The Final Countdown.

College Search & Selection
1

<p>First, I would like to apologize for the length of this thread. I understand that many of you don't have the time, and I especially appreciate those of you who give the required amount of time to this post and help me out. I am a rising senior, and a very, very nervous applicant. This is pretty much everything I've amounted to in 4 years of HS. This is both for reassurance and for help in weeding out the schools that I have no chance at or will not be a good fit at. Thank you for anyone who takes the time reading all of this and I can't tell you enough how much I appreciate your help in this grueling process. Any advice would be greatly appreciated (especially about if I should attach a resume and what's not important to add)</p>

<hr>

<p>I switched school districts, and states, between my 8th and 9th grade year. It was a tough move, but the new district I went into was a ridiculously easy and uncompetitive one -- thus, I had a 4.0 GPA with no problems. Then, we moved again and back to my old state, Ohio, but to a ridiculously competitive to the point of insanity school -- and my unweighted GPA dropped. and dropped. and dropped.Yes, my school is recognized as an extremely tough public high school by colleges (and boasts itself to be #1 in the state...though that's surely debatable). I'm not sure if that's enough. Furthermore, the students themselves are insanely competitive. For example, my opponent TP'd my house because I won the presidency for MUN. Y'know, insane and unhealthy competition. I'm not a cookie cutter asian, and I'm not sure how much that will hurt me.</p>

<p>GPA - so far, 3.72 UW, 4.10 W - barely top 10%
After senior year starts up, hopefully somewhere closer to 3.77 UW 4.26 W</p>

<p>Freshman Year:
Honors English - A
Honors Biology - A
Honors Environmental Science - A
Honors Geometry- A
Spanish 1 - A
Phys Ed - A
Art 1 - A
Honors Wold History - A</p>

<p>Sophomore Year:
Honors English - A
Honors Chemistry - A
AP Biology - B
Algebra 2 - A
Spanish 2 - B
AP US History- A
Public Speaking - A
Debate - A</p>

<p>Outside of School -
Discover Hopkins - JHU: Preventative Medicine and Health in the 21st Century - Pass</p>

<p>Junior Year :
Psychology- A
AP Economics - A
AP English Language - A
AP Chemistry- B
Honors Physics - CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC
Spanish 3 - B
Precalculus - A</p>

<p>Senior Year Schedule:
AP Calc BC
AP Euro
AP Statistics
AP English Literature
AP Government
Spanish 4</p>

<p>One of my recommendations will be from my AP Euro teacher who is also in charge of Mock Trial and Model UN, both of which I am an officer in. My other one will most likely be from my AP Calc BC teacher who was also my algebra 2 teacher. He took an immense amount of interest in me when I moved here and gave me some of the best advice of my hs career; and I've thanked him for it and he's fully aware of how much he's impacted my growth as a student.</p>

<p>PSAT scores:
216 - Junior (78 on CR, highest in school) Commended at least, semifinalist probably-- meaning finalist probably.</p>

<p>AP Scores -
Biology: 5
US History - 4
AP English - 5?4?
AP Macro Econ - ???
AP Micro Econ - ????
AP Chem - 4?5?</p>

<p>SAT 2 Scores -
Biology M - 750
US History - 740
English Lit- 710 ( retaking)
Chemistry - 690
Math II- 740 ( retaking)</p>

<p>SATs - 2190 superscored; retaking- I'm capable of 2250; but it depends on how well I concentrate during the test date.</p>

<p>EC's :
Speech & Debate 2007-Present
Elected Vice President 2009- Present
Original Oratory Competitor 2007- Present
State level competitor 2008, 2009
North Coast District – National Qualifier Tournament Finalist 2009
Original Oratory/ Original Interpretation Captain 2008-2009
National Forensic League – Distinction Degree
Highest NFL Points in my school</p>

<p>Model United Nations 2007-Present
Elected President 2009- Present
Elected Vice President 2008- 2009
Regular Delegate at CCWAMUN conference 2007-Present
- Represented Panama, Australia & Namibia
Spearheaded _____ High School’s 1st Out-Of-State conference 2009
Awarded Superior Delegation
-Highest honors; Both Spring & Fall Conferences 2008
Chairwoman – CCWAMUN Spring Conference 2009
youngest chairperson at conference, youngest chairperson from my school ever</p>

