Princeton University Class of 2021 SCEA Decisions Thread

Colleges and Universities A-Z Princeton University
21

** Decision: Deferred **

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 2360 (800/800/760/9)
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): I took it in one sitting.
ACT (breakdown): 36 (35/36/36/10)
ACT superscore (breakdown): Taken in one sitting.
SAT II (subject, score): Math 2 (800), Bio-M (800), Chem (800), US History (780)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Weighted GPA: 4.92
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 1%
AP (place score in parentheses): AP Chemistry (5), AP Calc BC (5), AP US History (5), AP Euro (5), AP Eng Lang (4), AP CS A (4), AP Physics 1 (4)
IB (place score in parentheses): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics C, AP Eng Lit, AP Bio, AP US Gov, AP French, Film IB-HL 2, Discrete Mathematics (at a university)
Number of other EA applicants in your school: No idea
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): Rensselear Medalist, Le Grand Concours Bronze Medalist, science competition national champion
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): National Merit Semifinalist, AP Scholar with Distinction, NHS, Top 100, Varsity Swim Freeway League Champions

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): Science Olympiad (Captain, 2014-2017), Varsity Swim (2013-2017), Film (a long time), Chemistry Club (Founder/President, 2015-2017), French Club (VP, 2014-2017)
Job/Work Experience: None
Volunteer/Community Service: Hospital volunteer, Thanksgiving food line volunteer
Summer Experience: Biology research internship, STEM Camps, local beauty pageant

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):

Essays:
CA Essay: 8/10. I thought it was quirky and interesting and shone a new light on science/research.
Supplement: 9/10. Absolutely loved it. Talked about difference between my cultures but in a different way.
Extracurricular: 8/10. Talked about film, but pretty straightforward.
Short Answers: 10/10. Very heartfelt. I thought they showed a very original side of me.
Additional Essay: Didn’t submit one.

Other (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details):

Teacher Recommendation #1: 9/10. Math. Really likes me. I was the only junior in a class of seniors, and I performed well.
Teacher Recommendation #2: 9/10. History. Said it was really easy to write and has always liked me in class.
Counselor Rec: 10/10. My counselor really likes me and is always praising me.
Additional Info/Rec: N/A
Interview: 9/10. Over the phone. We had a really nice conversation that was fairly short.
Art Supplement: Poems and film script

Other

Date Submitted App: 10/23
U.S. State/Territory or Country: West Side
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Biracial (Caucasian/Asian)
Gender: Female
Income Bracket Range: < $60,000
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): URM (I guess?), first generation

Reflection

Strengths: Grades, essays, extracurriculars
Weaknesses: No major awards
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Truthfully, I don’t know.
What would you have done differently?: Maybe just fix a few things on my essays.
Where else did you apply? Yale, Harvard, Stanford, MIT, Caltech, Duke, Cornell, Dartmouth, Johns Hopkins, Amherst, Williams, UChicago, plus a few more

General Comments & Advice: Just keep your head up and know that there are multitudes of other universities that’ll accept you that you’ll be better suited for!

22

Decision: Accepted - ED

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 760 math 760 verbal; I didn’t miss a single question on CR and only missed two for writing but these scores were from two different test, i’m still salty at the redesigned SAT for combining these two sections.

ACT (breakdown): Acting? I played Romeo in my middle school’s production of Romeo and Juliet 5 years ago but I haven’t done anything noteworthy since.

SAT II: 800 USH, 800 Spanish w/out listening, 740 French (not sure I should’ve sent that :P)

Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): Switched schools so my GPA got messed up but I only ever got two non 4.0s (two A-'s)

Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): I’d like to think I’m moderately attractive, maybe a 7/10?

AP (place score in parenthesis): APUSH, APLANG, APEURO all fives.

IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A

Senior Year Course Load: AP lit, AP comp gov, APHUG, AP French, AP AB calc, chinese III, reg science.

Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Major: Zilch, Minor: Some

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Me most of the time: NO RAGRETSS
Me looking at my EC’s: MAJOR RAGRETSS…

MUN, but very lowkey and i was garbo/no awards of any kind
Varsity Track
VP of my school’s multicultural club.
NHS, HHS, French Club
Basketball (Coaching and playing at various levels)

Job/Work Experience: Does working out count? JK I don’t even do that.

Volunteer/Community service:
Hopefully this kinda made up for my woeful EC’s
Tutor latino kids in reading and math for three hours every week.
Coach middle schoolers in basketball and received a COTY award.
Over the summer I teach kids with disabilities how to ride a bike.

Summer Activities: Studied Polish and Arabic (much has been forgotten D: )
Aforementioned volunteering.
Cool things [X] Things worthy of mention [ ]

Essays (rating 1-10, details): Oh boiii! I never reread them for fear that the cringe would paralyze me but…

Common App: Hastily drawn up, poorly executed, probably wasn’t THAT bad but 7/10
Pton Supp: 8/10 message, 7/10 execution, 7/10 Overall
Extra stuff: 10.489/10, portrayed me well

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: APUSH teacher, we pretty tight. Had 'em for two years and always killed it in his class. I know his eloquence in writing is bananers so probably a 9-10/10. (Didn’t get the sice @FERPA waived)

Teacher Rec #2: AP Lang teacher, not as close as with APUSH teacher but I made lots of progress in his class and he said he recommended me very highly so probably an 8-9/10. (Also didn’t read)

Counselor Rec: She didn’t really get to know me too well outside of the college admissions process but i’m sure she wrote the best letter possible given what she did know, 8/10. (Didn’t read)
Additional Rec: Nope
Interview: I was a bit worried about it but luckily enough my interviewer was not the youngest of gentlemen (graduated in the 60’s) and so the interview was very relaxed. Overall it was benign, can’t rank out of 10.

