<p>Hello! I know that my topic probably will be not so smart or orginized, but I need an advice. My problem is my parents. How so?
Let's me introduce myself. My name is Oksana(but I prefer when people call me Roxanne or Roxy) and I'm an exchange student in America this year. I'm from Russia. And I'm a sophmore.(too old to think about Ivy League, I know) Why Harvard? Actually, I didn't think about Ivy League untill last Christmas. Miracle happened. I got that I can have a good education, despite I'm form Russia and my parents' income is totally low. I began my research. Unfortunately, I found only three schools in America whci can fit me best. Harvard, Yale and Princeton. First thing was of course financial aid for international students. These schools have need-blind aid for ALL students. It's a great point for me. Question is not about money. It's about principles. Next thing is a major. Writing is my passion. I need to write anything at least once a day. It's like a drug. Fiction, non-fiction - doesn't matter. Also business, I have a bunch of ideas which could make the world better place and myself richer. Third reason is volunteer work. I've never thought about it. First few months in America I did volunteer work for two reasons - placement organization and President's Award. But later I understood that volunteering is a huge part of my life. Harvard fits perfect my needs. Also, they don't have a Russian club and some other things :(( It should be corrected :P
Question Number One. How did you come to America?
FLEX programm. Future Leaders Exchange. Sponsored by American Government. Competition. Less than 5 percents applicants became finalists and came to America. I was in the lowest edges(8th grade and 14). I have a lot of friends, Flex students, more than 100 this year, and only 3-4 of them are my age and grade. One unique thing about this program is it's for free. All expenses are for American Government, not for your parents.
Question Number Two. Why did you participate?
First reason is obvious. I had a dream since I was born to come to America and study in American High School. Yeah, a bit stupid, but when you watch American movies, read American books, where America is everywhere, it's understandable WHY it could be a dream. Plus, eternal question "What is American dream like?" followed me all the time. I found out about this competition randomly and I knew that I'd go. Partly because of the second reason. A Dream of Parents and a Family. They divorced when I was 8 months. It was tough childhood. When I was eleven my life was in my hands. I could do whatever I wanted. They didn't care. When I came to America first 4 months I had big problems with my host-families, but now I live in my perfect family. They have some issues. For example they are not very rich or other family stuff. But I fell they love me and care more than my natural parents.
Question Number Three. What is the Problem, girl?
College. My dad. My parents.
A bit background. Grades. American High School - I'm a sophmore. I have 5 juniors-seniors classes(3 of them English, two are the least liked by students all ages and grades, Journalism - a lot of writing, plus for public. We have a school newspaper and for good grades you have to write one good(!) article, 350 words. You have only three days for it. And other types, like editorials, invistigating, senior profiles, etc. Multicultural Literature - a lot of reading.) Also, I have Algebra II/trig(sophmore class) and Teacher Aide(volunteer work). First quarter I had GPA 3,1. I know, I'm a looser. Second wquarter, Mid-Term 3,0, Quarter - 3,7 or 3,8. This Quarter, Mid-Term - 3,4. And I'll try to improve it for 4. Russian School - I had straight A's every subject(about 12-14 subjects).
