Hey guys. I am a current attendee of MIT’s Research Science Institute. I am genius first of all (2400), but I did something extremely unintelligent: I chose RSI over Simons. Most people think of RSI as unequivocally the best research summer program for high school students. However, I beg to differ. I am currently doing research in combinatorial geometry with a professor at MIT. My experience, to say the least, has been dismal. The food is palatable at best. The people are all arrogant and pretentious. The quality of my research has the potential to win Siemens or Intel Semifinalist at best: this will greatly hinder my prospects at elite colleges. I have an acquaintance in Simons, at Stonybrook University. He tells me that his experience at Simons has been one of the greatest experiences of his life. His research is groundbreaking and will likely result in at least Siemens Regional Finalist or Intel Finalist. He tells me the other Simons Fellows are all not only extremely intelligent but also humble. I wish that I had never come to RSI.
Wow. I’m staggered by all of the inconsistencies of this post. Very impressive for such a brief “reflection”. Based on this tiny sliver, I suspect that you would quite possibly not have been particularly happy in another program such as Simons, either.
Would you care to point out the inconsistencies? I realize that I called myself a “genius” earlier in the post and then accused some members of RSI of being arrogant and pretentious. That was an a wry attempt at humor. In hindsight, I realize that statement may have distracted you from the message of my post. I simply am a little frustrated with my experiences. Perhaps, this was a poor forum to convey this frustration. I have absolutely no complaint about the staff or mentors. My professor is very passionate, intelligent, and qualified in all regards. From what I’ve heard about Simons and SSP, I just feel like that they would’ve been better fits.
- You say that your RSI experience was "dismal" and "I wish that I had never gone to RSI", but you create a username of RSI2015. How ironic is that? How much of your vision of yourself was tied up in this program?
- You complain about "arrogant and pretentious" kids, but you state at the very beginning of your post that "I am a genius first of all (2400)". Pretty arrogant and pretentious sounding to me, not to mention insecure. Getting in to RSI already labels you as extremely smart, and getting a 2400 on the SAT has nothing to do with being a genius. The fact that you feel compelled to point that out to us, and associated it with something irrelevant, speaks volumes.
- Your first complaint after labeling your RSI experience as "dismal" is that "the food is palatable at best". Is that your priority? It sounds like you are pampered and spoiled. It's fine to note that the food sucks at the end, as an afterthought, but the way it comes up it's just part of a 2 year old's whining.
- You mention studying combinatorial geometry, but never discuss the professor. Isn't the mentor relationship the single most important part of RSI? Your only concern seems to be whether you are doing Siemens/Intel Finalist vs. Semifinalist caliber work, which you think will affect your ability to get into top colleges. Please. Getting into RSI is a huge plus in the first place, and your precise award level will not likely determine your college success. But it sounds like RSI was just something you did in order to get awards and get into college. Did you learn anything? Was your mentor supportive? You mention above that your professor was "very passionate, intelligent and qualified in all regards" and that you have no complaints about the staff. Perhaps, just possibly, the caliber of your research may have something to do with you as well as with the program.
You basically weren’t thrilled with your RSI experience, and your friend loved his Simon experience, so you conclude that Simon was a superior program. An n of 1 doesn’t seem sufficient to judge. Perhaps you chose the wrong mentor. Perhaps your cohort wasn’t the best. Perhaps you yourself are too immature for this program, and not the best candidate to take advantage of the opportunities. I see no signs of maturity and insight, just a tantrum.
It’s perfectly appropriate to say that your RSI experience wasn’t the best, and that you found it frustrating. It’s perfectly fine to say that you picked RSI over Simon and SSP, and in retrospect you feel that they would have been better fits. It’s perfectly fine to discuss what kind of kids might fit in well at RSI, and what kids might not. Some programs are more structured than others, some require more independence, some may be more elitist. The food being lousy is useful to know. All of that could be valuable insight for others. But if you are posting this to convey useful information to others who may be choosing between these elite programs, than a more nuanced and thoughtful presentation would have made more sense than what came across as the rant of anarrogant, pretentious, immature and spoiled kid. If this attitude comes across on your applications, if I were an adcom member I personally wouldn’t care about Finalist vs. Semi-Finalist at major science comps, but I would be very concerned about your maturity and readiness to handle some of the top colleges.
The following would have conveyed a very different impression:
You asked. Your second post is entirely appropriate, BTW, so perhaps this was just a need to take out frustration and not who you really are, but you may want to be careful about how you come across.
Maybe you can apply what you’ve learned here to college admission senior year. The name of the school doesn’t matter, it’s what you do there matters in the end. Not bashing MIT but rather to look at other schools closely.
I think it’s a T R O L L
Post #5, you need to remove that word.
…so ungrateful…