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: You betcha!
Intended Major: Undecided, I think I put down history and sociology
State (if domestic applicant): Virginia :slight_smile:
Country (if international applicant): A2U|USA
School Type: med/large Public (only 57% of admitted EA applicants :open_mouth: )
Ethnicity: Mexican American
Gender: M
Income Bracket: ~60k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM, Questbridge (applied outside of it)

Reflection:

Strengths: URM + QB, grades, decent test scores even by Princeton’s standards, recs, passion for languages and the common good (wya bowdoin supplement?)
Weaknesses: EC’s, lack of leadership
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I honestly was not expecting this at all. I’d say there is a great deal of luck involved. Being a relatively poor URM with semi good scores and grades didn’t hurt though.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: I applied EA to UVA with the understanding that it was EARLY action but apparently in Charlottesville early means 1 month after everyone else smh. I still plan on applying to Brown, Williams, and Swarthmore.

General Comments:

This process has caused me immense amounts of stress and unfortunately i’m no closer to figuring it out than when I started. Just when I thought bad essays tanked an application BOOM Princeton clutched up and accepted me, so I don’t really know what to say.

In the end though, Princeton simply doesn’t have enough space for all of the amazing, qualified, and deserving students that apply. I know it is easy to say from my position but I had braced myself for the worst and truly believe that no college decision (especially from a hyper-selective, pseudo-lottery University like Princeton) is a reflection of your worth as a student and much less as a person. If you were deferred/rejected keep your head up high, even applying to a school of this caliber is an accomplishment. Just remember you still have another round to go out there and slay and show Princeton what they missed out on. Best of luck to everyone!!! and don’t forget to enjoy your senior year and be thankful for all of the wonderful people that have helped get you to where you are. For any future applicants perusing old EA/ED threads, BE YOURSELF and PURSUE YOUR INTERESTS. From what I can discern, scores and grades only get you so far at places like Princeton, let your personality and your passions shine through in your application and most importantly DON’T DOUBT YOUSELF. Two years ago I visited Princeton but didn’t take a tour of the university because I thought it was out of my league, oh how the turn tables :P. In the end college is what you make of it and each and everyone of you will have opportunities to be happy and succeed wherever you end up. :smiley:

23

Decision: Deferred

Objective:

SAT I: Didn’t submit
ACT: Composite: 35; 35(E) 35® 35(S) 34(M)
SAT II: Math II (700) Biology (730)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.97
Weighted GPA: 4.37
Rank: School doesn’t rank
AP: Human Geography (5), World History(3)
Senior Year Course Load: Dual enrollment at Western Kentucky University (semesters): Calculus 2 and 3, English 300, Computer Science 221, another Computer Science class, Gender and Women’s Studies 200, Physics
Number of other EA applicants in your school: 2 (1 admitted, 1 deferred)
Major Awards: none
Common Awards: Dean’s and President’s list both years of dual enrollment in college; national merit semifinalist

Subjective:

Extracurriculars: Two study abroad trips: one to Costa Rica to study biodiversity, one to England to study literature; coding club; key club; National French Honor Society; field hockey
Job/Work Experience: Shift supervisor at a bagel shop for a year
Volunteer/Community Service: Tutoring at local elementary school, tutoring a fellow student in computer science, habitat for humanity, various random stuff through key club
Summer Experience: summer camp, work, study abroad

Writing:

Common app: 7/10, spent a long time writing this but was never really satisfied with it.
Supplemental: 9/10, I wrote it about role-playing Hitler at a summer camp, we acted like he didn’t die and was put on trial. picked the quote about the problems of today being more complex than historical problems and disagreed with it. I was really proud of this essay and it might have been the best one I’ve ever written.

Teacher Recommendation #1: my Computational Problem Solving teacher; he had exposure to me in my element (coding) and loves kids who are in my school program. I didn’t read it but he’s gotten other people at my school into really good universities.
Teacher Recommendation #2: my English 300 teacher; I participated crazy amounts in this class and he adored my friend and I. He probably talked less about academics and more about me as a speaker and communicator, as his class involved reading works and discussing their application to the world.
Counselor Rec: Didn’t read this one either but I’ve known my counselor personally for two years and he really likes me.
Interview: Went well, I’m pretty good at talking to people.

Other

Major: Computer Science
Date Submitted App: November 1 (lol)
U.S. State/Territory or Country: Kentucky
School Type: …it’s complicated. I’ve been taking only college classes at a university for junior and senior year of high school. But technically my school is publicly funded by the state.
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket Range: 150,000+
Hooks: I wish I had some

Reflection

Strengths: ACT score, GPA, courseload
Weaknesses: SAT subject tests, extracurriculars
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Probably didn’t have enough that stands out, high income, no hooks, mediocre common app essay
What would you have done differently?: retaken SAT II tests? Done more impressive extracurriculars? idk
Where else did you apply? GA Tech, Carnegie Mellon, Rochester Institute of Technology, Renssalaer Polytechnic, Purdue, University of Louisville, Western Kentucky University. Awaiting decision on all but the last three, which I was accepted to

General Comments & Advice:
Don’t feel qualified giving advice lol. but I’m keeping in mind that a deferral is basically a rejection by Princeton standards. So congrats to all who got accepted but I don’t have super high hopes for regular decision. :confused:

24

[ size=4][ color=green][ b]Decision: Accepted **[/color][/size]

[ b]Objective:[/b
]
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 790/800/730/8
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 790/800/780/9
ACT (breakdown): 34/36/36/35 - 35
ACT superscore (breakdown): 35/36/36/35 - 36
SAT II (subject, score): Math II, 800; World History, 800; Spanish, 780
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Weighted GPA: 4.83
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/~300
AP (place score in parentheses): Microeconomics (5), World History (5), Spanish (5), Calc BC (5/5), Biology (5), Lang and Comp (5), Physics C: E&M (5), Physics C: Mechanics (5), Government (5)
IB (place score in parentheses): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Chemistry (two semesters), AP Environmental Science, AP Literature, AP Computer Science, The Old Testament (at a local college), English Literature (at a local college), Personal Finance (through Coursera)
Number of other EA applicants in your school: maybe one or two
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): Eagle Scout
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): National Merit Semifinalist, National AP Scholar, Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth High Honors, several honor societies, Carson Scholar, Johns Hopkins Model United Nations Outstanding Delegate, several local scholarships

