Stanford Early Action

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Hi, I have an extremely pressing question which has been on my mind for a really long time. I'm going to be a senior in august and i have taken the SAT twice. My first go wasn't too good: 1910 (M - 720, CR - 600, W - 590) but on my second try this june i got my result as a 2260 (M - 800, CR - 710, W - 750) (1510 Composite), which I am extremely happy with. I have not taken the SAT II's yet but Im going to take Math IIc, Physics and Literature. My predictions, according to estimates and tests are: Physics: 750+, Math IIc: 770+, and Literature - 730+</p>

<p>My recommendations are good, my essays are pretty good i feel, my transcript could be better but isnt bad, and I have quite a few impressive EC's and a tonne of Volunteer Work. I am also a student of the IB (International Baccalaureate) in which I have taken 4 Higher Level subjects (Maths, Physics, Computer Science, Economics) and 2 Standard Level (English, French). School doesn't have ranks but If required, Im in the top 5%. My IB Predicted grade is a 43 (can be a 44 / 45 over next few months). Im applying as an intrnational student. </p>

<p>I have been involved in things like the World Scholars Cup and MUN's in various countries, an have won accolades everywhere. MUN - Best Press Corps (twice - singapore, brussels), WSC - (3rd in Science, 2nd in MCQ Test, 1st in Scholars Quz in South East Asia), and 3rd in Team Essay in the World. </p>

<p>I am on my varsity soccer and basketball teams, a nationally ranked tennis player in my freshmen and sophmore years, and I represented my state in Table Tennis - I don't plan on taking up any sport in college though</p>

<p>I would love to know what my chances would be like as I am going to be applying to stanford for restrictive early action in october / november. And if any additional information is required, I would be happy to provide it. (Other College Preferences include HYP, Brown, Upenn, MIT, and Cornell)</p>

2

<p>I’m Indian but I have a duel citizenship for India and Hong Kong</p>

3

<p>Do you live in Hong Kong?</p>

4

<p>i used to till i was 9 but i moved with my family to india back then…</p>

5

<p>Neither of your nationalities will help you in admissions. Both regions are immensely competitive. That said, you are a good applicant. I can see you making it into a Cornell or a Northwestern for instance, with no problem. Stanford, however, is a completely different level of competition, especially in REA, when most top applicants apply. Your stats aren’t mind-blowing for that level of competition and your ECs don’t reflect any sort of passion either (of course I might be wrong but it seems a little all over the place). Stanford is known to like applicants who possess an entrepreneurial and innovative spirit and none of what you have done reflects that. What you can do to make up for this short coming is to try and model at least one of your achievements in that light (I am sure it wouldn’t hurt).
Your predicted IB and SAT scores are good and if you can get 800s or even high 700s on your SAT2s, you would stand a very good chance provided your application is refined to perfection.
Good luck with your application!</p>

6

<p>uhm i dint really mention it but i think, personally, if it comes to passion it would most definitely be in community service. i dont really know how to explain it but i have done over 300 hours of community service over the past year or so. im also the head of the peace initiative group in my school, which was created after the terrorist attacks last year. I founded an environmental initiative group which is focusing on combating problems on a regional level first. This summer I have worked with an NGO for children with cancer and im planning to continue in the years to come. I also, a few months ago, organized a concert to raise funds for the the children and played in it too! (which ill come to in the latter)There are a lot, and I mean a lot of things when it comes to helping the community around me (I also gave a rally to an open public on the negative effects of pollution and how we should treat it), that I have done, and well could this be an important factor with my application?</p>

<p>Another thing which I forgot to mention is that I absolutely love playing the guitar, and I have my own band. I have been playing for 6 years now and I have consistently won, if im not mistaken, about 5 awards at a school and a regional level; be it as best guitarist, or even best band. Would love for your input.</p>

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<p>oh i forgot to mention that I am on the student council too, and have been my class representative for 3 years now</p>

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<p>That is really, really good! Amazing actually. Now, try to convey that with ambition and passion. State why you do what you do and what you hope to achieve from it and then use that to form your essay. According to MIT, you should be “invested” in what you do so work along those lines.</p>

<p>Do mention the awards, and if needed, talk a bit more about them in the “additional information” section of the Common Application.</p>

9

<p>WOW. You have amazing ECs and awards, etc. Other than POSSIBLY taking the SAT again (your score is great, though :slight_smile: ), I honestly don’t know if there is anything more that you need to add. Congrats on all of that hard work, I’m sure it will pay off for you!</p>

10

<p>thanks a tonne guys! but uhm ive actually begun to be really nervous cause i saw this thread with like impressive awards and competitions to win and i felt extremely intimidated. i dont have any time to do any of those things so i dno…little freaked out!</p>

11

<p>Not to blow on your aspirations but 300 hours really isn’t that much to show A LOT of passion. For an year it is still a substantial amount, but if you want to show passion then it should be a lot more. For example, I have no passion for community service but in the past year I have done 700 hours community service and I will have accumulated about 1500 by the time I apply.</p>

<p>A word of advice… show passion in activities that pertain to your major. I am showing passion for business because I really want to get into Wharton.</p>

<p>Nevertheless, if you put your community service into your application… it will help… just do not brag about the fact that you did it over the course of only a year (it looks like resume padding)… and do not try to show passion for it. If you do not do those things, you are fine. Good luck from a fellow Indian!</p>