<p>To anyone who got accepted or waitlisted, could you please post your extracurriculars/ comm. service/ what makes you unique, etc.? I'd liked to see what is considered adequate for Harvard, especially in this cutthroat-competition year.</p>
<p>Thanks! =D</p>
<p>I’m copying and pasting this exactly from a previous post I made today:
Statistics are only going to make you panic. </p>
<p>I say this because you can have 800s across the board, a 4.0, rank one in your class, captainship of the debate team and the football team…and still not make the waitlist. </p>
<p>Harvard accepts around 5% of its applicant pool. And there are literally thousands of valedictory candidates and kids with perfect SAT scores among them. </p>
<p>What can you do? Do your best! And then start hoping! </p>
<p>I say none of this to deter you or scare you – nothing ventured, nothing gained! You should always apply and go for it! But I’m saying be realistic…if you want stats, Collegeboard will give you the middle of the road!</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>I completely agree with amplifiar842. The whole college admissions process, once you look at it, is a game of chance. In the past few days I’ve run the gamut of emotions. I got so scared this weekend because I was waitlisted at Williams and Middlebury, I couldn’t afford two of my safety schools, and the one school I got accepted at and could afford to go to was the last on my list (McGill- amazing school, but not right for me). I had never felt more worthless or unsure of what I was going to do with my life- I was waiting for responses from Harvard and Yale, two of the most difficult schools in the world to get into. I had worked tirelessly for four years and had become a tremendous success in my community, and nothing was working out for me. There was nothing to show for it.</p>
<p>And then, something magical happened. Things worked out. Yesterday I got a call from the Rotary Youth Exchange Program telling me that I was going to spend the next year living in Brussels, Belgium; then I came home today and found an acceptance packet from Harvard University (I did get rejected at Yale though 
and no, I’m not related to an alumnus). What I’ve learned from all of this is that there are ups and downs in life, and that you have no idea what the universe has in store for you. I consider myself very lucky to be accepted at Harvard, and that’s just what it was- good luck, and maybe good karma, coming back to me. If you’re reading this and despairing over your admissions decision, please square your shoulders and remind yourself that you are going to do great things. There are no limits on what any of us can do, no matter what university you go to. I hope you come out of this so so happy. It’s funny how things can turn out for the best. Best wishes.</p>
<p>check the decision thread</p>
<p>Blueyes: beautiful and congratulations! I almost teared up reading that second paragraph :-)</p>
<p>I’m crossing my fingers for Harvard at this very moment!
Hmm…
4 years of varsity track, sportsmanship award
3 years of varsity cross country, sportsmanship award, qualified for section finals all 3 years
4 years of pacific islanders club
4 years of advanced orchestra (section leader), qualified for honors orchestra for 4 years
4 years church choir
AP classes: English, Calculus, US History
President of National Honors Society
extensive community service hours
600 give or take average on SAT’s
Class Valedictorian</p>
<p>I think I pretty much sound like everyone else who applied except for my interview, which probably made the biggest impression. I ended up having this normal sort of conversation about stem cell research, lumpia, imperialism, and the Spanish-American War. I think that’s why I wasn’t flat out rejected. Whatever happens, I have really good safety schools so my dreams won’t come crashing down if I don’t get accepted. Everything happens for a reason and life is too short to dwell on small disappointments. Wherever I end up is where I’m meant to be. :)</p>
<p>You had me at lumpia.</p>
<p>I agree with amplifiar842. You should never try to compare your accomplishments with anyone. This obsession with stats seems to only deprive applicants of their creativity and unique perspective during the admissions process. </p>
<p>Remember that you don’t have to be perfect to be accepted to Harvard. Yes, grades and scores are important. But, too many applicants get so preoccupied with this that they becomes mechanical in their applications, neglecting to embellish their other(and EQUALLY important)assets. </p>
<p>Don’t let anything deter you from applying! Submit you application and say a prayer(or whatever it is that you do) :-)</p>
<p>Re blueyes: I had a very similar experience as in the first paragraph (staring down a last-choice college)…then after the initial college rejections, nothing improved and my family and work life started to crash in a similar manner. Life isn’t always peaches and cream, and I’m still figuring out how to make lemonade out of all the lemons it gave me (gastronomical metaphors, phew). I’m definitely a case study in how numbers and stats hardly determine things, too (2400 SATs, award for top school graduate, good score on USAMO, state champions tennis…wow that list looks perverse after everything that’s happened in the past year). To anyone else in a crappy situation, or who may be next year: think of all those freshly minted Ivy Leaguers getting soft in their guaranteed career paths. Now let’s go kick some ass with all that hunger.</p>
<p>Harvard students: We’re coming for you. :p</p>
<p>Oh, and re the second paragraph: “What I’ve learned from all of this is that there are ups and downs in life, and that you have no idea what the universe has in store for you. I consider myself very lucky to be accepted at Harvard, and that’s just what it was- good luck, and maybe good karma, coming back to me. If you’re reading this and despairing over your admissions decision, please square your shoulders and remind yourself that you are going to do great things. There are no limits on what any of us can do, no matter what university you go to. I hope you come out of this so so happy. It’s funny how things can turn out for the best. Best wishes.”</p>
<p>You just had things work out miraculously; don’t project that onto other people. Sometimes life just has downs, and downs, and downs, and each time you think you’ve finally hit a nadir and can only go up, it still goes down. Remember that you can either kill yourself (which may be a reasonable choice in some situations), or fight as hard as you can to make things better, even if there’s a good chance you’ll die in an even worse position than you were in the first place. And telling strangers that they’re “going to do great things” is a meaningless platitude that I hear mostly from successful adults and those who’ve gotten into top-tier programs. Don’t assume that whoever you’re talking to will achieve their goals, or even come close. Most people fail miserably. Not even trying to is the greater crime.</p>
<p>In short, some will have things served to them on a silver admissions-letter platter. It happens. But look down the list of the richest men in the world and at where they graduated from college. (<a href=“http://financial-planning.gigabyteshosting.com/2008/05/top-15-worlds-richest-people-as-of-2008/[/url]”>http://financial-planning.gigabyteshosting.com/2008/05/top-15-worlds-richest-people-as-of-2008/</a>) There’s something interesting.</p>