[ b]Subjective:**

Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): Student Member of the Board of Education, President of the Frederick County Association of Student Councils, President of the Oakdale High School SGA, President of the social studies honor society, Varsity lacrosse captain, Varsity football captain, Mock trial captian, model united nations head delegate, Boy Scouts (Eagle)

Job/Work Experience: Food runner at local crab shack, pool boy at country club

Volunteer/Community Service: head coach of a youth basketball team, Palauan senate page, Boy Scouts, assistant campaign manager for state delegate

Summer Experience: Boys State, month with family in Palau, intern at the Cato Institute

[ b]Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):**

Essays: Common App (9/10), wrote about my experiences in my job at a crab shack, how I was inspired by the selflessness and humble leadership of a guy that I worked with; Supplement (9/10), wrote about commitment to service; Engineering (10/10), EC Activity (9/10)
What You Do For Pleasure: read, play basketball, hang out with friends, ski
Department at Princeton: Operations Research and Financial Engineering

Teacher Recommendation #1: 10/10 from world history and government teacher that i’m really close with
Teacher Recommendation #2: 9/10 from physics teacher
Counselor Rec: 10/10
Additional Info/Rec: 10/10 recommendation from mock trial coach and really close friend/adviser
Interview: Outstanding. May have been what tipped my recommendation over the edge. Talked for two hours about everything from education, to theology, to cultural anthropology and the history of money.
Art Supplement: none

[ b]Other**

Date Submitted App: last day possible
U.S. State/Territory or Country: MD
School Type: public
Ethnicity: white
Gender: male
Income Bracket Range: $200,000+
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): received a recommendation from the ROTC office

[ b]Reflection**

Strengths: recommendations, leadership, scores
Weaknesses: significant hooks and maybe my essays
Why you think you were accepted: I check all the boxes, but I think in the end three things tipped me over the edge: my interview, my recommendation from the ROTC office, and my recommendation from my mock trial coach
What would you have done differently?: worked harder on the essays
Where else did you apply? Harvard, Yale, Dartmouth, Penn, Vanderbilt, UVA, Stanford, Georgetown, Washington and Lee

25

**Decision: Accepted **

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):800/800/800/10
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 2400 single sitting
ACT (breakdown):
ACT superscore (breakdown):
SAT II (subject, score): Math II (800), Latin (800), Biology M (800)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Weighted GPA: ~4.7
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):2/643
AP (place score in parentheses): Chinese, Human Geography, Microeconomics, English Language, U.S. Government/Politics, Environmental Science, Statistics, Calculus BC, Physics C Mechanics, Biology, European History, U.S. History, Latin; scored 5 on all
IB (place score in parentheses):
Senior Year Course Load: Distance Calculus (Linear Algebra 1st semester, Multivariable 2nd semester), AP Psychology, AP English Literature ,Honors Latin V (post-AP), AP Chemistry, AP World History,
Number of other EA applicants in your school: 3-4
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): 4x gold on National Latin Exam, Highest score on Latin Literature at National Junior Classical League, 2nd in state overall for Latin, 2nd place at Harvard certamen tournament, state certamen champion since 2015, 11 first places at state Latin convention
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): National AP Scholar ,Academic Bar and Letter, NHS

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):
Latin: school editor, participates in certamen tournaments
Speech/Debate: speech captain and treasurer
Global connections
Job/Work Experience:
Volunteer/Community Service:
BEST Robotics Volunteer Leader
Graphic Designer for local university
Summer Experience: GHP (Latin Major), Bio@Tech, National Junior Classical League convention,

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):

Essays: can’t give an accurate assessment tbh
CA (7/10): focused on my relationship with my sister
Supplement (7/10): discussed why I liked Latin so much and what Latin meant to me
What You Do For Pleasure: learn elvish, graphic design, listen to The Chainsmokers
Trait Most Proud Of: resilience, sass
World You Come From:
Significant Challenge: trying to branch out into more ECs
Additional Essay/QB Essays: extracurricular essay was pretty cringey, summers essay was basically a description of what I did; both are 7.5/10
Other (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details):

Teacher Recommendation #1: 10/10 from Latin teacher; known for five years
Teacher Recommendation #2: 8/10 from bio teacher; did well in his class, lab assistant this year
Counselor Rec: 7/10; didn’t really talk to her before this year lol
Additional Info/Rec: some additional awards
Interview: pretty good; we talked about literature, art, history, and classics
Art Supplement:

Other

Date Submitted App: 10/31/2016
U.S. State/Territory or Country: GA
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Chinese
Gender: Female
Income Bracket Range: 120-150k
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): underrepresented major (Classics)

Reflection

Strengths: grades, SAT scores, a really strong extracurricular
Weaknesses:community service, leadership
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: angled myself for a certain profile that was a bit uncommon
What would you have done differently?: do more ECs and community service
Where else did you apply? some instate schools, Emory RD

**Other Factors: **

General Comments & Advice:
Find something you love and do it!

26

**Decision: Accepted (B.S.E.) **

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 750/660/790/11E
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): Same as Above
ACT (breakdown): 34 C (Don’t really remember the subs)
ACT superscore (breakdown): Same (One sitting)
SAT II (subject, score): None
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Weighted GPA: 4.4ish
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 2/88
AP (place score in parentheses): AP English Language- 5, APUSH- 4
IB (place score in parentheses): None
Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics C, AP Calc AB, AP English Composition, AP Music Theory, AP Spanish Language, AP Computer Science Principles
Number of other EA applicants in your school: 2
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): None
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): Science League Award, Renaissance Scholar (school award), various service awards, etc…

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): Music, Theatre, and Service Based EC’s (Don’t want to reveal to much because of security purposes)
Job/Work Experience: Held 2 summer jobs over 5 years
Volunteer/Community Service: Key Club, Interact
Summer Experience: Traveled to Spain end of Sophomore year, attended Key Club International Convention

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):

Essays: (10/10) I’m convinced these are what got me in
CA (9/10): Talked about my experience with theatre and how it changed my demeanor on life.
Supplement (10/10): Talked about my father (person who influenced you most), probably the most elegant and poignant essay I’ve ever written.
Short Answers (10/10): Again excellently portrayed me and what I care about
Engineering Essay (9/10): Near perfect, I spent an entire month worrying about a spelling error in it though lol

