****OFFICIAL DUKE RD CLASS OF 2021 RESULTS THREAD****

Colleges and Universities A-Z Duke University
1

It’s about that time, ladies and gentlemen. I noticed that this didn’t exist already, so I figured better late than never.

Pick One
[ size=+2][ color=green][ b]Decision: Accepted**[/color][/size]
[ size=+2][ color=orange][ b]Decision: Deferred**[/color][/size]
[ size=+2][ color=red][ b]Decision: Rejected**[/color][/size]
[ size=+2][ color=yellow][ b]Decision: Waitlisted**[/color][/size]

[ b]School Applied To:**

[ b]Objective:**
[ *] SAT I (breakdown):
[ *] ACT:
[ *] SAT II:
[ *] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0):
[ *] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):
[ *] AP (place score in parenthesis):
[ *] IB (place score in parenthesis):
[ *] Senior Year Course Load:
[ *] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):

[ /list][ b]Subjective:**
[ *] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
[ *] Job/Work Experience:
[ *] Volunteer/Community service:
[ *] Summer Activities:
[ *] Essays:
[ *] Teacher Recommendation:
[ *] Counselor Rec:
[ *] Additional Rec:
[ *] Interview:

[ /list][ b]Other**
[ *] Applied for Financial Aid?:
[ *] Intended Major:
[ *] State (if domestic applicant):
[ *] Country (if international applicant):
[ *] School Type:
[ *] Ethnicity:
[ *] Gender:
[ *] Income Bracket:
[ *] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):

[ /list][ b]Reflection**
[ *] Strengths:
[ *] Weaknesses:
[ *] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/denied:

[ /list][ b]General Comments:**

2

Decision: Accepted

[ b]School Applied To:** Trinity College of Arts and Sciences

[ b]Objective:**
[ ] SAT I (breakdown): 1580 (E: 790, M: 790, essay: 22)
[ *] ACT: n/a
[ ] SAT II: Math 2 - 780 , Physics - 760
[ ] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.3
[ *] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): n/a
[ *] AP (place score in parenthesis): Calc AB (5) Global His (4) Physics (4) Calc BC (5) US His (5) English Lang (5)
[ *] IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
[ *] Senior Year Course Load: AP Comp Sci, AP Psych, AP Lit, AP Bio, 3 other b.s. classes honestly
[ *] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Questbridge NYC Cohort Award (pretty selective)

[ /list][ b]Subjective:**
[ *]Extra Curriculars:

  1. Have led and co-led(since 8th grade) a diversity awareness organization that holds bi-monthly meetings for discussions regarding social identifiers in today’s society. Monthly attendance is around 120-150. We hold annual conference with attendance at around 650-700.
    1a. I have created and led various demonstrations and protests in NYC in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. Our largest protest was 150 strong and was actually televised.
  2. I am a freelance photographer and editor. I started learning in 5th grade and have evolved into a paid photographer. Biggest milestone is being hired for a wedding at age 17.
  3. I have been an active and competitive spoken word poet since 9th grade. I participate in recitals and do performances in different Poetry clubs around the city. Was reached out to by manager of world-renowned poetry club to open for a major event.
  4. Co-founder of school film club. Major milestone is creating the school video that advertises to prospective students both in assemblies and on our website.
  5. Founder of Advanced Calculus club this year. Purpose is to tackle higher level math classes not offered in class with other willing students through peer tutoring and group study.
  6. I am the “grade representative” and have been since 9th grade for
    my Model UN club and regularly oversee preparation for the conferences.

Work:

  1. Tutor: I have worked as a tutor since sophomore year teaching any level of math including SAT math. I also help people write essays as I am regarded by my grade as the strongest writer in the school. I work year-round.
  2. Photographer: I have worked as a paid photographer since sophomore year. These photo shoots range from single person shoots to groups, events, and weddings. I work year-round.
  3. Retail Sales Associate: Busy work during summers to make up for a lull in tutoring business.
  4. Supermarket clerk: More busy work year-round in case I don’t make enough from the other jobs above.
    (All of the above except retail associate are under the table jobs)

