***Official Northwestern University Class of 2019 RD Results Thread***

[mfmrmpls]

[aB][asize=4][acolor=#008000]Decision: Accepted[/color][/size]**

Decision: Accepted

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown):
ACT (breakdown): 33 (33 english, 34 reading, 33 science, 31 math). 34 superscore
SAT II:
Unweighted GPA: 3.85
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 15%
AP (place score in parenthesis): Human Geography (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A- Will be taking many this spring.
Senior Year Course Load: IB SL Mathematics Year 2, IB HL Biology Year 2, IB Spanish 5, IB HL English Year 2, IB HL History of the Americas, AP Government & Politics
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Several State writing awards, many school awards, but nothing too major.

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Varsity Volleyball, Club Volleyball (5 years, attended nationals), Varsity Badminton, Math Team, School Tutoring, Link Crew Leader, Amnesty International, National Honor Society, Youth Volleyball Coach, Co-founder and Writing Department Head at Journalism Program connecting students with professionals
Job/Work Experience: Camp Counselor at Summer Program
Volunteer/Community service: Tutor, Volunteer on various Political Campaigns
Summer Activities:
Essays: Best part of application by far. Common App Essay 9.5/10, Northwestern Supplement 10/10
Teacher Recommendation: Haven’t read them but likely very good.
Counselor Rec: Good but probably very impersonal
Additional Rec:
Short Answer Questions:
Interview: n/a

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Political Science
State (if domestic applicant): Minnesota
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public (Inner-city school system but very competitive within the IB program)
Ethnicity: Biracial (African-American and White)
Gender: F
Income Bracket: $110,000 > income
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):

Reflection: Honestly my writing probably is what stood out the most here. I put a lot of time into perfecting my essays.

Strengths: Writing, Strong Courseload, Broad range of extracurriculars, IB student
What you tried to focus on in your application - any hooks you tried to make for yourself: Nothing stands out
Weaknesses: Class rank/grades (not straight A’s), lack of awards, lack of leadership
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Essays, essays, essays. Emphasized personal growth at Northwestern (not only what I can bring to Northwestern but what Northwestern can bring to me).
Where else were you accepted: UMich (LSA Honors, Close to full ride), UW Madison, UMinnesota, Notre Dame. Only applied to these 5.
Notes:

[geekchic]

@mfmrmpls Do you go to Cooper?

[mfmrmpls]

@geekchic No!

[Sup3rm4n]

Decision: Accepted

Objective:
[] SAT I (breakdown): 2300 (790 CR, 720 M, 790 W)
[] ACT (breakdown): 34
[] SAT II: 800 Biology M, 790 Math II
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A
[] AP (place score in parentheses): 5 on Biology, World, Euro, Psych, Chemistry, Statistics, AB Calculus, Literature, Language, 4 on Latin
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP Government, AP Macroeconomics, AP US History, Honors Acting, Organic Chemistry 1&2, Differential Equations, Calculus 3
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National AP Scholar, National Merit Commended

Subjective:
[] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): Student Body President, Paid worker on Election campaign, boys state senator, varsity track/cc (not recruited)
[] Job/Work Experience: math tutor at a tutoring center, election campaign
[] Volunteer/Community service: hospital stuff
[] Summer Activities: boys state, courses at local university
[] Essays: I think they were very strong
[] Teacher Recommendation: excellent from both
[] Counselor Rec: excellent
[] Interview: went incredibly well
[li] Supplementary Material: N/A[/li]
Other
[]Applied for Financial Aid?: nada
[] State (if domestic applicant): FL
Country (if international applicant):
[] School Type: small private
[] Ethnicity: white (middle eastern), Asian (Pakistani)
[] Gender: male
[] Income Bracket(mention if FA candidate): super high
[li] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): nothing[/li]
Reflection
[] Strengths: test scores, very strong extracurriculars and leadership
[] Weaknesses: ethnicity
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: see strengths? Honestly so many extraordinary candidates were wait listed and rejected
[] Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: full ride to UF, Accepted WashU, Vanderbilt, wait listed UChicago, rejected MIT

General Comments:

Hopeful for the college decisions to come ahead!

[th25cc]

Decision: Accepted (I would make this green but I can’t)