Teacher Recommendation #1: (10/10) English Teacher, said I was her favorite student in 18 years of teaching
Teacher Recommendation #2: (10/10) Physics/ AP Physics Teacher, told me I was the reason he didn’t retire
Counselor Rec: (9/10) Theatre Director as well as Counselor, very personal connection
Additional Info/Rec: (10/10) Music Director for my HS
Interview: (8/10) About and hour, only one silent moment but not mind blowing
Art Supplement: None

Other

Date Submitted App: Mid October
U.S. State/Territory or Country: NJ
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket Range: ~100k
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): None…

Reflection

Strengths: Essays!, ACT Score
Weaknesses: No Subject Tests, EC’s not super stellar
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Essays 100%
What would you have done differently?: Better EC’s, taken Subject Tests
Where else did you apply?: Rutgers (Accepted), Yale

**Other Factors: **
N/A

General Comments & Advice:
I’m so shocked. Follow your dreams, be true with your Essays. Get great recommendations.

27

**Decision: Accepted **

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown M/CR/Essay): 790/750/21
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/Essay): 790/760/21
ACT (breakdown): N/A
ACT superscore (breakdown): N/A
SAT II (subject, score): Math II: 790, Chemistry: 780, Math I: 710, Physics: 670
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): N/A (School uses 4.5 Weighted Scale)
Weighted GPA: 4.833 (4.5 Weighted Scale)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A (School does not rank)
AP (place score in parentheses): Chemistry (5), APUSH (5), Calculus AB (5), Physics 1 (4), Environmental Science (4), Microeconomics (4), Macroeconomics (3) - Did not send
IB (place score in parentheses): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP US Gov and Politics, AP Calculus BC, AP Literature and Composition, AP Physics C: Mechanics, AP Biology, AP Spanish Language and Culture, Theology
Number of other EA applicants in your school: 2
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): N/A
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): National Merit Commended Scholar, National Hispanic Recognition Program 2016-17 Scholar, AP Scholar with Distinction, Principal’s List Honor Roll (4.4 GPA or higher)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):
Robotics Team (Grades 9-12)
*Assistant Co-Captain
Chess Team and Club (Grades 9-12)
*Varsity Team - Third Board
Yearbook (Grades 9-12)
*Editor-in-Chief/President
Math League (Grades 9-12)
*Varsity Team
Science League (Grades 9-12)
*Varsity Team
After School Academic Program (Grades 11-12)
*Tutor
National Honor Society (Grades 11-12)
Science National Honor Society (Grades 10-12)
*Treasurer
Spanish National Honor Society (Grade 12)
Rho Kappa National Social Studies Honor Society (Grade 12)
National Technical Honor Society (Grade 12)
Physics Club (Grades 11-12)
*Vice President
Hack Club (Grades 11-12)
Spanish Club (Grades 10-12)
Debate Club (Grades 11-12)

Job/Work Experience: N/A
Volunteer/Community Service:
-Local Food Pantry (Grades 10-12)
-PTA Events @ My Former Elementary School (Grades 9-12)
Summer Experience:
-JusticeWorX Trenton - Summer between junior and senior year. Lived in Trenton, New Jersey for a week and volunteered at a daycare for disabled children.

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):

Essays:
Common App: 8 (About my father losing his job. It was kinda rushed)
Summers: 7 (Did not do much during the summers and only so much you can do with 150 words)
Elaborate on 1 EC: 8 (Talked about robotics)
Person who has had an influence on me: 9 (Prob my best essay)

Other (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Teacher Recommendation #1: 9 (My junior year English teacher. He knew me very well and is known for good letters)
Teacher Recommendation #2: 8 (My junior year Math teacher. She knew me well and thought highly of me)
Counselor Rec: 9 (She knew all about my stressful situation at home and prob talked about that)
Additional Info/Rec: N/A
Interview: 9 (The guy was really chill and we had a good conversation. Told me flat out he was gonna write me a good review)
Art Supplement: N/A

Other

Date Submitted App: Nov 1 (11:58 pm lol)
U.S. State/Territory or Country: NJ
School Type: Private
Ethnicity: White/Hispanic
Gender: M
Income Bracket Range: 60-70k
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): URM, first generation

Reflection

Strengths: Scores/GPA, ECs, Hooks
Weaknesses: Essays (could have spent more time, had more people read them, etc.), Volunteer/Work experience
Why you think you were accepted: Something must have caught an admissions person’s eye (I’m certainly not the most qualified candidate, nor the smartest)
What would you have done differently?: Spent more time on my essays
Where else did you apply?: Rutgers University, University of Virginia, Harvard (These are only after I got my decision from Princeton)
I had planned on applying to the following but did not after being admitted to Princeton: Duke, UNC Chapel Hill, Notre Dame, Columbia, Cornell, Northeastern

Other Factors:
Nothing really other than what happened with my dad.

General Comments & Advice:
Just do your best and know that whatever happened or happens was meant to be. Hope this helps (still cannot believe I got in)!

28

Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):
ACT (breakdown): 32 C
ACT superscore (breakdown): same
SAT II (subject, score): 740 math level 2
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Weighted GPA: 4.3
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/100
AP (place score in parentheses):
IB (place score in parentheses): 40 predicted
Senior Year Course Load: IB classes
Number of other EA applicants in your school: 0
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): None
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): Class valedictorian.

International Student

General Comments & Advice:
Just wanted to say that I am so thankful that Princeton saw my rest of my application and not only my ACT which was at the 25th percentile. If you have a low test score, do not sell yourself short. I even received a good financial aid award and I am still in shock I got in. Ignore everyone who might say you are not good enough for Princeton or any other school, follow your dreams!