[ ] Essays: Biographical Essay about my overcoming adversity was 11/10, made my counselor cry. Duke Supplement also 11/10 because creative writing is where I thrive, so I came up with some pretty good hooks/twists and wrote them well.
[ *] Teacher Recommendation: Theater teacher was a 10/10 because we’re homies. Comp Sci teacher was prob a 9.5/10 because even though I haven’t bonded *that much with her, she’s the kind of person who will think the world of you if you show some passion and respect.
[ *] Counselor Rec: Guidance counselor rec was probably 10/10, we’ve been through alot. College counselor rec could have copy/pasted for all I know.
[ *] Additional Rec: Didn’t have one.
[ *] Interview: My interviewer told me that I was the one of the most inspirational people she had ever spoken to. Hit me right in the feels.

[ b]Extenuating Circumstances:**
There are 5 people in my one bedroom home. All of them are too young, too old, or too unstable to work. I have been the bread maker in my home since freshman year. We officially make 0 dollars according to our taxes. I work 7 days a week doing anything to make money. I get home late in the evening or at night and proceed to clean or cook for the next day’s meal. My mother is too sick and too mentally unstable from alcohol and prescription pill abuse. My sister deals with her own issues as well. My niece is too young and my grandma is too old and sick. She recently battled with cancer and when she had the tumor extracted, I was the one to swab and clean the open gash it left in her head as she recovered. I try my best to manage school and work but a lot of times, I am unable to get all my hw done which is why my GPA is so low. My sister and her baby daddy often engage in violent arguments and I’m the one who has to mediate and shield my niece from watching them fight. I have battled with Housing Courts to not be evicted from our home when the money doesn’t reach to pay bills and we actually became homeless last year, though I was able to eventually fight us back into our home.

[ /list][ b]Other**
[ *] Applied for Financial Aid?: Obviously.
[ *] Intended Major: Economics (hopefully with some sort of Finance concentration)
[ *] State (if domestic applicant): NYC, New York.
[ *] Country (if international applicant): -
[ *] School Type: Gifted/talented public
[ *] Ethnicity: Afro-Latino
[ *] Gender: Male
[ *] Income Bracket: <$2500 a year
[ *] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM, first gen, born and raised in one of the poorer neighborhoods in the US.

[ /list][ b]Reflection**
[ *] Strengths: Strength of character. Depth of personality and experience. Articulation. Flamboyancy. Outspokenness.
[ *] Weaknesses: GPA
[ *] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/denied: I think they understood that there was more to me than what my GPA says and I appreciate them for seeing that.

[ /list][ b]General Comments:**

3

@GeorgeX wow… congrats dude you really earned this

4

@GeorgeX Wow, your story is inspiring and touching. As an alumnus, I am beyond excited and happy for your acceptance. All the best in whichever school you choose.

5

@GeorgeX Really happy for you, buddy. Keep smashing it wherever you end up. Truly inspiring. :slight_smile:

6

@GeorgeX well done man. I feel better knowing that Duke is after the truly aspiring people like you. Not rich frauds like me. Good luck man, I hope you make the best of it, wherever you choose to go.

7

Rejected

[ b]School Applied To: Pratt School of Engineering

[ b]Objective:**
[ *] SAT I (breakdown): Not available
[ *] ACT: 32
[ *] SAT II:
[ *] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.8 I think, I do IB so I’m not sure
[ *] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): n/a
[ *] AP (place score in parenthesis): n/a
[ *] IB (place score in parenthesis): Physics (7) English Lang and Lit (7) Spanish (6) Chemistry (6) Economics (7) Math (5)
Note: 7 is highest attainable grade. All Subjects are higher level except Spanish.
[ *] Senior Year Course Load: Same as IB above. 4000 word research project in physics. Theory of Knowledge
[ *] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): n/a

[ /list][ b]Subjective:**
[ *] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Varsity Soccer (National Champ), Varsity Basketball, School Council Chair, Charity Committee chair, County Basketball.

