<p>Has anyone heard back about the entrants badge?</p>
<p>haven’t heard from STS yet.</p>
<p>Still nothing</p>
<p>Still nothing here.</p>
<p>Nothing for me either…
To 007math’s original questions: If what you did is kind of an “obscure science” then dumbing it down is probably fine. The people reading it will be volunteers who are mid-level researchers and they’ll be chosen based on the category you selected on your app. I think its okay to dumb it so they understand it, but not too much so that you lose the “science paper” essence. To you question about how “superb” the research needs to be, I would say dont worry about it. Even the winner’s don’t do something THAT fantastic. At a certain point, you have to recognize we’re all HSers and so what we do is a small part of a much bigger project – we just try to relate our work and its importance as well as we can!</p>
<p>Thanks Hadiram! Not much I can do now about my submission…Semifinalists announced on January 9th so just about 10 days left.</p>
<p>Idk Hadiram, past winners have done serious high level research. For example last year’s winner researched the molecular mechanisms of cancer cells which is definitely graduate level.</p>
<p>Ya, I don’t think that any mid-level researcher would cut it for a competition as prestigious as STS.</p>
<p>I’m a high-school junior right now and about to start second semester.
When should I start my project? I am planning to join the STS for 2014.</p>
<p>@boksolar: I’d say whenever you get the opportunity and time. Also, I suggest you participate in Siemens–the deadline for that is early (October 1).</p>
<p>I agree with 007. My project technically started during the Summer between soph and junior year, but I took a couple month sabbatical and finished it during the summer. STS and Siemens are extremely competitive. Good luck to everyone.</p>
<p>@boksolar, you should really start as soon as possible. Even if you plan your project to be done by the necessary deadlines, unexpected things always come up. Also, if you have to independently contact researchers to find a mentor, that can be insanely time consuming (at least it was for me), because you might need to contact 50+ people before finding one who can and will work with you, and even then, you will probably not be his/her number one priority. That being said, it is not nearly too late yet, so I hope that you are able to complete your project and I wish you good luck :)</p>
<p>I guess by THAT fantastic I meant like award-winning, or publish in Nature. But yes, definitely graduate level. Also unless things have changed according to a girl who was in the 2011 finals, the people who initially read your apps are mid-level researchers, like professors at various universities across the country.</p>
<p>@boksolar, you might also consider applying to a summer research program like RSI, Clark Scholars, HSHSP, or any of the others listed [url=<a href=“http://mitadmissions.org/apply/prepare/summer]here[/url”>Summer programs | MIT Admissions]here[/url</a>]. They can go a long way towards helping you conduct a successful research project (plus, they’re an awesome experience all-around!).</p>
<p>I’m planning to start now, but I obviously have to find some supervisor or some professor in the university who I can work with.
How do I find that person?
Do I just call the university up and ask them to hook me up with one of their professors?
I’m sure they’re busy with their own classes and such that they could care less about some high-school kid.</p>
<p>Look on the university’s website and find some professors you’d be interested in working with. Plan on emailing a bunch of them because only then you can count on getting a response.</p>
<p>Out of curiosity boksolar, in what area do you live?</p>
<p>Has anyone heard about the entrance badges? We were supposed to be notified by now even though the semis are announced in about a week…</p>
<p>I haven’t heard anything about the entrance badges yet…to be honest I don’t even entirely understand the concept of the badges, but that’s just me.</p>
<p>Also, I just want to second what LuoSciOly said above. I have been doing independent research since 7th grade, and I had a project that I had been working on for three years in high school. However, I was a Clark Scholar this past summer, and the project I did over the course of 7 weeks as a Clarkie was in my opinion far more comprehensive than the project I had been working on for three years on my own. In the end, I submitted my Clark project to Siemens and STS (and am crossing my fingers for good news on the 9th!)</p>
<p>For all you non-seniors already thinking about entering STS and the like in the future, now is the time to be applying for summer research opportunities. It’s an incredible opportunity to do college-level research while still having a fairly large degree of freedom in your work. At least at Clark, most of us were able to develop our own projects and work in the direction of our choosing within the context of the labs we were assigned to. Definitely looks around and apply for several programs if you are eligible (most are insanely competitive, so don’t limit yourself to one or two options). The apps themselves are great practice for college apps and also the STS app, which is quite lengthy. </p>
<p>And to all my fellow STS competitors, best of luck to you all! :)</p>
<p>I’m guessing they will inform us of badges around the semifinalist announcement next week.</p>