SAT I (breakdown): N/A
ACT (breakdown): 34 Composite, 35 science, 34 reading, 33 english, 32 math
SAT II: 750 Math II 620 US History although I did not submit either
Unweighted GPA: 4.0, transcript says 4.2 since A+ = 4.3
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): School doesn’t report, but I’m definitely top 2 likely 1
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Computer Science (4), AP Lang (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: Physics II, Spanish V, AP Macreconomics, English Independent Study (6 students), AP Calculus AB, Lifetime Activity (required gym course), AP Psychology, Independent Study Finance/Stock Market, Law (required senior course), AP US History
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Wisconsin scholarship for students who are top 3 in their class (although it is only for attending an in-state school)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): School Newspaper (14+ articles on economics/politics, although I just said “monthly” for Northwestern), Writing Center (writing coach, developer of online submission system), FBLA (national qualifier in economics junior year), Baseball, NHS tutor, Google club (pretty insignificant), math team and science olympiad (freshman/sophomore years)
Job/Work Experience: None
Volunteer/Community service: Writing coach at the writing center (nothing in the community)
Summer Activities: Baseball, personal academic exploration (writing, learning, etc.)
Essays: Definitely took a risk on my common app. I talked about my intellectual journey to become a libertarian/anarcho-capitalist. I essentially explained my political identity and how it has been such a big part of me. It wasn’t an opinion essay, but even then, mentioning politics is generally advised against. For the Northwestern essay I mentioned how the quarter system, economics major, and financial certificate would work well for me. Out of my 10 colleges, the Northwestern essay was #7 on my priority list and I did it about 2 days before the deadline.
Teacher Recommendation: Good - one was a template letter from my English teacher (including for this year’s independent study), one from a science teacher and newspaper adviser (decent), and one from my economics sub who taught for 1 month. He was 78 years old and a really awesome guy. He has taught internationally and at a nearby high school and said I was his “best student ever”. I’m sure admissions counselors see that all the time, and he didn’t really have any specific examples to support it.
Counselor Rec: No idea, although I think she would advocate for me as much as possible
Additional Rec: None
Short Answer Questions: None
Interview: Didn’t sign up for one

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Economics with Financial Economics certificate from Kelogg
State (if domestic applicant): Wisconsin
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: 100-150k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): None

Reflection:

Strengths: Uniqueness (political identity)
What you tried to focus on in your application - any hooks you tried to make for yourself:
Weaknesses: No work experience, no volunteer experience in the community (I was definitely apprehensive about my only volunteer experience being in school)
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I’m a very strong writer (I once calculated for fun how much I’ve written in high school and it is something like 130k words) and I focused on a unique personal story
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Accepted UW Madison, Waitlisted Washington STL (applied to business school without having taken any business classes), waiting on Harvard, Princeton, Pennsylvania, Cornell, Duke, NYU, Georgetown
Notes: Don’t be afraid to take risks. Focus on what makes you unique, and don’t feel like you have to cater to what “colleges want”. You don’t have to spread yourself thin on activities. I agree with the notion that you should get the best grades and test scores you can and then “be the best” in one activity.

[FriskySquirrel]

Decision: Accepted

McCormick

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 2150 (650 CR, 800 M, 700 W)
ACT (breakdown):
SAT II: 800 MII, 740 Physics
Unweighted GPA: 3.9-ish (93/100)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 11/149
AP (place score in parenthesis): Lang (3), Physics B (4) US History (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: All APs - Lit, Stats, Psych, French, Comp Scie, Calc AB (taking BC exam)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Hispanic Recognition Award?

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Math Team (Captain), French Club (President), Peer Mentor, Guitar, Tennis (recreational, not part of a school team), taking online classes on Coursera, self-teaching myself programming, Saving Energy Club
Job/Work Experience: None
Volunteer/Community service: Volunteered at a hospital over the summers (150 hours), some small volunteer acts in my school that are not noteworthy (in the app I put “school volunteering”), library organizer (30 hours)
Summer Activities: Read above
Essays: CA - Alright. Not the pretentious person who says that his essay was the best thing he had ever written, but my English teacher, guidance, and “essay coach” said it was very good and captivating. NU essay - Talked about why I like McCormick’s “whole-brain” engineering and how it resonates with my interests, and mentioned my plan for my upcoming years in NU.
Teacher Recommendation: Haven’t seen them but based on my relationships with the teachers - Math teacher, 9/10, very good. English teacher, 5-6/10, “okay,” Math teacher 2, 11/10, amazing! Coordinator of two clubs I’m in. Only sent this one to a few colleges (3 rec letters were too much…) and my results compared to those who I didn’t sent it to were very noticeable.
Counselor Rec: Very good, definitively not a “generic” one.
Additional Rec: See teacher 2 above?
Interview: Didn’t request one

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Computer Science
State (if domestic applicant): MA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Hispanic
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: <70,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM, immigrated to the U.S. about 5 years ago.

Reflection:

Strengths: SAT, GPA maybe? (compare to CC probably not). Recommendations, maybe essays. Rigor of classes.
What you tried to focus on in your application - any hooks you tried to make for yourself: That I’m a well-rounded student (cough whole-brain) and tries to implement my knowledge on different fields of study with engineering.
Weaknesses: I would say I’m an average applicant for NU, below average for CC (scores wise). I didn’t have any international, national, or even regional awards.
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I wanted to show why I fit in NU, so maybe they saw that.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Accepted - UMass Amherst, Northeastern, UMich, UIUC, U of Rochester, Cornell (likely letter), Columbia (likely letter). Rejected - MIT. Waiting on Penn, Dartmouth, CMU and Tufts
Notes:
Your common CC stats and scores are not everything. A compelling essay and rec letter can make a huge difference in portraying who you are to the admission officers. They will see if you fit or not in the school.
Congrats to those accepted!