I’m also Head boy at my school and this role is very expansive. I am in charge of all student committees. The representative of the School to the city of London. Various speeches and events in the city. And “the city” is different to what most people consider London, the city is the independent organization that was the original London which still has all sorts of weird traditions but must importantly they form a base for liveries who sponsor hospitals and schools to put kids on the street in schools like mine. So I’m also responsible for contributing on behalf of my school to the causes that the city’s organizations partake in. Over the course of my tenure I’ve had meetings with Members of Parliament and even part of an appointment with the Prime Minister. (Although I don’t think I communicated this role clearly enough)

[ *] Job/Work Experience: Spent two summers working at the Nigeria Atomic Energy Commission
[ *] Volunteer/Community service: Ambassador to Nyumbani village in Kenya for HIV/Aids
[ *] Summer Activities:
[ *] Essays: Spoke about my Nigerian heritage and what it meant growing up in a corrupt country. Spoke about the

[ *] Teacher Recommendation: Not sure how. All my teachers knew me very well. Same recs got me into Georgia tech so couldn’t be bad
[ *] Counselor Rec: no relationship with counsellor. System is very dodgy at my school. My counsellor is someone who knows nothing about American universities or the college process.
[ *] Additional Rec: Sent my chaplain’s rec. It was quite good, I would rate it 9/10.
[ *] Interview: Average. Didn’t think I hit the sweet spots

[ /list][ b]Other**
[ *] Applied for Financial Aid?: No
[ *] Intended Major: Mechanical Engineering
[ *] State (if domestic applicant): NO
[ *] Country (if international applicant): United Kingdom (from Nigeria)
[ *] School Type: Private co-op boarding school
[ *] Ethnicity: African (I guess that counts as African American/ afro Caribbean)
[ *] Gender: Male
[ *] Income Bracket: Not sure but probably in the $100K bracket
[ *] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Don’t think I had any hooks with Duke

[ /list][ b]Reflection**
[ *] Strengths: Confidence, Leadership, Working at the Nigeria atomic energy Commission
[ *] Weaknesses: ACT, Math Grade, not being boastful enough about my extra curricular especially my role as Head Boy
[ *] Why you think you were /denied: Considering the acceptance rate, I initially was going to ED duke but hadn’t taken any required tests. I think I was rejected simply because I was not as strong as the other candidates applying to Duke. Probably should have pushed myself more and gotten better grades for someone without extenuating circumstances.

[ /list][ b]General Comments:** I’ll hold this L and just waiting to hear back from NYU and Stanford. Expecting rejections at this point but I have no idea how I got into Georgia tech for Mech eng and couldn’t even get waitlisted at Duke and also waitlisted by Boston University. Any advice for my little siblings so I can make sure they achieve their goals?

8

Rejected … not too surprised given her low test scores. Congratulations to everyone that got in!

(Objective) 28 ACT, 1380 (new SAT), 3.98 GPA unweighted, 4.36 GPA weighted.
4 AP classes (that is all her school offered)
& 5 college classes (Ohio’s dual enrollment program- college classes during high school for college credit),
Top 3% of class, multiple accelerated and honors courses. Will graduate with an honors diploma.

(Subjective) Major- Biology.
Stem coursework including AP chemistry, biology, anatomy, AP physics, AP calculus, pre Calc, 2 years of algebra, geometry, AP stats.
National Honor Society President, 4 Year varsity letter winner athlete, State semi finalist, State runner up, Special Olympic youth ambassador, lots of service hours. 3 letters of recommendation (Math, Science & GC & all were very strong. These same recommenders provided them to her for other outside scholarship opportunities).

She is a URM (puerto rican) & we are from rural Ohio. Applied for financial aid, our income bracket is 120k

She thought the Duke interview went really well.

9

[ size=8][ color=green][ b]Decision: Accepted**[/color][/size]

[ b]School Applied To:Trinity**

[ b]Objective:**
[ *] ACT:36
[ *] SAT II: 7 with 800’s
[ *] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
[ *] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 2/500
[ *] AP (place score in parenthesis):11 APs with 5’s and 7 APs senior year
[ *] Senior Year Course Load:
[ *] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): NMF, Presidential schlorship nominee, 6th in Brian bee nationals

[ /list][ b]Subjective:**
[ *] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Class president 11/12 grade. Band Stae honor band
[ *] Job/Work Experience: Summer research for 3 years
[ *] Volunteer/Community service: 200+ hours
[ *] Summer Activities:
[ *] Essays: Goos
[ *] Teacher Recommendation: Do not know
[ *] Counselor Rec: Do not know
[ *] Additional Rec: Rec. from pentoring professor from univeristy
[ *] Interview:

[ /list][ b]Other**
[ *] Applied for Financial Aid?: No
[ *] Intended Major: Neuroscience
[ *] State (if domestic applicant): MO
[ *] Country (if international applicant):
[ *] School Type: Public
[ *] Ethnicity: Asian Indian
[ *] Gender: M
[ *] Income Bracket: 250k+
[ *] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Nome

[ /list][ b]Reflection**
[ *] Strengths:
[ *] Weaknesses: Academics
[ *] Why you think you were accepted/deferred/denied: My Acdemics

[ /list][ b]General Comments:**

10

@GeorgeX I hope you go to Duke!!

11

WAITLISTED for Pratt

SAT I: 780M, 750R - 1530.
(1510 without a superscore, but all of the colleges I applied to superscore)

SAT II (subject, score): 800 Chemistry, 800 Math II

Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0

Weighted GPA: 4.67

Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1st out of 326

AP (place score in parentheses): Chemistry 5, Calc AB 5, English Language 5, Psychology 5, APUSH 4, AP Spanish Lang and Culture 3 (Won the AP scholar with distinction award)

Senior Year Course Load: Differential Equations (Dual Enrollment), AP Physics 1, AP Statistics, AP Literature, AP Macro (single semester) , AP US Government (single semester), AP Calculus BC, AP Comp Sci A

ECs -
Assistant Manager working at my parents’ store over the summers for 4 years (really enjoyed this, wrote an essay about it)
Volunteer/internship at local free clinic
President of my school’s science club - we did the science olympiad, the envirothon, and a bunch of other small competitions
Ultimate Frisbee - just a regular club sport but I had a ton of fun with it
Public Relations officer for SGA - tons of volunteer work/coordinating school events
Vice President of NHS - organized various campaigns for our school
President of AVID Tutoring Program - tutored students twice a week and worked to recruit other tutors.
President/Founder of Debate Club - we met to discuss political issues (the 2016 election was a pretty great time for this club)

I applied for different majors at every school, but I put either math or chemical engineering for about half of them.

I wrote my commonapp essay about being an atheist and always feeling the need to keep quiet about it, and tied that in with the reason I created my school’s debate club (to give people the ability to speak/be heard)

For the obligatory “elaborate on an extracurricular” essay, I wrote about organizing tournaments at my parents’ store and my overall experience working over the summers.

Race: white
Gender: male
Income bracket: my EFC was in the low 40 thousands, but my parents have never told us how much money we make.

just be honest in your essays. don’t try to be someone that you’re not :slight_smile:
btw, to the nervous junior that’s reading through these threads, stop it. idk why im even posting on here - just go enjoy your life instead of spending every day waiting for college decisions.

12

@OhioMom6 Word? Glad to see my Puerto Rican sisters going for schools like Duke. I’m Dominican myself. Best of luck!

13

Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2400 (first attempt)
ACT (breakdown): 34, did not send
SAT II: 800/800/800 Math2/Chem/Physics
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Weighted GPA: N/A
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 2%
AP (place score in parenthesis): Seven 5s, one 4
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: Pretty rigorous
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Nothing THAT major. National Merit Finalist, AIME, National AP Scholar, nothing else really worth mentioning.

Vanderbilt Merit Scholarship: Applied for and did not receive CV scholarship.

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Varsity tennis, piano, quiz bowl (captain), science bowl (captain) orchestra. Placed at state in tennis, a couple of major piano accomplishments, made nationals for science bowl.
Job/Work Experience: None
Volunteer/Community service: About 250 hours at hospital.
Summer Activities: Mostly relaxing. Playing a lot of tennis and video games. Also got most of my volunteering done over the summers.
Essays (rating 1-10, details): I’m not a terrific writer. Common App was maybe a 7-8/10.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: History teacher, didn’t read. He thought really highly about me though, so I’d guess 9-10/10/
Teacher Rec #2: Physics teacher, also didn’t read. He’s had many more students far smarter than me, but I think I still stood out in my class. Plus he has a reputation for writing awesome recs. 8/10 probably.
Counselor Rec: Didn’t know her that well personally. Probably a 7/10?
Additional Rec:
Interview: Didn’t choose to have one.

