please chance me(:

Colleges and Universities A-Z Princeton University
1

<p>moved to california from singapore in december 2007, and im a senior in high school this year, so its kinda wierd to judge my GPA and extracurriculars but id be very grateful for any input(:</p>

<p>GPA(unweighted, because weightage is not a concept in Spore) : 3.7
Freshman year: very bad results, because my grandma died while visiting us for the first time the week before my mid year exams, so i was basically screwed for the year.</p>

<p>so obviously grades arent working for me. >< </p>

<p>as for challenging courses, i think its apparent i tried to take them (or i hope so). i took 2 aps in 11th grade (had to catch up and everything) and got 5s for both, and im taking 5 this year. and a few courses at college(explained later)</p>

<p>other classes:
french 3 at local community college
physics 3A over summer at UCI (my prof invited me to be his research assistant)A
Multivariable calc B+ (long story, got a 92 and the prof applied the curve when there were like 15 students in the class. and then he moved to china before we could argue.)</p>

<p>SAT scores: 2200 total, 730 WR, 720 CR, 750 M
SAT2s: 800math2,750bio, taking chem in dec</p>

<p>extracurriculars: </p>

<p>9th and 10th grade
school newsletter(editor)
indian orchestra(violin)
teaching kids with lang barriers to read (4h/week)
teacher at local tuition centre (something like kumon i guess)
tutor(yes, all of us are tutors!)</p>

<p>11th grade
(keep in mind i started school in feb, so its like 5 months of school total)</p>

<p>Smile Club (raising funds for 3rd world kids who need cleft lip surgeries)
Youth Action team(community service. shall explain later)</p>

<p>tutor</p>

<p>thats it. clubs were kind of closed really, so i couldnt really join anything! </p>

<p>12th grade
Founder and prez Gyan Club (going to be expanded to whole district next year)
(its a non-profit tutoring business that i started. we basically tutor local kids at 11bucks an hour and we use all our profits to sponsor street children in india. its like a direct relationship between each tutor and kid, and we currently sponsor around 21.tons of groundwork and promotions, but twas all SO worth it(: one of my essays is about this, only its kind of more about helping poor children and education but this is one of the main aspects of what i did to help.)</p>

<p>Youth Action Team Prez
(so the youth action team is a board of highschool students interviewed and selected to organize events that help the community remain drug free etc. its technically a job and everyone else gets paid 10.40 per hour for doing stuff like putting up POSTERS, but sadly enough i dont have a work visa so im doing it for the experience and the community service. i'll basically have like 400h at the end of the year, because we have so many all day events and stuff. really great people and fun experience. my <em>boss</em> will be writing me a letter of rec, explaining how i decided to stay on even though i wasnt going to be paid.)</p>

<p>Smile club vice prez</p>

<p>Model UN vice prez (its a club at our school, we dont have a class)</p>

<p>CSF(no idea if this has an impact)</p>

<p>research at University of Calif Irvine UCI
(biophysics, around 8h/week, one of my essays is about this(common app). its basically drug research about the phospholipid membrane in the lungs, and its charecterizing the molecule to figure out how to make premature babies develop the membrane faster)</p>

<p>other classes:
french 3 at local community college
physics 3A over summer at UCI (my prof invited me to be his research assistant)A
Multivariable calc B+ (long story, got a 92 and the prof applied the curve when there were like 15 students in the class. and then he moved to china before we could argue.)</p>

<p>So, thats about it! my essays i think are pretty good. thus far, the main one is about this experience i had when i first went to india after a long time when i was around 11, and how it inspired me to do things like start gyan etc. the activity one is about research being like gambling(:</p>

<p>so, please chance me!(: thanks so much</p>

2

<p>You've got the stats, now you'll just need strong rec letters, great essays, and a great interviewer, etc. All the "tippers," basically. Oh and don't bother doing the thing where you join a bunch of clubs; just keep doing the stuff you really love so that you can write great essays that really show your passion for those certain activities. Do take challenging classes in all subjects senior year, though, and try to work on your writing (I'm not saying it's not good, obviously I can't tell, but Princeton is REALLY big on being a good writer). </p>

<p>Glad to see that you're doing a lot of community service. Even if you don't get into Princeton, it's great that you're doing that. I tutor and teach too, and I love it : )</p>

3

<p>thanks ceebee63(:</p>

<p>oh and theres a typo: i moved in dec2006, not 2007</p>

4

<p>Oh okay haha I was wondering!</p>

5

<p>ceebee63-
The stats seem mediocre (by Princeton standards) to me, especially for Asians from California.</p>

6

<p>Too many excuses. Focus on your stengths, not weakenesses which adversely affected your stats. Adverse circumstances are appropriate to discuss to demonstrate how you overcame the obstacle and how you matured from the experience; not how it beat you up and won.</p>

7

<p>Yes, but he's a recent immigrant... Princeton is into international students/recent immigrants.</p>

8

<p>What? Being an international student is undoubtedly a huge disadvantage. As to the benefit of being a recent immigrant, I've never read/heard anything of the sort and I've been raised in a Princeton home for 18 years.</p>

9

<p>It's a huge disadvantage if you're applying from another country, but within the United States it can be an advantage. Princeton is always looking to diversify its student body not only racially, but with other world views, experiences, and perspectives.</p>

10

<p>1stly, im a she(:
2ndly, im indian by birth, does that make a huge difference?</p>

<p>icy9ff8, i agree with you. completely. could you suggest what i could do to improve my app, because honestly i dont think i could really have done anything to recover from my grandma's death in like 3 days, or gotten into more clubs even though half the year was gone. could you suggest how to lessen the focus on the escuses without making it seem like im a dufus?</p>

11

<p>oh, and also, i was in the top school in the nation in singapore. very competitive, but they dont rank. and its freaking hard to get even a B there. so hopefully that makes a difference(:</p>

12

<p>------bumpppp(:</p>

13

<p>its only a disadvantage if you are like an asian (mainly indian chinese korean) because they have a certain percentage they can accept, but there are a lot of overachievers who are asian. So even if you really do qualify, they just might not be able to accept you because there is not enough space.</p>

<p>Also, its not that much a disadvantage if you apply from another country either. It's rather better for them than it is for the recent immigrants. (i know this from a VERY reliable source).</p>

14

<p>do you think I am at a disadvantage too? I emigrated from Korea, but I've been living in the U.S. for 10 years and have permanent residence. I am fluent in both languages (Korean and English) and excel in & am in love with English so much I am intending to be an English major. I have won awards in the past for excellence in English composition and have a kickass essay that really shows my writing abilities. </p>

<p>Am I still in the "recent immigrants with disadvantages" category?</p>