Should I bother with MIT's RSI?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Massachusetts Institute of Technology
1

I’m a NJ junior. Female Asian.

Scores/Grades:
1510 PSAT (37 R 38 W 38 M)
800 SAT Math II
5 AP Calculus BC
5 AP Psychology (SS)
4 AP Chemistry (Yikes)

100 scale GPAs (idk how to do 4.0 scale):
UW: 94.9
W: 97.8
I have no idea what my rank is, but for reference valedictorian usually has a 99.04-ish and top 10% cutoff is around 95/96-ish.

Courseload:
9th - Honors English, Honors Precalculus, Honors World Studies, Honors Physics, Spanish
10th - AP Chemistry, AP Calculus BC, APUSH I, Honors English, Spanish
11th - AP Biology, Honors Math Methods in Engineering and the Sciences (basically multivariable calc and linear algebra), AP English Language, Honors Spanish, APUSH II

I received A’s in everything except AP Chemistry and APUSH I, in which I got B+s. These two are super worrying. I’m on track to get all A’s for the first semester of junior year. I typically get high A’s in math classes and mid-A’s in non-Chem science classes.

Notable Extracurriculars/Awards:
National Honor Society member
Computer Science Club President - rags to riches story - small club grew into hackathon powerhouse
Various hackathon awards
Internship w/ local tech company last summer - built web application for an internation law firm
Science Olympiad - 14 medals at states, regionals, invitationals in top 6, plenty of golds/silvers/bronzes
Model UN - Chair of Historical Security Council
Marching band/youth orchestra/music tutoring/etc. - passionate about music
Lots of volunteering hours
Columbia University Science Honors Program member
Math Academic Award (big honor at my school, given to top 2 math kids per grade)
Applied for NCWIT Aspirations Award - don’t know if I got it or not yet

I feel really nervous because I haven’t gotten any big science fair awards or done any research, and I feel like those are pretty important when competing in such a competitive pool of applicants. Should I apply to RSI or focus my energy on other summer programs? What summer programs would be suitable for me? I’m interested in researching applications of AI/robotics in alternative energy technology, and designing alternative energy technology in general (slimmer PVs, new method of collecting solar energy, etc.).

Thanks!!!

2

Undoubtably RSI is the premiere STEM research program for high school juniors; thus, you will be competing in an extremely competitive pool of applicants. For example, the two juniors who attended RSI 2016 from NJ respectively won the Stockholm Junior Water Prize and Best of Category in Biomedical and Health Sciences at ISEF. However, this level of competition should not dissuade you from applying. While you do lack any real research experience or awards, you show a clear interest in STEM through your listed EC activities. RSI is searching for the top students who demonstrate a great proclivity and significant passion for STEM whether it’s through winning international awards or “growing a small club into a hackathon powerhouse.” I believe if you prove your worth through your essays in the application, you stand a good chance.

In addition, why not apply to RSI if you are planning to apply to other summer programs? Even if you are not accepted, the RSI application is very comprehensive, so you should find other applications (summer programs, college, scholarships, etc.) much easier. It’s also a good experience to see how much you’ve really done your past 2.5 years in high school and how much you more you want to do moving forward.

3

I think you should apply. You have great grades and scores. The competition from NJ is no doubt tough. Have you also considered NJ Governor’s school?

4

@sgopal2 I applied for Governor’s School but they only take 1 girl/1 boy per school, and the other girl who applied to Engineering had a crazy amount of research experience and awards :frowning:

5

@Hopefuldude Thanks, I’ll take all that into consideration :slight_smile: You make a good point about the essays helping for other applications so I’ll probably take a shot at RSI even if I do have a pretty low chance of getting in

6

Look at MSU HSHSP. Highly selective program.

7

I feel ya about being an NJ junior with good grades and extracurriculars but no crazy awards - I’m in the same position. I’m praying RSI will like my essays, but we’ll see what happens… If RSI falls through, I’d recommend looking into Liberty Science Center’s Partners in Science program. It connects kids with research professors from all sorts of colleges (anything from Rutgers and Stevens to Princeton and Columbia - its based on what professors are available which years) and its application deadline is sometime in May, which makes it a great fallback if you get rejected from other programs. It accepts around 15 - 20% of kids, varying by year, so it is competitive, but not impossible. Good luck to you on RSI!