<p>Hmm...I played the piano for three years. I picked it up quite quickly - I'd rank myself as grade 5/6ish going by the trinity exams? - but I can't sight-read for nuts!
Anyway, I ditched it and have been learning an Indian percussion instrument, the tabla, as of late. By the way, I don't mean feather-in-head Indian, I mean actual India-Indian. Anyway, I'm picking it up super-quickly, according to my teacher. Probably because I've already learnt hand-coordination from playing the piano. I've been bugging my parents to let me take it to SSP but they say it isn't feasable.</p>
<p>eternally sleepy: that's pretty neat, did you have to survive ICSE/CBSE or did you go to an international school? At any rate, I can see the Indianishness rubbed off on you because you referred to it as 'standard' and not 'grade'. Anyway, I've been in India all my life; born bread and buttered here, so to speak. But I go to an International school and am wierdly susceptible to accents, so when other Indians talk to me they think I'm NRI (though they can't for the life of me figure out which country I'm from, because my accent's really wierd).</p>
<p>The fact remains that after a point, especially > 2300, your scores cease to indicate ability. what helps you beyond that is more your test-taking skills, and the same applies for the 2200-2300 range. A-Card, I personally think they should consider your new sat because 2150 is comparitively low. But if Bowdon said it doesn't matter, well I personally would take his word for it.</p>
<p>I think your response to the first question, especially <em>how</em> you came across your topics of interest, can be a pretty good indicator of 'passion'. Was it in your physics textbook or did you stumble upon it while reading Discover? Did your teacher mention it in class or were you randomly researching the topic on Wikipedia? That sort of stuff. Anyway, in the brochure they mention SSP is also socially stimulating, so your answer to 'what distiguishes you from most of your peers' sounds like it would have played a big role.</p>
<p>i didn't send my SAT scores because i took them just in March, same thing with the ACT. i did send PSAT and SAT IIs though. i emailed the ACT and SAT scores after i got them back (and also waitlisted lol), and mr. bowdon said that they didn't matter. idk if it would have affected my admission if i had taken it earlier, but it certainly wouldn't have hurt. o well. just hope for the best i suppose</p>
<p>i actually really don't know why I got in over some other ppl unless you wanna compare PSAT scores. i could easily say the same things about my essays that kmac222 said except i was accepted so i don't wish i had put much more effort into them. but they were really bad.</p>
<p>Haha, stats...
My stats aren't as good as some people's here...
When I applied, PSAT of 226 and SAT of 2230 from sophomore year. I took March SAT and scored significantly better and e-mailed them that score, but I didn't hear back from them, so I don't think they saw it...</p>
<p>In terms of essays...I remember really liking mine when I wrote it, but looking back at it now, it's kind of choppy because I deleted stuff for the word limit...</p>
<p>The packet thing...my friend who applied under the early deadline said her packet arrived several days later, so I'm thinking it should arrive within this week or early next week...</p>
<p>lethal_teapot: i, um, had to survive cbse. it was horrible, i tell you, horrible! especially b/c i didn't know any hindi. or tamil. <em>sigh</em> i flip standard/grade depending upon whom i'm talking to.
ah, you're in an intl school. that explains a lot. i was wondering how you'd explain away the 6 weeks of school you would have missed.
let's move this conversation to fb; we're probably annoying people.</p>
<p>about admissions:
but it can't be all essays, either.
i wrote all my essays in about 4 hours the the day before the final deadline. i hated them, still do. and i specifically said that i love physics, but don't know a thing about astronomy.
i'd say my essays were unique, but bad. they had this unpolished and... raw feeling to them.</p>
<p>or stats:
psat: 238, gpa 4.0 (uw, us), straight a's in cbse school, and pretty horrible board exam grades (a 98 in math, and an 84 in science! <em>gasp</em> judging by my teachers' speeches, i'll die alone, friendless, forsaken by the world)</p>
<p>A.Small.Prayer: shut up about your stats not being good. sheesh. kids these days.</p>
<p>oh. and i'm from california, which can't be good.</p>
<p>i bet their admissions process is all awesome and Holistic.</p>
<p>can't wait for the packet. i've got 6 days to convince my dad that this is better than research at Local College.</p>
<p>kmac222,
i'm also waiting for SSP and 2 other programs I've been waitlisted for...
hope i get into one... and did mr bowdon say anything about when we'd be notified?</p>