<p>I agree completely with JustWondernig23. Why would Harvard seek to admit "average" people? I don't think average test scores constitute as truly "average," just to make that clear, but Harvard is one of the top unis in the world BECAUSE it is so chock-full of completely non-average people!! This thread makes absolutely no sense.</p>
<p>Eugene is probably a URM.</p>
<p>He IS a URM. in fact, he reminds me of the black dancer from the movie "Save the Last Dance."</p>
<p>if you havent noticed, smart people tend to display themselves as "average" in every interview/book/newspaper. the "oh i'm really just average and just got lucky" talk is ********. but i mean look at it from their POV: if they were like "oh yea im smarter than all of you that's how i got in" then who would want to read about people bragging about themselves? the "average kid" scenario is as elusive as the american dream.</p>
<p>the only low SAT score people that can get in are the URMs, financially disadvantaged, and super-hooked (legacy, olympian athlete). though legacies are taking a hit as well</p>
<p>Is this thread a joke?</p>
<p>that is not true, thehotrocks. i had a 2100, am white, my family makes 130K+ and don't have a hook of any kind. My GPA wasn't exceptional either.</p>
<p>I agree with For Shaganov...not to knock on your GPA or SATs, but they are lower than one would expect for Harvard. It is clear that Harvard is looking for passion, and For Shag displayed that in her essays. I think that it is really awesome that it is not just a numbers game...</p>
<p>not only that, thehotrocks, but I think you'd be very surprised by how many overqualified URMS, athletes, and legacies apply to Harvard. I'm not even sure how being "financially disadvantaged" can be considered a great hook--you can be financially disadvantaged and go to a private school, so why would you need the extra leg up?</p>
<p>As most of my SSP friends could attest, there are few people who love Harvard more than me. I fell madly in love with every aspect of the place over the summer; I knew I belonged there.
Every single aspect of my application is stellar except my class rank. I am, however, in the hardest program at my school - basically we are forced to take 7APs per semester. Nobody has a life. Except me - I managed to sacrifice a bit in the grades department for extra-curriculars and pursuing my passions. Of course, I have friends too, and I don’t live in the library which is a sadly true stereotype of my program. We simply have no choice. I haven’t slept all semester. For me, there are more important things than numbers, so I have lived my life in pursuit of my passions (which include theatre, helping people [volunteering], and journalism) and knowledge. Still, I am scared about getting a stack of rejection letters.</p>
<p>According to my guidance counselor, my ref letters are the best he has ever seen in his entire career. Basically they say how much I am made for a top university and how my passion, love of learning, warm personality, etc. make me highly deserving. They say I’m a team player who connects with everyone, and how I am good at synthesizing knowledge despite having test anxiety and performing a ridiculous balancing act. My English teacher talked about an essay I wrote which was the best he ever read and my participation with him on the student life committee where I made practical suggestions which positively benefitted the school. My chem teacher talked about how she was my swim coach for 3 years before teaching me physical science and chem for two. She talked about how despite not being the best athlete I still persevered and stuck with it. She also talked about how struck she is by my maturity and refusal to enter the rat race.</p>
<p>My SATs are in the middle range for Harvard, 2210, and SAT II’s are to be taken in January but predicted to be around 2310 in total. My class rank before entering my program was 1/100. </p>
<p>I am a terrible athlete, not a URM (in fact, I’m basically your run-of-the-mill rich white girl). My Nickname at school is “extra-curricular queen” because of the talent and passion towards extra-curriculars. I love volunteering, so I have racked up tons of community service hours. I haven’t counted. I don’t see a reason to.</p>
<p>Anyways, I am awaiting the verdict. Still, keep in mind there are more schools than Harvard and that Harvard isn’t meant to take “average” students. Harvard represents the pinnacle of achievement, and students who get in reflect that. If you don’t get into Harvard, it’s not the end of the world. Life goes on.</p>
<p>I’m pretty sure I’d rather have a safe and secure family and be rejected by Harvard than hope for some tragedy that would get me “hooked”.</p>
