Brown is an amazing premed school and it is my dream school so I am looking for any advice on how to improve my stats/ecs to maximize my chances of getting in:
I’m at a junior top high school in California
GP A- 4.0 uv, 4.6 weighted,
Sophomore year course load: Ap calculus AB/ BC(5 on both) Ap Computer science, AP Chemistry(4), AP World History(5)
Junior Year Courses: AP Biology, AP Physics 1, AP US History, AP Psychology, AP Environmental Science, AP English Language
SAT: Old sat 2290- retaking, PSAT 1480 (750 m 730 r/w)
ECS: President of multiple clubs including- girls who code, bone marrow drive, research club, started a nonprofit to help cancer patients, got funding to start a middle school STEM outreach/teaching STEM to girls with autism,etc…
Research: Internships in biomedical research from freshman year, paid research internship this year as part of a rigorous life sciences program, publishing clinical research
Assist with a healing arts workshop for cancer patients-hope to write about in essay
Any advice? I would absolutely love to be accepted to PLME but that is so insanely competitive, I would love Brown as an undergraduate school as well- Any alumni advice on how to improve ECs/chances would be extremely helpful. I am very stressed out about college right now and any guidance/direction would be appreciated.
lilinitique: As of this moment (with only 2 years of HS under your belt) you are doing everything humanly possible to gt into a selective school. Your grades and test scores are stellar, your courses rigorous, your ECs solid. I understand that things have gotten so competitive that many students like you are stressing out – which I think is a sorry comment on college admissions.
Your junior year is very important. It’s also when courses get harder. I’ve known students like you who suddenly saw their grades drop because classes got more difficult. That could happen to you. I’ve also known students like you who suddenly decided that they wanted to start having some fun and the impact on their grades affected their application decisions.
My point is that junior year is still a little early to get really focused on one school because so much can happen, and so much can change.
Given that, here’s my advice:
- Stop thinking so much about college. Stop writing your essay in your head. Don't do something because it might help you get into college. Do things because you love them, because you care, because you want to learn, because you want to improve yourself and your community.
- Pick one or two ECs and really focus on them. Go deep instead of going broad. You're spreading yourself too thin. For the ECs you decide to focus on -- dive in. Make them better. Improve your community. Make a difference. Brown doesn't want to see a laundry list of clubs. It wants to know how you are going to make the Brown community better, and it gauges that by seeing the impact you had on your community (which can be defined as your school, your church, your neighborhood, your state -- however you want to define it).
- Get close to a couple of teachers so they'll write truly wonderful recommendations for you.
- Don't spend too much time on College Confidential -- it'll only stress you out more.
- Have the financial discussion with your parents. If you get into Brown, can they afford to send you? Make sure to fill out the net price calculator for all the colleges you are interested in.
Good luck.
I am in the same boat as you. I am a junior and taking shit load of hard classes but what I have start doing is focusing on my grades, doings ECs and HAVING FUN. Yes, this is important year but the more you worry the more you make mistakes. I am not saying stop studying but give yourself time to breathe. Also, you have excellent record. I honestly have no Idea what I want to do so it was hard to focus on one thing but I think I am doing not at all bad for immigrant who does not understand the system. But of course, that should not be excused. Keep going and hopefully you get into brown. CLASS OF 2018! 
I’m currently a senior and will most likely apply to Brown ED. Though my tips would be:
- Stop worrying! I definitely have that always worrying and stessing personality, but it's just not worth it.
- Do things that you like to do. If you do stuff just for college admissions, I would really rethink it. Don't add "fluff" activities and crowd out the good stuff.
- Don't even think about the essay until after junior year. The essay is such an essential part to the app and you really need to dig deep on what you want to write on that isn't emphasized on your app.
- Ask, could I ask why is Brown your top school? I'm also interested in being pre-med at Brown but remember, fit is probably more important. If you just listen to what people say online and don't really get a sense of what the school over all is like, probably a bad idea.
- Get to know 2-3 teachers really well in at least 2 different subjects. Recommendation letters play a large role as it tells the admissions people who you are. Also, don't forget your guidance counselor will also need to write you one!
- Brown is expensive so definitely look into expensive and such.
- Enjoy your time! Colleges don't want robots who just study and engage in a lot of things with no free time for anything else. Spend time with family and friends and just live!
