[aB][asize=4]Decision: Accepted[/size]**
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2340 (superscore! First time 2250, M710 CR770 W770, second time 2300, M800, CR730, W770)
ACT (breakdown): N/A
SAT II: 800 US, 790 MathII (didn’t submit two others to Princeton)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0 I think
Weighted GPA: Unsure!
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Unsure
AP (place score in parenthesis): 5s on World, US, Lit
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: BC Calc, adv. science class, two languages, history, english, etc. (school only offers AP math classes senior year)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
Some music awards ($80,000 scholarship to music school, other than that, not too much), National Commended Scholar, AP Scholar, best delegate at a Model UN conference
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Sorry didn’t place leadership in parenthesis!
Extracurriculars:
Acapella (Music Director)
Choir (Music Director)
Jazz Band singer
Prestigious choir
Out of school choir
Piano
Lead in School Musicals
Drama Club
Co Editor in Chief of one of my school’s papers
Editor/writer for other writing magazine
Writing tutor
JSA (was president for a bit)
Speech Team (Co-founder and co-president)
Model UN
Teacher’s Assistant
Math tutor at school
Worked for three years as volunteer at Hebrew School (8-10th grades)
Member of a philanthropy board
Bunch of various community service hours
Job/Work Experience:
Volunteer/Community service: Bunch of various things, didn’t include a bunch (some tutoring), philanthropy board, working with kids at Hebrew School
Summer Activities: Music stuff! Summer program at music school (Berklee)
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common App maybe 8 or 9/10, Princeton larger essay about 8 or 9/10 also. Both were sincere but I didn’t feel great about either. The latter, especially, I felt was rather dull. I was very happy with my shorter responses fro Princeton, however!
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 10/10, English teacher, we really connected!!!
Teacher Rec #2: 9/10, Math teacher, no clue but I think it was solid!
Counselor Rec: 9 or 10/10, likely solid
Additional Rec: 10/10, music teacher!!!
Interview: Went super well. My interviewer was absolutely amazing. Will elaborate below.
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: At first, then withdrew. So no.
Intended Major: Woodrow Wilson School, also Philosophy
State (if domestic applicant): MA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Private
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: Unsure but high
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Jazz! Music supplement.
PFAA emails? How many? When?:
Reflection
Strengths: Scores, grades (straight As sophomore year till mid senior, like maybe very few A-s freshman year), strong and yet kinda focused/well-grouped ECs, music supplement, interview
Weaknesses: Longer essays. They were indicative of who I am, I think, but I didn’t love the flow. Writing them didn’t come naturally to me.
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: This whole process is so random. But I have a theory which I will explain below.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Accepted: Williams (Early Write), Princeton, Columbia, Wesleyan, Brandeis ($17,500 per year scholarship, 5 year masters program), Berklee College of Music ($20,000 per year scholarship)
Waitlisted: Harvard (deferred EA), Amherst, UChicago, Northwestern
Rejected: Yale, UPenn, Brown, Swarthmore
Ah. Time to reflect. This process has been absolutely draining and beyond emotional, as it is for so many. I went about it in an absolutely awful way. I feel that I’ve been thinking about getting in to college and this process since my freshman year. And finally, it’s over.
Some words of advice:
- THE BEST THING I CAN RECOMMEND–and likely the reason I got into Princeton–is finding several people within your top choice (or top few choices) to advocate for you. I met with a woman in a religious community, as well as with a vocalist in the Jazz department. Both, I believe, wrote to the admissions committee after. I think that this helped my application more than I can say. My interviewer and I really clicked, in addition. I emailed both individuals to set up the meetings and went down to the University for the day to meet with them. Being proactive is, what I believe, got me into Princeton. I HIGHLY recommend doing this at your top choices.
- Be authentic! These colleges want to see who you are. You will be a good fit for some. You won’t be a good fit others. And that’s ok!
- Be kind to those around you, and to yourself. Be a genuinely good human being. Do what you love to do. Explore your passions, explore your intellectual curiosities, live your life fully! Be good to the world and the world will be good back to you!
I’ve come to believe that this process is random. Some of the best and most qualified people I know got into none of their top choices. It happens. I used to spend hours and hours and hours reading through these threads and the lists of acceptances, trying to determine my own chances of admission. I posted chance threads. I lost so much sleep. But truthfully, it is impossible to predict much in this process.
You’re going to get some rejections. They may hurt. In fact, they may really hurt, especially from the schools you love most. But you win some and you lose some. Even if you don’t get into Yale, you may just get into Princeton! I got waitlisted at UChicago and Northwestern two weeks before Ivy Day. I was so distressed and thought that I had no chance at any of my top choices (really Harvard and Princeton). And yet-- just as an acceptance at one top tier school doesn’t guarantee an acceptance at another, a rejection or waitlist doesn’t necessarily say much about your chances at other schools. Schools have all sorts of reasons for waitlisting or rejecting applicants. Don’t lose hope!
Some things I would recommend 
Remember to stay true to yourself. Remember to get enough sleep. Remember that you are human and can only do so much. Remember that where you go to college does not define you; it is what you do with your college education that will determine your place in and impact on the world. But most importantly:
Remember that you’re the same person before and after you receive your decisions. An acceptance merely validates your achievements; it does not change them. So acceptance or no acceptance, you’ve worked phenomenally hard. Remember that. You are AMAZING. And you will go on to do amazing things.
I wish you all the very best of luck!
Played piano since I was 4, only some minor awards.