Wow, it's almost the end. I'm coming closer and closer to my problem. I could repeat sophmore year in Russian School, but I decided to challenge myself and take all exams, tests, etc for being a junior next year. Then I thought about college. I have to take 2 tests for graduating Russian school and 5 more tests for admission. Grades should be good, if not perfect. All my time at Russian school I was a slucker. Yes, I had good grades, but why? First, I'm not stupid. Second, I am a nice person. Third, last year before exams I was studying very hard all by myself, without teachers, for taking tests, passing exams and so on. Now I see school only as wasting time and money. Because I have to 1) prepair for Harvard 2) do volunteer work 3) work(I don't want to ask my parents about money for books and exams. My big dream is to visit campuses. Special for it(and for helping people) I'm writing a non-fiction book now). I can study Russian programm all by myself, because I didi it before. My dad, I asked him, because he only one who cares about my education said me:"Don't be a dreamer. You can't do it. It'll take it 6 extra months for being junior. And you'll go to school" His only one argument was I failed one on-line contest for Russian school. English. I know. I was really upset. It's my mistake. I was so Idk, I didn't pay enough attention... I thought that it's so easy that's why I didn't even correct it...... :( My parents never cared about my education. They didn't go to school, even not to check my grades. My mom said me straight that she doesn't care about me, she loves, but has her life. My dad tryes me to do what he didn't do in his life. He wants me to go to best Russian schools, but he laughed at me when I said him last summer that I'm going to an American college. They almost broke my dream about America... I thought two times about going to a court, but my principles won. But what should I do? How to do it? I'm so jealous to these guys, whose parents help them. Mine dont'. It's ok. But they try to interupt me. And they can... :(
Sorry for long post :(</p>
<p>Roxy, as an exchange student from Russia, you’ve already achieved what you wanted, now you just need to continue. You’re getting an education, now just keep it up! Don’t blame your parents though. They’re just being protective, and going off to another country is very far away.</p>
<p>I had to leave my parent’s house a year into high school. I never graduated and I don’t have a transcript.</p>
<p>It’s possible to pursue whatever you want to without the support of your parents, but it is difficult, and it can take a long time.</p>
<p>My only advice (which applies to everything) is to consider the opinions of others very lightly. Only you know what you’re capable of. If you want something, you shouldn’t let anyone or anything stand in your way.</p>
<p>From one Russian to another:</p>
<p>It is very admirable that you want to attend a place like Harvard. In fact, many kids do, and it is equally admirable of them too.</p>
<p>First of all, Harvard is an American college, which means the language that is required in every subject and class is English. I understand that writing is your passion, but do you write mostly in English or Russian? Because by the looks of your first post, one wouldn’t be impressed, especially someone on the admissions committee.</p>
<p>From the lack of correct grammar, punctuation, formatting, spelling, or a good rhetoric the post seems like it was made in haste and looks sloppy and difficult to read.</p>
<p>Your writing seems disorganized and something that is usually found on a hastily scrawled MySpace “About Me” section. Writing also in very difficult to read because of the aforementioned formatting and your repeated asking of questions and insertion irrelevant statements; this distracts the reader from the point of the topic, and makes your writing sound weak. What is also cause for alarm is the post’s dissonance and lack of parallelism; saying repeatedly that your dad was the only one that cared about your education, yet elsewhere saying that you parents did not care about your education.</p>
<p>However, through my critique I will also sympathize. English isn’t your native tongue, but that shouldn’t stop you. You should push yourself as far as you can. Also, don’t deprecate yourself in your writing, stay confident.</p>
<p>But dreaming isn’t everything. You have to take multiple (read: ALL) honors in high school and have outstanding SAT - and in your case TOEFL - scores to have a shot at getting into Harvard, let alone actually getting in. </p>
<p>If English isn’t your strong suit, what is wrong with attending a Russian institution? My mother graduated from Saint Petersburg State University with a law degree back in the Soviet Union, and my father received his degree in mechanical engineering from Moscow State University. Why would you not enjoy studying the halls that housed Stravinsky and Gogol?</p>
<p>End: Work hard and believe.</p>
<p>" First thing was of course financial aid for international students"</p>
<p>No, first thing is that the overwhelming majority of applicants to those schools are rejected.</p>
<p>what?..</p>
<p>Thank you for advices. I’m sorry if my post was unclear and disorginised. I knew it, and I wasn’t trying to write an admission essay here. I know my the weakest points.(The genel one is English). However, I know what I can achieve, too.</p>
<p>Limabeans, thank you. My parents, they are not being protective. My dad has high expectations, but he didn’t ever care a lot, so now I have my own positions. He tryes to force me to do what I don’t want to do. If they gave me a freedom, I want to do what I see smart for myself. But… My mom just doesn’t care. She has an another child to correct her mistake with me. All I need is a full freedom of actions. And I don’t know how to get it.</p>
<p>Cgarcia, thank you for good words and a perfect example. I’m trying… And it’s easier with each time.</p>
<p>Shnead, thank you for an informative post, too. I feel Russian mentality in this one… Unfortunately. Anyway, it’s a good one. I like it. The end is the best, what I do. What’s about Russian University? As I said(I hope I did) I’m not going to attend any other colleges, except these three. It’s a question of principles. Plus, I have much higher dreams than higher education, which can be achieved without any degrees. So, any another college is just wasting time, which is the most important thing in my life, and wasting time is the scariest one.</p>
<p>Nothstarmom, “think about good, prepair for bad”. I love this Russian proverb :P</p>
<p>. Why are you being so stubborn about attending Ivies? Its good to have a high plank to achieve, but there are so many good colleges in the world. Even if you dont wanna go to Russian univeristies, there are still a lot of schools. For example, LACs like Williams or Middlebury that give out generous aid to foreigners. No need to be so limited in options. Everyone has to have safeties, because sometimes life makes unpleasant surprises, you gotta have a backup for everything.
