.
Decision: Deferred
Objective:
ACT (breakdown): 36 (36-36-35-35)
SAT II: 800 Chem 780 Math ii 770 Bio M
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): ~3.9
Weighted GPA: X
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): X
AP (place score in parenthesis): School doesn’t have
IB (place score in parenthesis): X
Senior Year Course Load: Advanced English, APUSH equivalent, Calc BC, AP Phys equivalent, Latin
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): X
Subjective:
Not going into detail about specific accomplishments for privacy reasons
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): 3 time golf state champion (recruited many D3 and few D1 schools), played drums seriously for 7 years
Job/Work Experience: Accomplished Caddy. 30+hrs/week in summer each year
Volunteer/Community service: Very little
Summer Activities: Caddy, golfer, worked in lab at Ivy league institution
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Common App: 9/10
Supplements 9/10
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 10/10
Teacher Rec #2: 10/10
Counselor Rec: 9/10
Additional Rec: 10/10
Interview: 7-9/10
Other
Decent but quick interview. Definitely not negative, but also not overwhelmingly positive.
Applied for Financial Aid?: No
Intended Major: Chemical Engineering
State (if domestic applicant): NY
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Private
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: >100,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Absolutely nothing
Reflection
Strengths: Academics
Weaknesses: Interview, extracurriculars
Why you think you were deferred: Go to a so called “elite” private school that has bad relationship with Stanford. On top of that, I don’t think that I really stood out of the pile.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: No where yet.
General Comments:
Good luck to everyone reading this in future falls.
[aB][asize=4][acolor=#FF0000]Decision: Rejected[/color][/size]**
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2240 (760 CR, 750 M, 730 W); superscore
ACT (breakdown): NA
SAT II: 780 bio, 770 math II, 760 USH, 790 Chinese
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.96
Weighted GPA: NA
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Salutatorian
AP (place score in parenthesis): Bio, ES, US Gov, USH, Chinese, psychology (all 5’s)
IB (place score in parenthesis): NA
Senior Year Course Load: AP Chem, AP Stats, AP Calc AB
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): nothing major, first place team in national debate competition, AP scholar with distinction, etc. etc.
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): NHS, Science Club, Newsletters, Senior Class president, Debate/quiz bowl (leaderships in all)
Job/Work Experience: NA(?)
Volunteer/Community service: Emergency room volunteer (3 years), Summer camp counselor (400+ hours), taught coding classes at middle school, taught english classes at after school program for underprivileged kids
Summer Activities: Stanford CSSSI Internship at School of Medicine, Umass Amherst Research Intensive Internship on Fungal pathogenomics
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Common App- 9/10: Talked about how i saved a man’s life while working at the ER
Intellectual Vitality - 8/10: wrote about how i finished an entire almanac and was left wanting more
What Matters - 9/10: talked about how washing dishes with my family really mattes to me
Roommate essay - 7/10: peanut allergy and humor (uh…)
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 9/10 didnt read; by math teacher, assumed it was ok
Teacher Rec #2: 10/10 didnt read; by history teacher, was his favorite student lol
Counselor Rec: 9/10 Standard
Additional Rec: Umass Professor from the lab i worked in
Interview: Didnt get an interview
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yep
Intended Major: Human Biology
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant): Taiwan
School Type: International
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Male
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): legacy applicant
Reflection
Strengths: internship at stanford, unique research experience, unique essay about the emergency room, legacy
Weaknesses: NO major awards, bleh sat and subject test scores, no amazing essays
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: check weakness
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: NA
General Comments:
good luck to those applying RD!
Decision: Deferred
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): SAT 2260 W: 800 CR: 700 M: 760
ACT (breakdown): ACT 33
SAT II:
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.97
Weighted GPA:4.3
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):N/A
AP (place score in parenthesis): Euro (4), Spanish (4), English & Comp(5), Physics CM(5), Calc BC (5), Calc AB subscore (5), APUSH (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Art History, AP Physics EM, AP Stats, AP English Lit, AP Comp Sci, AP Chem
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):N/A
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Job/Work Experience: Tutored Math privately
Volunteer/Community service: NHS tutor, library tutor, Art in Action volunteer, dance
Summer Activities: COSMOS, GWC, LHC program
Essays (rating 1-10, details): I don’t know lol
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): Still dont know
Teacher Rec #1:
Teacher Rec #2:
Counselor Rec:
Additional Rec:
Interview:
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?:
Intended Major: Comp Sci
State (if domestic applicant): CA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender:Female
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):
Reflection
Strengths: Courseload intensity and and female going into Comp Sci
Weaknesses: EC’s
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I don’t think I was anything special but not bad enough to get rejected
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: We shall see soon 
General Comments: I think they want to see if I can handle all my AP’s for senior year haha
Decision: Rejected
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): Composite - 2140 (R: 730, M: 690, W: 720)
Weighted GPA: 4.29
AP (place score in parenthesis): Language & Composition (5), Japanese (5), US Gov/Pol (4), Macroeconomics (5)
Senior Year Course Load: AP Environmental Science, AP Literature & Composition, AP Computer Science, AP Psychology, AP Human Geography
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Scholar with Honors, Outstanding Delegate at UCLAMUNSI, Community Service Award (100+ hours), Gold Award on the National Japanese Exam (perfect score), American Association of the Teachers of Japanese - National Japanese Excellency Award, National Honor Society
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Japanese National Honor Society (President, 11 - Vice President, 9 & 10 - Public Relations Officer), Model United Nations (Secretary), Drama Club (Student Director), World Language Club (Japanese Officer)
Job/Work Experience: Elementary Aftercare Supervisor
Volunteer/Community service: Elementary Aftercare Supervisor (prior to working), volunteered in Northeastern Japan since the 9th grade every summer to assist businesses in the epicenter of the earthquake, Rikuzentakada-shi, affected by the disaster cater to an international demographic of customers in partnership with Hong Kong Shanghai Banking Corporation and taught children who lost relatives/family in disaster English nursery rhymes and preschool games
Summer Activities: Summer after 9 - Japan volunteer, 10 - Japan volunteer, 11 - Japan volunteer & UCLAMUNSI
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
- Common App: Let’s just say, the more I read it, the more I cringe… But on the first read many gave me a 8/10.