<p>Mock Trial 2007-Present
Competed as a Lawyer 2007-Present
Awarded Best Attorney- District Level 2008, 2009
Awarded Best Attorney - Regional Level 2009
Elected Team Captain 2008-2009
Elected Club Officer- Historian 2009- Present</p>

<p>NHS 2009-Present
- Active Member, Inducted junior year-- should get in a lot of volunteer work for that</p>

<p>Drama Club 2007-Present
-participated in two school productions so far, and hoping to participate in a third this fall</p>

<p>Freshman Photography Club 2006-2007
- Elected Vice President 2007
- 1st place School Wide Contest Winner 2007
( is this even worth putting on the app?)</p>

<p>Volunteer Work
Cleveland Clinic Foundation 2008
- Researched at the Biomedical Engineering Dept.
of the Lerner Institute of Research; approximately 300 hours 2008
- Presented Data to Northeaster Ohio Science
& Engineering Fair 2009
- Awarded 3rd place in Human Medical Engineering category 2009
- Awarded Special Awards and $200 prizes from: 2009
Cleveland Clinic - Dept of Biomedical Engineering
Cleveland Clinic - Dept of Pathobiology
Stratford Commons – Senior Care Community 2007- Present
Union County Library 2007-2008
Barack Obama Rally - Akron; 2008</p>

<p>Interning at a World Wide Law firm this summer. (Jones Day)
Chairwoman at 40th Orissa Society of the Americas : Led a seminar about connecting the youth and the older members of the Oriya society and how we can work together to become a stronger community as well as help Orissa (it's a state in India) as a whole</p>

<p>Languages
Fluent in: English, Oriya, Hindi
Experienced in: Spanish</p>

<p>Interests
Acoustic Guitar 2006-Present
- Two Years of Lessons
Classical Piano 2002-Present
-Four Years of Lessons
Prose/Poetry-
- Published “An Ellipsis,” a short poem, in prestigious and nationally recognized
school literary magazine, Images 2009; another one became a semifinalist (maybe finalist later) in a Famous Poets competition: It's also getting published and is getting recorded into an audio book; and another poem in two other anthologies, one of which recognized it as a poem of "high merit"</p>

<h2>I'm working my arse off on my essays. I'm a fairly talented writer, but everything is going into these essays. I'm pretty sure my commonapp one is going to be about my life in a series of speeches, and how I was pushed into it at the age of 6 in front of my elementary school in India; and detailing how my accent changes slightly with every major speech and every major move from my 8th grade commencement speech, my Student Council Vice President Speech in front of a camera, etc etc and then finally coming to High School where I spend almost every saturday in a suit, giving round upon round of memorized 10 minute speeches that I write myself yadda yadda. Or something like that. It should be good if not better, especially since we have some lady at our school work with our essays and stuff.</h2>

<p>I want to go to law school eventually. For undergrad, I would like to major in economics/international relations or get a bachelors in business.</p>

<p>These are schools that I would die for:
Columbia (ED), Brown, Dartmouth, Upenn
and just because I need closure from my old dream school that I blew the chance for:
Stanford</p>

<p>These are schools I'd be okay at:
Cornell, UMich Ross, UCB, UCLA, Tufts, JHU, NYU Stern
I'm scared that the classes are way too big, or everyone is way too intensely competitive like my current school</p>

<p>These are schools I'm concerned about the "fit":
I'm liberal and not at all preppy. I get along with most everyone but hate homogeneous crowds or being in an ostracized minority. I'm Indian but hardly fit the stereotype (just look at my science grades ) . I'd appreciate a school with a great music scene and lots of things to do both on campus and off campus.</p>

<p>USC, UVA, Duke, UNC Chapel Hill, Georgetown</p>

<p>Other Schools I still need to research:</p>

<h2>Amherst, Williams, WUSTL</h2>

<p>ANY advice will be appreciated. In short, I'm an Indian kid with so-so grades and a good amount of leadership/involvement. I've tried to make the best out of what I've been offered and though I haven't taken every the traditional AP hungry path that is typical of the asians at my school, I have taken really important classes such as Public Speaking, Debate, Psychology and others that have shaped how I think rather than how much I can cram into my brain.... while still managing to take the "hardest available courseload"</p>