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes.
Intended Major: Engineering
State (if domestic applicant): One in the Midwest
Country (if international applicant):
School Type:
Ethnicity: Asian (Chinese)
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: Less than $100k.
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Nope.

Reflection

Strengths: Stats and being well rounded I guess.
Weaknesses: No major strengths or extraordinary achievements.
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Stats and being well rounded I guess.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:

Accepted: Duke, Vanderbilt, Princeton
Rejected: MIT, UPenn, Yale
Waitlisted: Harvard, WashU

General Comments:

14

@KrazyKing5461 Wow those stats are pristine. Jesus. Good sh*t. I could rule the world with stats like those.

15

@GeorgeX, you are one of the more distinctive applicants I’ve seen in a while, both because of your achievements in the face of challenging circumstances, and because of your strength of character and unusually strong voice for someone so young. Those stand out from your posts, and I suspect they stood out loud and clear on your application. Congratulations and good luck!

16

Decision: Accepted

Objective:

  • SAT I (breakdown): 770 M, 750 CR+W, 20 Essay
  • ACT (breakdown): 36 Composite, 35 English, 36 Math, 36 Reading, 36 Science,
  • SAT II: 800 Math II, 760 Chem, 760 Physics
  • Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.98 UW, 4.61 W (scaling is subjective per school so don’t take this too seriously)
  • Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 4th out of 230
  • AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Chem (5), AP Physics 1 (4), AP World (5), AP US History (5), AP Calc BC (5), AP Calc AB Subscore (5)
  • IB (place score in parenthesis): None
  • Senior Year Course Load: AP US Government, AP Literature and Composition, AP Physics C: Mechanics, AP Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism, AP Psychology, AP Statistics, AP Physics 2, AP Biology, Multivariate Calculus, Linear Algebra
  • Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
    • Academic awards: AP Scholar with Distinction, National Merit Scholarship Program Letter of Commendation, Excellence in Mathematics and the Natural Sciences from the Society of Women Engineers (CT Section), Presidential Scholars Semifinalist.
    • Dance awards: Dance Teachers Club of CT Scholarship Winner (2010, 2012, 2013, 2015), DMA National Jr. Mr. Dance Most Talented Non-Finalist (2012), DMA Jr. Mr. Dance of CT (2012), Sophisticated Production’s Highest Scoring Solo (age 15 and under) (2013), DMA Teen Mr. Dance of CT (2014), DMA Tap Class Audition Scholarship 1st Place Recipient (2016), Numerous First Overall Solo and Group Awards (2010 – Present).

Subjective:

  • Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
    • Competitive Dancer (Senior Competition Captain) Tap: 10 Years, Ballet: 9 Years, Jazz: 9 Years, Hip-Hop: 7 Years, Contemporary/Modern: 7 Years
    • Nutcracker Ballet (I've played the role of Prince and Cavalier these past 3 years) (9, 10, 11, 12)
    • National Honor Society (Tutoring coordinator/tutor) (11, 12)
    • French Honor Society (Executive Officer) (10, 11, 12)
    • Seaperch (11, 12)
    • Math League (9, 10, 11, 12)
    • Varsity Tennis (4 singles, 3 doubles) (10, 11, 12)
    • Offered to produce music for small fashion lines
  • Job/Work Experience: None
  • Volunteer/Community service:
    • Assistant Dance Teacher Ages 9-14
    • Nutcracker Ballet Student Rehearsal Assistant
    • NHS Tutor, all subjects
    • Writing Center Tutor
    • Math Center Tutor
  • Summer Activities:
    • 4 Weeks of Dance Intensives/National Competitions
    • Helped build a dance studio/gym in my basement
    • Dance training
    • College Tours
    • Tennis
  • Essays (rating 1-10, details):
    • Common Application Essay Rating: 9?? I had my AP Lit teacher read it over, as well as a few friends. They all said it sounded really personal and unique while being memorable, but I couldn't judge myself accurately.
    • Duke Supplement: 7-8
  • Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
    • Teacher Rec #1: AP Calc/Multivariate/Linear Teacher, Math Team Coach
  • I assume it would be very good as he knows my intense schedule in and out of school, my work ethic, my sense of humor, and my sociability.
    • Teacher Rec #2: AP Chem Teacher Same as Rec 1, with the addition of my love and curiosity of the natural sciences plus my drive and independence in the classroom.
    • Counselor Rec: Unknown, but she used to attend my dance studio? So maybe that helped. This was also her first year, so personal details may have been rough.
  • Additional Rec: None.
  • Interview: Seemed interested in my dance and choice of major

Other:

  • Applied for Financial Aid?: None.
  • Intended Major: Physics
  • State (if domestic applicant): Connecticut
  • Country (if international applicant): NA
  • School Type: Public
  • Ethnicity: White
  • Gender: Male
  • Income Bracket: Upper middle class
  • Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Male dancer?
  • Strengths: Test scores, extracurriculars, strong commitment to dance, national dance awards, rigorous course schedule, 3 independent studies in physics (shows initiative),
  • Weaknesses: supplement,
  • Why you think you were accepted/rejected/waitlisted: Dance major, test scores, strong essay, unique, interview

General Comments: Probably going to end up at YPC

Other schools you applied to and their decisions:
Accepted: Williams, Swarthmore, Middlebury, Muhlenburg, William and Mary, Duke (likely letter), Columbia (likely letter), Princeton, University of Pennsylvania, Yale, Cornell, NYU, Wesleyan, Amherst

Waitlisted: Tufts, Brown, Dartmouth, Stanford

Rejected: Harvard

17

Decision: Accepted

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown):
ACT (breakdown): 35C (35E, 36M, 36R, 32S, 8W)
SAT II:
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 97.59 UW / 101.55 W
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 10%
AP (place score in parenthesis): USH (3), Lang (4), World (4), Chem (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Lit, AP Bio, AP Calc BC, AP Stat, Anatomy & Physiology, Latin IV H
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Scholar w/ Honor, An award from a community college for my grades

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
JV Bowling - 9
Varsity Bowling 10-12 (Captain - 11-12)
General member of Miss Rep 11-12 & Amnesty International 9-10
Bowling leagues during sophomore year & summer after my sophomore year
Inducted into NHS 11th grade; active member this year
Black Youth Awareness Club (12) (Co-Founder & Treasurer)
Job/Work Experience: N/A
Volunteer/Community service: 100+ hours at a hospital
Summer Activities: Camp on Diversity in summer 2016

Rate out of 10
Essays:
Common App: solid 10. Loved my essay and both my english teachers from junior & senior year thought it was really good
Teacher Recommendation:

  1. From my Pre-calc teacher. She loved le so 9/10
  2. From my honors bio teacher, she said it was easy to write so 8/10
    Counselor Rec: Probably generic af
    Additional Rec:
    Interview:

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Neuroscience
State (if domestic applicant): NJ
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Black (Caribbean)
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: 95k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM, first gen (for 4 year college)

Reflection:

Strengths: Overall academics & essay
Weaknesses: apush test score
Why you think you were accepted/rejected/deferred: Not to sound cocky but I feel like I am a strong applicant overall
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Accepted - Morgan State University, University of Pennsylvania, Princeton University, Rutgers University, Johns Hopkins University

General Comments: Do what you love and colleges will love it too :slight_smile:

18

Just got into Washington Duke Scholars Program as well! Free ride + laptop + mentorship for me as well. Looks like I’m definitely a Blue Devil!

19

Decision: Accepted

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): didn’t submit
ACT (breakdown): 32C (33E, 31M, 34R, 29S, 10W)
SAT II: didn’t submit
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.93 UW, 5.31 W
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 4/439 top 1%
AP (place score in parenthesis): Human (5), Euro (5), World (5), Enviro (4), Calc AB (5), Lang (5), USGov (4), Chem (3), APUSH (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Lit, AP Calc BC, AP Comp Gov, AP Physics C, AP Macro, AP Micro
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National AP Scholar, a leadership award, honor roll all four years, community service award. All awards with the exception of AP Scholar were given by my school.