29

**Decision: Deferred **

Objective:
•SAT I (M/CR/W/Essay): 800/780/770/10
•ACT : Didn’t take.
•SAT II (subject, score): 800 Math 2, 710 Chem
•Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0 (I go to a small private school with no APs)
•Rank: 1/25
•AP (place score in parentheses): Again, my school doesn’t offer these. But I took 2 anyways. (5) Lit, (4) Euro His
•Number of other EA applicants in your school: None
•Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): None
•Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): NMS Semifinalist, Maureen O’Donnell Oxford Classical Dictionary Award (4 NLE gold medals), National Phaedrus Fable Competition Finalist

Subjective:

•Extracurriculars: Cross Country Varsity Captain and MVP, Mock Trial Lead Attorney, Pianist (volunteers at nursing homes, High School Exam and Guild), Science Olympiad 22 gold medal winner, Certamen, Founder of YES (Young Engineers & Scientists) Club at school
•Job/Work Experience: Summer SEAP (Science and Engineering Apprenticeship Program) Internship – paid for 8 weeks of research at military lab, completed abstract of research and presented poster in 2 undergrad symposiums
•Volunteer/Community Service: Tutor at school, Summer missions trip, active in church activities, summer camp counselor, Girls Technology Camp middle school counselor, teach sunday school
•Summer Experience: SEAP Internship (paid), Oceanography research assistant at university (unpaid)

Writing:

•Essays:
Common App – Cross Country (8/10)
Princeton – Hamlet (8/10)

•Teacher Recommendation #1: Math teacher (9/10)
•Teacher Recommendation #2: Rhetoric teacher (8/10)
•Additional Rec: Princeton grad friend (9/10)
•Additional Rec: SEAP Internship Mentor (10/10)
•Interview: Only 14 minutes long, she was very tired (7/10)

Other

•Date Submitted App: Oct 31
•U.S. State/Territory or Country: United States
•School Type: Small Christian Private School
•Ethnicity: White
•Gender: F
•Income Bracket Range: $100K?
•Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): None

Reflection

•Strengths: I thought my SEAP Internship and my recommendations from close teachers and my mentor were good. And I have the grades and test scores to back them up.
•Weaknesses: Well, my school doesn’t have a ton of opportunities, especially related to STEM. I had to make the science club at my school, and no APs. I guess maybe I don’t have enough extracurriculars either?
•Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I was lead to believe I had a shot – by the Principal of my tiny school himself. But I guess not at this Ivy League best-of-the-best tier. I am the best my school has to offer, but not good enough.
•What would you have done differently?: Idk.
•Where else did you apply? JHU, Cornell, etc.

General Comments & Advice:
I’d say maybe it’s worth a shot if you’re in a similar situation as me – tiny school, not many opportunities – but don’t get your hopes up. Good luck! I combed all these acceptances/deferrals/rejections from 2020, so best of luck to those applying for the next years!

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I have read through a lot of these kinds of threads, so I feel that it’s my responsibility to contribute.

**Decision: Accepted **

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 2340 (800/740/800/9)
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): One sitting.
ACT (breakdown): N/A
ACT superscore (breakdown): N/A
SAT II (subject, score): Math II: 800, Chemistry: 800, Physics: 800, World History: 800
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Weighted GPA: 5.79/6.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 2/541
AP (place score in parentheses): Human Geography (5), World History (5), Music Theory (5), Physics I (5), Chemistry (5), Physics II (5), Calculus AB (5), Physics C: Mechanics (5), English Lang. and Comp. (5), U.S. History (5)

IB (place score in parentheses): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: Biology II, English Lit., Debate, U.S. Gov./Microeconomics, Statistics, Comp. Sci. II
Number of other EA applicants in your school: 1
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): Siemens Semifinalist, AIME x2, USNCO Honors List, USNCO National Qualifier x2, AMC10 DHR.
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): National Merit Semifinalist, National AP Scholar, AP Scholar with Distinction, some local and regional math/science awards.

Subjective:

**Extracurriculars/b:
Math Club, 9 - 12, President, compete in UIL/TMSCA/AMC/AIME, etc.
Chemistry Club, 10 - 12, Founding VP now P, run chemistry tutoring service, perform chemistry demonstrations at local elementary school, participate in local volunteering events (judging science fairs, seasonal events, etc.)
Varsity Swim Team, 11 - 12, Honorary Captain, 2 hrs practice daily, biweekly swim meets, the usual varsity sport commitment.
National Honor Society, 11 - 12, Vice President, organize annual blood drive, run fundraisers, typical NHS things
Red Jackets, 11 - 12, VP then P, represent school at official functions/events, volunteer at school-sponsored events, help run graduation ceremony, colloquially known as “The Glorified Doorstops.”

Job/Work Experience: Mainly just private math/science tutoring. Do some manual labor every now and then.
Volunteer/Community Service: Coach local middle school math team, 9 - 12, 3 hours/wk, prepare curriculum and run weekly workshops; volunteering at local library events.
Summer Experience: Welch Summer Scholar Program, selective chemistry research camp (2016), helping my sister rehabilitate after car accident (2015).

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):

Essays:
Common App (9/10): “Growing Up” Prompt: Wrote about my helping my sister rehabilitate from post-concussion syndrome after a traffic accident. This was a really tough time for my family. The anecdote I included reinforced how I tried my best to give everybody hope. Main ideas were a) my courage to never lose hope in the face of hardship, b) my outlook on how valuable life is c) my mindset to kindle hope within others.
Supplement (9/10): “Significant Individual” Prompt: Wrote about my private piano teacher. Started with a depiction of a live performance, then segued into a discussion on how my teacher not only taught me music, but also taught me how to act in society. Mentioned how he had adopted a Korean boy to teach him piano, opened his house to a Vietnamese student who had lost his mom to cancer, and made himself a path for others to realize their passions. Tied essay together by concluding that life is like a live performance; each person, each note, has a worth and serves a purpose; our actions should be guided by desire to promote the lives of others, as a performer’s should be directed by composer’s musical vision. Probably my favorite of all of my college essays.
Extracurricular (8/10): Wrote about coaching the middle school math club. Mentioned goal-setting, helping struggling students, and the nostalgia of sending them off to state competitions. Pretty straightforward essay that captured my dedication to developing the kids’ interest in math.
Past Two Summers (7/10): Wrote about Welch Summer Scholar Program, specifically my role in troubleshooting a problem that jeopardized all of my research. Mentioned self-studying chem, learning new piano pieces, and helping my sister rehabilitate. Ended it on a humorous note.
Additional Essay/QB Essays: Expounded on one of my activities in the Common App (self-directed learning). Focused on my journey as a problem-solver and how, ironically, a lot of my activities related to problem-solving were defined by community and not self. I put “Self-Directed Learning” as my topmost activity, and I felt that it needed some additional clarification to avoid sounding insular.
Short Answers: Honest and straightforward.

Teacher Recommendation #1: Precalculus/Calculus AB teacher (9/10): I had her for two years, and she was absolutely the best math teacher I ever had. She let me read the letter, and it was very thorough, reflective, and telling of my personal character traits. Having had her as a math teacher is one of the greatest blessings of my life.
**Teacher Recommendation #2: ** English II/English Lit. teacher (7/10): She let me read the letter as well. It was well-written, but fairly generic. She did include an anecdote about my commitment to a year-long project, so I think that made it stand out a little more.
**Counselor Rec:/b Didn’t have the opportunity to read this one, but I feel confident that it was pretty unique. I had a few long sit-down conversations with her and we got to know each other fairly well. She was very dedicated to helping me get into the college of my dreams (Princeton, yay!) and very enthusiastic about the whole process. Again, I feel incredibly fortunate to have had her as a counselor. She really loves her job. She was also the first person to ask about my Princeton early-action decision even though she had already taken a job at a different school district.
Additional Info/Rec: See Additional Essays/QB essays. Might have gotten them mixed up. Oops!
**Interview:/b I really didn’t have to do much! Interviewer was very enthusiastic and we talked seamlessly about everything from singing to research to athletics. Down-to-earth guy who put in a good word for me.
Art Supplement: Classical piano performance supplement. My piano teacher’s recommendation was very personal and strong. Submitted three pieces. I was very satisfied with the recordings, but it’s hard to gauge how they stacked up against others’ submissions.

Other

Date Submitted App: Oct. 24, 2016 (my birthday haha)
U.S. State/Territory or Country: TEXAS
School Type: Semi-large, public, affluent.
Ethnicity: Chinese
Gender: M
Income Bracket Range: Prefer not to disclose.
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): N/A

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…continued. Didn’t realize that there is a character limit.

Reflection

Strengths: Overall solid testing, some awards that may have helped me stand out and that supported my declared academic interest (Chem E), essays (I put a lot of effort into these after I convinced myself how important they are), recs (I got pretty lucky with my teachers and counselors); music supplement supported my supplement essay.
Weaknesses: Course load isn’t anything spectacular, extracurriculars are somewhat generic, not much work experience, SAT essay score.
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Not completely sure. The “holistic process” is not very transparent. Here’s my best guess. My scores got my application read; my awards helped me stand out a little but not enough to secure admissions; my essays presented my value system and personal character that differentiated me from other applicants in the pool and that aligned with Princeton’s ideals.
What would you have done differently? Took weightlifting sophomore year. Bad idea, and I could have squeezed in another math/science course instead. Could have devoted myself to developing my extracurriculars more.
Where else did you apply? UT Turing/Dean’s/Engineering Honors, UC Berkeley, MIT, Stanford, Harvard, Cornell (withdrew app)

**Other Factors: ** N/A

General Comments & Advice: I always told myself that college admissions is like a coin toss. You can only weight the coin as much in your favor as possible. The outcome is never predetermined by any one factor (although certain things like international awards pretty much secure your spot at schools like MIT). If you were deferred, don’t lose hope. I think you all have a solid shot especially if you update Princeton with additional materials next semester. Good luck and Godspeed on your applications!

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**Decision: Deferred **

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 1520 (730CR, 790M)
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): one sitting
ACT (breakdown): 35 (35M, 33R, 35E, 36S)
ACT superscore (breakdown): one sitting
SAT II (subject, score): Math II - 800, Physics - 740, Spanish - 750
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.9
Weighted GPA: 4.24
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): top 10%
AP (place score in parentheses):
IB (place score in parentheses): IB Math SL (7), IB Anthro SL (6)
Senior Year Course Load: IB Math HL 3-4, IB Physics HL 3-4, IB History of the Americas HL, IB Global Politics SL, IB Theory of Knowledge, IB Spanish Humanidades 11-12 HL, IB English
Number of other EA applicants in your school: 1 (also deferred)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): none
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): NMS commended - school doesn’t do any awards till end of senior year

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):
rowing (10-12) - on varsity - 18+hrs/week 44weeks/year - no team captains or anything
full time civil engineering internship (12) - published official report for the department
math club competitions (9-10) - I wasn’t exceptional
part of some irrelevant clubs
Job/Work Experience: none, though internship was structured like a job and I was given a stipend
Volunteer/Community Service: helping teaching spanish in elementary schools, park cleanups, other small things
Summer Experience: internship + rowing at 5:30am (and being sleep deprived)

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):

Essays:
Common App: about rowing (8/10)
Supplement: diversity - changing schools (8/10)
Engineering: linked well to internship (9/10)

Teacher Recommendation #1: Physics - performed well in class (acing unit tests), discussed internship
Teacher Recommendation #2: Anthropology - good conversations - knows I’m a thinker
Counselor Rec: idk
Additional Info/Rec: research mentor - seemed very happy with my work - published as editor
Interview: first interview, so fine, not great

Other

Date Submitted App: 11/1
Intended Major: Operations Research and Financial Engineering
U.S. State/Territory or Country: OR
School Type: Public HS
Ethnicity: M
Gender: Asian
Income Bracket Range:
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): Legacy

Reflection

Strengths: ACT, focused ECs, course rigor
Weaknesses: Limited service, no awards/nothing outstanding - Asian-American male applying as an engineer
Why you think you were deferred: ^
What would you have done differently: nothing really - be ASB president or something lol
Where else did you apply?
Northwestern, Rice, Columbia, Penn, MIT, Stanford, some others

