I feel my chances are pretty low, as my only advantage is being at Caltech and my high GPA. I have only one research, hardly any extracurriculars in college, and no IMO/IPhO gold medal.
I am applying transfer to MIT from Caltech. Female, Chinese citizenship, came to the U.S. at undergraduate level, first gen.
Major: Mathematics/ Theoretical Computer Science/ Theoretical Physics
Academics:
GPA at Caltech: 4.3 (Straight A+'s except for two courses, one being a mandatory political science course)
SAT: 770/800
SATII: Math2 800, Physics 800
AP: Calculus BC 5, Physics C E&M 5, Mechanics 5, English Literature and Composition 5, Statistics 5 (not eligible for any credit at Caltech, self studied all, high school did not offer AP courses)
Awards:
Richard G. Brewer Prize for Physics (A Caltech physics award to a single undergrad each year)
A couple of mathematical modeling awards from high school
Research & Extracurriculars:
Worked on a research project at a Caltech physics lab over the summer. Designed and implemented a laser measurement system.
Practically no other extracurriculars at college.
President of the mathematical modeling club in high school. I don’t feel like elaborating on my high school activities as i feel they’re kind of deemphasized. A rough estimate would be “they got me into Caltech, two ivy leagues, but not HYPSM”.
Again I feel my chances are pretty low, and am considering whether or not to apply in the first place. Please chance me. Thank you!
Oh and just in case, the two courses in which I didn;t get an A+, I got an A.
I guess that there are three things to think about.
The first question is: Why do you want to transfer? You are clearly doing very well at Caltech. Caltech is a great university and is very well known in any technological field. I do not know whether your relatives know about Caltech. I can guarantee that any hiring managers at a high tech or engineering job know how strong Caltech is. Graduate school admissions know how strong Caltech is. It has the highest incoming GPA and SAT scores of any university in the US, and probably of any university in the world. If Caltech is not sufficiently academically demanding for you, there is nowhere stronger. However, upper level courses probably will be a bit more demanding than freshman classes.
My second thought is that MIT accepts very few transfer students. If you do want to transfer to MIT, then you probably need a very good reason, such as an intended major or program that MIT offers and Caltech does not, or a specific professor that you want to work with.
My third thought is that if MIT accepts any transfer student at all, I hope that you are the student that they accept. Your stats are superb. If you have a good reason to transfer, then I think that it is worth an application. MIT is of course very good at both math (my major there) and physics.
Good luck with this.
Thank you so much for your encouragement!
My main reason behind my desire to transfer is because of the inflexibility of Caltech’s curriculum / major requirements. I have a strong interest in quantum computability, and wish to take courses in computability, theoretical cs, and quantum mechanics, but the Caltech degree/ core requirements simply does not allow me to do so. My research on MIT’s degree requirements make me feel that people can make more personalized and flexible course choices at MIT. The mathematics with computer science major seems to fit my academic plan really well.
I was previously very interested in the Seth Lloyd group’s work. Sadly he seems to be involved in a donation scandal, so I will try my best to read more publications on my field of interest from MIT research groups and hopefully find another professor that I want to work with.
Your advice is soooo helpful and soooo encouraging! I can’t express how thankful I am.
Oh and I think it is also worth mentioning that I am already a Sophomore.
I think that your reason is valid. I think that your stats are superb. You should apply and see what happens.
Of course if you are not accepted, then MIT will still be there if you get around to looking for a graduate school. If you do get accepted, whether as a transfer student or as a graduate student, then the rigor of Caltech will have prepared you well for the rigor of MIT.
Let us know if you get accepted to MIT.
Oh and just in case, the two courses in which I didn’t; get an A+, I got an A.