<p>Is a passion for helping others way too stupid? All of my ECs back that up, and I'm genuinely passionate about it. I am also interested in possibly joining the Peace Corps after college. I'm gonna save the world... Yadda yadda yadda. It sounds so clich</p>
<p>I'm a junior in high school and my top choice is Brown University. I've decided to do early decision. The majority of my classes are at the honors level and will have taken seven AP courses by the time I apply. My GPA right now is an A -- 90/100 (equivalent to a 3.5) at an extremely, extremely competitive high school in New Jersey that is ranked # 1 in the state and #30 in the country. My ACT is a 30 and I have yet to take SAT subject tests in October (Spanish, Literature, Intermediate Algebra). I REFUSE to take the reasoning test. </p>
<p>My extracurricular is pretty out there. I've served as the editor in chief of the school newspaper, the highly amusing "school comic book," the schools sports magazine, the school anti-smoking magazine and for next year, I was appointed the position of yearbook editor. I've served as art director/publicist for an anti-suicide club. I was also art director of one shakespeare play, and costume director of another shakespearean play (total of 28 people [28 costumes] in the play). I am a member of the Spanish Language Club, the Student Council and REBEL (anti-smoking club). I founded the school's Yoga Club, serving as president. I was a fashion model at the school talent show.</p>
<p>I volunteered at the United Services Organization, the New York Presbyterian Hospital, the New York Presbyterian Hospital (Cornell University division), Bellevue Hospital (these are all in new york city) and the Salvation Army. </p>
<p>I think was sets me apart is that I interned for the local newspaper and landed my own column (my name is the title of the column, which I will not mention publicly). I served as the editorial assistant for the city newspaper of a large city (where I'm still employed). I've also gained experience in the art department of the newspaper. I have many clips to show my interviewer.
At the end of this summer, I will be working at a celebrity magazine (Life&Style Weekly magazine) in the fashion department. I am also a photographer and a designer. I am starting my own clothing line this summer and will hopefully be creating clothes under my name. </p>
<p>I am looking to double major in International Relations with a specialized major -- Apparel Design. Or maybe even English with Apparel Design. I would like to create the Apparel Design major by cross-registering with courses at RISD. </p>
<p>Basically, I'm an arts buff. I'm a sucker for the arts, which is extremely unusual, being that I am Asian (lol) and completely suck ass at math. I really feel that Brown University is the perfect school for me, and I seriously hope to get in. I will be the second person to go to college in my family. </p>
<p>But I'm kind of nervous about my class percentile because typically, if you have a low A average, there is a HIGH possibility that you may very well be at the bottom half of your class. Do you guys think I'll be able to get in?</p>
<p>How the hell do you have time to do all that stuff?</p>
<p>I think that admissions committees, in general, realize that some high schools are more competitive than others (and thus being in top 10% or whatever varies from school to school). You still have a quite respectable GPA and test scores. I definitely think you're 'able' to get in - in fact, I think you have a very good shot - but who knows!</p>
<p>I'm nervous about my passion now. I never thought it'd be possible to second guess true passion! Why can't I just be something like an obsessive stamp collector... that would show a focused determination...</p>
<p>okay honestly it doesn't matter what your passion is, or really how passionate you actually are! you just have to convince the admissions people that you're a keeper. so even if you just do one thing like work at a hospital then you have to convince everyone else that this is most likely the greatest, most life changing thing you have ever done.