**Other Factors: **

am Asian

General Comments & Advice:

a little salty about how big a role URM (or just not being Asian) or low income plays in admissions looking at this thread and others, but after I step back and look at how lucky I am I just hope I get in elsewhere

also, all the BS extracurriculars and leadership people list that I don’t have are irritating (“president of these 5 clubs I created that aren’t active…” - “part of this organization that does nothing…”) cough NHS cough

don’t be an Asian male interested in engineering - even EA + Legacy can’t save you

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**Decision: Accepted **

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 2270 (780/720/770/10)
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): taken once
ACT (breakdown): n/a
ACT superscore (breakdown):
SAT II (subject, score): 800 Math II, 780 Biology E
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Weighted GPA: 4.33
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): school doesn’t rank- around top 3% out of 700 students
AP (place score in parentheses): 5 AP Biology, AP World History, AP Calculus AB, AP Calculus BC, AP Computer Science 4 AP Chemistry, AP US History, AP Literature and Composition
IB (place score in parentheses):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Language and Composition, AP Statistics, AP Physics C, AP Government, Organic Chemistry, World Literature, Honor Seminar, Lab Assistant, German IV, Debate IV, Advanced Economics
Number of other EA applicants in your school: 0
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): Moody’s Mega Math Challenge: Honorable Mention
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): National AP Scholar, National Merit Semifinalist

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):
-LD Debate: 8th-12th grade, Ranked Top 5 Nationally (multiple sources), 3-time NSDA National Qualifier, 3-time Tournament of Champions Qualifier
-Founder of Computer Programming Club at a local elementary- I teach 4th-6th grade students how to code using Scratch, I’ve done this since April of junior year
-Statewide Youth Broadband Advisory Council- 12th
-Baking Competitions at the State Fair- Age 6-17, won countless ribbons submitting entries to the baking competitions
-Principal’s Advisory Council- 11th and 12th
-Honors Diploma Program- 9th-12th
-National Honor Society- 10th-12th
-Moody’s Mega Math Challenge Team- 11th and 12th, top 8.3% out of over 1000 teams as a junior
-Student Council- 11th (Dropped due to scheduling conflict)
-Homecoming Court (one of 5 king candidates)- 12th
-Technology Club- 10th and 11th (VP junior year)
Job/Work Experience: Chick-Fil-A summer after 10th grade
Volunteer/Community Service: Judging and Coaching Novice Debaters, Summer Camp that prepares students for seventh grade, Vacation Bible School
Summer Experience: Debate Camp all 4 years, NSDA Nationals every summer, work, volunteering

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):

Essays:
Common App (Prompt 1): Wrote about how I found confidence in my voice because of Debate, 8/10, I worked on this essay extensively and I think it ended up quite good. Despite its somewhat cliche nature, I figured I ought write about debate because of how central it was in my application.
Princeton Long Supplement (Service of Humanity Prompt): Wrote about my experience with service from running my computer programming club, 7/10, I worked on this essay a decent amount as well and was pretty happy with how it turned out.
Past Summers: Wrote about attending Princeton reunions with my Dad, visiting Princeton again with my mom and sisters, attending debate camp and Nationals, working sophomore year, and volunteering at the summer camp for incoming seventh graders- this essay both showed I was pretty busy both summers but also that I’m committed to attending Princeton
Extracurricular Activity: Wrote about the joy I’ve found baking for the state fair, talked about how I’ve developed relationships with all of the staff at the competitions- I think this essay diversified me in an extremely deep applicant pool
Short answer section- I answered without explanation for these, but tried my best to be authentic in my responses- I think it’s important not to overthink these when writing them

Other (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details):

Teacher Recommendation #1: Calculus Teacher 10th and 11th grade, didn’t read the rec, but I think it was quite good so 8/10, I have a great relationship with her from having her as a teacher as a sophomore and junior and also having her as a coach for Moody’s Mega Math Challenge- she always talked about how she likes me as a person on top of as a student
Teacher Recommendation #2: German Teacher 10th-12th grade, didn’t read the rec, but I think she worked really hard on writing a good recommendation so 8/10 as well, I have a very good relationship with her as well as I’m one of her best students and get along really well with her
Counselor Rec: 8/10, He has around 200 students assigned to him yet I feel like I got to know him pretty well and he’s always very friendly to me
Additional Info/Rec: 10/10, I asked my debate coach who I’ve know since the end of seventh grade, I spend a ton of time with him at tournaments most weekends and he’s known to write wonderful recommendation letters. He told me he enjoyed writing a letter for me.
Interview: This went really well- we talked about Princeton for more than twice the time we’d planned to meet. I think his write-up that he submitted to Princeton probably played a role in me being accepted because he told me after I was accepted that he knew I’d be a great fit, and I’ve read that the readers at Princeton tend to take glowing recommendations from interviewers into serious consideration when evaluating applicants.
Art Supplement: n/a

Other

Date Submitted App: 10/29
U.S. State/Territory or Country: IA
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket Range: 100-150k
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athlete, development): Double Legacy (both my Dad and Grandpa attended Princeton)

Reflection

Strengths: Debate, Teacher Recommendations, Strong AP and subject test scores
Weaknesses: SAT wasn’t spectacular but probably good enough, no one had gotten into Princeton from my high school for over 10 years, my essays were a bit cliche
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I honestly don’t know- If I had to guess I think debate and my strong transcript on top of a ton of ECs that I’ve been decently involved in were enough to make me pretty reputable in the applicant pool and I think being a double legacy helped me stand out even more in the huge applicant pool filled with overqualified applicants.
What would you have done differently?: I think I might’ve started prepping for the SAT earlier than I did (the first time I took it was December 2015, which was the second to last test date)
Where else did you apply? Stanford (I’m waiting to hear back from them before I commit to Princeton because my Mom attended Stanford, but I’m pretty sure I’ll be attending Princeton regardless)

General Comments & Advice: I’m incredibly excited to be a part of the Class of 2021! I would like to note that I was just as prepared to be deferred just because the applicant pool this year was insane and decisions are beyond hard to predict in the end.

