club (11,12)
[] Job/Work Experience: none
[] Essays:
Common App: 6/10 (about music)
Why Pratt: 4/10 (wrote about Fitzpatrick center and mentioned engineering idea)
[] Teacher Recommendations: (guessing on all)
Chem Teacher: 7/10, knows me well and I think she really liked me as a student
US History Teacher: 4/10, fell asleep in her class after pulling two all-nighters for Science Olympiad, I felt super rude, not a great history student but I tried very hard in her class
Bio Teacher: 6/10, I help a lot in his lab but I don’t think I’ve left a huge impression on him. I do, however, think he likes me and he commented on my character
[] Counselor Rec: (guessing)
3/10-counselor barely knew me at all, probably very generic
[] Additional Rec:
Speech Coach: 9/10, I have known him for four years and he is my favorite teacher at the school. We get along so incredibly well and we hang out after school all the time. He knows who I am as a person and I think he definitely wrote me a nice rec.
[] Interview: none[/list]
Other

[ul]
[] State (if domestic applicant): Illinois
[] School Type: Public, about 2500 kids
[] Ethnicity: Asian (Indian-American)
[] Gender: Male
[] Income Bracket: About 100K
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None I know of[/ul]
Reflection

[ul]
[] Strengths: Speech Coach rec, common app essay, chem teacher rec, bio teacher rec, academics, mostly extracurricular activities (and definitely, once again, the rec from my Speech Coach)
[] Weaknesses: Test score in Critical Reading, Recs from counselor and my Why Pratt essay
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Not at all sure, but I think my activities
[li] Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted to Purdue, UIUC, Georgia Tech, and Case Western (plus Duke now!), waitlisted at Northwestern and Stanford, rejected at MIT, waiting on UPenn, Cornell, Carnegie Mellon, Rice, and UMichigan[/ul][/li]General Comments: If you have that teacher you love, but he or she isn’t academic, don’t worry, it can help. Do what you really love to do and get active (I know everyone says that, and I know everyone inserts this qualifier, but if you fake it, you’re going to hate it)

[Storian]

**Decision: rejected **

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I (breakdown): 2150 (750 CR 660 M 740 W)
[] ACT (breakdown):
[] SAT II: 680 Lit. 780 USH
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.88
[] Weighted GPA (if available):
[] Rank/percentile (if available):
[] AP (place score in parenthesis): 5 APUSH 4 APENG
[] IB (place score in parenthesis):
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP Art History, Newspaper, Speech & Debate Tm, AP Comparative Govt./Economics, AP Literature, Japanese 3
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): only minor awards

[/ul][ b]Subjective:**[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Newspaper (EIC), Speech/Debate Tm (Historian), NHS (Activities Director), Environmentalism Club (President), Peer tutoring (Historian), Student Council Historical Commission, HONY-esque FB page, school’s ambassador program (Media Commissioner)
[] Job/Work Experience: Freelance photographer, private tutor APUSH/APENG
[] Volunteer/Community service: Peer Tutoring, school ambassador program, NHS
[] Summer Activities: Summer school classes to get ahead: Contemporary Journalism, Algebra II, Chemistry, BYU Bio 100 200. SAT Boot Camp
[] Essays: Forgot!
[] Teacher Recommendation: One teacher whose had me for four years straight in HS and my lovely APUSH teacher from last year!
[] Counselor Rec: Assistant Principal wrote it, don’t know her much and vice versa though
[] Additional Rec: n/a

[/ul]Other[ul]
[] Applied for Financial Aid?: no
[] Intended Major: History
[] State (if domestic applicant): CA
[] Country (if international applicant):
[] School Type: public
[] Ethnicity: Asian
[] Gender: M
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): not that I know of; Asian with an interest in humanities?

[/ul]Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: leadership, strong history background
[] Weaknesses: that SAT I score and SAT II Lit. score
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Don’t know
[] Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: accepted at UCR, Humboldt, Fullerton, Cal Poly Pomona, UCSD, UCSB, UCSC, UCD, UCB waitlisted: WUSTL rejected: USC, UCLA, Northwestern

[/ul]General Comments:[list]
Not too bummed out today! Got a “yes” from Berkeley just two hours ago so I’m still running off of the ecstasy from that decision! Congrats to those who were accepted!

