Student gets into Stanford with #BlackLivesMatter x100

Colleges and Universities A-Z Stanford University
21

For those saying “he deserves to be admitted”, you guys don’t know his ACT/SAT, his GPA, his ranking, SAT subject scores, how rigorous his course work was, etc. Saying he should be admitted because he was a leftist activist seems really out there.

For me though, the terrible essay is enough to be rejected without even knowing his academic credentials.

22

Again, i believe this kid was admitted to two Ivy league colleges and to Stanford for a body of work…not because one of his essay prompts repeated a catch phrase (that he could back up with his work in this area). He turned in a whole package to these colleges (my older kid went through this process) and this was one piece…to one college…I just don’t like how this is going to be used in the press as an inaccurate story…i’m already beginning to see it. Pet peeve of mine.

As far as his background, here’s part of it:
At school, Ziad holds the position Treasurer of the Class of 2017, leads as the Secretary General of the PDS Model UN Delegation, mentors younger students in Science and Math, writes for the school newspaper, is a full member of Mu Alpha Theta, and plays for the varsity squash team. In addition to his more conventional education, he engaged in an independent study to engineer a 3D-printed, solar-paneled, and portable charger (www.thezcharge.com). To learn more outside of the classroom, Ziad also studied Business at Cornell Summer College this past summer. He also immersed himself deeply into the realm of foreign policy as a Yale Young Global Scholar in International Affairs and Security in the summer of 2016.

23

@SouthernHope well if he submitted 2 full applications to two Ivy schools he successfully met their requirements.
He did not write an essay for Stanford, just used a hash tag. I think they wanted an essay. I’m certain that if my son wrote " # anything" for one of his essays his app would’ve been thrown in the incomplete pile.

24

I sent a link to the story over to the DrudgeReport. The story will now get seen by millions of people and Stanford will be subject to the ridicule they deserve.

25

I do hope this is a hoax. Otherwise, it reflects poorly on the Admissions Committee’s judgement. I agree with @rightcoaster, if any other child had written anything else, they would have been rejected right away.

This is an arrogant kid, no matter what he has accomplished. Look at him bragging on Twitter on how his essay got him admitted to Stanford! Through his antics he has showed his immaturity. It also shows his lack of understanding of BLM and its causes. It would have been interesting to read about why BLM mattered to him (as far as I can tell he is of South Asian descent).

Regarding his accomplishments, one should read the results threads on CC of Stanford or any of the competitive schools, you will see many kids having similar accomplishments and getting rejected.

26

how he can give a TedTalk:

how I hashtagged my way into Stanford

27

This was only one of at least 3 short essays/prompts he had to write. It’s on par with the ‘letter to your roommate’ one. It wasn’t the ONLY piece of original writing that he submitted to Stanford. Remember, Stanford also had that ‘describe yourself in 5 words’ prompt. I agree, if this were the only thing they saw from him, it’d be a little disheartening, but given that he could have written 2-3 other mind-blowingly eloquent essays plus his Common App essay, I think we can’t really infer anything about Stanford (or YALE or PRINCETON)'s admissions committee. Obviously he could afford to be a little more expressive with one of the essays. Who’s to say that this isn’t more relevant than the common app Costco essay that was previously in the news - and I personally LOVED that essay.

28

what a legend

29

ALL LIVES MATTER. Period.

Too bad our academic institutions and progressive ideology are creating divisiveness in our country. It will not end well.

30

He sounds like he is very creative and an original thinker. The problem is black lives just don’t matter to so many people in this country. I think he was just highlighting a tragic problem facing this country which is ignored by too many people

31

The divisiveness is not created by the progressives in this country. It is created by the people who want to make America hate again. So sad

32

@HYPSPlease i dont think the reaction of a few conservative media outlets is going to negatively affect Stanford in any way. Probably the opposite.
Besides he is so much more than that essay. He is an activist with various unique accomplishments. I say he fits right in the irreverent and independent Stanford culture.

