<p>Asian male at an "Ivy-feeder" school in NYC. Please be brutally honest. Thanks.</p>
<p>List currently
-Cornell (either Engineering or CAS - ED)
-Carnegie Mellon (SCS)
-NYU (CAS)
-NYU-Poly
-Northeastern (CCIS)
-Boston University (CAS)
-SUNY Stony Brook (CEAS)
-SUNY Binghampton</p>
<p>GPA - ~88 (Unweighted - I don't know weighted or how to convert to 4.0 scale - somewhat messed up by 9th grade)
School doesn't rank
SAT I: 2020 - 600 CR, 750 M, 670 W
ACT: 34 - 34 E, 35 M, 33 R, 35 S
SAT II: Math2 - 800, Chem - 720, taking Physics in October and might retake Chem</p>
<p>AP/Notable classes -
(Not allowed any earlier)
Junior: Chemistry (A- , AP score isn't out yet)
Senior: Comp Sci, Micro/macro Econ, Calculus BC, Organic Chem (not AP)</p>
<p>I plan on majoring in computer science, which seems to be part of schools of engineering or CAS. Is it a problem that I'm not taking AP Physics (it is offered though...)? I took the core Physics as a Junior.</p>
<p>ECs (not really much...):
-Website Manager for a school publication (2.5 years)
-Programming Club (2 years)
-VP of an origami club (2 years)</p>
<p>-Not in school but - editor-in-chief/webmaster/developer of an online tech publication (3+ years)</p>
<p>-Math Team (9th grade)
-Winter Track (10th grade)
-Bridge Building Club (9th grade)
-Volunteer at a school summer program (2 years)</p>
<p>Apply ED to CMU - it’s your best shot. While the SCS is competitive, they want to see dedicated people. And since you’re an Asian male, it’s much harder and more competitive to get into any engineering program.</p>
<p>I had slightly better stats than you and got deferred Cornell ED (then rejected) and then I got waitlisted at CMU RD. I regret not applying ED to CMU, so I highly recommend you do so.</p>
<p>And I recommend you apply to some public schools, like UIUC, Georgia Tech, and Berkeley. They all have great programs and would be better choices for you than NYU, NYU-Poly, Northeastern, and BU. You can keep the SUNY one’s for safeties.</p>
<p>Thanks for the reply. I was actually trying to decide which one to apply ED and I guess CMU might actually be the better choice.</p>
<p>About the public ones you listed, the reason these weren’t on my list was that I preferred staying somewhere in the Northeast, but I’ll definitely check those schools out.</p>
<p>So is it a problem that I’m not taking AP Physics in my senior year (I chose Organic Chemistry instead)?</p>
<p>Also, are the two SUNYs I listed, “safe” enough?</p>
<p>I’m also from the Northeast, but I’m going to Georgia Tech. It’s an awesome school for CS (since it’s one of the only schools to have a dedicated college for it, other than CMU) and I have a few friends down there too. </p>
<p>To be honest, Cornell and CMU are both very far reaches for you. Unless you have a hook (like first gen in college), your chances are quite slim. I highly recommend you to apply to those public schools; they are challenging targets - GT’s SAT average acceptance this year was 2170, 8 AP/IB classes, and 3.9/4 GPA (even higher for computer science). And it’s even harder for you since your an Asian male. Berk, GT, and UIUC all have outstanding CS programs that are unmatched by any of the schools you listed, other than Cornell and CMU. It won’t hurt to apply to these schools and I would 100%, definitely (I can’t stress it enough) suggest that you apply to them.</p>
<p>Not taking AP Physics will hurt a bit, but it’s not too bad. I personally couldn’t fit AP physics in my schedule either.</p>
<p>The SUNY’s and NYU-Poly are good safeties. I would drop NYU and BU - they are way too expensive and their programs are not too great. Northeastern is decent if you get into their honors program (my friend got like $15k per year, white female, around your stats)</p>
<p>Also, have you considered RPI? It’s a nice, small school that has a pretty good engineering program.</p>
<p>PS: Don’t send out your SAT score, just use your ACT. SAT II’s OK.</p>