[superangie]

Decision: Accepted (Likely Letter)

Objective:

[ul]
[] SAT I: NA
[] ACT: 34 C (highest), 35 E, 36 R, 34 M, 34 S
[] SAT II: 800 Math 2C; 780 Korean w/ Listening; 710 US History
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.97
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/682
[] AP (place score in parenthesis): European History (5); Music Theory (5); Calculus BC w/ AB subscore (5, 5); US History (5); Language and Composition (5); Psychology (4); Computer Science A (3); Chemistry (3)
[] IB (place score in parenthesis): NA
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP Statistics, AP Literature and Composition, AP Government, AP Biology, Principles of Microeconomics (Community College), Intro to Sociology (Community College)
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Forensics League All American Academic Award, MTAC Level 10, Various state/regional debate awards, AP Scholar w/ Distinction[/ul]
Subjective:

[ul]
[] Extracurriculars: Nonprofit (Founder, CEO); Amnesty International (Founder & President); Habitat for Humanity (Founder & President); Speech and Debate program at local junior high school (Head Coach); Piano; Swimming (Varsity)
[] Job/Work Experience: Intern
[] Volunteer/Community service: Intern; Head Coach at local junior high school debate program; clubs; nonprofit
[] Essays: Common App (10): Talked about how being called the B word as a compliment to my achievements and leadership incited me to become a feminist and activist and inspired me to create my nonprofit;
Why Duke (8): Described various courses and organizations I want to be part of at Duke
Supplement (10): Talked about my internship and volunteer opportunity at a juvie center
[] Teacher Recommendations: Teacher Rec #1: (10) My Calc teacher said I’m his favorite student and we love to talk about politics together.; Teacher Rec #2: (10) My Lang teacher said he put that I’m the best student he’s had
[] Counselor Rec: (9) He wrote a letter for me for an application to a program, and it was really awesome.
[] Additional Rec: (10) My piano teacher loves me.
[] Interview: (8) I had a pretty good interview, and we talked about feminism, prison reform, and politics together. [/ul]
Other

[ul]
[] State (if domestic applicant): California
[] Country (if international applicant):
[] School Type: Public
[] Ethnicity: Korean
[] Gender: F
[] Income Bracket: <40k
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):[/ul]
Reflection

[ul]
[] Strengths: Nonprofit, Speech & Debate, feminist/activist platform, other EC’s
[] Weaknesses: Grades (they weren’t straight A’s like a lot of applicants), test scores, awards weren’t particularly amazing
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I think my EC’s made me stand out.
[] Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted: Yale (SCEA), University of Pennsylvania (Likely Letter), Wellesley (EE), Northwestern, UC Berkeley (Regents), UCI (Regents), UCSD, UCLA; Waitlisted: none so far; Rejected: none so far[/ul]

General Comments: I hope this helps future applicants! You honestly never know what’s going to happen, so don’t give up Good luck!!

[Disneydad]

Wait listed

Sorry too lazy to and pissed off to take the time to list everything. My son is Valedictorian in class of over 400. 35 ACT. 800 CR 760 M 730 W. 800 bio SAT. Three others from high school were accepted ED.

Duke May win on the court tonight but they lost yesterday when they passed in a great student.

[cvisser96]

**Decision: Waitlisted **
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2210 (single sitting) (CR-800, M-700, W-710)
ACT (breakdown): 32 (E 35, M 32, R 33, S 29, W 10)
SAT II: Math I 730, US History 770
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.25 (unweighted unknown)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 9/295
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Calc AB Subscore (5), BC (4), Eng Lang (4), Human Geography (5), US (5), World (5), AP Physics B and Chem did not report
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Statistics, AP Environmental Science, AP Comparative Government, AP English Lit, AP US Government, Health&PE, ITE 119 dual enrolled, AP French, and AP Euro self-study
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
Eagle Scout, Congressional Award Silver Medalist, Military Child of the Year 2014 Top-5 Finalist, Rock the Statue Green American-French Embassy Semi-Finalist, Gold Level Presidential Volunteer Service Award, AP Scholar with Distinction, National Merit Scholarship Commended, West Point Leadership Award, VA Boys State Lt. Governor Party Nomination Runner-Up, National Honor Society (Sec.), 2015 US Senate Youth Program Virginia Delegate