- Short q’s: 7/10, I thought my answers were a bit cliche… I wasn’t feeling anything really pop out to me, but I still think I answered to the best of my ability and was really candid with the answers.
- Roommate: 7/10, I talked a lot of about food and Disney… haha. I thought it was a little corny at times, but again I was candid.
- Intellectual vitality: 9/10, I talked about MUN and how although in humanitarian committees (I talked about a committee saving child soldiers) all delegates have a common goal to obvi save child soldiers, we all had different approaches to saving child soldiers. I explained how I thrived from intellectual discourse and the creativity necessary to formulate an effective resolution.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
(Waived my right so I’ll just assume)
Teacher Rec #1: 1000000/10. My Japanese teacher and I are VERY VERY CLOSE. She loves me so much that she asked to write a rec for me during my sophomore year. She is not only my teacher, but also my confidant, and someone who I admire and respect very much.
Teacher Rec #2: 9/10. My Gov/Econ teacher. She really liked me and we had intellectual conversations of politics. We bonded over shared political ideologies, but no way was I as close to her as I was with my Japanese teacher. I filled out her questions sheet with passion and honesty, and I hope she was thrilled with my answers.
Counselor Rec: 10/10. Not as close with my counselor because tbh she scares me LOL, but I had a ‘mock’ interview with her with which she used to write my letter of rec. She praised me throughout the whole interview and really admired my maturation and development as a high school student. I was very candid in the interview as well.
Interview: HHAHAHAHAHAHAHHA. Yeah, the interview didn’t go too hot. I think I digressed a lot and repeated a lot of the same statements… I also kind of was called out when I said I wanted to go somewhere far like Stanford because I don’t fit in in my upper-class suburban neighborhood. My interview pointed out that Stanford was like that… So i just honestly said that I was bored of where I came from. She understood that because as teenagers we tend to thirst for adventure. Honestly, I wanted to go to Stanford because I want to go to CA, and so I brought that up since I used to live in LA, but then she brought up that the Bay Area was very different from LA… So I really couldn’t win…
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: Nah
Intended Major: International Relations (2-Political Science, 3-Asian Studies)
State (if domestic applicant): NJ
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public, rich
Ethnicity: Japanese/European-American
Gender: F
Income Bracket: Umm… not very comfortable sharing, but let’s just say above $500k.
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Honestly, despite my less-than-stellar SAT scores and GPA, my resume is something that I am more than proud of, especially of my volunteering.
Reflection
Strengths: Volunteering, EC’s, essays could go both ways
Weaknesses: SAT, GPA, my comfort with Japanese…
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: There’s a rumor that Stanford blacklisted our school. Not even the brightest of the previous classes got accepted. Only one person from our school in 2011 got accepted, and he turned out to be an Olympic-level athlete and a child prodigy… nbd
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: N/A. Feels good getting my first college decision as a rejection… Looking back, I don’t really care about it as much I guess. I really wanted to get in, but I guess the decision was just expected!
I applied to and still waiting for:
UCLA (AKA DREAM SCHOOL)
UCB
UCI
UCSD
University of San Diego
University of Tokyo
NYU
GWU
General Comments:
It’s Stanford… enough said.
[asize=4][acolor=#FF0000]Decision: Rejected[/color][/size]
Decision: Rejected (Idk how to do the color)
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2340 (M 800, CR 800, W 740) First Try, studied about 20 minutes the night before
ACT (breakdown): N/A
SAT II: Math 2 (800), Chem (780), Bio M (780), World History (770)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): School does things out of 100 92.75
Weighted GPA: 99.28
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): no official rank, but probably around 6 or 7 of 300
AP (place score in parenthesis): Calculus BC, Chem, World History, Statistics, US History, Physics I (All 5) French (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Bio, AP Physics C, H Multivariable Calculus, AP English, AP Gov, Photoshop Design (Graduation Requirements!)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Bunch of AP stuff, 2-time AIME Qualifier (w/6 on AIME I 2015), TEAMS Competition (6th nationally as a team for JV in 10th Grade, Best in State on the day of competition for Varsity in 11th Grade), 2nd Place in Region Team Physics Bowl as Junior, School Award for Academic Excellence (yea it’s pretty BS, but I got a bad book for winning it so that kinda makes up for it right?)
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Soccer and Indoor Track (All 4 years), Math Team (Captain, won states as sophomore, top 10 individual as junior), Sports Analytics Club (Founder), NHS (Treasurer), CT ARML Team (got 46th nationally or something), Probably some other stuff I’m forgetting
Job/Work Experience: Youth Soccer Ref all 4 years of High School
Volunteer/Community service: 50+ hours with school community service organization, raised money for diabetes and MS (esp for diabetes as I had my own team for the JDRF walk), peer tutoring with NHS
Summer Activities: Imma be real here, some things but not nearly enough to think I had a shot at getting into Stanford.
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common app (9) about diabetes, Madden, and sports statistics, yes they all do connect. Other essays (7-8) I remember thinking they were pretty solid at the time, but considering I only remember 2 of the 4 right now, they couldn’t have been that good. Those two were my roommate one about how I am a night person and how that means way more than just staying up late to me and the intellectual vitality one about how I realized during my first semester of high school that, because of the way I learn, I often have to teach myself, simply because I do not learn well from a typical classroom setting.
