Reaching for Ivies

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Here's my profile. I'm applying to HYP, Duke, Brown, Wash U, Johns Hopkins, and Vandy.</p>

<p>Ethnicity: Chinese</p>

<p>Academic Profile:
White Station High School
Class of 2008
Rank 3 of 532
Cumulative Weighted GPA:5.2059 (end of junior year)
Cumulative Unweighted GPA:4.0 (end of junior year)</p>

<p>SAT I- Total-2360 (Reading-780, Math-780, Writing-800, Essay-12)
SAT II's- Math IIC-800, Biology Molecular-800, Latin-790
PSAT- 233 (78 Reading, 80 Math, 75 Writing)</p>

<p>AP Courses- Biology, Calculus BC, English Language and Composition, Music Theory (5 nonaural, 4 aural), Physics B, United States History, World History (5) (!This is up to Junior Year!)
For senior year I plan to take AP Chem, English Literature, Statistics, and Latin.</p>

<p>Academic Honors
 TN District Optimist Oratorical Winner-$1500 Scholarship (2003)
 Memphis Symphony League Mary Stagg Scholarship Award(2004)
 University of Memphis Summer Music Camp-Scholarship Recipient (2005)
 Mid-south Knowledge Bowl Grand Champion- $15,000 Scholarship (2005-2006, 2006-2007)
 Commercial Appeal Academic All-Star-Mathematics-$250 Scholarship(2007)
 USAA National English Merit Award Winner (2007)
 USAA National Mathematics Award Winner (2007)
 National Honor Society (2007)</p>

<p>Science
 Memphis Regional Science Olympiad (Top Three Places Listed)
o 1st place- Water Quality, Science of Fitness; 3rd place - Life Process Skills, Mission Possible (2004-2005)
o 1st place- Scrambler Engineering Event, Entomology(2006-2007)
 TN State Science Olympiad (Top Three Places Listed)
o State Champions (2003-2004)
o 1st place-Life Process Skills, 2nd Place-Science of Fitness, 3rd place-Water Quality (2004-2005)
o 1st place-Entomology (2006-2007)
 TN Governor’s School for Science- Evolutionary Biology and Logic of Science (2006)
 27th annual SAACS(Student Affiliates of the American Chemical Society) High School Science Bowl
o Written Test Highest Overall Scorer (2007)
o Science Bowl- 2nd place (2007)
 SECME/JETS(Science,Engineering,Communications,andMathematicsEnrichment/Junior Engineering Technical Society)-Vicki Robinson Science Olympiad Essay Contest
o 3rd place-Regional Contest (2004-2005)
o 1st place-Regional Contest, Finalist-National Contest (2005-2006)
o 1st place-Regional Contest (2006- 2007)</p>

<p>Writing
 Letters About Literature TN State Finalist Award (2004, 2007)
 WordSmith
o Prepared Manuscript Essay-1st place, 400-word Dash-Honorable Mention(2004)
o School Sweepstakes 9th Grade- 2nd Place (2004)
o 120-word Dash-3rd place, 40-word Dash-Honorable Mention (2006)
 National Council of Teachers of English Promising Young Writers Program (2004)
 TN Society Daughters of the American Revolution State Poster Contest -1st place (2004)
 TN Society Daughters of the American Revolution State Stamp Design -1st place (2004)
 Daughters of the American Revolution American History Essay Chapter Contest Winner (2004)
 Chucalissa Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution Poetry Contest -3rd place (2004)
 Creative Communication’s Young Writers Contest- Top 10 Winner (2005, 2006)</p>

<p>Foreign Language
 National Latin Exam-Gold Medal (2004, 2005- perfect score, 2006)
 TJCL State Latin Convention (Top Three Places Listed)
o 2nd place-Certamen, Academic Pentathlon, Derivatives, Mythology (2005)
o 1st place - Hellenic History, Sight Latin 2, Latin Literature; 2nd place-Reading Comprehension 2-5, Latin Grammar 2-5, 3rd place-Derivatives (2006)
o 2nd place-Reading Comprehension 3-5, Hellenic History, Academic Heptathlon; 3rd place-Classical Art (2007)
 NJCL National Latin Convention(Top Three Places Listed)
o 1st place-Open Certamen-Novice, English Oratory (2005)
o 2nd place-Latin II Sight Reading, 3rd place-Hellenic History, Level II Greek Derivatives (2006)
 National Latin Convention Lillie B. Hamilton Award- 9th place Overall in all competitive categories (2005)
 National Latin Convention Olympika Achievement Award- 7th place Overall (2005)
 National Latin Convention Creative Arts Achievement Award- 9th place Overall (2006)
 University of Memphis Language Fair
o 1st place-Culture Bowl, 1st place-Latin Poetry Levels I-II (2006)
o 2nd place-Latin Vocabulary II, 2nd place-Latin Translation II (2006)</p>

<p>Mathematics and Engineering
 Math Counts Chapter Competition Countdown Round-1st place(2003-2004)
 Math Counts Tennessee State Competition Team-2nd place(2003-2004)
 Math Counts Tennessee State Competition Individual-6th place(2003-2004)
 Duke TIP Algebra II Independent Learning Completion Certificate(2004-2005)
 Mandelbrot Math Competition Division B-3rd Place(2004-2005)
 University of Tennessee Knoxville Pro 2 Serve Math Contest
o Fermat 1 Finalist (2005, 2006)<br>
 TMTA (Tennessee Mathematics Teacher’s Association)
o 3rd place-Geometry Division Regional Examination (2005)
o 3rd place-Pre-Calculus Division Regional Examination (2006)
o 4th place-Calculus and Advanced Topics Regional Examination(2007)
 TEAMS (Tests of Engineering Aptitude, Mathematics and Science) Competition
o 1st Place-Regional, 9th place-National (2006); 1st Place-Regional (2007)
 Tennessee State Mu Alpha Theta Convention (2006)
o 1st Place-Team Contest, 2nd-place Chalk Talk lecture </p>

<p>Oratory
 National Latin Convention- 1st place English Oratory (2005)
 Memphis Regional Optimist Oratorical Winner (2005)
 TN District Optimist Oratorical Outstanding Performer (2005)</p>

<p>Swimming
 Qualifying Time for TN State High School Swimming Championship(2004-2005)
o In Events - 100yard Breaststroke, 100 yard Butterfly
 Memphis Interscholastic Athletic Association Swimming City Championships
o 1st place -50 yard Individual Freestyle, 100 yard Individual Breaststroke (2005)
o 1st place -100 yard Individual Butterfly, 100 yard Individual Medley (2006)
o 1st place -50 yard Individual Butterfly, 100 yard Individual Butterfly (2007)
 Swimming in NJCL National Latin Convention(2005-2006)(Top Three Places Listed)
o 1st place-50 yard Individual Freestyle, 2nd place-50-yard Freestyle, 50-yard Breaststroke, 50-yard Backstroke, 3rd place-100-yard Backstroke, 200-yard Freestyle
 White Station High School Athletic Award-Most Improved Swimmer (2004-2005)</p>

<p>Music
 All West Tennessee Orchestra First Violin (2002-2004)
 Memphis Youth String Ensemble – Concertmaster (2002-2003)
 White Station Middle School Orchestra – Concertmaster (2003-2004)
 University of Memphis Summer Music Camp – String Quartet- First Violin (2005)</p>

<p>Academic Activities
 White Station High School Varsity Knowledge Bowl (2004-2007)
 White Station High School Latin Knowledge Bowl (Certamen) (2004-2007)
 NJCL National Latin Convention (Summer of 2005 and 2006)
 TJCL State Latin Convention(2005, 2006, 2007)
 Rhodes Model UN- Best Delegation (2006-2007)
 Vanderbilt Model UN- Best Delegation (2006-2007)
 Captain of Science Olympiad Scrambler Engineering Event(2006-2007)
 Vice President of SECME/JETS Club (2006-2007)
 Captain of the SAACS High School Science Bowl Team(2007)
 Columnist for White Station High School Newspaper (2007)</p>

<p>Extracurricular Activities
 Memphis Youth String Ensemble (2001-2003)
o Concertmaster (2002-2003)
 Memphis Youth String Orchestra First Violin (2003-2005)
 Memphis Youth Symphony First Violin (2005-2007)
 All West Tennessee Orchestra First Violin(2002-2004)
 White Station Middle School Orchestra – (2002-2004)
o Concertmaster (2003-2004)
 Memphis Tigers Swim Team (2002-2007)
 White Station High School Varsity Swim Team (2004-2007)</p>

<p>Community Service
 Hands on Memphis (56 hours from 2004-2007)
o Clifford Cares Reading Program, World AIDS Day, Target House Holiday Dinner, Trail Blazing at Lichterman Nature Center, Ushering at Theater Memphis
 Memphis Chinese Community Teen Volunteers (50 hours from 2004-2007)
o Chinese New Year Festival Celebration, Chinese Mid-Moon Festival Usher and Volunteer Performer, Turkey Trot/March of Dimes, Congressman Ford’s Christmas Food Basket Event
 Memphis Youth Symphony Volunteer Program (13.5 hours from 2005-2007)
o Christmas Dinner Performance, Wolfchase Mall Fundraiser Performance, Church Service Performance
 St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital Summer Teen Volunteer Program (56 hours from summer of 2007)</p>

2

<p>I'm trying to fix up the resume so that it'll be more streamlined when I apply to college.</p>

3

<p>That is one hell of a list.</p>

4

<p>ummm, i'm assuming you have no life. you were bred from the day you were born to go to an ivy league school. and if you really do all that you say, you must not have any time for fun at all ever. you must spend every waking moment of your life doing work.<br>
did your parents make you do all that or did you really want to. or were you brainwashed into doing it all.
suffice it to say, you will no doubt get into a lot of those schools, but at what cost to yourself.</p>

<p>and i love how i got into a top liberal arts college while barely doing anything compared to that and having so much damn free time</p>

5

<p>You have no idea how much free time I have.</p>

<p>I still manage to party and hang out with my friends on weekends.</p>

<p>I can't deny I enjoy learning, and quiz bowl is one of my greatest passions.
I also enjoy working with people and I do a lot of volunteer work NOT because my parents force me to but because I like being around people.</p>

<p>This by no means negates my social life.</p>

<p>I appreciate your critique, though it be a little spiteful and tongue-in-cheek. And of course, I bet anyone can manage all of that if he or she just put in a little effort.</p>

<p>I live life by this motto: do something and enjoy it. Push yourself while you're young. Enjoy the benefits late in life.</p>

6

<p>eh... in?</p>

<p>But I dunno how you;re gonna fit taht resume on one page. your resume might actually be longer than the admissions officer's!</p>

<p>In the end, Harvard will probably snatch you up, especially since you come from Tennessee, which is overall a pretty low ranking state, educationally.</p>

7

<p>what the balog?</p>

8

<p>Indeed, I'm cutting it short...I'm in the process of doing that. it's down to about 1 and a half pages now...</p>

<p>I just post this LOOOOONG resume because i was short on time and couldn't find my shorter one.</p>

9

<p>at first, i thought you were joking.</p>

10

<p>Ivies won't take you.</p>

<p>You're way too overrated.</p>

<p>just kidding... you got a great chance at all of the ivies.</p>

11

<p>Actually, a lot of the stuff on there seems not so impressive. You won a chapter stamp design contest? And I think the scrambler engineering event is where you drop an egg off a roof. Right? Ok. 400 word dash? What?! Forget those.</p>

<p>The things that matter are the regional/national contests and the scholarship things. And you seem like a decent swimmer.</p>

<p>You need to cut 60-70% of this stuff off. No admissions officer will be able to read all of it. And they won't want to. Which of these is most important to you? Swimming/Engineering/Violin/etc.</p>

<p>Being from Tennessee will help you. Being Chinese will hurt you. A lot. Obviously your numbers are good. And your legitimate ECs are good, too.</p>

<p>Your admissions will be based on your essays and recommendation. You seem all over the place to me. ORGANIZE. Figure out what is most important to you (it can be three things) and communicate that. Organize your ECs. If you attach that brag sheet to your application, nothing of consequence will get through.</p>

<p>I'd say that Vandy, Duke, and Wash U are matches. Hopkins MIGHT be. HYP and Brown are still reaches.</p>

<p>By all means, apply to them. But don't think that Harvard doesn't already have 500 Chinese-american applicants who swim and play violin and like engineering. Because they do. Ditto with everywhere. And I'm concerned about Brown because you're not the typical Brown kid.</p>

<p>Write good essays. Get recommendations that speak to your personal qualities and not just your grades. You've got a great shot. But being asian is gonna hurt you. I'd say in at 1 Ivy. MAYBE 2.</p>

<p>Add Tufts to your list.</p>

12

<p>Asian doesn't HURT you, it only won't help you. Asians are overrepresented, like whites, they do not recieve a boost, however, you won't be rejected for being asian.</p>

<p>ses - you vastly overestimate the selectivity of the Ivies(and underestimate Duke; Duke = way harder than JHU). Being across the board top .01% puts this person in a pretty damn good position. Tons of MAJOR state and national awards.</p>

<p>HYP are still reachs(as in <50% chance), but that is only because they are for everyone.</p>

<p>And what happens to be your unifying factor among schools? There seems to be a very large difference among them.</p>

13

<p>Okay...JUST IGNORE THE FIRST POST. I MANAGED TO FIND THE FINISHED RESUME THAT I WAS RECENTLY WORKING ON. HERE IT IS</p>

<p>Ethnicity: Chinese male</p>

<p>Education
 Rank 3 of 532
 5.2059 Weighted GPA
 4.0 Unweighted GPA
 SAT I- 2360 (780 Reading, 780 Math, 800 Writing, 12 Essay)
 SAT II- Biology Molecular- 800, Math Level 2- 800, Latin-790
 PSAT- 233 (78 Reading, 80 Math, 75 Writing)
 AP Courses- Biology, Calculus BC, English Language and Composition, Music Theory (5 nonaural, 4 aural), Physics B, United States History, World History (5)</p>

<p>For senior year, I’ll have AP Chem, English Lit, Statistics, and Latin.</p>

<p>Honors
Scholarships and Commendations
 TN District Optimist Oratorical Winner-$1500 Scholarship (2003)
 Memphis Symphony League Mary Stagg Scholarship Award(2004)
 Mid-south Knowledge Bowl Grand Champion- $15,000 Scholarship (2005-2006, 2006-2007)
 Commercial Appeal Academic All-Star-Mathematics-$250 Scholarship(2007)
 National Honor Society (2007)</p>

<p>Science
 TN State Science Olympiad
 TN Governor’s School for Science- Evolutionary Biology and Logic of Science (2006)
 27th annual SAACS(Student Affiliates of the American Chemical Society) High School Science Bowl
o Written Test Highest Overall Scorer (2007)
 SECME/JETS-Vicki Robinson Science Olympiad Essay Contest
o Finalist-National Contest (2005-2006)</p>

<p>Writing
 Letters About Literature TN State Finalist Award (2004, 2007)
 WordSmith
o Prepared Manuscript Essay-1st place
 Creative Communication’s Young Writers Contest- Top 10 Winner (2005, 2006)</p>

<p>Foreign Language
 National Latin Exam-Gold Medal (2004, 2005- perfect score, 2006)
 NJCL National Latin Convention
o 1st place-Open Certamen-Novice, English Oratory
 National Latin Convention Lillie B. Hamilton Award- 9th place Overall in all competitive categories
Mathematics and Engineering
 University of Tennessee Knoxville Pro 2 Serve Math Contest
o Fermat 1 Finalist (2005, 2006)<br>
 TMTA (Tennessee Mathematics Teacher’s Association)
o 3rd place-Geometry Division Regional Examination (2005)
o 3rd place-Pre-Calculus Division Regional Examination (2006)
o 4th place-Calculus and Advanced Topics Regional Examination(2007)
 TEAMS (Tests of Engineering Aptitude, Mathematics and Science) Competition
o 1st Place-Regional, 9th place-National (2006); 1st Place-Regional (2007)</p>

<p>Oratory
 National Latin Convention- 1st place English Oratory (2005)
 Memphis Regional Optimist Oratorical Winner (2005)
 TN District Optimist Oratorical Outstanding Performer (2005)</p>

<p>Swimming
 Memphis Interscholastic Athletic Association Swimming City Championships
o 1st place -50 yard Individual Freestyle, 100 yard Individual Breaststroke (2005)
o 1st place -100 yard Individual Butterfly, 100 yard Individual Medley (2006)
o 1st place -50 yard Individual Butterfly, 100 yard Individual Butterfly (2007)
 White Station High School Athletic Award-Most Improved Swimmer (2004-2005)</p>

<p>Music
 All West Tennessee Orchestra First Violin (2002-2004)
 Memphis Youth String Ensemble – Concertmaster (2002-2003)
 White Station Middle School Orchestra – Concertmaster (2003-2004)
 University of Memphis Summer Music Camp – String Quartet- First Violin (2005)</p>

<p>Activities
Academic
 White Station High School Varsity Knowledge Bowl (2004-2007)
 NJCL National Latin Convention (Summer of 2005, 2006, and 2007)
 TJCL State Latin Convention(2005, 2006, 2007)
 Rhodes Model UN- Best Delegation (2006-2007)
 Vanderbilt Model UN- Best Delegation (2006-2007)
 Columnist for White Station High School Newspaper (2007)</p>

<p>Leadership
 Vice President of SECME/JETS Club (2006-2007)
 Captain of Science Olympiad Scrambler Engineering Event(2006-2007)
 Captain of the SAACS High School Science Bowl Team(2007)
 President and Co-founder of the Multi-Cultural Learning Program at the Central Library (2007)</p>

<p>Extra-curricular
 Memphis Youth String Ensemble (2001-2003)
o Concertmaster (2002-2003)
 Memphis Youth Symphony Program First Violin (2003-2007)
 All West Tennessee Orchestra First Violin(2002-2004)
 Memphis Tigers Swim Team (2002-2007)
 White Station High School Varsity Swim Team (2004-2007)
 Summer Research at Rhodes College in Organic Chemistry (2007)</p>

<p>Community Service
 Hands on Memphis (56 hours from 2004-2007)
 Memphis Chinese Community Teen Volunteers (50 hours from 2004-2007)
 Memphis Youth Symphony Volunteer Program (13.5 hours from 2005-2007)
 St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital Summer Teen Volunteer Program (54 hours from summer of 2007)</p>

14

<p>Okay Everyone I Just Edited And Moved This Thread To Another One...</p>

<p>Basically This Thread Is Dead.</p>

15

<p>Alright. What I gather from this is:</p>

<ol>
<li><p>You rape at latin.</p></li>
<li><p>You're a decent swimmer.</p></li>
<li><p>You've got a laundry list of community service activities</p></li>
<li><p>You've got a whole bunch of regional level awards as in I didn't see any AMC/AIME/USAMO/individual science (Bio, chem, phys) olympiad stuff, which lessens the impact of some of those math/science awards; you pretty much pwn every other kid in tennessee, being asian and all XD</p></li>
<li><p>You're skilled at the violin.</p></li>
<li><p>You have the necessary SAT scores (beat me by 10 pts ya bastard :P)</p></li>
</ol>

<p>You're certainly well above average, and I'd say more if it wasn't 1:41 AM in NY...</p>

16

<p>I said new post, the other stuff should be on there</p>