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Varsity Swim Team 10-12 (Captain, VHSL 3rd Place Boys Team)
Varsity Forensics 9-12 (Captain, VHSL 3rd Place Prose Interp)
Student Council Association 9-12 (9-Class Treasurer, 10-Class Rep, 11 School VP, 12- School Pres)
Rho Kappa Social Studies Honor Society 11-12 (Special Events Coordinator)
Boy Scouts 1-12 (Senior Patrol Leader among other things)
Model United Nations 10-12 (Research Chair, Best Delegate at Maggie Walker and William&Mary conferences)
Student2Student (transfer student group) 9-12 (Founder at new high school and President 10-12, Frances Hesselbein Student Leadership Program Participant)
EqualizeOurEarth Humanitarian Club 10-12
Société Honoraire de Français and French Club 9-12 (VP-12)
Freshmen Orientation Crew (freshmen mentoring) 11-12 (Captain-12)
VA Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership Seminar 10-12 (Ambassador-10, Junior Staff and Leadership4Service Keynote Speaker-11, Team Alumni-12, Alumni Association Public Relations and Recruitment Team Board Member 11,12)
Job/Work Experience:
Lifeguard at an indoor retirement community’s health club and spa’s pool year-round 10-12 (15-19 hrs/wk)
AidData Research Assistant at the College of William&Mary, mapping aid to developing countries, its implantation and effectiveness
School Division Honors Project, an oral history project of my town
Volunteer/Community service:
Probably near the thousands if I add up all four years. I did 350 hours junior year.
KidZone, elementary afterschool program 9
Missouri Special Olympics 9
Eagle Scout Service Project 9/10
Chemical Corps Regimental Association 9 (Volunteer of the Year 2012)
Freshmen O-Crew 11-12 (Captain)
Therapeutic Horseback Riding Center Weekly Volunteer 10-12
French, English and History Honor Society Tutor
National History Day Projects middle school mentor 11-12
Capernaum Special Needs Club Volunteer 10-12
Summer League Swim Team Volunteer Assistant Coach 11-12
Honors Project Community Service Element, introducing technology to the lives of aging adults 11-12
VA HOBY Alumni Association, VA HOBY Seminar Junior Staff
Summer Activities:
Lifeguarding Job
Virginia Boys State
Volunteering
Nicaraguan Mission Relief Trip
Stanford Online’s International Women’s Health and Human Rights for no credit

Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Common App- 8/10 about growing up in a military family and overcoming my fear of the doorbell as a child.
Duke Sups- 7/10 I liked them enough. The why Duke was tough for me I guess, but I talked about the service opportunities that resonated for me. And the diversity one I talked about being from a family of 6 kids and how they have accepted me with all my quirks.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: AP Human/APUSH teacher, swim coach, rho kappa and EqualizeOurEarth sponsor, Yale alumna- didn’t read, but assume 10/10
Teacher Rec #2: Student2Student sponsor and librarian who mentors my online classes (AP Environ, Comp Gov and World last year), knows me very well and was a military brat- didn’t read but assume 10/10
Counselor Rec: Knows me very well, work with him often, told me he spent over an hour writing and editing (which at a public school like mine is incredible)- didn’t read but assume it was also 10/10.
Additional Rec: Did not submit
Interview: OMG literally the best interview I’ve ever had. It’s probably the reason I’m waitlisted and not just rejected.

Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Econ and Public Policy
State (if domestic applicant): VA
Country (if international applicant): N/A
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: M
Income Bracket: ~115,000… maybe more.
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Not much, I just love people. Is that a hook?

Reflection:
So proud of everyone who got in. Duke is an exceptional school filled with bright and motivated students. I honestly am not too upset. I accepted my spot on the waitlist, and we’ll see what may happen. But I’m ultimately not stressing over it.

Strengths: ECs, Service, Awards, Recs
Weaknesses: Test Scores, Test Scores, Test Scores, essays and Bs in AP Physics B/Physics Lab and AB Calculus.
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Weaker test scores and grades honestly.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Rejected: Yale SCEA
Accepted: UVA, Vanderbilt
Waitlisted: Duke

General Comments:
Congratulations to all those admitted! I hope my post can be of some encouragement or help for someone! If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to PM me!

[reecie569]

Decision: Accepted

Objective:

[ul]
[] SAT I: Didn’t send
[] ACT: 34C
[] SAT II: Math II 780, Biology E 740
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.98 (W 4.182 - 4.25 Max at school)
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):6/330
[] AP (place score in parenthesis): N/A
[] IB (place score in parenthesis): ESS (6), Math SL (6)
[] Senior Year Course Load: HL 2 English, HL2 History, SL Spanish 5, AP Chem, AP Calc BC, HL2 Art, TOK
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Global Visionaries Travel Scholarship to Berlin (I doubt this is major, but it was a national applicant pool), NSLI-Y Scholarship Semifinalist (Now a finalist - going to China for 6 weeks this summer!) [/ul]
Subjective:

[ul]
[] Extracurriculars:Ambassadors (District Representative and Trainer), Global Visionaries-service and travel group (Executive Board Member and Communications Director), NHS-comparitively active in my school (President), Founded tutoring program at nearby K-12 school) Service Club (Service Coordinator), Investment Club (Founder and President), bunch of other minor stuff
[] Job/Work Experience: 2 years at fast food place
[] Volunteer/Community service: Probably a total of 1200ish hours or more
[] Essays: Commonapp Essay was really good (9-10), the “why Northeaster” one was weaker (6-7)
[] Teacher Recommendations:Teacher Rec #1: English teacher (10 - was incredible); Teacher Rec #2: Bio and ESS teacher (8-9)
[] Counselor Rec: I don’t know. Somewhat generic I’m sure, but I know my counselor well (7?)
[] Additional Rec:Chem teacher (8-9) - All the teachers let me read them
[] Interview:Really good, she was very nice and we had a lot in common [/ul]
Other

[ul]
[] State (if domestic applicant): Colorado
[] Country (if international applicant): US
[] School Type: Public
[] Ethnicity: White
[] Gender: Male
[] Income Bracket: Middle Class
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Nope [/ul]
Reflection

[ul]
[] Strengths: My general essay and maybe community service
[] Weaknesses: ACT score, it’s not as great as others’. SAT II’s were also comparatively weak. No national awards, Not really recognized ECs
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I honestly don’t know how I got in. I’m in shock
[] Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted: UC Berkeley, BU with Presidential Scholarship and Kilachand Honors College, Northeastern with Deans Scholarship, URochester; Rejected: UChicago and Columbia ED [/ul]
General Comments: NEVER EXPECTED THIS! I’m so excited

[LayraSparks]

Decision: Rejected

Objective:

• [] SAT I: 2150 (690CR, 690M, 770W)
  [] ACT: didn’t send
  [] SAT II: Math L1 (760), French (800), German (790), Literature (790)
  [] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.95
  [] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/94
  [] AP (place score in parenthesis): N/A
  [] IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
  [] Senior Year Course Load: A-Level in Literature, History, Sociology, Art, French & German + public school courses
• Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Finalist in National German Competition

Subjective:

• [] Extracurriculars: Ballet, acting & film course, Russian Club, French courses, Student Government, Choir, Event Organizer etc.
  [] Job/Work Experience: Paid tutoring in English, French and German
  [] Volunteer/Community service: I volunteered at MigHelp, an organization helping refugees integrate, and was a volunteer tutor at school.
  [] Essays: Common App 9/10, Duke essay 10/10
  [] Teacher Recommendations: 9/10
  [] Counselor Rec:10/10
  [] Additional Rec: 10/10
  [] Interview: N/A

Other

• [] State (if domestic applicant):
  [] Country (if international applicant): Hungary
  [] School Type: Public, but part-time student at independent school as well.
  [] Ethnicity: White
  [] Gender: Female
  [] Income Bracket: Very low.
  [] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None really.

Reflection

[ul]
[] Strengths: Common App essay, recs, GPA, I went to two schools at the same time, I speak 5 languages
[] Weaknesses: SAT scores, international seeking financial aid
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: FINANCIAL AID
[li] Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted: Kenyon, University of Southern California (with full-tuition scholarship); Waitlisted: Occidental, Vassar; Rejected: Vanderbilt, Oberlin, Duke, Swarthmore Waiting: Amherst, JHU, Penn, Dartmouth, Cornell[/ul][/li]General Comments: I’ll be going to USC, which was my first choice anyway & is the best place to study Film. I’m still a little disappointed by all the rejections, though. It’s tough being an international seeking financial aid.

[Homeless2Princeton]

Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2170 (730R, 700M, 740W)
ACT (breakdown):
SAT II: 800 Spanish, i think 700 Literature, 710 Math 1 (can’t remember exactly though :s)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.97
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): top 5%
AP (place score in parenthesis): US History (5), English Language (5), Literature, Studio 2D, Psychology, Statistics
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Studio, AP Literature, AP Psychology, Honors Challenge, AP Statistics
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
Scholastic Art & Writing Awards:
1 Scholastic Gold Key in photography, 1 Silver Key Photography portfolio, 1 Honorable Mention. 4 Gold Keys in writing, 4 American Voices nominations. And then I won about 6 Academic Achievement Awards of which each department head at my last school picked one student out of a pool of 5,000 as the most exceptional.