Teacher Rec #1: English teacher for 2 years (9), liked me a lot because I came in for extra help because English is one of my weaknesses and I improved as a writer because of it
Teacher Rec #2: Physics teacher for 2 years (6), did well in his class, as well as with the TEAMS competition, which he led; however, I did not have a particularly strong connection with him
Counselor Rec: I hated her for consistently questioning my courseload as being too hard for me and telling me that USC (a school where the only applicants from my school close to as strong as me got giant scholarships) was a reach for me, but she knew none of this, so I have no idea
Additional Rec: N/A
Interview: Pretty good, idk, I think I’m interesting, but my interviewer might not have
Applied for Financial Aid?: yes, no chance at actually getting any
Intended Major: Engineering
State (if domestic applicant): CT
Country (if international applicant): USA
School Type: public, very white (probably why Stanford hasn’t taken anyone from it in 6 years)
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: $200k+ that’s a guess
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Legacy (Uncle and Grandfather)
Reflection
Strengths: Weighted GPA (esp considering that it was weighed down a ton by my bad freshman year and French performances), Commitment to sports (esp soccer), Test Scores, Competitive Math
Weaknesses: Community Service, Summer Activities, Not Well-Rounded (not sure where this goes), 2 of my 3 recs were probably not all too great, not a good writer so essays might have been bad
Why you think you were rejected: Closest thing to a bum that someone with my grades, etc can be, white and rich, biggest struggle in my life was diabetes which hasn’t really been very difficult, not outstanding at any one thing compared to rest of application pool
Where else you are applying or have already applied: UCLA, USC, UC Berkeley, Yale, UCSD, UC Davis, UPenn, Princeton, UVA
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: N/A
General Comments: I didn’t expect to get in, as I was well aware that being pretty good at STEM, but not being extraordinarily involved in research or other extracurricular pursuits, while not having any factors in my background that made my education particularly difficult was just not Stanford material. That being said, I had to apply here, even if I had just a slim chance. Also, before coming here, I was pretty fine with my decision, knowing that I am definitely not one of the most qualified candidates applying and only had a decent chance because of my legacy. However, after looking here, I can’t help but think that me being rich and white hurt my chance of admission, which annoys me because that isn’t something I can control, even if it did help me somewhat. I wrote more, but it makes me come off as classist, which I don’t want to do because my issue is more with just not liking college applications and school. Anyhow, I’ll get over this and work on my application for the one place that definitely still favors rich, white kids, Princeton. Also, I would like to thank Stanford for getting me into Tyler, the Creator after my rejection. Immaturity and profanity can be more meaningful than you would ever think.
Decision: Accepted
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2340 (770CR 800Math 770Writing 8Essay)
ACT (breakdown): 36 (36Math 36Science 36Reading 35English 31English with Writing)
SAT II: 800 Math II
800 Biology M
800 Chemistry
800 Physics
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): School doesn’t do GPA
Weighted GPA: School doesn’t do GPA
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): School doesn’t rank
AP (place score in parenthesis): 5 Biology, 4 World History
IB (place score in parenthesis): Exams not taken yet
Senior Year Course Load: IB HL Math, Physics, Chemistry, Literature; SL Geography and French
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Track/XC, NHS (parliamentarian), Robotics, Religious
Job/Work Experience: Research
Volunteer/Community service: Hospital volunteering, conservation work, helping disabled children
Summer Activities: Research
Essays (rating 1-10, details): ?/10 (I thought they were pretty good)
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): 10/10
Teacher Rec #1: Stellar (probably)
Teacher Rec #2: Excellent (probably)
Counselor Rec: Excellent (probably)
Additional Rec:
Interview:
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Biophysics or Biomechanical Engineering
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant): American living in Africa
School Type: international
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: ~$65-70k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Double legacy
Reflection
Strengths: Test scores & grades, probably recommendations, live in Africa, extracurriculars, legacy status didn’t hurt
Weaknesses:
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Decision: Rejected
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2340
ACT (breakdown): None
SAT II: 770 Math II
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.94
Weighted GPA: 4.17
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): School doesn’t rank
AP (place score in parenthesis): 5’s on AP Lit, AP World, AP Macroeconomics, AP Calculus AB, 4 on AP Lang
IB (place score in parenthesis): None
Senior Year Course Load: Senior English, AP Microeconomics, AP Statistics, AP Comparative Government and Politics, Soccer, Yearbook
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Scholar with Distinction, Honorable mention for Model UN, MVP for Soccer, NMSQT Letter of Commendation
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): NHS for 3 yrs, Student Council President, Volunteer Club president for a year, Dance Club founder and president, MUN (Chair in senior year), Basketball for 2 years, Soccer for 4 years, GTA (Growing Tree Association–a volunteer club), Editor-in-Chief of School Newspaper, Summer School Teacher assistant for 3 years
Job/Work Experience: Internship at a Radio Station for a summer
Volunteer/Community service: Hospital volunteering, various volunteering work with volunteer club
Summer Activities: Summer school teacher assistant, radio station
Essays (rating 1-10, details): 7/10, I was pretty proud of my essays but they weren’t outstanding.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): 8/10
Teacher Rec #1: Great 8/10
Teacher Rec #2: Great 9/10
Counselor Rec: Great 8/10
Additional Rec:
Interview: None
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Business/Economics
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant): Korean American living in South Korea (American passport)
School Type: international foreign school
Ethnicity: Korean
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: ~$80k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): ?
Reflection
Strengths: SAT Scores, extracurriculars? I don’t know…
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: not stellar essays I guess, SAT 2 scores, nothing unique about me, being Asian? lolol, no big challenges I had to face in my life
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
I’ve been quite the frequent visitor to these threads over the past few years. If you are like I was and obsessing over this, get outside, have fun, don’t do it to yourself. I wish I hadn’t put myself through the amount of stress that I did.
That being said, hope this helps.
