According to the concordance table, the equivalent of a 220 is now a 1460 and a 76 in math is now 740-750.
Is someone going to contact them about this?
Just curious, how are others here approaching the documentation of standardized testing to RSI? Are you guys just screenshotting your results from the website and letting your counselor attach it?
Moreover, I have:
PSAT: 1510 (370 Reading, 760 Math, 380 Writing)
SAT: 2310 (800 Reading, 800 Math, 710 Writing)
ACT: 36 (36 Reading, 36 Math, 36 Writing (w/o essay), 36 Science but 8 on essay)
Is there any of these scores I should omit? In particular, I worry that the SAT score will be on the lower end for RSI, even if it is good in the general scheme of things.
I only have 1 essay done after I decided to rewrite 3 of them. sighs ;(
Would it be good or bad to add a note about the new PSAT in the additional testing info box? Just because they’re asking for old score format
Hello Everyone!
I wanted to know if my stats were RSI caliber or close.
Standardized Tests:
SAT: 2250 (1st Time, retaking but this is the score I will use for RSI)
ACT: 33 (35 writing, 34 reading and math, 30 science, :(; I didn’t prepare for the test; Probably not going to put on RSI app)
PSAT: 1490/1520 (760 on Math, 730 on Writing and Reading)
SAT BIO: 800
SAT Math: 780
SAT Chemistry: 740
Main Awards and Accomplishments
ISEF finalist 2015- did not place
Regional JSHS Winner - will attend national conference
Have won multiple regional and state awards for research
Participant in semi-presitigous local summer internship
Mentor will write pretty good rec (Have worked in same lab for about 2 years)
You’re somewhere in the ballpark. A few questions:
- What state are you from? RSI usually only takes 1 applicant per state, perhaps 2 in NY/CA/TX. Level of competition can make a huge difference.
- What field(s) do you want to study? Can you formulate pertinent research questions to address? Can you identify potential mentor(s) at MIT?
- What ancillary skills do you have (lab skills, programming skills, etc.)?
As much as awards and scores, showing a burning passion for science and being able to formulate coherent areas of study may help. But the competition is fierce and sometimes political, so even being highly qualified is by no means a guarantee.
renaissancedad
I am from a midwestern state. I have worked extensively on immunology and cellular and molecular biology. I am familiar with a lot of basic techniques and more advanced techniques (RNA seq.)
I am pretty passionate about science research.
^ It sounds like you should at least be competitive. Give it your best shot and let your passion come through, and make sure your research experience and lab skills are clear. Try to come up with some good research questions and possible mentors. You may want to try and identify previous participants from your state and reach out to them for advice on how to optimize your application and maximizes your chances. Good luck!
@renaissancedad i’m from maryland and have no stem awards besides an olympiad semifinalist but i really really like biology and i think i can adequately convey that. i have great scores and a bunch of science ecs that really don’t have any measurable value though, it’s all like bio club vp and math team prez, can you tell me how much of a shot i have?
^ Please don’t think I have any crystal ball on RSI admissions. With about a 5% admit rate and demographic constraints, it’s hard to predict. See post #87 from @Falcon1 above. Maryland is also a very competitive state. I’d treat it has a real long shot, give it all you have, but don’t hold your breath.
Did anyone get an answer about how to enter PSAT scores?
Are we supposed to enter our 2015 scores?
My school registrar won’t report my PSAT score until the school receives the paper report… which will likely be after the deadline… This is such a mess.
@17isands There are separate scores for each section. Maximum is 38. Maybe scroll down on your score report and you will see it!
@pillowspillows You can always check your scores online at student.collegeboard.org
I have a question about the 2nd essay. Should I mainly talk about what I want to do in the future. Or should I spend half of the essay discussing what I have already done that shows passion for my long-term goal and spend the other half discussing what I want to do in the future.
@Runkeeper for the second essay I think the main focus is to see your passion for science; the way you interpret the prompt is flexible as long as you can show that you will be passionate for science in the future. I took the latter route, and talked about how certain activities in STEM built my future goals.
@17isands for PSAT scores, I inputted the subscores (out of 38) in the given slots, and at the bottom of the form, I wrote a note about what my composite scores were.
Overall, RSI is almost like a shot in the dark, but I think the best thing to do is CONVEY YOUR PASSION. RSI wants to see your potential in the future, and how you can grow as a scientist. Even with a laundry list of awards, it doesn’t necessarily convey passion. I know people who have gotten in the past because they clearly love science - the most important aspect to convey throughout your essay.
@Runkeeper I know my PSAT score for 2015. The problem is that I cant send the official test score from my school.
Question about references: we are supposed to list our teachers and academic counselor as references, right? Will the academic counselors receive a different link, or will they also be prompted to fill out a written recommendation? I’m afraid that my academic counselor accidentally did that instead of emailing my transcripts/scores to the rsi email.
@angie414 You should probably go ask your counselor about that and make sure that she uploaded your transcript. My counselor was confused, so she both uploaded the transcript and wrote a recommendation letter.
On Essay number 3, I spent the entire essay discussing why I am fit to conduct research in my first choice field. I got really specific in discussing my experiences and such in this one field.
I completely disregarded my 2nd choice field. Is this ok?
@Runkeeper The SlideRoom references are pretty confusing! xD I emailed the CEE contact about the references (as well as about MAA scores), so I’ll let you know if I hear anything back.
I think your essay #3 should be fine. If you have enough experiences to talk about one field, you are definitely already displaying your passion and genuine interest in that field, and they would understand that and appreciate it. 
Your experience/passion could easily translate into your second field.
^^ Hopefully, they have a mentor in that one field. Otherwise, you are cutting your odds down by focusing heavily on just one of the two fields they ask you to write about.
Do you guys know if deleting a completed teacher reference will delete everything the teacher wrote/submitted along with it? My teacher made submitted a mistake, and I was just wondering if deleting a his reference and readding him would fix the problem. Thanks!