- Take stuff on college confidential with a grain of salt. There's just so much that happens in admissions decisions you can't rely on people who post here , esp the decision threads where people post their threads. No joke , destroys your confidence. I know it destroyed mine...
- Personally , I think you don't really have to worry about your app until maybe later into your second semester of junior year where standardized tests and college tours start climbing all over you . Always keep a good relationship with your guidance counselor to help you through the process.
- Here's a warning about being pre-med that I've gotten as well: just remember you will compete with classmates for grades as med school has just become so competitive these days that it's crazy. A 3.3 at Columbia for example would be worse than a 3.8 at a state school ANYDAY. Though if you were to switch out of pre med like the majority of applicants, top schools would be better as it probably offers amazing connections and opportunities most schools won't have (and prestige does play some role, but not as much as you may think.) Also, tons of people get weeded out. GPA and MCAT scores are the most important in that process and school prestige does play a role in admissions for them (ESP top research med schools) but def something i say you shouldn't worry about at all right now.
I would definitely say you qualify for any school if you continue this, but admissions are holistic and colleges want to build a well rounded class. They may say they want more kids who like ____ and are from this location and stuff so you never know. Or maybe they read your app at 3am and just wants to go home. “Maximizing” your chances is kind of uh hard in that sense; generally, I say you can only “qualify” and just good luck is on your side.
Remember, it’s not where you get accepted that really matters, but what you do with the opportunities that come your way at the college you attend, especially for pre-med.
Good luck in your junior year! Senior year and college apps will approach so fast you will be surprised!
Why are you retaking the 2290? Spend that extra saturday doing a bake sale or playing a sport you like.
I agree with hhjjlala. Your old SAT score is already fine. If you were to get denied, it would definitely not be your test score. They aren’t looking for perfection; they just want to see if you can perform academically at a certain level. Anything over 750 and you are in the best shape you can be. You would just need the 2 SAT subject tests to be done and you are fine.
I am retaking the sat because it was a lopsided score( 800 800 690 math) and I got a 1480 on my PSAT. I got a 740 on SAT chem and am going to take bio and math this year.
Should I retake the SAT Chem or would bio and math be enough (if they are about 750)
Do not retake the SAT Chem. SAT 2 scores are really not that important – I may not be an admissions officer, but I’m pretty confident that no none gets rejected from Brown because of one or even 2 SAT II test scores below 700. They are not looking to accept students who have the highest scores – the scores confirm that you can do the work, and then they look at everything else.
If you weren’t thinking PLME, I would say don’t waste time on that math SAT either – those two 800s are pretty impressive. What do you want to major in?
I would absolutely love to get into PLME but don’t want to get my hopes up. I have studied for the new SAT already so will take in October. I would like to major in Public Health(premed)
Is there anything you would recommend I do to improve my chances for this major/track
Read what I wrote in my first response.
@fireandrain, the best post I’ve read here, and spot on accurate. I must say, a relief to see on here. It should be a sticky in every forum.
Why, thank you omg. But I’m not the only parent to say this on CC.
Very true; but still you articulated it very well 
Update: Got a 1560 on my sat(770 r/w, 790 m, 8/8/8 essay) That should be good enough for Brown right? Their 75 percentile is currently 1560 for the new sat but idk how they calculated that since they dont have new sat scores yet. Would bio and math 2 be good subject tests to take for public health?.
They probably used the concordance tables that the College Board has released (google them). Those scores are very good.
@lilinitique i think asking the question “are those scores good enough for Brown?” is not the important thing here. It’s good that you now have a good balance in your scores, but they aren’t gonna notice the difference too much between your scores and anybody else in where you are in the 99th percentile. Stop worrying so much about the numbers and focus on enjoying your junior year, keeping your grades up, and really getting involved with your community. That’s the best thing you can do right now as a junior. Also, for some additional advice, don’t do things for the Common App. College admissions officers can see through the hype. Really work on developing yourself as a person.
Your SAT is fine – 1560 is wonderful (just as 2290 was already…). Concentrate on keeping your GPA up, finishing in the top 10% of your class, and having some fun in the clubs and competitions you care about most.
If you want to spend a few minutes here and there reading about additional schools to apply to in addition to Brown, that’s fine. But I think that GPA is job 1 and remembering to have some fun – you’re only 16/17/18 once – is a close second.