Decision: Accepted
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2310 (770R/800M/740W)
ACT (breakdown): 35 (35E/34M/36E/34S)
SAT II: 800 Math II, 800 Chem, 800 Physics, 760 Biology E, 760 US History
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.96
Weighted GPA: 5.39
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 7/566
AP (place score in parenthesis): 5s on 11 exams, 4s on 3
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: IB Further Math, AP French, AP Physics 2, AP Biology, AP English, AP Music Theory
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Siemens Regional Finalist, not much else
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
- Research in materials science at a local university since freshman year; worked on three different projects, published a paper, gave four presentations at national and regional conferences, working towards two more publications
- Science Olympiad (captain)
- Science Bowl (captain)
- Biology club(president)
Job/Work Experience: N/A
Volunteer/Community service:
- ran bio demos at elementary schools through biology club
- taught a physics class at my school one quarter, tutored for four years, TA’d for two
- mentored a middle school robotics team
- hospital volunteering
Summer Activities: Research
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Common App- 7/10, talked about my motivations for learning; still don’t think it was the strongest
E/C- 8/10, mentoring robotics; nothing special
Intellectual Vitality- 8/10, how I got interested in materials science; a poignant story for me but I don’t feel I did a great job communicating it in terms that the adcom could appreciate
Roommate: 11/10, used my fear of cockroaches to portray my different interests and hobbies; probably the best and most creative thing I’ve ever written
What matters: 10/10, passion for learning; tied together my passions for research and teaching into a cohesive essay
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: AP Stat teacher- 9/10, she and I are really close and she has a track record of getting kids into top schools
Teacher Rec #2: AP Eng teacher- 8/10, I didn’t know her as well as my stat teacher but she’s very nice
Counselor Rec: 9/10- Talked to her periodically over the course of junior year during which she saw me develop as a person; knows me well
Additional Rec: Professor- 11/10, I’ve known him for a year and a half and he’s been an extremely supportive mentor
Interview: 6/10, lukewarm at best; we met in a Starbucks that happened to be located in a Target (very, very noisy) and he didn’t seem convinced that high schoolers could do research…
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: y
Intended Major: Materials Science and Engineering
State (if domestic applicant): the South
Country (if international applicant): US
School Type: Public magnet
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: M
Income Bracket: too much to get aid, not enough to pay out of pocket
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): I wish
Reflection
Strengths: Siemens, extensive research experience, strong recommendations, some good essays in the mix
Weaknesses: The one B I got (?), lackluster (comparatively, this is Stanford) SAT, no prestigious awards aside from Siemens, not-so-hot interview, a couple of weak essays, the whole Asian male in STEM deal
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Apparent passion for and achievement in a rather esoteric major
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: first acceptance 
Look, I’m not going to tell you to not worry. I worried a lot. I was lightheaded as I opened the portal to check my decision. Somehow, luckily, it worked out for me. Maybe I’ll see you on the Farm sometime (am I allowed to say that? I’m not really a student yet…), maybe I won’t. But honestly, I’m a firm believer that everyone can succeed wherever they end up.
Good luck to all of you! Stanford University Class of 2020!
Decision: Accepted
Objective:
SAT I: 2280 (770 Math, 730 Reading, 780 Writing)
ACT: N/A
SAT II: 800 Math 2, 760 Chem, 750 Latin
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0):3.97
Weighted GPA: 4.6
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): We don’t rank
AP (place score in parenthesis): WHAP (5), Macro (5), Lang (5), Micro (5), Chem (5)
Senior Year Course Load: AP Lit, AP Calc BC, AP Stats, APUSH, AP GoPo, Honors Physics
Subjective:
Extracurriculars: Leader of school’s diversity initiative, student government vice president, captain of tennis team, state award winner in mock trial
Volunteer/Community service: did some service at a local crisis center, but nothing much at all
Summer Activities: Duke TIP, Hopkins CTY, NC Governor’s School
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Intellectual vitality one was really good, roommate one was interesting and quirky, and I wrote about fantasy football for the “what matters” prompt (8-9 overall)
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): 10. I never read them but I am positive they were fantastic and probably made the difference in my application. Two teachers with whom I was really close and my counselor knows me well
Teacher Rec #1: 10 - math teacher and person with whom I worked closely for the diversity stuff
Teacher Rec #2: 9 - English teacher, really great
Counselor Rec: 9 - he knows me incredibly well
Additional Rec:
Interview: went really well, lasted like 90 minutes
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: No
Intended Major: Economics, possibly Management Science/Engineering
State (if domestic applicant): NC
School Type: Private
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: above what could qualify me for aid
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): legacy
Reflection
Strengths: recommendations, test scores, EC’s (they’re not outstanding but I think they represent who I am really well)
Weaknesses: Essays. They were good but nothing amazing. I think they did the job but certainly didn’t get me in
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I was a qualified applicant and got lucky in what is increasingly a crazy lottery
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Nowhere. I had apps in at UNC, UCLA, and Berkeley, but I will pull those now and I don’t think I’ll apply to other schools on my list (Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Brown, NU, etc)
General Comments:
Just remove the ‘a’ in the bold, size and color in your decision.
]Decision: Deferred
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown)
ACT (breakdown): 36 first sitting
SAT II: did not submit
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Weighted GPA: 4.9
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):1/624
AP (place score in parenthesis): 14 ap
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: 6 ap, college course.
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): nmsf, nat ap scholar nothing major
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): varsity track/ xc, (state level) piano
Job/Work Experience:
Volunteer/Community service: hospital and research exp
Summer Activities: research, (paper, top institute)
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 10/10
Teacher Rec #2: 10/10
Counselor Rec: 10/10
Additional Rec:
Interview:
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: bioengineering
State (if domestic applicant): ca
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: public
Ethnicity: asian
Gender: f
Income Bracket: high
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none
Reflection
Strengths:
Weaknesses:
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
General Comments: full scores, max rigor 20 ap, best student ever recs, top extracurriculars (did not list). I don’t think it is about academic performance. Don’t know what it is
Decision: Rejected
Super disappointing, but I hope someone can maybe learn from me
Objective:
SAT I: 2340 (800 critical reading, 770 math, 770 writing), only took once
ACT: 36 composite (36 English, 34 math, 36 reading, 36 science, 8 essay), only took once
SAT II: 760 Math 2, 750 literature, 710 US history
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Weighted GPA: 4.62
Rank: 1/345
AP: US History (5), Chemistry (4), Calc AB (5), Art History (5), Calc BC (5), Statistics (5), English Language & Composition (5), also took AP European History and AP Physics in school and got A’s but did not think my exam scores would justify the costs of the tests
Senior Year Course Load: AP Biology, AP US Government, AP English Lit & Comp, DE Psychology, DE Spanish 5, Intro to Linear Algebra (independent study), health
Major Awards: national merit semifinalist, NHS, u of rochester xerox award for innovation and information technology, Wellesley college book award, AP scholar w distinction, 5x conference scholar athlete, superior Model UN delegate, various student of the months and other trivial awards
Subjective:
Extracurriculars: Cross Country 10,11,12, Track & Field 9,10,12, Marching Band 9,10,11, Concert Band 9,10 (first chair clarinetist 9,10), Swim Team 10, Science Seminar 10,11,12, Model UN 9,12, Academic Challenge 9, Chemistry Olympiad 10
Job/Work Experience: tutoring in math, working for my aunt’s makeup business
Volunteer/Community service: ~200 hours at a nursing home
Summer Activities: running, traveling, hiking, nothing academic
Essays (rating 1-10, details): I thought they were 9-10s/10 and clever enough but they’ll obviously be judged at the reader’s discretion. I was honest and hopefully amusing in answering the short questions
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 10/10, from a history and psychology teacher who has written recommendations for students accepted to Stanford in past years, a “best student ever” rec
Teacher Rec #2: 9/10 from great chemistry teacher
Counselor Rec: 10/10, known her for a long time
Additional Rec: did not include
Interview: I don’t live in an interview state
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: Engineering
State: Ohio
School Type: large public
Ethnicity: white
Gender: F
Income Bracket: 75K
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): not really
I couldn’t tell you why I was rejected, honestly. I’d like to attribute it to the lack of a hook, but it could’ve been anything, really. Great job to everyone who got in and good luck to my fellow rejects.