Good luck to those that are still applying! Don’t doubt yourself by looking at the statistics on this forum- I think people tend to overemphasize the importance of test scores on this forum, but it is really important to have a strong transcript and try to make yourself stand out.

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**Decision: Accepted **

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 2320 800/790/730
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): single sitting
ACT (breakdown):
ACT superscore (breakdown):
SAT II (subject, score): Math2 800 Physics 800
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0):
Weighted GPA: 4.95/5.2
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):
AP (place score in parentheses): CalcBC, Eng Lang, Physics2, Physics C Mech (all 5)
IB (place score in parentheses):
Senior Year Course Load:Latin Hons, Multi Calc, Eng Lit AP, Band, Stats AP, History Hons
Number of other EA applicants in your school: ?
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): None
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): NMF, some state science/band

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): soccer ref, first chair in band, engineering author
Job/Work Experience: None
Volunteer/Community Service: Mentoring, soccer refereeing
Summer Experience: None

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):

Essays: Too subjective - no idea how to rate these!
Teacher Recommendation #1:
Teacher Recommendation #2:
Counselor Rec:
Additional Info/Rec:
Interview: Went well, could relate to the recent grad interviewing

Other

Date Submitted App: 11/1
U.S. State/Territory or Country: MA
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: white
Gender: male
Income Bracket Range:
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): none (first from my school?)

Reflection

Strengths: Strong demonstrated interest in a specific engineering field
Weaknesses:No job/research experience?
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Strong stats, good writer
What would you have done differently?: Taken SAT again when older?
Where else did you apply? Range from Ivies to publics with good scholarships/full-rides

**Other Factors: **
Good all rounder, strong in engineering and arts, maybe something they look for

General Comments & Advice:
Good luck future applicants!

35

**Decision: Accepted **

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): Math: 590 CR: 610 Essay: 18
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 1600
ACT (breakdown):N/A
ACT superscore (breakdown): N/A
SAT II (subject, score): Took 3 subject tests (all below 700 so I did not send in)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): Maybe 3.9?
Weighted GPA:4.226/4.5
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 2 out 300ish
AP (place score in parentheses): APUSH (2) Calc AB (2) Lang (3)
IB (place score in parentheses):N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calculus BC AP Chemistry AP Lit & Comp/ Expository Writing
Number of other EA applicants in your school: 2
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.):None
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): Principal Honors

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):

National Honor Society (NHS) (Sophomore-present)- Member
Student Government, Treasurer of Student Council, 10th-11th grade.
Wrestling, Varsity Team, 10th-11th grades. Wrestled for 106,113 and 120 weight class
Rutgers Future Scholar

Tri-M Music Honor Society
S.T.E.M Club ( Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics), Public Relations, 10th-11th grade
High School Orchestra, member, 9th-11th grade.
Johnson & Johnson Bridge To Employment

Job/Work Experience: None
Volunteer/Community Service: Few total less than 100

Summer Experience:
Princeton Summer Journalism:
I was selected for a 10-day journalism seminar at Princeton University.

Princeton Lab learning program:
Through the summer program I worked in the Department of Psychology at Princeton University conducting and analyzing behavioral data.

Rutgers Future Scholar
I took college courses at Rutgers University

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):

Essays: ,
Common App: 10/10

My essay was about how I decided to defend myself from my abusive older brothers by joining my high school wrestling team. I paralleled wrestling as being a way to defend myself with education being a different form of protection.

  • Supplement (9/10): I wrote about my mother and how she migrated to the US from Mexico in hopes of being more financially stable. The essay mentions how my mom had to raise three kids on her own.

Trait Most Proud Of: Grit
World You Come From:
-A place where less than 70% of the students graduate from high school.
-Growing up with ex gang members (brothers)
-Mother always working
-Living off of food stamps

Significant Challenge: Lived in a violent household where drugs were present. Financially disadvantaged

Other (teacher’s subject, 1-10 rating, details):

Teacher Recommendation #1:(9/10) AP Lit teacher: it was pretty good

Teacher Recommendation #2:(9/10)Honors chem teacher: it was pretty good too
Counselor Rec: Didn’t get a chance to read but she is fond of me
Additional Info/Rec:
Princeton Alum: He is a journalist. Didn’t get a chance to read but no doubt he spoke well of me.
Princeton Alum: Worked for Princeton. i read it and it was okay (7/10)
informal rec sent as email: Assistant professor for Princeton that i worked with during the lab learning program.
Pretty sure these recs really sold me

Interview: Lasted about an hour. i teared a bit when i spoke about the significance of education in my life
Art Supplement:
Submitted poems about feminism, being financially disadvantaged and failure

Other

Date Submitted App: Nov 1
U.S. State/Territory or Country: US
School Type:Public
Ethnicity: Mexican
Gender: Female
Income Bracket Range: <$10,000
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development):
URM
first generation (Brothers dropped out of HS)
low-income

Reflection

Strengths: Essays, recs and summer programs

Weaknesses: SAT and AP scores
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Truly believe it was my essays, letters of rec, and summer programs that got me in. But if i had to choose what made me such a strong candidate it would be my essays.
What would you have done differently?: Nothing
Where else did you apply?
Apart from PU only Rutgers University (safety). i was accepted to RU and was accepted into the honors college as well.
if i were to have been denied i would have applied to other ivy’s. But since PU is my dream school i didn’t.

[ b]General Comments & Advice:**

i hope this inspires some people! i probably have some of the lowest scores out of all the other people who have been accepted but to me that does not matter because either way we all got to the same place and everyone has their own path. Please do not feel discouraged over test scores. i am proof that the admissions officers truly look at the applications holistically. All I’ve ever been is a small girl (literally im shorter than 5 ft) with big dreams. J. Cole said it himself, a dollar and a dream that’s all you need!

You don’t need to compare yourself, darling, you are already amazing!

Feel free to message me for any other advice.

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For those of you who are already admitted, do you know if there’s a groupme for admitted students? I got in back in December, so I’d like to start getting to know the class of 2021! If so, please DM me the link!

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@brennan0111 You can find the link in the PU portal. There is also a FB group if you are interested.