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): NHS, NAHS, Key Club, Spanish Honor Society, Science Honor Society, almost all with leadership positions
Job/Work Experience:worked at Brookstone as Sales Associate, was given Certified Gold Status, outsold throughout district selling over 8,000 a week while I was only 16
Volunteer/Community service: over 1,000 hours. I was homeless when I was younger so I was very motivated to dedicate my time to others in my previous situation. I feel so much gratitude to my community for helping me and getting ahead is how I feel I can pay them back for everything.
Summer Activities: the pool lol besides volunteering
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common App- by far my best writing to date. Talked about how being homeless shaped me and ingrained a sense of altruism in me, it won a Gold Key and was nominated for American Voices Recognition 10/10 Why Duke?- 9/10
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): from my AP Lang teacher who’s also the department head for the English dept, it was amazing. She absolutely destroyed it 10/10 and another from my APUSH teacher whose I thought would be ok but ended being incredible and saying that I was a prodigy and any institution would be lucky to have me. Incredibly humbling 10/10

Teacher Rec #1: oh we were supposed to put it here…
Teacher Rec #2:
Counselor Rec: generic
Additional Rec: none
Interview: Never offered one

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: i think Business?
State (if domestic applicant): WI
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: small suburban
Ethnicity: Hispanic
Gender: M
Income Bracket: <40,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): urm,
Reflection

Strengths: By far essays, and then letters of Rec, gpa, volunteer service
Weaknesses: test scores, generic ec’s, no amazingly huge awards like intel
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: no idea. Seriously there are way more qualified applicants even in this thread. I’m insanely blessed and am so lucky to have made it this far. My file could’ve easily been placed in the wrong pile
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Accepted- Duke :D, Notre Dame UMiami with presidential scholarship, UC San Diego, UC Davis, UMinnesota with presidential, UAlabama with full tuition, UOregon with diversity excellence, UPittsburgh Honors with full tuition scholarship, UWashington Seattle, MSU with huge scholarship, SAIC with half merit, and UKentucky with big merit aid
Wait listed- UChicago, Vanderbilt, Berkeley
Rejected- UTexas at Austin (??), and UCLA (applied to film program with ~3% acceptance rate)
General Comments: Never stop believing in yourself. Don’t let others tell you how far you can go. Show them wrong. If it’s not Duke, there’ll be another place that’s even better for you. Keep your head up. Believe in the impossible. And never, ever stop dreaming.

[TrapQueen]

Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I: 2340 (790 CR, 770 M, 780 W)
ACT: N/A
SAT II: 770 USH 760 Physics
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/117
AP (place score in parenthesis): 5s USH and English Language, 4 Physics B
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc AB, AP Euro, AP English Lit, AP Physics C, other random classes (hardest possible)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): None
Subjective:
Extracurriculars:
-Founder and President of school political science club
-Captain of debate team (couple of local awards)
-Editor of school newspaper
-Summer at computer coding camp
-NHS
Job/Work Experience: Paid job at a local library (different from the one I volunteer for, I spend way too much time at libraries haha)
Volunteer/Community service: Technology volunteer at local library, Kids in Crisis
Essays: Thought they were pretty good
Teacher Recommendations: Should’ve been great
Counselor Rec: Probably rather perfunctory but definitely positive
Additional Rec: N/A
Interview: It was good, my interviewer only went to Duke for grad school so that was a little weird but he was very nice and seemed to enjoy speaking with me
Other
State (if domestic applicant): CT
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Small parochial
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: Don’t worry bout it
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): I have as many hooks as Leonardo DiCaprio has Oscars
Reflection
Strengths: Lots of leadership, GPA, test scores
Weaknesses: No hooks, no major awards, school doesn’t typically send students to schools of Duke’s caliber
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: They stalked my social media accounts and thought that I was cute (Jk I have no idea why they decided to take me)
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted to UVA, UNC-CH, UConn, Dartmouth (with a likely letter); Waitlisted: Northwestern; Rejected: None yet, still waiting to hear back from a lot of other schools now
General Comments: I honestly was expecting to get a rejection or waitlist. The college process is so unpredictable and arbitrary. Congratulations to all who got in!

[marzult]

Decision: Waitlisted

Objective
SAT I (breakdown): 1940 (670R/660M/610W), didn’t send to any schools that didn’t require it (used ACT+W)
ACT (breakdown): 33C (30M/35R/35S/34E/8W)
SAT II: 800 Math II, 650 Physics (ouch)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.95 U/W, 4.23W
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/237
AP (place score in parenthesis): Human Geography (4), Biology (4), Psychology (5), Calc AB (3), English Lang (3), APUSH (3)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calculus BC, AP Music Theory, AP Statistics, AP Physics C: Mech, AP English Lit, AP Euro
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): QuestBridge Finalist, QuestBridge College Prep Scholar, AP Scholar w/ Distinction, NCFL Qualified (top 6 in state)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Speech/Debate, National Beta Club (4 years, Senior Representative and Vice President), National Honor Society, Science Club, Guitar, Piano
Job/Work Experience: None
Volunteer/Community service: Over 200 hrs from various projects
Summer Activities: Freelance programming, volunteering
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Common App- My essay is based around my love of technology/computers (what I’m most passionate about), but it’s not the best thing I’ve ever written (7)
College Essays- Good, wrote specifically for the college (8)
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: Physics Teacher (9) - Knows me very well and how much I am dedicated to my education
Teacher Rec #2: Psychology Teacher (8) - I was one of the best students in his psych class
Counselor Rec: I have not spent a lot of time with my counselor, but she is known to write excellent recommendations. She knows of the hardships I have faced and how I have overcame them. (9/10)
Additional Rec: None
Interview: N/A