Decision: Accepted
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1st time 2150 (740 CR, 740 M, 670 W), 2nd time 2260 (730 CR, 800 M, 730 W)
ACT (breakdown): 1st time 34 Composite (33 E, 31 M, 35 S, 36 R), 2nd time 36 Composite (35 E, 35 M, 36 S, 36 R)
SAT II: 800 Math 2, 800 Physics
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.86
Weighted GPA: 4.62
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 15 out of 250
AP (place score in parenthesis):
Class taken: World History (4), Human Geo (5), Calc AB (5), Physics 1 (4), English Lit (4), Capstone Seminar (3)
Challenged: Psychology (5), Macro (4), Micro (3)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: College English Composition 101-102 (thru WV State University), AP Calculus BC, College Engineering 100-101 (thru West Virginia University), Honors Civics, AP Computer Science A
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Beta Club 10, 2014 ACS Chemistry Olympiad 2nd place Kanawha Valley 10,
2014 Marshall University SCORES Exam Chemistry 3rd place 10, AP Scholar with Distinction 11, National Merit Semifinalist 12
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Recycling Club (Co-founder), Junior Civitans (member)
Sports: Golf: varsity 10-12, 2nd in state championship 11, MSAC all-conference team 12; Tennis: varsity 11-12, won state championship 11
Job/Work Experience: Taco Bell, Chipotle, Qdoba (I love Mexican food)
Volunteer/Community service: CAMC Hospital Junior Volunteer 11-12
Summer Activities: WV State Conservation Camp, Mountaineer Boys State (Senate member)
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Main essay: 8-9. Problem I’d like to solve: clean water for everyone, pretty basic but have a personal experience in the 2014 WV water crisis where our running water was contaminated and we missed school for almost a month
Vitality: 8, how watching the Bill Nye and Ken Ham debate on evolution shaped my view of the world, how I think for myself now and feel the need to contribute to science and society while I’m still on this earth
Roommate: 7, I talked about how my roommate needs to respect my sleep schedule, my organization to save me time and space, and love of sports, playing and watching
What matters: 8-9. Love of sleep. Mentioned health and educational benefits of sleep and how enough sleep makes me feel better in the morning and just how enjoyable it is
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 8, Math Teacher (12 Engineering), he mentioned everything on my resume, fairly generic but he only knew me for a couple months
Teacher Rec #2: Math Teacher (10 Precal/Trig and 12 Calc BC), she’s one of the most fun teachers at my school, since she knew me since sophomore year she was able to give a fairly personal rec, talking about my strengths and what she likes about me
Counselor Rec: School switched me to her senior year to divide our counselors alphabetically instead of by grade, she didn’t know anything about me but I talked to her for half an hour before she submitted my rec and she seemed to really like me after
Additional Rec: None
Interview: None
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: No
Intended Major: Engineering (Environmental 1st, Mechanical 2nd)
State (if domestic applicant): West Virginia
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Asian (Filipino)
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: $500000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none
Reflection
Strengths: Extracurriculars, test scores, recommendations
Weaknesses: GPA could’ve been better,
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I live in West Virginia and it sucks here, also strong interest in environment with co-founding school’s Recycling Club and writing about solving clean water around the world
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted into WVU (very selective), applied to UCs (Berkeley, LA, San Diego, Irvine) and USC
General Comments: Don’t read other people’s stats and get discouraged, that’s how I felt before and after I submitted my app. Show passion in your extracurriculars and whatever you write about in your essays, I even wrote about sleep! Try to stand out and be personal, don’t just write about extracurriculars bc you can bet that’s what everyone else is doing. Even if you don’t get in, you’re definitely not alone and you’re still an exceptional student with many other opportunities around this great country!
Decision: Deferred
Objective:
SAT I: 2260 (710R 800M 750W)
ACT: 36 (36EMS 35R 8 Essay)
SAT II: 800M2, 800Phys, 730Chem
Unweighted GPA: 4.0
Rank: 10/350
AP: 4 APUSH (few pending)
IB: 6 Econ SL, 7 Math SL (many pending)
Senior Year Course Load: HL Phys, HL Chem, HL English, SL French 4, BC Calc, TOK (lol), AP Micro+Macro (online)
Major Awards: NMF SF, many piano awards, school recognized awards, nothing huge.