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Student Government (Treasurer), NAHS (VP/secretary junior year), NHS, rather not list others just for privacy reasons but about 3 other leadership positions in a few other clubs.
Job/Work Experience: N/A
Volunteer/Community service: 500+ hours for tutoring
Summer Activities: went to a leadership seminar camp over the summer to represent my high school

Rate out of 10
Essays:
Common App: Unique for sure lol wrote about my experience in Paris where an incident happened that probably could never happen to anyone else. It had a lot of humor in it which I think was a nice touch. My lang teacher edited it and loved it.
Teacher Recommendation: 1) Pre-Calc teacher: she was my teacher in freshmen year but she loved me and thought I was one of her best students so I was like why not? 7/10? 2) Economics teacher: 9/10 he loves me 3) Govt. teacher: she also likes me but she was really busy with other students’ recommendations so it might have been a little rushed 7/10
Counselor Rec: I’m really close with my counselor so I’m sure his recommendation was really good!! I didn’t read it but I think it was probably 9/10
Additional Rec:
Interview:

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes (and that financial aid package from Duke came through)
Intended Major: Economics
State (if domestic applicant): FL
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public (2000+, a bit competitive)
Ethnicity: Asian-Chinese
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: <50k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): First generation

Reflection:

Strengths: leadership and maybe teacher recs?
Weaknesses: My ACT
Why you think you were accepted/rejected/deferred: I definitely thought I was going to get rejected especially with my low ACT score (in terms of Duke) and the fact that I’m also asian which is a huge anti-hook. I really have no idea how I got in but my extracurriculars were pretty strong along with my GPA/class rank.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Accepted - Boston College, Boston University, Emory, Tulane, UF, UCF, FSU, George Washington
Waitlisted- Northwestern, Brown
Rejected- Harvard

General Comments: Even if you think you have no shot, just apply because you’ll never know what will happen

20

Decision: Waitlisted -> Accepted to Pratt

SAT I: 780M, 750R - 1530.

SAT II (subject, score): 800 Chemistry, 800 Math II

Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0

Weighted GPA: 4.67

Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1st out of 326

AP (place score in parentheses): Chemistry 5, Calc AB 5, English Language 5, Psychology 5, APUSH 4, AP Spanish Lang and Culture 3 (Won the AP scholar with distinction award)

Senior Year Course Load: Differential Equations (Dual Enrollment), AP Physics 1, AP Statistics, AP Literature, AP Macro (single semester) , AP US Government (single semester), AP Calculus BC, AP Comp Sci A

Awards: Not so big, but I qualified as the #1 alternate to take the national USNCO exam. Also a bunch of small, insignificant awards

Essays:
I wrote my commonapp essay about being an atheist & tied it into one of my ECs
I wrote my “Why Duke” essay about Harry Potter & how I love their research with the invisibility cloak. (This was a very genuine essay. I remember freaking out as a kid when I heard that Duke was recreating the invisibility cloak lol)

ECs -
Assistant Manager working at my parents’ store over the summers for 4 years (really enjoyed this)
Volunteer/internship at local free clinic
President of my school’s science club - we did the science olympiad, the envirothon, and a bunch of other small competitions
Ultimate Frisbee - just a regular club sport but I had a ton of fun with it
Public Relations officer for SGA - tons of volunteer work/coordinating school events
Vice President of NHS - organized various campaigns for our school
President of AVID Tutoring Program - tutored students twice a week and worked to recruit other tutors.
President/Founder of Debate Club - we met to discuss political issues (the 2016 election was a pretty great time for this club)

Applied for Financial Aid?: YES
Intended Major: Chemical Engineering (with a double major in Math)
State (if domestic applicant): FL
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public (not competitive whatsoever)
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: highish
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): nothing

Accepted - Duke, UF
Waitlisted - Yale, Brown, Vanderbilt
Rejected - HPSM, Cornell, Caltech

General comments: I don’t understand how this process works. Best of luck to all nervous juniors skimming through these threads - you got this! Also, don’t take as many APs as possible in high school. I loaded up on APs my junior & senior year, and I thoroughly regret it. Instead, invest your time into a project or an internship. I can’t tell you how many times you’ll see “president of club X” or “treasurer of club Y” posted on these threads. Also, stop reading these results threads in general. Don’t try to compare yourself to other people!!!