The stanford essays are so great. If you make a commonapp account you can see the ones from last year.
Ahhh I’m so excited/nervous for all of this already
Hello! I’m applying to Dartmouth ED but if I don’t get in, I am definitely applying to Stanford.
Hey guys! I’ve been stalking for a bit. Lol. I’ve also been having trouble deciding between Harvard or Stanford for REA. Other than Harvard and Stanford, I’ll be applying to Columbia, Cornell, Upenn, Princeton, MIT, Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech, UMich, UVA, and Howard (?). I need 1 more safety and 1 more match that’s good for engineering/ biomedical engineering. I’m from Nigeria but I live in Virginia.
I’m a little scared about the school’s I’m applying to because of my low SAT scores. I’m still waiting on my ACT and Subject Test scores but I’m afraid I’ll end up retaking all of them. Well, thankfully I still have time to bring those up
I suggest you prune your list and add a few more safeties. Harvard and Princeton should be thrown out given that their engineering isn’t great. How about WPI and RPI? If your application isn’t stellar, applying to Stanford will get you rejected. The best strategy is to apply early to a decent non-binding school you wouldn’t mind attending. If you get in, apply to others you prefer more. If you don’t get in, you won’t have to bother with all the reaches.
@angelwings0137 You wrote that you got a 29 in your ACT.
All of the schools you listed that you will apply to are going to reject you except for perhaps VirginiaTech and Howard.
You really need to make a better list. If you need help with suggestions just make a new thread asking for people’s recommendation with all your of info like, locations, intended major, approximate family-income, requiring FinAid?, SAT subjects and scores, etc. We’d be glad to help.
@GoRedhead I got a 29 ACT on my first try without studying. I took it a second time recently so the score isn’t out yet. I’ll be taking it again but with a class first. I got a 1350 on my first SAT then took a class and got a 1410, but with a 1420 super score. My math score improved 70 points. I’ll be taking it again with a one on one class. I didn’t ask if I could get into those schools or for a chance me I just asked for another good safety or match school. Thank you
Matches-CaseWestern, RIT, Drexel, Lehigh, StonyBrook
Safeties-BinghamptonState, City CUNY, Rowan, PennState
Whoa! I’m seeing a lot of negativity being thrown around here.
@angelwings0137 I’m from Nigeria too! Still live there though 
and your list looks a lot like mine!
@bicoastalusa I don’t know which list you’re looking at, but Harvard.and Princeton are actually great for engineering.
@GoRedhead A 29 on the ACT is not going to get him/her rejected. Applications are considered holistically. I’ve seen plenty of 29’s get in, and trust me, I’ve combed through every decisions thread. A 1420 superscored is actually pretty great. This year’s Stanford decisions thread was full of scores in the 1400s.
Match/Reach depends on you, but check out Duke, Rice and Tufts.
Possible safety: Texas tech, TCU, depending on your financial ability.
@gigichuck thank you! I didn’t feel like being the one to say it lol. But I’m still working on my score regardless because I want my application to be in a comfortable spot. It’s so cool that you still live in Nigeria. I moved when I was young but I still go back at times.
Hey guys. I’m also a Nigerian.I’m 16 
but I moved to South Africa 4 years ago. I’ve completed high school. Currently in my gap year and planning to Apply to a number of Colleges in The US
I’m so nervous for applications to open. This is going to be a crazy year.
@David Kwentua Hey there. Which other schools are you looking at?
Hey @gigichuck 
I’m currently looking at
Stanford, Harvard, Duke, John Hopkins, Vanderbilt, Univ of Wisconsin-Madison, Emory, Skidmore, Univ of Rochester
Pretty long list lol… I got a 1460 on my first new SAT sitting (May 2017)… I’m planning to retake it in October. I’m aiming for 1500+ :).
I’m looking to Major in Neuroscience.
Oh and I took math 1 and biology-m subject tests earlier this month and I’ll be adding Math 2 and Chemistry in November… I’m a bit concerned though cuz I’ll be applying REA to Stanford and that’ll mean my Math 2 and Chemistry scores will be sent a bit late… I’m just hoping it doesn’t weaken my application… Any idea if this will be a problem?
And you @gigichuck? How did your SAT go?
@David Kwentua It was fabulous…in October :)) I’ve not taken it yet lol. Pretty risky, but I trust myself to deliver in one sitting. I don’t think late scores will affect your application. If they say on their website that they accept November subject tests for REA then they do. If they don’t, then you could always email them to be sure. Doesn’t hurt.
:)) Haha. Sure lol. Will you be taking subject tests?
Tell me more about yourself and your credentials
And which colleges are you looking at
GPA: 3.6 but we use British system and a truly rigorous curriculum so it’s fine.
Er, I got into Yale Young Global Scholars 2017 but I didn’t go. Not enough financial aid.
I play chess, female champion in school(there are no contests for male vs female but I’ve beaten almost everyone at least once)
Assistant editor-in-chief of school magazine, but will be editor by the time application season rolls around.
Constant member of Student Union Government
A bunch of olympiad medals. Qualified for regional but no funding to sponsor the whole team, so no international medal for me.
A bunch of other competitions but no finals for them yet. By October, they should all be done, I guess.
Rank: #4 but rank #1 in math, french blah blah.
School achievements
I feel like I’m posting on a decisions thread. The only thing missing is the decision on top.
What about you? What’re your stats/ECs/awards
Sorry I forgot the other questions
Subject tests November or December, depending. I want to take Math 2 and Physics.
I’m looking at Harvard, Yale, Princeton, MIT, Stanford, Dartmouth, Bryn Mawr, Howard, Williams, Pomona etc. I’m looking at a LOT of schools. I’ll probably have to combine Common App and Coalition.
Oh… Is there an advantage to using both Common app and coalition? Have you also considered the applications fees as well… They’re quite expensive if you add everything up :-/ .
I attended a relatively small school(about 40 students in my class)… Finished as Rank 1 by the way
We don’t calculate GPA, though. But my school leaving examination results were very good so I’m pretty confident about those. The academic system here is also quite rigorous I must say.
ECs
-Volunteer Ambassador for Stop Hunger Now SA.
-President of High School Debating Team
-Regular Volunteer at a local Internet café
-I offer free math and English lessons to disadvantages learners in my community every Saturday :).
-Blogger for various sites. Currently pursuing getting featured on Huffpost.
-Social Media Influencer and Trendsetter (on Twitter)… Lol I love the platform it gives me to address certain issues and also keep updated.
-Facilitator of a small charity program sponsored by my church which offers Feeding to disadvantaged families in the area
I feel as though I should have worked more on my EC’s 
… What do you think?
And awards also.
Lol I don’t have any awards… I’m from a somewhat disadvantaged background… I just love helping people… Maybe I’ll win one someday