Subjective:
Extracurriculars: Hip Hop Crew member (one of CO’s top, 9hr/wk); competitive piano performance (state rep for past 3-4 consecutive years); NHS (President); Hip Hop Club for school, involving performing at assemblies, halftimes, parades, shows, etc. (creator/president/choreographer/literallymanageeverythinglol); Econ Club (Pres); choreograph for school mascots/cheer (2hr/wk), school tutor (2hr/wk)
Job/Work Experience: Teaching cultural dance to 4-7 year-olds
Volunteer/Community Service: Summer hip hop camps (30hr/week); Thrift Shop managing (3hr/wk); Food/coat/book drives w/ NHS (abt 2hr/wk average); teaching free piano/music lessons to local families who cannot afford lessons otherwise (2hr/wk)
Summer Activities: Summer hh camps (see above), traveling, researched and wrote my EE/senior thesis on economics (gluten-free product market: took data and price elasticity calculations, etc.)
Essays (rating 1-10, details): CA 10/10 (about hip hop crew, more artistically-oriented); Supplements 8/10 (some were great, some could be better – as always)
Teacher Recommendations (rating 1-10): 8/10 English teacher, extremely positive but very generic; Math teacher I’ve no idea - really likes me and has a reputation for writing incredible recs
Counselor Rec (rating 1-10): 7/10
Additional Rec (rating 1-10): none
Interview: Went well. Nothing phenomenal, but we’re still in contact.
Other
Applied for Financial Aid? Yes
Intended Major: Management Science and Engineering
State (if domestic applicant): CO
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: 150k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none
Reflection
Strengths: Scores, academics, and essays
Weaknesses: I’m not quite sure my entire app was coherent around a central idea of who I am. Looking back now, I could have done a better job “tying myself together” in that sense.
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Crazy competition with all you amazing people 
Realistically, I don’t have anything that makes me stand out from the applicant pool.
Where else you are applying or have already applied: Accepted UMich engineering as of yesterday, waiting to hear back and apply elsewhere still.
General Comments/Advice/Hindsight: I /love/ Stanford but I’m sure I will end up happy where I need to be. Not keeping my hopes up, but still thankful that Stanford is selective with deferrals as well. It’s a good indication of chances with other schools at this point. Best of luck!
Decision: Rejected
Objective:
ACT (breakdown): 35 (35 on all sections, 8 essay)
SAT II: 760 Math II, Chemistry 800
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4
Weighted GPA: 4.56
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1% out of 500
AP (place score in parenthesis): 5 on WHAP, Bio, Calc, APUSH; 4 on Eng Lang & Phys1; 3 on Chem
Senior Year Course Load: PhysicsC, Spanish, Gov, Econ, Lit, Stat, and Music Theory (All APs)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Nothing that isn’t generic
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): MUN/YIG (Justice at both), BSA (Eagle Scout), Habitat for Humanity (Prez and VP), Debate, random honor societies
Job/Work Experience: Research in major at a Top20 university
Volunteer/Community service: Work with Habitat & BSA, not many voluntary hours
Summer Activities: Gov School & Research
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
CommonApp - Growing up in my fort; Only one I was really proud of; took something cliche and saw it from a new perspective
IV - About reserach, not much substance tbh. Looked good when I finished writing it, cringed rereading it after submitting app
Roomie - Really random, but at the same time not sure if it conveyed my personality well.
What matters: Importance of debate in life; Liked this out of all my supplements.
EC - God awful. Wrote it an hour before app was due b/c I forgot about it
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
APUSH Teacher: Heads a few of the clubs I held positions in; known to write generic recs, but told me he would take the time to write one for me. The vibe I got later though was that he wrote me a generic one
AP Bio teacher: 10th grade, but he loved me. I think he wrote well, but never saw
Counselor Rec: Said she only wrote a few lines here and there
Additional Rec: PI from research, he should have written a good one
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yup
Intended Major: ChemE
State (if domestic applicant): South
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Large public, but extremely competitive and known for academics even though its not a magnet
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: Middle class
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): nope
Reflection
Strengths: Everything that doesn’t really matter to stanford like stats
Weaknesses: ESSAYS, Maybe a lackluster rec
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Look @ Weaknesses
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted - Purdue, UMTC (Minnesota), UTK. Rest are RD, so haven’t heard back yet - UPenn, Columbia, Cornell, Northwestern, WashU, Vandy
Wow, can’t believe I’m finally making one of these. I’ve been obsessing of result threads (for better or worst) for the past two years. These were extremely helpful for me, so I hope mine is somewhat helpful to you guys too. If I could give one piece of advice, make sure (especially for Stanford) you essays & recs are amazing. I started the month before it was due and for me it wasn’t enough time. I won’t lie, I’m a bit disappointed in the result, but I’m not too sad about it. To the rest of us rejects: Be happy that we are at least smart/passionate/worthy enough to have a shot at the best university on Earth.
Decision: REJECTED
Objective:
ACT (breakdown): 36
SAT: 2380
SAT II: 800 in Math II, Physics, Chemistry, Biology E/M, United States History, World History
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4
Weighted GPA: 4.93
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1 out of 645
AP (place score in parenthesis): 5 on AP Biology, Chemistry, Physics C Mechanics, Calculus AB, Calculus BC, Computer Science, Statistics, Human Geography, Macroeconomics, English Language and Composition, United States History, World History
IB: 7 in Math HL, Physics HL, Chemistry HL, Visual Arts HL, and Economics HL
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Student Council President, Head Boy, CEO of district-recognized NGO, Went to Nationals for Basketball, Tennis, Football, Swimming, and Soccer, Organizer of TEDx event, Top 50 National Recruit for Football in the country, ACT Tutor for Princeton Review, Grade 8 Guitar
Job/Work Experience: Research in a major university along with the professors.
Volunteer/Community service: 750 hours working at a local hospital
Summer Activities: Local Hospital, Three intern ships at various software firms, Held a job at Wal-Mart
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
CommonApp - Experiencing the struggle of moving to America and being a first-generation student
Roommate - Perfect. My English teacher said it is the greatest essay she has ever seen.
What matters: The teamwork involved in all the sports I play.
EC - Really conveyed my passion for sports.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
AP Calculus BC: 10/10. He showed me the recommendation and he began to cry.
AP Macroeconomics: 10/10. She talked to the counselor and ensured that it was almost perfect.
Counselor Recommendation: 9/10. A tad generic, because he did not know me well, but my teachers ensured it was up to the mark.