[CollegeIsAMaybe]

**Decision: Accepted **

Weinberg- PoliSci

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 2230 (740 CR, 800 M, 690 W lol)
ACT (breakdown): 33 (can’t remember if I submitted)
SAT II: 740 U.S. History, 670 Math 2
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.98
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 7/550
AP (place score in parenthesis): Human Geo (4), World History (4), Chemistry (3), Spanish Lang (3), Psychology (4), U.S. History (5), English Comp (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
Senior Year Course Load: AP Stats, AP Calc AB, AP Enviro, AP Physics, AP English Lit, Dual credit Gov and Econ
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): NHRP, AP Scholar with Distinction, National Merit Commended

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): School and outside tennis, Academic Decathlon (captain), UIL Science, Number Sense, SocSci, Current Events (captain), Key Club (project coordinator), NHS
Job/Work Experience: tutoring
Volunteer/Community service: church, elementary school, library
Summer Activities: work, SAT camps, volunteering, tennis clinics and tournaments
Essays: 9/10. My common app was pretty basic, like an 8/10. But I really liked my supplement about Chicago and Northwestern’s unique place in the city. 10/10
Teacher Recommendation: 8/10. Only read one of the three, but it seemed pretty run of the mill.
Counselor Rec: did not read
Additional Rec: n/a
Interview: n/a

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes pls
Intended Major: Political Science
State (if domestic applicant): TX
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: public, average
Ethnicity: hispanic
Gender: male
Income Bracket: like $150,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM

Reflection

Strengths:
prolly the mexicanity, not gonna lie. My essays have always been strong as well
Weaknesses: no major awards or much leadership
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: always need some more diversity lol. But seriously, I think my my supplement was very good, as I talked about the school’s unique place in Chicago and how that is advantageous to me.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Accepted at Texas A&M, UT-Austin, Northeastern, Cornell, UCLA
Notes: This is a huge surprise for me, as I did not think I had a shot at getting in. Wow I am super happy with the decision though, once I see the financial aid package I’ll see if I can go

[dvdltmr]

Pick one:
[aB][asize=4][acolor=#008000]Decision: Accepted[/color][/size]**

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): Didn’t Take
ACT (breakdown): 33 Composite (34 English, 35 Math, 30 Reading, 34 Science)
SAT II: 750 Math I, 610 Literature
Unweighted GPA: 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):
AP (place score in parenthesis): US History (3), Calculus AB (3), Microeconomics (3), US Government (3), English Language (3)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Computer Science A, AP Statistics, AP Psychology, Spanish IV, Gym, Rhetoric (Dual Credit and Honors Course)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Scholar, Illinois State Scholar, National Achievement Semi-Finalist, State Qualifier in Boy’s Track and Field, National Qualifier in DECA Competitive Business Club, Oratorical Contest Winner

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Student Government (President of Class of 2015), DECA Business (President), African-American Culture Club (Co-Founder and President)
Job/Work Experience: Co-Founder of local non-profit organization that designs websites for local and growing businesses free of charge. Provides us with real-world programming experience, provides them with increased community impact
Volunteer/Community service: HEAVILY involved at my church. Digital Media Services, 5 hours a week for the last three years
Summer Activities: Pre-College Leadership and Impact Program, Loyola Summer Scholars Program
Essays: Common App was an 8 or 9 out of 10, NU was a 9/10
Teacher Recommendation: Absolutely phenomenal, they let me read a copy before submitting to Common App
Counselor Rec: 8/10
Additional Rec: 10/10
Short Answer Questions: 9/10
Interview: None

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Computer Science
State (if domestic applicant): Illinois
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Suburban. Very, very, very white.
Ethnicity: African-American/Black
Gender: Male
Income Bracket:75K to 100K
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Minority interested in Engineering

Reflection:

Strengths:
What you tried to focus on in your application - any hooks you tried to make for yourself: None, I’m an open book. Decorated student and athlete with an implied “Please let me in”
Weaknesses:
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Very well-rounded student. Nationally ranked athlete, 33 ACT, Strong GPA, Essays, Recommendations, and I’m a Black male
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Accepted at U. Va, Accepted at UIUC, Waitlisted at Notre Dame
Notes:

[Rappnic]

[asize=4]Decision: Accepted[/size]

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 660 M 660 W 630 CR
ACT (breakdown): one-sitting: 32C 35M 34 E 30R 27 S, superscore: 33C 35M 34E 33R 30S
SAT II: 770 Math2, 700 physics
Unweighted GPA: 3.98
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 3/42 when applying
AP (place score in parenthesis): didnt send
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP’s: Physics, Calc, English Lit, USH, Micro and MAcro
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):None