2

<p>:(((((((((</p>

3

<p>I’m no expert at the “chance me” thing, but my sense is that if you could apply to every school on your lists (which I DON’T recommend), you’d get into quite a few. Not all, but quite a few. It’s just impossible to predict which ones. Your grades, your scores, your ec’s all should be good enough to have a shot at any of these schools. The reason it’s not a sure thing is not because there is anything wrong with your profile. It’s simply because there are so many qualified kids applying to all these schools. This is why experienced parents keep repeating that the Ivies, etc., are a reach for everybody.</p>

<p>So wrap your mind around that, accept it, and try to relax a little. You will get into an excellent school. But probably not every one you apply to.</p>

<p>You do need to add a couple of match/safety schools. If money is not an issue, these could include American U. or George Washington (Washington, DC schools with good IR/econ programs). If money is an issue, you should include an in-state public or a less selective school that offers merit scholarships.</p>

<p>And consider the University of Chicago. It is slightly less selective than some of the schools on your list, but academically it is at least as good as any. Top notch for econ and IR. No problem at all fitting in for a liberal, non-preppy Indian American. And they offer good merit scholarships to about 10% of admits.</p>

4

<p>What’d I know, it looks to me like you will probably be accepted anywhere you apply. One thought- given your sensitivity to other asians and being a minority, I would suggest you think very carefully about what Wash U in St Louis, MO would be like to live in. Granted the academic community is always tolerant, but the area around it may not be.</p>

5

<p>You’re certainly not guaranteed to get into all of those colleges; but again, as you’ve said, I think you have a reasonable shot at most of them.</p>

6

<p>I’ve had a love-hate thing with UChicago for a while. Chicago is pretty awesome, and I have friends there-- but I’m afraid of the academic environment. I love learning, but not at all to the point where I let my studies take over my life. UChicago is stereotyped to be very hard work, or “where fun comes to die.” And I’m just not sure if I can handle that :confused: </p>

<p>Does anyone know which schools on my list I should just cross off for fit or for any other reason?</p>

7

<p>Can you write out, in 2-3 sentences per school, why you like each school on your list?</p>

<p>Also, have you visited any schools, even if they’re not currently on your list? If so, can you give us brief feedback about those visits?</p>

8

<p>

As t_c suggests, the best way to answer that is for you to start visiting some schools. If visits are not practical - or to help narrow down the ones you really want to visit - order some of the Collegiate Choice Walking Tour DVDs.</p>

<p>[Collegiate</a> Choice Walking Tours Videos - college videos, campus tours, college guides, college planning, college admissions](<a href=“http://www.collegiatechoice.com/]Collegiate”>http://www.collegiatechoice.com/)</p>

9

<p>Yeah, actually I just got back from a Northeast college tour this weekend. </p>

<p>Dartmouth- Beautiful. The D-plan is absolutely amazing, and since I have an issue with taking 7 classes per day for a full year, the idea of taking 2-3 classes per quarter and changing modes all the time is awesome. They make studying abroad easy as well, and when you couple that with their amazing international relations program as well as cross classes with Tuck School of Business and their high law school admit rates, this school is perrrrrfect. I’m considering ED-ing here instead of Columbia.</p>

<p>Columbia- It was a small campus, but I was still ridiculously impressed. I’m kinda eh about the core curriculum, but they don’t force you to take anything I’m really opposed to. It’s just the idea of forcing :confused: But, it’s Manhattan. It’s culture you can’t get anywhere in the US. I’m sure Columbia will prepare anyone for success in life in any field just from the amount of exposure we’d all have living in NYC and taking classes with some of the most influential people in the world. </p>

<p>Brown- FREEDOM OF CHOICE. providence is awesome! everyone’s so gosh-darn happy. Oh, and it has a great law school acceptance rate as well. </p>

<p>Cornell- Eh, it was pretty. I wasn’t too impressed with anything besides the landscape… but I’m not going to college for that. It’s pretty cutthroat. The only real appeal it has for me is that I have at least 10 good friends there already. </p>

<p>Tufts- Eh. Nothing special. International Relations program kicks ass though. </p>

<p>I visited Stanford and Berkeley last year. </p>

<p>Stanford- :open_mouth: It’s just so perfect. That’s all. </p>

<p>Berkeley- It was nice. I heard it’s pretty cutthroat though. But it was nice. </p>

<p>Most of the state schools I’m applying to are there because if I don’t get into a top notch economics/international relations program, I’d rather just get a BBA in 2-3 years and get onto law school faster.</p>

10

<p>oh, i visited duke as well. i liked it, but i’m not so sure i’d fit in.</p>

11

<p>^ Yeah UCB and Duke are, how do I put this … different. </p>

<p>I’m a little surprised that Emory and Tulane aren’t on your list … Tulane especially since there are essentially two law schools on campus. Warm weather, smart kids, lots to do in both cities. Also, if you’re thinking about Columbia you might want to add Barnard to your list. Good luck!</p>

12

<p>They’re in the ghetto lol </p>

<p>I’ve looked into Emory, but again I’m concerned about the fit. </p>

<p>The biggest decision on my mind: Dartmouth ED v Columbia ED.
I visited Dartmouth without too much information and fell in love with it and its people. Columbia, I had extremely high hopes for, and they fell somewhat short. </p>

<p>AAAH</p>

13

<p>Pity you didn’t make it to Penn on your tour. It’s full of happy students and has a top law school that in which the undergrads are allowed to take classes (Columbia doesn’t let you, and Brown and Dartmouth don’t even have a law school). Cross-classes with Wharton of course are also available, along with all of Penn’s undergrad schools and most of their grad schools.</p>

<p>The IR program does marvelously at sending students to top internships (Goldman Sachs, etc), top grad schools (one of my friends in IR was picking between acceptances to Harvard, Stanford, and Penn Law), and top jobs. 100% of the IR department’s resources go to undergraduates.</p>

<p>Penn has lots to do on-campus (more than Columbia) and tons to do off-campus (Philadelphia > Hanover, Providence).</p>

<p>If not ED, it should certainly be an RD choice for someone like you!</p>

14

<p>could i ask what your concern for your fit at duke is?</p>

15

<p>ilovebagels: I’m most definitely applying to Penn RD-- one of my best friends goes there and loves it. Is the IR program through Wharton? If not, and you get denied from Wharton, can you still get accepted into Penn? Because honestly, with my grades junior year, I just can’t see them accepting me… even though the bad grades were in non-business related classes. </p>

<p>eatsalot: I lived in North Carolina for a year and got a chance to visit Duke’s beautiful campus then. I just remember my experience in NC one where I was the extreme minority in my political views, and I didn’t have the whole Ralph Lauren/Tommy Hilfiger golf girl thing going on so I was somewhat different from the other students. I mean, everyone was nice (unless we were discussing politics), but I don’t know, I’m just concerned Duke will be something like that.</p>

16

<p>Re. the ED thing - go with your gut! If you really like the freedom of choice, it speaks volumes :)</p>

17

<p>I decided on dartmouth :)</p>

18

<p>You sounded like you liked D a whole lot more :)</p>

19

<p>honestly, I love Dartmouth, Columbia, and Brown so much that if any one of those school takes me in, I’d be gracious to no end. </p>

<p>Strange though, since they’re all completely different schools.</p>

20

<p>

Damn skippy! <3

No, the IR program is in the College, in the School of Arts & Sciences (SAS). You might be thinking of the Huntsman Program in International Studies & Business, a special joint-degree program that gives you a BS from Wharton and a BA from SAS</p>

<p>

Contrary to popular belief, Wharton is not some kind of “penn-Plus” honors track or something within Penn. It is a separate undergraduate school for business training. You apply to Penn’s Wharton/College/Engineering/Nursing specifically, and you only pick one. (exceptions are joint programs like the Huntsman Program, in which case you can pick to be considered for regular Wharton OR regular College if denied from Huntsman).</p>

<p>From someone with your interests, it is better to go to the College, enroll in the IR major, and from there take courses in Wharton, Law, etc with the College and liberal arts at your core.</p>