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Computer Science
State (if domestic applicant): Louisiana
Country (if international applicant): Parents from Congo
School Type: Large and extremely competitive, Public School
Ethnicity: African-American
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: Middle class- $70000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):First Generation Student
Reflection
Strengths: Scores, essays, recs
Weaknesses: To be honest, I have no idea.
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Ask Stanford.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Rejected: University of Michigan
I don’t know what I am doing wrong. This feels terrible. All those weeks with my body hunched over an SAT and ACT Prep book have gone to waste. Even the endless hours studying for AP and IB exams, balancing sports, guitar, and community service, all seem for nothing. I don’t know what Stanford expects from anyone anymore. Good luck to all those who got accepted. For all those rejected, do not worry, we still have a long way ahead of us.
I swore off CC after I got in…but this place has helped me a lot in the process so here’s a little something back!
Decision: Accepted
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2310 - M:760, W:800, R:750
ACT (breakdown): 36 superscore - M:35, S: 36, R:35, W: 36
SAT II: Chem 790, Math II 800
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.1
Weighted GPA: n/a
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): n/a
AP (place score in parenthesis): School has rigorous AP classes so I did not take many but…
Chem 5, Psych 5, Bio 5, Spanish 5
IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
Senior Year Course Load: Pretty rigorous by the school’s standards, AP physics 1/2, AP World Hist, AP Calc BC, AP Lit
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Definitely not.
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): president/founder music performance club, principle violist of youth orchestra, principle violist of all-state orchestra, violist in chamber music program, vice-pres Tri-M Honors Society, Section Editor of school magazine, editor-in-chief literary magazine, mayor’s youth advisory council rep, 6th grade camp counselor, link crew member
Job/Work Experience: Violin teacher
Volunteer/Community service: various music gigs, library and botanical garden work
Summer Activities: Interlochen Arts Camp Orchestra Program (principle violist, fine arts award, etc), Summer Science Program (NM TECH '15!!), traveling, camping
Essays (rating 1-10, details): 9-10 across the board… Not going to lie, they were probably the most difficult and stressful 5 essays that I’ve ever had the -pleasure- to write but I’m super happy with how they turned out and believe they capture the (better) part of my personality. As an ordinary applicant with no hooks, I think what got me in to Stanford were my very thoughtful essays. Helpful tip: make it easy for the reader to see who you are, emphasizing themes will help more in painting a picture of who you’ll be at their college than random points of note. In my overall application, I emphasized the theme of freedom and my own happy-go-lucky attitude towards life.
Personal essay - I want to stress that you don’t HAVE to write about your impressive activities here. That was something I worried a lot about but honestly, all you have to do is show your passion in ANYTHING. I explored my past and family life (as an asian immigrant) and connected it to Thoreau’s American Dream in his novel Walden as well as a camping experience over the summer. This seems super complex but the topic was so me that my ideas flowed very freely. The hard part was definitely execution (went through at least 10 drafts)… but I leave that to everyone’s individual writing process.
Short essays - since my last essay was super serious, I adopted a very light and carefree tone with my supplements. Again, I wanted to show the adcons how I see the world so I went deep and really reflected on my love of music, my passion for science and humanity, and my appreciation for… small acts of kindness. For the letter to a roommate, I drafted a list of the most important aspects of my life/personality and focused on the little things I love, again tying in my overall theme.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): I didn’t read any of my rec letters so this is guesswork
Teacher Rec #1: English teacher who I really admired and connected to… 9
Teacher Rec #2: Chemistry teacher - demonstrated passion for science in his class… 8
Counselor Rec: Spent a lot of time talking/getting to know her… 8
Additional Rec: Orchestra teacher - witnessed my musical development since elementary school… 9
Interview: n/a
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: oh yes
Intended Major: put down engineering, music and religion… so I have no idea
State (if domestic applicant): Missouri
Country (if international applicant): n/a
School Type: public school
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: lower middle class
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): lol…no.
Reflection
Strengths: essays, extracurriculars
Weaknesses: lack of hooks, extraordinary achievements, ORM
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: essays
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I withdrew all other apps as soon as I heard back from Stanford
General Comments: To all the younger applicants out there: don’t let college be your obsession! The first and most important step to getting into a college/selective-hellhole is pursuing your passions: don’t worry about what will look good so much as what you like and dislike. Cultivate who you are as an individual and do what you love. Try to stay aware of your goals and be realistic, but don’t let the destination keep you from enjoying the journey.
And to current applicants still looking for a place to be next year: remember to stay true to who you are! Don’t think your future depends upon one institution. After all, college is only one path of many to a much longer road beyond… so keep going and I know you’ll all be somewhere amazing next year! Good Luck!
Decision: Accepted
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): Didn’t take
ACT (breakdown): 35 composite, 35 English, 32 Math, 36 Reading, 35 Science, 8 writing, 31 combined Eng/Wri
SAT II: Took after applying
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.89
Weighted GPA: 4.91
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): No rank given
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Micro (5), AP Eng Lang (4), AP Span Lang (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc BC, AP Spanish Lit, AP Phys C E&M, AP Phys C Mech, AP World History, African-American Lit, Advanced Band
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Principal’s award (very special at my school), National Spanish Exam Gold Prize, State Seal of Biliteracy, AP Scholar, 2014 All-Conference Defensive Lineman (2015 awards weren’t decided yet), University of Illinois Academic Achievement Award
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Football (Co-captain), Spanish Honors Society (co-president), African-American Club (vice-president), Concert Band (section leader), Jazz Band, Freshman Mentor Program, Student Play, Creative writing (independent)
Job/Work Experience: No work experience
Volunteer/Community service: ESL assistant at an elementary school, Jazz Band (voluntary gigs),
Summer Activities: Football Practice, MOSTEC with MIT
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Personal Statement (8.5, talked about being bisexual and shutting down emotionally, which worked to explain my C in chemistry; wasn’t my best work, but it got the job done),
Intellectual Vitality (8.5, again not my best work but was fine. Talked about physics and learning through experimentation), Letter to roommate (9.25, talked about being quirky, used a generous splash of humour), What matters (8.75, talked about equality and how it is important from a moral and social standpoint)
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 10, English teacher, Had me freshman and junior year and is the teacher sponsor for one of my ECs
Teacher Rec #2: 8, Biology teacher, Was in her freshman advisory, not entirely sure how strong it was because we aren’t super close.