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Non Profit Ecological Org. (Founder and CEO), Student Council (Pres), Debate Club (Pres.), local TEDx (Speaker coordinator), NHS (Sec), SNHS (Co-founder and Sec), Math NHS, Drama Club
Job/Work Experience: Interned at Central American Bank for Economic Integration
Volunteer/Community service: over 1000 hours, founded a pro-life club in school, worked with my non profit and many other local orgs.
Summer Activities: Vanderbilt Summer Academy, Wake Forest summer program
Essays: Common App 9/10, Why NU 10/10, talked about very specific programs at the university and how I wanted to explore my technical skills while improving my right side of the brain…
Teacher Recommendation: both 9/10
Counselor Rec: 10/10
Additional Rec: submitted two, both 9/10
Interview: Didnt have

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: Industrial Engineering
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant): Nicaragua
School Type: Private
Ethnicity: Hispanic
Gender: M
Income Bracket: <100K
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none

Reflection:

Strengths: GPA, Extra Curriculars, Essays, Interest
What you tried to focus on in your application - any hooks you tried to make for yourself: I just tried to show my overall great ambition and determination for doing the things i love, my common app essay was mostly about the rough situations i’ve faced with my family, i showed a lot of interest in northwestern by meeting with the adcom when she came to my school… In general, I tried to show involvement.
Weaknesses: ACT’s/SAT’s
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: It’s really hard to say, but I can say that you never know the way it’s going to turn, it’s just about what the college is looking for, and how you prove that you can be the best fit for the university.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Accepted: UVa, Gatech, Tulane, Trinity, LUC, SLU, Waitlisted: Vanderbilt, WUSTL. Still waiting: UPEnn, Darmouth, Lehigh, Notre Dame, USC, Amherst
Notes: It’s not all about the stats! don’t lose faith, and always keep a positive mind!

[yoshimax]

Decision: Rejected

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 2310 superscore. CR - 800, M - 730, W - 780
ACT (breakdown): 34 E - 35, M - 32, R - 34, S - 36, W - 9
SAT II: N/A
Unweighted GPA: 3.99
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 12/274
AP (place score in parenthesis): 5 - English Lang, 4 - Calc BC/AB subscore, 4 - APES
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Gov (yearlong), AP Stats, AP English Lit, Honors Journalism VI, Honors Journalism VII, Honors Zoology, Honors US History
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Finalist, AP Scholar, a 1st place state journalism award and some honorable mentions

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Newspaper (editor in chief), Latin Club (vice president), Student Government Association, Key Club, Beta Club, Drama Club (only in 9th and 10th grade, I was treasurer in 10th)
Job/Work Experience: Babysitting until last year, freelance journalist for major state newspaper this year
Volunteer/Community service: Worked Toys for Tots toy drive, helped integrate autistic students into school social life at lunch as part of Beta Club last year, ran multiple Red Cross blood drives, helped serve food at local town festival, raised and lowered school flags each day last year, participated in state governor’s page program (I got paid so I’m not sure if this counts, and I don’t think I put it on my application since I was accepted in late December or early January).
Summer Activities: Not much, but I worked at my jobs
Essays: Common App was great (9), NU essay was awful (4). I didn’t do much research into the school and all I knew about it was that Stephen Colbert went there (it was a last-minute choice to apply) so I wrote the essay like one of Colbert’s monologues (it was a bad decision).
Teacher Recommendation: 10 for both, although I didn’t see them.
Counselor Rec: 9, my counselor likes me
Additional Rec: 7, my babysitter knows me pretty well but she was never home when I was babysitting…
Short Answer Questions: There weren’t any other than the essay, right?
Interview: N/A

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Undecided
State (if domestic applicant): North Carolina
Country (if international applicant): N/A
School Type: Medium-sized public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: Middle class
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): N/A. I have dyspraxia, a speech disorder, so maybe that? I wrote about it for my essay.

Reflection:

Strengths: My scores, Common App essay, recs
What you tried to focus on in your application - any hooks you tried to make for yourself: My speech impediment, like I said above.
Weaknesses: Definitely my supplement essay and my ECs
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: The ECs probably deterred the admissions committee and the essay finalized their decision
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Accepted to UNC Chapel Hill and UNC Asheville, rejected from University of Chicago and Northwestern. Still waiting on NYU, Columbia, Swarthmore, USC, and Duke.
Notes: If you were rejected, don’t worry! I’m sure we’ll all get into great schools.