Talking about preparation: you still have to submit transcripts and recs to the desired school, so do good in your school. You’re just 14, concentrate on school! And ec-s.
What you can do though to help you take SAT in particular and improve your English in general is to start readin A LOT of books in English. Start with an easy stuff like Harry Potter, then continue to smth like Irving, Fowles etc. Oh, and try to read as much of english classics as you can. Jane Austin, for example. Its in the SAT really frequently. Reading will improve your writing as well.
Math wont be a problem for you, thats for sure. American Math as a joke compared to what we study in Russia.
Try to win as many Olympiads as you can. National and International Olympiads are of special importance.
You’ll probably have to work a little bit, too, because application process will cost you a lot.
Finally, if you overcome all the obstacles you might face you will certainly have something to write your application essay about.
Good luck.</p>
<p>Fromrussia, thank you a lot for advices. I appreciate it.
I’ve already explained why I want to go to Harvard. First, because I’m capable to do it. Second, Harvard is not everything, it’s more a tool for achievenig higher goals in life, which I can complete without any University at all. Harvard can help me to save my time and minimize an effort.
15, almost 16, I wish I’d be 14, but… I feel that I’ll solve all problems with Russian school during this summer break. I read 2-3 books a week, unfortunately mostly non-fiction, because I need some skills, but when I come back in Russia, I’ll have to read a lot of fiction and classics. It’s not possible to find good non-fiction books in English in my home town.
Last two things, about work and Olympiads, - I have BIG problems with it. Its name is parents. They don’t support, it’s ok. But they try to interupt. And it’s not good.
Thank you a lot, again.</p>
<p>An other Russian to Russian:
I am from SPb, go back every summer, have been in the US since 6th grade. Now I am a senior and dealing with the whole college thing.
Here’s one thing you need to realize: college here is nothing like college in Russia. In any respect. It’s’ just not as easy to get in. The competition is much greater. You cannot just be sure of Princeton, Yale or Harvad. You cannot be sure of U. Moscow either, but it is a lot easier to know if you will get in or not. There are exams to pass and things to study. You pass you’re in, you fail you’re out, and you know at least sort of what to prepare. Here, well, it’s often very hard to predict anything. And people applying to these colleges are so competitive that they spend their LIVES preparing for their senior year. You can be extremely talented, dedicated, involved and much more, and by some lapse of faith be rejected. Of course, you can also be accepted, but my point it is that you have to realize that the college admission culture (so to speak) here is much much different. Much more competitive.
Now, I am also not trying to discourage you from going to school in the US. However, you must realize that it’s not a dream land where you can go to anywhere if you work hard enough. It just is a lot less fair than that. Try to think about other options at the very least as back up.
That being said, take into account what your parents say but don’t let it direct you. Do what you can and don’t be upset if you don’t get into your 3 dream schools. There’s a point where it turns to luck.
Keep doing great in school and working hard outside and you might get lucky.
Also, just out of curiosity, how long are you staying in the US?
Anyways, good luck!
Успехов тебе во всём! Надеюсь ты добьёшся того, о чём так мечтаешь!!!</p>
<p>I didn;t bother reading the long post. but couldn’t you always go to a top russian school then come to the US/north america for graduate school? That’s always an option and at that point your parents will realize your old enough to live on your own and you can truly enjoy america as, basically, an adult.</p>
<p>Foxy, in your response to fromrussia, you say that Harvard is a tool, one that will quicken your ascent onto sweet literary brilliance. It won’t.</p>
<p>You see and read all of these great authors like John Updike (Harvard), Michael Crichton (Harvard), Scott Fitzgerald (Princeton), and James Fenimore Cooper (Yale). Do you think that Harvard, Yale, or Princeton made these writers what they were? No, these people were brilliant from the beginning. Sure the schools may have contributed the writers’ inspiration or ideas, but they didn’t make the writers.</p>
<p>But do you ever wonder why so many famous people come from these “prestigious” schools? It is not that the schools are magic easy-bake ovens of wonder and genius, it is just that the schools ATTRACT smart, brilliant, possibly genius, people. The genius comes to the schools; the schools don’t make it, it is already there.</p>
<p>Take a writer like John Grisham, he went to Mississippi State, he’s sold over a hundred-million copies of books. The school didn’t teach him how to write for or where to get ideas from, God’s sake, he was an accountant then went to law school. He acquired his prose and inspiration through life experience. </p>
<p>Let’s take that a step further. </p>
<p>Earnest Hemingway. The man, the myth, the Nobel and Pulitzer prizewinning author. Hemingway is a great writer, whether you like him or not, you have to admit that he accomplished an extraordinary amount without a college degree – no less than the writers I’ve mentioned before.</p>
<p>Is it any less commendable for you to want to go to the Big Three? No. I just don’t want you to be blinded by the SEEMING impossibly awesome aura that the colleges are surrounded by.</p>
<p>I agree with what other posters have said, that you seem to think the Ivies are an end-all. They’re really not. There are plenty of other colleges other than Harvard, Yale, and Princeton. And that also makes me wonder: you said that these are the only three colleges that fit you the best, but HYP are very, very different. Each one of them has a COMPLETELY different feel to their campus and student life. Are you sure you’re evaluating them as individual colleges, not just name brands?</p>
<p>I also think that I should probably mention that Harvard/Yale/Princeton are ALL highly competitive colleges. You sound like you are definitely smart and capable, but there are 10000000 other smart and capable students out there who DON’T get in. If you are really set on going to school in America, have some backup schools, and pick ones that fit you, not just ones that have good reputations.</p>
<p>Hope this helped</p>
<p>@fromrussia: Are you insinuating that Williams and Middlebury are safeties? If so, you need to reassess your life.</p>
<p>@lobzz: no, dude. There are great colleges like Williams with fin aid to intl students - that’s N.1. She has to have some safeties anyway - that’s N.2.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Um…</p>
<p>Problem right there.</p>
<p>No one (well…maybe the son or daughter of a multimillion dollar donor, or one of Obama’s daughers, or maybe a Kennedy etc) is a shoo-in for Harvard. Seeing as the acceptance rate is 7% or even slightly less, it would be incredibly presumptuous (not to mention deluded) to treat getting in like it was a certainty.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p><em>faceplam</em></p>
<p>This kind of attitude seems a tad anti the spirit of what Harvard is about actually. In fact, the liberal arts education for that matter. Harvard is very deliberately NOT pre-professional. It VALUES learning for learning’s sake. And guess what? That might well mean taking longer and an indirect route to whatever career you want to get straight into. It seems to me like you want to go to the ivies just for the prestige. That’s a pretty shallow reason to be honest.</p>
<p>And I’m sorry, but with the level of English displayed judging from your posts, I do wonder if you even scored decently on the TOEFL? (I’m not trying to be rude, but the grammar/spelling/punctuation/coherence… is quite far below many other international student’s levels as far as I can see)</p>