<p>Having a messed up family is not a “hook” by any means because the vast majority of people in this situation would fail. They would not work hard or persevere because they’d feel like they have nothing to work towards. Ask yourself whether you would actually get the same SAT scores or have the same ECs if you came from Eugene’s background. The answer is that you probably wouldn’t, so it’s not like you can just add on the “hook” of “messed up family” onto your current statistics.</p>
<p>Also, being a URM alone is not a hook. The universities consider the entire context of your background. So if you’re black and have a family income of 500,000 then you’re by no means coming from an underprivileged background. Conversely, if you’re Asian and have a very low income, then they will find your achievements more impressive etc…</p>
<p>Most “average” applicants are URMS. This thread is pointless, of course there are average applicants who get in!! You actually need someone to give you their stats so you can feel relieved??? Not all harvard students are geniuses.</p>
<p>@Sci-Fry; ideally, that’s how it would work in regards to URM hooks, but strong anecdotal evidence on CC indicates that ethnicity rather than socioeconomic status is certainly a contributing factor in the admissions process.</p>
<p>My sister was addmitted to Harvard. It was 2 years ago so I can’t recall her stats so well, but I remember she had 2000 on her SATs and she was a straight A student. I think her recommendations were really good, but I remember her essay being excellent. She is adopted and had a rough upbringing until she was adopted at age 8, which is pretty much a traumatic experience, I guess this was her ‘hook’ as Eugene.</p>
<p>From what it is starting to come out to, I would not go as far as to question whether this thread is a joke or assert the pointlessness of sourcing out some human “average-ness” at Harvard. After all, it does raise interesting points. </p>
<p>Starters, Harvard is a great place, but is it really worth living a tragedy to create a hook on your application? If yes, then you should really reconsider your priorities (possibly, might I suggest, even seeing a therapist). Likewise, getting into Harvard on colossal wealth and legacy but without much of your own merit is hardly any better. Schools, not just Harvard, look for personality. Of course, personality does not come down to just numbers or captain of the chess/debate/math team labels. Personality also does not only point to the charming, voluble wag that everyone knows. Finally, personality is not something elusive for the so-called average person. </p>
<p>Harvard does offer a dynamic community but to think that a Harvard kid is aristocratically non-average in the sense of being this mystically gifted person would be a step from reality. Harvard kids are normal (do not let the more egotistical HYPSM kids lead you to think otherwise). However, Harvard kids have fostered their own refreshing range of characters (witty, contemplative, artistic, etc.), but remember that such a phenomenon is not just exclusively “Harvard.” So to answer the original question, there are “average” kids at Harvard; they simply have their own unique way of demonstrating their individuality.</p>
<p>"the article failed to mention that he was black, grew up in Harlem under a single mom addicted to cocaine
oh yeah, and his brother died from a driveby shooting</p>
<p>thats how his essay got him in "</p>
<p>If he had been white or Asian and from that kind of background, he probably also would have gotten in. </p>
<p>He is not “average”. He is extraordinary to have achieved the stats required for Harvard despite experiencing such adversity. He must be far smarter and have a much more resilient character than do most people.</p>
<p>I agree that wanting a tragic hook is too masochistic. I also agree with the idea that there are “average” kids at Harvard. But I take “average” in the sense of “normal.” They may not be the next athletic superstar or junior Einstein. Kids at Harvard include “normal” people who are just really into what they do and strive for the best. Eugene’s recollection of that first dorm night conversation, however, illustrates that we stereotype the ideal Harvard kid as only having elite stellar grades and performance. </p>
<p>Sure, there are math whizzes who’ll make your head spin or linguists that have a knack of cramming in a gazillion foreign tongues into their head. There are also normal kids who take not so normal situations, like Eugene, into something of character. That sort of personality I think is truly laudable.</p>
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<p><em>raises hand</em></p>