[Axelarate]

Decision: Rejected

Objective:
[] SAT I (breakdown): N/A
[] ACT (breakdown): 32 (M: 28, Sci: 28, E: 32, R: 36, W: 33)
[] SAT II:
Math I: 600
Chemistry: 520
Biology: 540
(Dont judge lol)
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): ~3.75
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 15%
[] AP (place score in parentheses):
AP World History(4)
AP Lang. and Comp.(4)
AP US History(4)
[] IB (place score in parentheses): N/A
[] Senior Year Course Load:
Very Challenging
AP Physics I (2nd hardest class offered)
AP Chemistry 2 (1st hardest class offered)
AP Lit. and Comp.
AP Gov. and Pol.
Precalculus(HNR)
Advanced Philharmonic Orchestra(concert)
[***] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
AP Scholar
Presidential Scholar(nominee)
Several Orchestra group based awards
High school/college Book and Philosophy award
Several JROTC ribbons, advanced rank, and awards(freshman year)
Several Honor roll and Principles list award
Outstanding Ambassador2
Outstanding Justice(statewide mock government)
Outstanding Advocate(statewide mock government)

Subjective:
[] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses):
JROTC(highest leadership position for freshman year achieved)
National Honor Society(Secretary)
Freshman Orchestra(Assistant Concert Master)
Philharmonic Orchestra(3rd Primary Violin)
Senior Class Officer(Sgt. - in - Arms)
Student Senate
Statewide mock government(Sectional team leader for school)
Statewide mock United Nations(Sectional team co-leader for school)
Beta club
[] Job/Work Experience: N/A
[] Volunteer/Community service:
Out of country volunteer trip
Home aide and translation with ESL parents
Hospital Volunteer
School activity volunteer
Orchestra volunteer
(very large amount of total hours over 4 years)
[] Summer Activities:
Summer volunteering trip
[] Essays:
Very strong and personal (wrote about hardships of growing up ESL and immigrant)
Wrote optional essay about why I am more than just
[] Teacher Recommendation:
AP Physics I teacher: Fairly weak, only knew me for one year and it was short and he even misspelled my
name
AP World History teacher: Very strong, knew me for long time and sponsor for clubs
[] Counselor Rec:
Very strong, knew me for a long time and everything was positive
[] Additional Rec: N/A
[] Interview: N/A
[] Supplementary Material: N/A

Other
[]Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
[] State (if domestic applicant): KY
Country (if international applicant): N/A
[] School Type: Public College Preparatory(very large and challenging compared to other schools)
[] Ethnicity: West Indian
[] Gender: Male
[] Income Bracket(mention if FA candidate): $30,001 - $60,000
[***] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):
ESL, ESL parents, frequent mover, many family responsibilities, strong competitive school environment

Reflection
[] Strengths:
Very strong essay, well rounded in all areas, many responsibilities and difficult classes in a difficult
school
[] Weaknesses: Weak test scores, lower level GPA, no visits, no interview, one weak recommendation
[] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Likely the fact that I was well rounded and had an engaging story and expressed that story in an engaging
and personal form. I also used many creative analogies to show my creativity.
[] Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Accepted: Vanderbilt
Waitlisted: N/A
Rejected: MIT, Yale-NUS, Northwestern
Waiting on: UPenn, USC, Stanford, Carnegie Mellon, Amherst, Harvard,
Yale, Cornell, Brown, Columbia, Princeton.

Congratulations to all who got accepted!

[jerseeeygirl]

Pick one:

ACCEPTED!!! School of Communications

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): (1990)- 630 Math, 690 Reading, 670 Writing
ACT (breakdown):
SAT II:
Unweighted GPA: 3.9
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 6/308
AP (place score in parenthesis): English Lang (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP English Lit, AP US History, Honors Galre (Gov), AP Spanish 5, AP Calculus AB, AP Studio Art
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Hispanic Recognition Program Scholar, Wellesley Book Award

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Swimming (4 yrs), DECA (11th, 12th, both times a State qualifier, 12th grade VP), Peer leadership (10th, 11th), Track and Field (9th, 10th), Literary magazine (10th, 11th, 12th, Editor in Chief 11th and 12th)
Job/Work Experience: Administrative Assistant (about 6 hours a week)
Volunteer/Community service: ESL Nights, Summer Reading Program at local library
Summer Activities:
Essays: My common app wasn’t the best I’ve ever written, but it was really true to me. My Why NU? essay was I think amazing and super personal to why I wanted to go to NU. To be honest I think this is why I got in.
Teacher Recommendation: My AP English Lang teacher wrote it, and she really liked me but I waived my right to see it
Counselor Rec: My counselor really likes me so I’m sure it was fine
Additional Rec:
Short Answer Questions:
Interview: Didn’t interview

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Communications
State (if domestic applicant): NJ
Country (if international applicant): USA
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Hispanic, white
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: about $100,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): hispanic female?

Reflection: I honestly am in shock

Strengths: Essay, so many extra cirriculurs/ APs
What you tried to focus on in your application - any hooks you tried to make for yourself:
Weaknesses: SAT
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Essay
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Accepted- Indiana University, Rutgers University, Boston University, University of Minnesota. 5/5!
Notes:
I am SO SO SO excited to be a wildcat. CONGRATULATIONS to everyone who was admitted. This is such an amazing accomplishment and I can’t wait to meet all of you!

[doIcedolce]

Pick one:
[aB][asize=4][acolor=#008000]Decision: Accepted[/color][/size]/b

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 2200 (800 CR, 610 M, 790 W)
ACT (breakdown):n/a
SAT II: 770 lit, 770 bio M
Unweighted GPA: 3.97
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 18/380 ish
AP (place score in parenthesis): n/a
IB (place score in parenthesis): take all tests in may so not sure yet
Senior Year Course Load: IB Math studies, IB anthropology, IB History, IB english, IB french, IB bio, Theory of Knowledge
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): nothing really major, minor mock trial stuff, finalist in a state poetry contest

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): mock trial, volleyball, tennis, nhs, babysitting, tutoring, lots of writing
Job/Work Experience: babysitting, no formal job
Volunteer/Community service: no huge commitments, tutoring and nhs-related things
Summer Activities: sports conditioning, travel, mock trial
Essays:
CA: 10. LOVED this one. completely unusual topic I was so happy with how it came out
supplement: 8/10 I didn’t love it but I took some risks and they paid off, I was super specific with what I loved about the school and a conversation I had with a medill student
Teacher Recommendation: both 10’s, 1 english teacher said I was one of the top 5 students she ever had and junior year social studies teacher thought really highly of me
Counselor Rec: 7/10, she loved me but it’s a big school so form letter
Additional Rec: n/a
Short Answer Questions: n/a
Interview:n/a

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: journalism
State (if domestic applicant): Indiana
Country (if international applicant): n/a
School Type: magnet public school
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: >$100,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): literally nothing

Reflection:

Strengths:
What you tried to focus on in your application - any hooks you tried to make for yourself: I’m strong in English and really tried to make myself come across as personable, which essays definitely helped with. Also, I exhibited a strong demonstrated interest in the school so that probably helped as well
Weaknesses: MATH SAT OH MY GOD also I’m very average no big awards or anything
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I look good in purple. Just kidding I think I’m genuinely a good fit for the school! but mostly luck
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: waiting on a lot of schools still
Notes:
Absolutely, utterly unexpected but I’m SO ecstatic. I cried for 10 minutes and haven’t been able to do any homework since I got the decision I’m ASTONISHED but thrilled out of my mind GO WILDCATS AHHHHHHHHHHHHH (I’m also realizing that my “notes” got significantly less eloquent as I went on just SO EXCITED)

[whodat123]

[aB][asize=4][acolor=#008000]Decision: Accepted[/color][/size]**

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): N/A
ACT (breakdown): 34 Composite - 33E, 35M, 34R, 34R
SAT II: 780 Math II, 720 US History
Unweighted GPA: 3.97/4.00
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/432
AP (place score in parenthesis): 5 BC Calc, 4’s on APUSH, Eng Lang, Macro, US Gov, 3 Env Sci
Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics C, AP Bio, AP Chem, AP Eng Lit, Span V, Stat H, World History H, Health
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): School’s Student of Year 2014, AP Scholar things, nothing truly stupendous here

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): 4 Year Letterman on top 10 soccer team in nation, Captain on track team, Captain on a top club soccer team, 2x class president (facilitated Prom dance last year and this year orchestrated senior trip to Disney world), French club vice president, key club treasurer, other things
Job/Work Experience: youngest employee every at a Mexican restaurant, election commissioner (worked polls in national and state elections)
Volunteer/Community service: Started a youth soccer clinic to raise money for school’s soccer program, head counselor at Church’s summer program for at-risk youth (1 month, 2 summers), many other miscellaneous things
Summer Activities: Working/volunteering/trying to get “swole” for sports
Essays: Hard to judge for myself, I like to think it was good
Teacher Recommendation: One was satisfactory, other was excellent
Counselor Rec: Big school, to the point, not good or bad
Additional Rec: Good
Short Answer Questions: straightforward, solid
Interview: Nope

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Nope
Intended Major: Statistics/International Studies
State (if domestic applicant): LA
Country (if international applicant): USA
School Type: Large public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: Nope
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Nope

Reflection:

Strengths: Grades, intense EC involvement
What you tried to focus on in your application - any hooks you tried to make for yourself: Just tried to be myself, cliche… I know, tried to be genuine
Weaknesses: disciplinary issue, although my statement/apology was excellent so perhaps a strength? Idk
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I have no idea, great grades balanced with rigorous athletics?
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Accepted: Rhodes, Kenyon College, LSU Honors, UGA Honors, Colby College
Rejected: Wash U STL, Pomona
Waiting to hear back from 8 other schools
Notes: You never know what will happen. I am baffled, dumbfounded, ecstatic, etc. CONGRATS TO EVERYONE ELSE WHO GOT IN!!! For those who didn’t, there are loads of other schools out there. This whole process has an element of randomness. Knowing that, just keep looking forward to the next decision.

[ThatFellow]

[aB][asize=4][acolor=#008000]Decision: Accepted[/color][/size]**

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 2240
ACT (breakdown): 35
SAT II: Math II; 800 Lit: 760
Unweighted GPA: 4.0 - Weighted: 4.15
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 25/500
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Calc BC: 5, AP Lang: 5
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: Almost all AP
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Varisty Soccer, Tech Club, Church Activities, NHS, Jazz Band, Some other really unique stuff I’m not going to list (would be too identifying. My advice- do something no one else is doing)
Job/Work Experience: Random minimum wage summer jobs
Volunteer/Community service: Sports clinics and summer camp counselor
Summer Activities: ^^ & Sports
Essays:9/10 Common App was sort of about how I’m very engineering oriented and like working on things, Why NW was about my first Visit to see sibling there and their Engineering Curriculum. Think it was really, really good.
Teacher Recommendation: 10/10 Got some awesome recs from teachers I’ve had for a while and know me very well.
Counselor Rec: 7/10 Bit generic but genuine
Additional Rec:
Short Answer Questions: Don’t remember.
Interview: Yes, went really well.

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: No
Intended Major: Engineering
State (if domestic applicant): Western US
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Med-Large Public
Ethnicity:
Gender: Male
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Have worked on some impressive engineering projects, double legacy, have some very unique ECs

Reflection:

Strengths: ACT score, Uweighted GPA, essays, EC Activities
What you tried to focus on in your application - any hooks you tried to make for yourself: My passion for engineering
Weaknesses: Class Rank, Not as many APs as I could have had
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Strong in most areas, great essays, double legacy, unique extracurriculars
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Accepted: 5+ Top 15 Engineering Schools, only rejected from Stanford
Notes:

[Nk1237]

Accepted! 2310 SAT, 4.0 Unweighted, lots of demonstrated interest and solid recs/essays/interview

[BlueWizard97]

Decision: Rejected

Objective:[ul]
[] SAT I (breakdown): 2220 (680 CR, 770 M, 770 W)
[] ACT: 35
[] SAT II: Math Level II - 800, Biology - 800, Chemistry - 790
[] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.95
[] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A
[] ELC?: ?
[] AP (place score in parenthesis): Chemistry - 5, Biology - 5, Art History - 5, English Language - 5
[] IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
[] Senior Year Course Load: AP English Literature, AP Calculus BC, AP Physics C, AP Computer Science, AP US Government, Spanish 3
[] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): N/A

[/ul]Subjective:[ul]
[] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): SADD (Founder / President), School Newspaper (Webmaster), National Honor Society
[] Job/Work Experience: N/A
[] Volunteer/Community service: Red Cross (since 8th Grade)
[] Personal Statement: I think they were really good. Don’t want to go into too many specifics.

[/ul]Other[ul]
[] Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
[li]** Intended Major **: Mathematical Methods in the Social Sciences[/li][] State (if domestic applicant): CA
[] Country (if international applicant):
[] School Type: Public, Large (3500+ Students)
[] Ethnicity: Asian
[] Gender: Male
[] Income Bracket: Don’t want to be too specific, but upper middle class, not enough for good FinAid.
[] Hooks (URM, first generation college, research, etc.): N/A

[/ul]Reflection[ul]
[] Strengths: I know I had stats that were extremely competitive and my essays were really solid. I had a great interview, so even though I didn’t get in I feel like I did everything I could have to communicate my strengths.
[] Weaknesses: I could have done a lot more as far as ECs and demonstrating interest.
[] Accepted: UCLA (whoo), UCSD, UC Irvine (Campus Honors Program), Washington (Purple and Gold Scholarship)
[] Waitlisted: Caltech
[] Schools you were rejected from? MIT and now Northwestern
[] Schools you are waiting for? Cal, USC, Stanford, the entire Ivy League
[/ul]General Comments: I’m disappointed a bit by my rejection but I can live with it. I know I tried my best and that I definitely had a chance of getting in, but that there were a lot of people who were more qualified and deserved it more. I’m probably going to be a Bruin next year, but I’ll see how it works with my other colleges. Best of luck to those of you applying next year!

[polisciguy26]

[aB][asize=4][acolor=#008000]Decision: Accepted (Weinberg)[/color][/size]**

Objective:

ACT (breakdown): 34
SAT II: 800 Chem, 780 US History, 760 Math II/World History
Unweighted GPA: 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 2
AP (place score in parenthesis): 5 on 8 AP’s
Senior Year Course Load: AP Literature, AP Calc BC, AP US Gov, AP Bio, Physics H,

Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National AP Scholar

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Student Government, clubs, sports
Job/Work Experience: congressional internship
Volunteer/Community service:
Summer Activities:
Essays: 7
Teacher Recommendation: 7
Counselor Rec: 7
Additional Rec:
Short Answer Questions: 8 i showed a lot of interest for Northwestern
Interview:

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: N/A
Intended Major: Political Science
State (if domestic applicant): CA
Country (if international applicant): USA
School Type: Public
Ethnicity:
Gender: M
Income Bracket: 100,000+
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): unique ECs

Reflection:

Strengths: Unique ECs, interest in Northwestern
What you tried to focus on in your application - any hooks you tried to make for yourself:
Weaknesses: No interview, weak common app essay
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected:
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected:
Notes:

[kaileemet]

Decision: Accepted

SAT I (breakdown): 2340 highest individual, 2380 superscored: 790 CR, 800 W, 790 Math
ACT (breakdown): 34
SAT II (place score in parentheses): Math II (750), Chemistry (780)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.67 UW, 4.62 W
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 40/491 UW, 18/491 W
AP (place score in parentheses): World (5), Stats (4), Chem (5), Language and Comp (5)
IB (place score in parentheses): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: Chamber (an audition only competition choir at my school), Honors Civics, AP Psych, AP Calc BC, AP Literature and Comp
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Semifinalist, AP Scholar

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): School Newspaper (Managing Editor), City Musical, NHS, Girl Scouting since 1st grade, Drama Club (Executive)
Job/Work Experience: Synagogue teacher’s assistant twice a week for two hours each for five years
Volunteer/Community Service: Pre-calc tutor at my school once a week for an hour
Summer Activities: Counselor at sleep away camp for 8 weeks, NFTY trip to Israel the year before
Essays: I think it’s pretty solid, but I’ve only received feedback from people who would compliment it regardless. My Why Northwestern essay was pretty good and specific.
Teacher Recommendations: One great, one good
Counselor Rec: I don’t know, but she doesn’t know me at all and she has a hard time with grammar
Additional Rec: N/A
Interview: N/A

Other

State (if domestic applicant): CT
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: 100k+
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): I’m a legacy! My dad went undergrad.

Reflection

Strengths: SAT score, legacy
Weaknesses: GPA, Extracurriculars, didn’t visit or interview
Why you think you were accepted: No clue. Probably because I’m a legacy. Looking at all of these stats, I’m 500% shocked that I got in.
Where else you are applying or have already applied: Accepted: Case Western, Wash U in St Louis, UConn, RPI, Northeastern, ASU
Waitlisted/Deferred: Tulane, Vandy, UVA, Bowdoin
Rejected: Rice
Still waiting: Cornell, Johns Hopkins, Claremont McKenna, UCal Berkeley

[suspiciouscloud]

Decision: Accepted
Weinberg

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 2370 (800R, 790M, 780W)
ACT (breakdown): 36 (36R, 36W, 34M, 36S, 8E)
SAT II: 800 Lit, 790 Bio, 770 Math I
Unweighted GPA: 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): school does not rank
AP (place score in parenthesis): US History 5, Lang 5, French 5, AB Calc 5, Microeconomics 5
IB (place score in parenthesis): none
Senior Year Course Load: AP Bio, Hon World Lit, AP Stats, Multivariable Calc (graded as AP), Hon Art I, Hon French Independent Study, Modern Dance (PE)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): NMF, Presidential Volunteer Service Award Bronze

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Science Olympiad team founder/competitor, Academic Decathlon captain 9th-11th grade, 7 years of ballet, NHS, FHS, Mu Alpha Theta, 3D fabrication training program, Knitting Club founder/president, writing for HS lit mag
Job/Work Experience: Assistant in cancer research lab at Northwestern’s medical school, 9th-10th grade
Volunteer/Community service: over 150 hrs as educational volunteer at nationally-known science museum, assorted NHS service projects
Summer Activities: Museum volunteering, poetry classes at Poetry Foundation
Essays: CA decently well-written, funny Northwestern essay showed close relationship with the school
Teacher Recommendation: One 10/10, one 8/10
Counselor Rec: 8/10, describes me as “high flier” at high-ranked high school
Additional Rec: Lead scientist in cancer lab, she offered to write it so I imagine at least 8/10
Interview: Interviewer asked strange ~conceptual~ questions, pulled up a buzzfeed article and started reading random literary quotes to me (??). Not catastrophic, just weird.

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: Biology
State (if domestic applicant): Illinois
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: selective enrollment public, #1 in state
Ethnicity: White
Gender: F
Income Bracket: 100k-150k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Personal relationship to NU-- parent works there, mentored by v successful scientist in their med school

Reflection:

Strengths: Test scores, grades, recs
What you tried to focus on in your application - any hooks you tried to make for yourself: played up connection with/knowledge of NU to show interest
Weaknesses: light senior year course load, essays passable
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I’d love to say “merit alone”, but lots of people with really great stats got rejected, so I’m sure my demonstrated interest in/connection to NU helped
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected:
Accepted: University of Chicago, WUSL, Case Western, UMich Ann Arbor, U of I Urbana-Champaign
Waiting: Yale (Deferred SCEA), Swarthmore, Harvard, Princeton, Brown, Stanford
Notes: Congrats to everyone who got in! It sounds like it was especially tough this year because of the number of early acceptances, so even more than usual, I think we can say that whether you were accepted doesn’t reflect on you as a person. Best of luck to everyone who applied–I’m sure we’ll all be going to great schools in the fall!