33

SydLoveWes , well if you are “positive”, then I should rethink my opinion.

@HYPSPlease, that’s the best this you said since you started this thread

34

I guess his “essay” worked because colleges are very liberal for the most part. I don’t think political stance either way should be awarded that did not answer “why” part of the question. I really wonder if he would have gotten in if he wrote “All Lives Matter” 100 times. I would like to see Stanford clarify that this essay was not the reason he was admitted.

If the applicant himself is proclaiming that he got in for writing this essay (is he really saying this?) that was not responsive to the question asked, that would bother me IF it was indeed true. I also feel he put Stanford in a sensitive position by disclosing this and making it appear Stanford admitted him because of his political statement.

Anyway, it would help to know more info.

35

Now, in contrast to the joke of a student who got admitted to Stanford with an essay that said #BlackLivesMatter 100 times, look at this student who got admitted to 7 Ivies plus other top schools:

http://thetab.com/us/2017/04/03/priscilla-samey-64229?utm_source=transactional&utm_campaign=recommendednext&utm_medium=popular

No “joke of an essay”, but a real essay that can inspire.

36

An interesting perspective on Ziad’s acceptance at Stanford.

http://www.nationalreview.com/article/446429/stanford-black-lives-matter-admissions-application-question

Quoting from the article

Seems like a very bright kid!!!

37

Guys, I’m sure he had a stellar academic record and his other essays were probably great. The thing about his #BlackLivesMatter essay shows a lot more than just his dedication to a movement.

  • It shows that he’s not afraid to take a risk.
  • It shows that activism matters to him.
  • It shows that the lives of underrepresented and historically oppressed minorities matter to him. (NOTE: the fact the blacks are a HISTORICALLY oppressed people is not debatable and an accepted, known FACT).
  • It shows that he isn’t afraid to show his true opinion, even if it means rejection.
  • It shows that he isn’t afraid to deviate from a standard set in place by an educational institution, no matter how prestigious, or society, no matter how vicious.
  • It shows that he had strong enough academics, letters of rec, personal statement, and accomplishments to do this (which, quite frankly, is really impressive).
  • It shows that his bounds of creativity are not limited to what most people would think constitutes a successful essay, but extend beyond that. It’s something that’s DIFFERENT, UNIQUE, REVOLUTIONARY (no matter how cliché that sounds), and MEANINGFUL. He did answer the question. That’s what matters to him. As a fellow applicant, I’m not confused at all. I think it was a great essay about what matters to HIM – not what matters to you or me or the admissions officers – but again, what matters to HIM.
    Activism, even in his college application. That’s some true dedication, right there.
38

He didn’t answer the 2nd part of the essay. Repeating something 100+ times - because you REALLY mean it! - doesn’t substitute for critical thought. It’s also the kind of thing a high school student would do when the English essay is due in 10 minutes and you haven’t bothered to do the work (and the teacher won’t read it, anyway).

There were undoubtedly many applicants who gave that prompt a lot more thought but who weren’t admitted. Some of them are going to have his stats and his accomplishments. Wherever he ends up, he’ll have to come up with a bit more effort once he matriculates. Had a good friend who tried something like that on her sociology final paper and flunked the class.

39

@STEM2017

All schools would love publicity and in this case that could have been a factor in his admission. It helps their image with headlines like “Stanford admits X”, where X could be “homeless teen”, “Syrian refugee”, “Muslim activist”, etc. Only thing in this case they didn’t expect the kid was stupid enough to post his essay and then brag about it ! His story of “Muslim activism” minus the essays would have been an interesting one in the current political environment.

40

“It helps their image with headlines like “Stanford admits X”, where X could be “homeless teen”, “Syrian refugee”, “Muslim activist”, etc. Only thing in this case they didn’t expect the kid was stupid enough to post his essay and then brag about it ! His story of “Muslim activism” minus the essays would have been an interesting one in the current political environment.”

Quite a privileged Muslim activist, as it turns out. Annual tuition for his private high school (Princeton Day) just under $34,000