good grades help, but who needs As in history when you're amazing in, say, bio?</p>
<p>You can only "convince" an admissions committee of so much 'passion' in your life. I don't think so much that people who demonstrate passion belong at Brown so much as passionate people belong at Brown - there's a fine line separating the two. If you really love Brown, then chances are you're gonna fall in the latter group, so just write what feels best! Really, just "speak from the heart" or whatever lame cliche you want to follow! Think about how many "I am drowning in passion for ______ " essays Brown gets every year, they just can't admit all of them. The essay is really the only part of your application you have a large degree of control over at this point in your high school career, and the only place where you can really express who you are. If you're trying to convince them that you're a particular type of person, it will most likely show through in the writing. The moment you feel like you're 'forcing' out a Brown essay, it's probably headed in the wrong direction!</p>
<p>to a poster way above, 50% of those perfect SAT scorers may be rejected, but 50% got in. and whats the rate for pretty much everyone else? 13%? 10%? something like that.</p>
<p>The director of admission at Brown says that it is not "passion" the school is looking for, but a sense of joy -- for life, for an activity, for an academic subject, etc. </p>
<p>immerbrioman: your ECs are excellent, and since you must be a good writer you should be able to write a good essay. It's hard to tell how Brown will consider your GPA/rank -- typically Brown looks for students with higher GPAs who are in the top tenth of their class. Exceptions are students from private schools or magnet-type high schools. If your high school is a typical suburban public school that happens to be very competitive, then a rank outside of the top decile will not help you get accepted. If your high school doesn't rank, that might help you. If it does, I suggest you look at the facts and figures page on the Brown website which will give you an idea of the chances of getting in when ranked lower than the top tenth.</p>
<p>What if your extracurriculars don't demonstrate passion in one area, just... dabbling in several areas of interest? </p>
<p>My ECs are all over the place and I haven't done anything extraordinary with any of them. I join clubs in my areas of interests and have very few "leadership" positions (none as of now, but a few potential ones have been offered to me senior year. I hate the idea of getting leadership positions just for the sake of having them, but especially as a senior, I'd love to be a part of keeping clubs organized and active.) I'm on Math Team and in Art Club; I participate in computer programming competitions and was a member of Photography Club and Literary Magazine for two years (until the meeting dates conflicted with other clubs); I'm part of a program that donates computers to needy students and helps them learn to use them; I'm in the French Honor Society, Art Honor Society, and NHS; I've taken classes over the summer in areas of interest; etc. </p>
<p>I know that colleges in general hate to see a "laundry list" of extracurricular activities, and at first I planned on focusing (in my applications) on one or two of my more important activities (PCs4Kids is very rewarding, Art Club is a fun way to practice my love of art and use it to help out in the community), as seems to be the preferred method according to the general consensus in this thread: elaborate upon one or two passions and what you've done with them. But then I decided that it would be more honest and representative of me to present myself as having used my spare time to participate in ECs in all sorts of areas of interest to me. I want to write my extracurricular essay about how participating in all sorts of activities, even though I didn't pour a bunch of time into any particular one, has been rewarding because I've used my HS time to explore my (multiple) passions. </p>
<p>My biggest passion relevant to my studies is cognitive neuroscience -- but as I just decided in the middle of last year (my junior year) that this was what I wanted to study, I haven't done anything in that field. This summer, I'm taking a two-week course at Summer@Brown on the nervous system; also, next school year I'm going to secure an internship (my school system has a great intern-mentor program) with a scientist who does at least somewhat-related work. But besides these two things, I'm not gonna have any activities that demonstrate my interest in the subject. </p>
<p>Anyways, I just want to know what you guys think about the whole not-doing-anything-big-but-having-lots-of-interests thing. :/ I hope I haven't screwed myself over for college admissions by, you know, spending my spare time doing things I like! -___-</p>
<p>I applied a looooong time ago (okay, not that long ago I guess) and I was surprised when I got a handwritten letter from the admissions officer who admitted me. Essentially, he told me what he thought stood out about me, but that what was really great about my application was my ESSAYS -- in particular, he thought that I conveyed why the things I did/was talking about were important to me well. Although it was several years ago, my standardized testing was WELL below profile (even at that time - like 200 points below their median - this was back when the SAT was only 2 sections) and I had no hooks to speak of at Brown. I was impressed with this close reading of my application and the attention the admissions folks seemed to pay to what I had to say in my application. After working at several places in admissions now, I am still impressed with the level of attention my application got at Brown. </p>
<p>Today, my favorite part of reading applications is the essay. And, really, unless you do convey why whatever it is you are talking about is important to you, you aren't doing a good job with your essay. Take your time and be honest in your essays - it pays off! I'm very convinced that my essay is what got me into Brown.</p>
<p>I was accepted for the class of 2011 and somewhat I really don't understand the reason for it. I come from a somewhat competitive school, I graduated 11th in my class with an UW of 3.85 and a W of 5.4. My SATs were awful (1850). My EC's were alright, 7 clubs and I was an officer for 4 (including the President for one). However, what i believe helped me were my Essays. I spent several weeks (almost a month and a half) witting them, and I wrote mostly on how books impacted my life. Also, my interview was superb (even my interviewer thought at the end we talked more than we should have).
Furthermore, I believe that they are not looking for someone who is perfect, but someone who is perfect for Brown.
Good luck for future applicants.</p>