Counselor Rec: 10, I am probably the student that talks to her the most. She said that my rec was the longest one she wrote. I have a very close relationship with my counselor.
Additional Rec: 9, Band Teacher; had me freshman year in beginning band and has seen my improvement over the years.
Interview: 10, My interview went so well and my interviewer was super engaged
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Undecided
State (if domestic applicant): Illinois
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public/Magnet
Ethnicity: Black
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: Middle to upper-middle class
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM
Reflection
Strengths: All around interesting person. My story is very interesting. I’m not amazing at one specific thing but I’m good at a lot of things.
Weaknesses: Because of my jack-of-all trades nature, I didn’t really pinpoint much of a single passion. Also my GPA isn’t stellar. Plus, I haven’t done some amazing project.
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Because I’m unique and I’m not a cookie-cutter smart student. I’m engaged in my school community and my passion (albeit multifaceted) shows through my personality.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Nowhere yet
General Comments: There are a ton of smart kids out there. I didn’t do anything special. I haven’t done cancer research or lobbied the UN or whatever, but I’m not your standard student. You can’t just be smart. You have to be different.
Decision: Rejected
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2330 Superscore: 740 Math, 790 Critical Reading, 800 Writing, 12 Essay (2 sittings)
ACT (breakdown): Didn’t take
SAT II: 770 US History, 790 Math 2
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): School doesn’t show us unweighted, but I know I got one B in an honors course
Weighted GPA: 4.33
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 10%
AP (place score in parenthesis): Chem (3 HAH but didn’t report) Chinese (4) Psych (5) APUSH (5) LangComp (5) Calc AB (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): None
Senior Year Course Load: AP Bio, AP Lit, AP Stats, Economics Honors, Government, Worldviews, Comparative Religions, Teacher’s Assistant, Pestilence and Civilization
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Semifinalist (find out about finalist applications in like february lol), Silver Key Award in Scholastic Art and Writing Competition, President’s Volunteer Service Award, AP Scholar with Distinction, a bunch of marching band and dance awards
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Marching Band (Color Guard Captain-At-Large for 2 years, first place champions), Dance (Mostly traditional Chinese and ballet), high school’s version of HONY (founder and co-administrator), National Honor Society, various clubs and stuff
Job/Work Experience: Cashier/Drink-maker?? at local Korean bakery
Volunteer/Community service: 1-week service trip to build houses at Tecate, Mexico
2-week service trip to Philippines for construction, Kid’s Club, and food/clothing distribution
1-week service trip to Los Angeles for construction, Kid’s Club, and medical supply distribution on Skid Row/Watts
Over 200 hours of dance performances for conventions, festivals, elementary schools, etc.
Various NHS activities
Summer Activities: EPGY Summer Institutes for anthropology, Scott Reese Leadership Camp for Marching Arts, studying for SAT’s looooool
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Common App: 9, talked about my transition from dance to color guard using the motif of getting a new bed, got really emotionally invested in it, but it was kinda generic
Intellectual Vitality: 8, used the symbol of a pizza to show my attraction to interdisciplinary studies. I would rate it lower, but my counselor thought the pizza thing was pretty clever
Roommate: 8, Talked about liking pearl milk tea LOL and how it showed my opposing values for tradition and creativity, showed my sort-of quirky side i think???
What Matters: 9, definitely my strongest supplement, talked about approaching leadership in the marching band setting
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 9, he was first my chem teacher in sophomore year and is now teaching my elective course. definitely knows me really well, especially how I tackled struggling in his class by going to him every lunch. his wife was also my english teacher in 7th grade and loved me, which probs helps.
Teacher Rec #2: 8, my 11th grade english teacher who definitely understood my strengths in understanding literature. unfortunately, i never really knew her personally until recently, when we’d be going on the same service trip together, but she’s an EXTREMELY eloquent writer and also a stanford alum
Counselor Rec: 8, only knows me, but i am her strongest student academically.
Portfolio: Submitted a dance/color guard portfolio
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: yeah haha
Intended Major: Undecided/ Computer Science + Humanities (CS + X)/ Linguistics
State (if domestic applicant): CA
Country (if international applicant): US
School Type: Small private Christian school
Ethnicity: Asian af
Gender: F
Income Bracket: 230,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Dad was an alum
Reflection
Strengths: Scores, Essays (I think), does being genuine count???
Weaknesses: Lack of extracurricular and leadership diversity (ie. invested all my time in one thing), AP/Classes
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Honestly it was a long shot, considering I live in the Bay Area. Stanford is notorious for rejecting even the most qualified students in this area, and I know a bunch of other people much “better” candidates than I am rejected. I am a little sad, but it’s nice to just get the weight off of my shoulders.
Also, I found out that I had to turn in my CommonApp early by like a month because I was submitting a portfolio, and this news hit me like a week before my due date. Even though I started my essays early (don’t procrastinate, kids), it was still a whirlwind.
General Comments:
To get a little personal here, I do regret applying REA just because it didn’t let me apply to another school I definitely would have applied early to if it weren’t in the East Coast. I think I was just totally blindsided because I live so near Stanford (like 20 minutes) and have a bunch of merch from when my dad went. So check yo’self before you wreck yo’self.
POSTING FOR A FRIEND!
Decision: Deferred
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2060
ACT (breakdown):
SAT II: 770 Math II, 700 Spanish
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.67
Weighted GPA:
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):
AP (place score in parenthesis):
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics, History Elective, English Elective, AP Calculus, Honors French 2, AP Spanish Literature
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Tri-varsity athlete (non-recruit)
Job/Work Experience:
Volunteer/Community service:
Summer Activities:
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1:
Teacher Rec #2:
Counselor Rec:
Additional Rec:
Interview:
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major:
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Private
Ethnicity: Black
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: Low
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM, First-generation college
Reflection
Strengths:
Weaknesses:
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
General Comments: