<p>Is 1 B for one quarter or even for a semester going to jeopardize one's chances to acceptance to RSI? If not, is anything lower than a B equates to no chance at all?</p>
<p>I want to clarify the truth value to this myth: Admissions to RSI automatically means admissions to MIT, or any other top-tier uni. So, is there any truth value to this?</p>
<p>They say that there's a correlation between getting into RSI and getting into the college of your choice but no causation. That's the official party line. Maite told me that they have accepted kids who have failed a non science subject. The process is holistic and is ultimately about a lot more than grades and test scores.</p>
<p>Rickoids have been rejected from MIT, Harvard, and other places.</p>
<p>Don't count on RSI alone for college acceptance-- while it does boost your apps a bit (though that's definitely not the reason to go), your own strengths are what ultimately get you into college.</p>
<p>I bet recommendations are going to be crtiical (especially in my application =D) so I'm kind of worried about getting the right teachers.</p>
<p>I'm going to be applying for something bio-related, so I guess it would be better to have at least one bio teacher write a rec. My frosh honors teacher loved me, and my junior year AP bio teacher is kind of weird... Would it be okay to submit a rec from the frosh teacher?</p>
<p>Also, since I'm not applying for anything math-relatead, would it be okay to submit a rec from a math teacher? I know my frosh (Geo Honors) and junior year (AP Calc) teachers can write better recs, but should I lean towards by AP Bio or AP Chem teachers (I skipped Chem Honors, so I don't think it would be wise to ask that teacher for a rec) instead?</p>
<p>ask your guidance counselor who writes the best recs, mine was talking to me last week and he knew exactly which teachers wrote the best recs and who i should ask and not ask.</p>
<p>finally theyre good for something...</p>
<p>Can we use our Comp Sci teacher?</p>
<p>I used a chemistry and math teacher for my recs and I applied for biology. Use whatever teacher you think will write you a strong application.</p>
<p>(Alice... go bio!)</p>
<p>how much does rsi look at other ec's, say like running a company or something?</p>
<p>Yeah, just ask teachers who can write you good recs. I used an English teacher and a chem teacher, and I also went for biology (yah, bio > math :-P). </p>
<p>Other ECs are considered, but I think the main emphasis is likely on evidence of research and/or interest in math and science. Then again, RSI admissions are quite mysterious, so no one really has definitive answers.</p>
<p>As for PSATs, before the summary of RSI statistics from 04 disappeared (I talked to Advay about it; he said that some files got lost when he reorganized his site), I remember noticing that the average PSAT was 229. </p>
<p>The PSAT certainly has some impact, but it doesn't completely determine the fate of an application. In her opening speech this year, Mrs. D (the head of CEE) noted that the average math PSAT score for accepted students was 78 (or was it 79?), which is pretty high considering that one off on the test is usually a 76 - which happened even to several math geniuses (IMO caliber).</p>
<p>When I discussed the admissions process with Dr. Rickert (an RSI mainstay/legend), he gave me the impression that recommendations were the most critical part of an application. Choose wisely!</p>
<p>Looking back at the early admissions posts on the mailing lists from 2004, I see 6 people mention they were deferred (all from Harvard, I think), and too many accepted for me to count. They all ended up at MIT, Yale, Princeton, and Duke, though, so it's all good.</p>
<p>I think a few more have been deferred/rejected, and it's almost always from Harvard. <em>Almost</em> everyone gets into MIT, especially the domestic rickoids; the international college admissions process is much tougher, though. And last year, among those who went to US universities, all but two rickoids went to Harvard, MIT, Caltech, Princeton, Stanford, Yale, Penn, Dartmouth, or Duke (in order of quantity). So... rickoids tend to get into good colleges.</p>
<p>It's hard to determine the extent to which this is a result of RSI itself versus the caliber of the students who get into RSI. Don't feel bad about yourselves for wanting to go to RSI to improve your college chances; to be honest, that's a large part of the reason why I applied. But once you go to RSI, I can guarantee you that its impact on your college chances will seem completely insignificant next to the experience itself.</p>
<p>how are you looking at the mailing lists from 2004?</p>
<p>They're on rsiaa.org... just click on mailing lists and it has all of them.</p>
<p>So Paul and Alice, you can get recs from your English teachers too??? SWEEEET!!! I'm definitely going to get 1 sci/math teacher rec but it would be nice to get a rec from one of my English teachers, who can most definitely write a stellar recommendation.</p>
<p>Thanks guys! I never thought of getting a rec from my comp sci teacher. He loves me =D. And to ThE<em>GuRl</em>NeXt_DoOr: I thought the application said only from math/science teachers? Either they changed it recently or I read incorrectly...</p>
<p>On the main site it just says:</p>
<p>"Recommendations by two teachers familiar with the candidate and the candidate's scholastic record."</p>
<p>On the form itself it says:</p>
<p>"to be completed by two of the student's science or math teachers"</p>
<p>Alice submitted an English rec, and that worked out very well, so I dunno. You could always email and ask (from an anonymous email address if you're paranoid).</p>
<p>Oops. Now that I think of it... I submitted from a calc teacher and a chem teacher, lol. Sorry guys-- I'm getting the years blurred together (I did ask my English teacher to read over my RSI essays though). Anyway, I discovered post-mailing that my calc rec was a form letter >.<, so it probably didn't add too much to my app.</p>
<p>There are required AP grades? I haven't taken my AP Chem test yet because my school divides it all up but I did do BC Calc in tenth grade...</p>
<p>Hehe I'm so glad I'm not applying for math, or else I would be up against people who took BC in like freshman year. A good friend of mine is actually taking it this year as a sophomore, and he's considered a genius by several standards. I would HATE to be in his class :P.</p>
<p>So I was just sitting in the car - and then it hit me. Juniors, this is our (at least it is for me) FIRST college-like application process! I'm stoked!</p>
<p>The application asks you to list the APs you have taken. However, don't worry that you only have one AP test. Some people who got in only had one AP when they applied.</p>