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Computer Sci
State (if domestic applicant): KY
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Med/Large Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: Below 30,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): First gen, economic/family hardship

Reflection

Strengths: I have taken the toughest course load possible at my HS, and I am also the valedictorian. My ECs show that I am well rounded.
Weaknesses: I have not done anything extraordinary in any of my ECs, and my test scores are not the strongest although I did not have to send my inadequate SAT score to any college that didn’t require it.
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Guess I wasn’t what they were looking for.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Accepted: nowhere but state schools
Waitlisted: Duke, Northwestern, UChicago, Vanderbilt
Rejected: Caltech, MIT, Swarthmore

General Comments: Pretty bummed that I haven’t gotten in anywhere. Not quite sure how any of those waitlists are going to turn out. Just waiting on the Ivies now.

Congratulations to everyone that got in!

[belgiumapp]

[ b]Decision: Deferred**
WAITLISTED
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2170 (780 CR, 660 M, 730 W)
ACT (breakdown): 30 Did not send
SAT II: 740- Biology E, 720- US history, 670- Chemistry
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.83
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 26 out of 619
AP (place score in parenthesis): Biology, Environmental, Lang, French V, Us History 5s
Chem, Lit, Calc, Euro not yet taken test
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Chem, AP Calc ABBC, AP Euro, AP Lit, Latin 2, Honors French 6
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
Umm Bronze Presidential Service, AP Scholar with Distinction, 2cnd place at HOSA States
Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): HOSA
Job/Work Experience: Referee for the past three years in sports league
Volunteer/Community service: Tutor at peer tutoring center at school, tutored at middle school during the school year and the summer, other random one time deals
Summer Activities: Governor’s School in NC
Essays (rating 1-10, details): 5-7 in retrospect I should’ve have done more research about Swat, felt like it was quite broad
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: English Teacher known 1 year, 7-8 probably above average but not amazing
Teacher Rec #2: Bio Teacher known 1 year, same as before
Counselor Rec: Maybe slightly above average, she deals with many students but she at least knew my face and name!
Additional Rec:
Interview: Definitely could have gone better, the lady and I did not hit it off. It was very dry and boring.
Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major:Biology and French
State (if domestic applicant): NC
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Large Public
Ethnicity: Black
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: <100k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):
URM interested in the sciences
Reflection

Strengths: I think my common app essay gave them good insight to who I was. URM
Weaknesses: My GPA and my scores could’ve been higher for Duke.
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I think they saw that I would be a good fit for their school and that I was passionate about political issues!
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected:
Accepted: UNC Chapel honors college, Washington and Lee, USCarolina Honors College, Emory, Davidson, Swarthmore, Rice
Waiting: Harvard, Brown
General Comments: I was expecting a rejection, but I’m kinda proud for getting wait listed. Props to everyone accepted!!!

---

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[StrongApplicant]

Decision: Accepted

Objective:

• [] SAT I: 2090
  [] ACT: 32
  [] SAT II: 800 Math II; 770 Chem; 760 Physics
  [] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.9
  [] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 10%
  [] AP (place score in parenthesis): Calc AB, BC (5); Physics (5); US History (3); World History (3); English Language and Composition (3)
  [] IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
  [] Senior Year Course Load: AP Comp Sci; AP Econ; AP Gov; AP Spanish 4; ASB Leadership; ASB Treasurer; British Literature.
  [] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): 1st in State in Accounting two years (FBLA)

Subjective:

• [] Extracurriculars: FBLA (President, Treasurer) ASB (Treasurer)
  [] Job/Work Experience: N/A
  [] Volunteer/Community service: N/A
  [] Essays: 10/10 Common App, 8/10 Supplement
  [] Teacher Recommendations: Didn’t read any probably 9/10; 8/10
  [] Counselor Rec: Barely Knew my counselor ??/10
  [] Additional Rec: 9/10
  [] Interview: Went great I think I impressed him 9/10

Other

• [] State (if domestic applicant): WA
  [] Country (if international applicant):
  [] School Type: Public (~2000 Students)
  [] Ethnicity: Hispanic/White
  [] Gender: M
  [] Income Bracket: 150,000
  [] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM

Reflection

• [] Strengths: URM, Essays, Recs, ECs, Interview
  [] Weaknesses: Test Scores, GPA, Rank
  [] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I got a likely letter so that was neat. I worked really hard on my essay and it ended up being pretty kickass.
  [] Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted: University of Washington, University of Portland Waitlisted: Washington and Lee, Claremont McKenna Deffered: Penn Rejected: WashU, USC Waiting On: Penn, Georgetown

General Comments: Actually such a crapshoot I have a ton of really smart friends who are getting in where they should. I recommend applying to a lot of schools just because the random factor is pretty real. As you can see I can apparently get into Duke but not USC.

[Neurogirl07]

REJECTED

SAT I (breakdown): Didn’t take
ACT (breakdown): 34, 35 weighted (35M, 35W, 32R, 35S)
SAT II: Didn’t send
Unweighted GPA: 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 2/300
AP (place score in parenthesis): Psychology (5), US Gov’t (5), Stats (4), English Lang (5), Physics B (4), Macroecon (4), APUSH (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis): School doesn’t offer
Senior Year Course Load: AP Lit, AP Chem, AP Spanish, AP Calc BC, Peer Tutoring, AP Music Theory
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): PSAT/NMSQT Commended Student, AP Scholar with Distinction

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): school & local youth orchestra, orchestra pit in a couple musicals, NHS, youth advisory council (met with local senator regularly), swim team freshman year, Scholastic Bowl, WYSE Team
Job/Work Experience: violin tutor
Volunteer/Community service: 130+ hours at a local hospital
Summer Activities: traveled to India to meet family, summer school
Essays: they were decent
Teacher Recommendation: should have been pretty good, didn’t get to read them though
Counselor Rec: should have been good as well
Additional Rec: N/A

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yup
Intended Major: biomed engineering, engineering, neuroscience
State (if domestic applicant): IL
Country (if international applicant): USA
School Type: public
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: female
Income Bracket: upper middle class
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): N/A

Reflection:

Strengths: ranking, GPA, course load, violin
What you tried to focus on in your application - any hooks you tried to make for yourself: my love for learning, I guess
Weaknesses: lack of extracurriculars? no hooks, Asian (lol)
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: lack of interest, no interview, less extracurriculars?, essays
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Accepted at Loyola, Missouri State, Notre Dame, Purdue, U of I at Urbana-Champaign, UW Madison, Deferred/waitlisted at MIT, UChicago, Northwestern, Rejected at MIT, Duke (still waiting for ivy d-day!!)
Notes: Congratulations to everyone who got accepted!!

[FGood15]

Decision: Rejected

Objective:

[ul]
[] SAT I: 2100 (770 M 640 CR 690 W; didn’t send anywhere haha)
[] ACT: 34 (36S 34M 33R 33E 10W)
[] SAT II: N/A
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.86
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 3 out of 86
[] AP (place score in parenthesis): APUSH, Calc AB, APES, eng 1, eng 2, chem, stats
[] IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
[] Senior Year Course Load: Toughest available
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):[/ul] Just AP scholar, all region and all conference in baseball and soccer
Subjective:

[ul]
[] Extracurriculars: varsity basketball captain[9,10,11,12], varsity baseball captain[9,10,11,12], varsity soccer captain[11,12], NHS, Environmental Club[founder and president], summer ventures in sci and math
[] Job/Work Experience: N/A
[] Volunteer/Community service: N/A
[] Essays: CA:8/10 about technology I created, Supplement: probably like 7/10
[] Teacher Recommendations: 10/10 have a really close relationship with all of them
[] Counselor Rec: 8/10 new counselor that started this year
[] Additional Rec: 9/10 baseball and basketball coach that I have spent a lot of time with
[] Interview:[/ul] It went well, but my interviewer was only focused on my athletics??
Other

[ul]
[] State (if domestic applicant):NC
[] Country (if international applicant):
[] School Type: Charter School (#1 in the state for college preparation)
[] Ethnicity: white
[] Gender: M
[ ] Income Bracket: 80k
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):[/ul] none
Reflection

[ul]
[] Strengths: sports, test scores(sorta)
[] Weaknesses: no outstanding accomplishments, no AP scores
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I don’t really have an aspect of my application that hurts me, but I also don’t have anything that stands out.
[] Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:[/ul] Accepted:[list] NC State, Boston University Waiting:[list] Harvard and Columbia
General Comments: I always think I am pretty well qualified for schools until I look on college confidential and see everyone else’s profiles, but at least I have BU
I thought I would at least get waitlisted, though

[unibound7]

Decision: Accepted!!!

Objective:

[ul]
[] SAT I: 2180 (M: 800, CR: 660, W: 720); technically it’s 2190 if we’re being picky here because CR score was actually 670 when I took it in January but I didn’t send my January scores
[] ACT: Didn’t take. Kinda wish I did though!
[] SAT II: Math II: 800, Bio M: 760 (Retook these from my original scores which were both 40 points lower)
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0 woot woot
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/120 (I go to a private school so my grade is pretty small)
[] AP (place score in parenthesis): Nope
[] IB (place score in parenthesis): Math HL, Biology HL, English HL, History HL, Chemistry SL, French SL (Predicted: 43/45)
[] Senior Year Course Load: See above
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):[/ul] International awards for math and writing competitions, Top IB Student Award, A LOT of school awards from Gr. 9 - 12
Subjective:

[ul]
[] Extracurriculars: Head of science club, Director of science organization, Head of math club, Volunteering at soup kitchen and at hospital, Volunteering for the homeless Humanitarian trip overseas (helped to immunize babies), Director of a bunch of fundraisers, Internship at business start-up, Shadowed a medical doctor at clinic, etc. (this is just a general overview of what I did!)
[] Job/Work Experience: I included some job/work experiences above.
[] Volunteer/Community service: See above.
[] Essays: Common App Essay: 10/10 (About overcoming my fear of public speaking), Duke 150-Word Essay: 8-9/10, Duke Optional Essay: 9-10/10 (About forming relationships with the homeless while volunteering for the “street fam jam”)
[] Teacher Recommendations: Teacher Recommendation #1 (Foreign Lang.): 10/10 (Honestly, she is the best teacher ever and seriously, she’s great); Teacher Recommendation #2 (Math): 8/10 (Wrote the letter the day before it was due…like wtf; but he’s okay I guess )
[] Counselor Rec: Counselor: 9-10/10 (I have a really awesome counselor who really tried to make the letter personal and special! - love her )
[] Additional Rec: Nope
[] Interview:[/ul] Didn’t get one. I submitted my app after the “deadline” for people who wanna get interviewed.
Other

[ul]
[] State (if domestic applicant): N/A
[] Country (if international applicant): CANADA (where the polar bears roam)
[] School Type: Private
[] Ethnicity: I’m Asian. Nuff said.
[] Gender: Female
[] Income Bracket:
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):[/ul] Nada
Reflection

[ul]
[] Strengths: I think that my EC’s were very strong as well as my grades. I’ve consistently maintained a 4.0 UW GPA throughout high school. As well, I think that my passion (don’t use this word in your essays ) for helping people really shone through in my essays as well as my curiosity for learning!
[] Weaknesses: Could it be any more obvious? My SAT score (achem CR cough cough). I’m an INTERNATIONAL ASIAN FEMALE. I repeat, an INTERNATIONAL ASIAN FEMALE (WITH A LOW SAT SCORE). LIKE WHAT IS LIFE. But I think my high score in the Math section of the SAT as well my high scores in my Math II and Bio M SAT II scores really showed off my area of expertise.
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: It just goes to show how extremely random the entire admit process is, though I couldn’t be any happier!
[] Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:[/ul] Accepted: Duke, Johns Hopkins University (JHU), UCLA, UCSD, Waitlisted: UChicago, Berkeley, Rejected: Northwestern, Still waiting for them ivies!
General Comments: Honestly, I was pretty bummed after being rejected from Northwestern and thought that Duke was pretty much out of the picture since their acceptance rate is lower. But something shone through and spoke to the adcom, I guess! PEOPLE: YOUR SAT SCORES DO NOT DEFINE YOU AND THEY ARE NOT EVERYTHING. I thought my chances of getting in were very very low (intl students uhhh 5% acceptance rate maybe?) since most asians who apply have stellar SAT reasoning scores. I thought my CR score would bring me down but it didn’t! I’m still a bit confused as to how I got into both Duke and JHU but waitlisted from Berkeley … But nevertheless, I’m super happy! All those applying to Duke in the future: Have really strong EC’s with leadership positions and maintain a high GPA (you don’t have to have a 4.0 GPA but work hard!), make your essays stellar (some people worked on them from like 4 months but I wrote mine in over a span of 2 days and then spent less than a week editing them), and show them that you will not only take something treasurable from being a Blue Devil but will contribute to the Duke community. In the mean time, I have no idea what to do! Duke or JHU? (or Ivies?) Gah. But still, GO BLUE DEVILS! WAHOOO!!! #CLASSOF2019

Message me if any of you prospective students have questions!