"What are my chances?" - A Rising Senior

Colleges and Universities A-Z Yale University
1

<p>GPA: 4.0+ unweighted, but my school is adopting a new policy where they don't differentiate between A+'s and A's when calculating their students' GPAs, which will definitely bring my GPA down. I'm actually really worried because, though I've always had A+/A grades (with only the occasional A-) before junior year, this past year I had disputes over writing style/flow of arguments with my USH and Eng teachers, which earned me B+'s first semester in both, and a B+ in USH second (Eng went up to an A).</p>

<p>My school doesn't rank. "Admission by selective examination," as our transcripts relate, does apply to my school, for what it's worth.</p>

<p>SAT I: CR – 730, Math – 760, Writing – 800 = 2290</p>

<p>SAT II: I'm taking IIC, Bio, and Chem in the fall, and I'm confident I can pull off 750+.</p>

<p>No AP's this year (I only had one slot to put an AP into this year, and I chose to take physiology instead), 4.5 (BC Calc, Physics C, Logic & Comp, Psych, and 2nd semester World Lit) next year. However, all my high school classes are Honors Level or above.</p>

<p>EC’s:</p>

<ul>
<li>Since I was a freshman, I founded (with two other students) the IHELP program in my school, that works to send lab equipment (& other educational materials, with a great focus on fostering cheap yet affective methods of preventative healthcare in poorer regions) as well as funding to schools in Liberia.</li>
<li>Columbia Science Honors Program every Saturday ("highly selective admissions process", not even just a test; consists of courses, though not for credit, at Columbia University) since September of sophomore year.</li>
<li>Participated in the 2004 New York Science and Engineering Fair, with a research proposal for a "Virtual Neuron" to establish an innovative, alternative method to analyzing data on neuronal function</li>
<li>Research Internship at Mt Sinai Medical Center-- second semester freshman year through first semester sophomore year</li>
<li>Chose to attend the C250 Brain & Mind Symposium at Columbia University (May 13-14, 2004)</li>
<li>8-credit bio course at Harvard Summer School-- summer before junior year, earned a C</li>
<li>Research internship at Columbia U from August 2004 (summer before junior year) through senior year (2006)</li>
<li>Tutored extensively in my school; assisted in my school's science labs, to compile a lab curriculum and set up experiments.</li>
<li>Photography has always been more than a hobby for me; to match, I'm photo editor for the yearbook, and I have a portfolio that I will be competing with, as well as possibly submitting in my app.</li>
</ul>

<p>I don't really have any awards, other than NLE (National Latin Exam) medals and a few from math team (good performance on the AMC, invitation to the AIME, but no top awards). Senior year I'll be entering Intel, ISEF, and Siemens, and I'll probably add National Merit to the list, along with myriad smaller awards/scholarships, plus some photo stuff.</p>

<p>Do I stand good chances of getting into Yale? I want to apply EA but I'm soooo incredibly nervous about it.</p>

2

<p>Good chance? No. They accept 1 out of every 11 or so applicants. Virtually all applicants are highly qualified. Your stats place you at or below the 50% mark of all applicants. Your academic ECs look good, but no leadership positions or other passions. Overall, you're in the pool. The pool is about 18,000 strong. 4200 of those will go EA. In that pool will be the athletes, high URMs, legacies, and developmental apps. When a school admits 9.1% of qualified apps, no one has a good chance. Look back at the posts from 15 Dec and 01 Apr at who was admitted, deferred, and rejected. Apply. Apply EA if you like, but find some match and safety schools where you can be happy.</p>

3

<p>.. . . ..</p>

<p>I think your chances are absolutely awesome, objectif_lune!</p>

<p>But I'm a junior too soooo..I guess I can't say all that much. I too am into research and science. Hopefully Yale will value our effort in that area...</p>

4

<p>Sorry, but I have to agree with bandit_TX. Your SAT score is pretty good, and your GPA is passable. Your EC's are also pretty good, but you seem to spread yourself too thin. I don't think it'd be wise to apply EA, since the applicant pool for SCEA is very strong, but I doubt you'd be outright rejected. Just apply, but don't get too hopeful, since applying to HPYMS is a risk for everyone.</p>

5

<p>I personally think you have an excellent chance. I also noticed you have several research internships. How did you acquire them? Was it competitive?</p>

6

<p>DualAnya,</p>

<p>On what planet is a 4.0 UW just "passable"?
Just because the OP doesn't have a Latino sympathy vote doesn't mean she cannot go to yale.</p>

<p>The OP is not spreading herself too thin, and shows a passion towards a specific goal.</p>

7

<p>I'm wondering what the OP means by 4.0+ UW GPA, rather than 4.0.</p>

<p>I think overall, objectif_lune, you have a slightly better than average chance of getting in, which means better than a 9% or 10% chance. It'd be better if you had more leadership roles, and the lack of such roles possibly could hurt you.</p>

8

<p>Remember that the 9.1% chance includes recruited athletes, high level URMs, legacies, and developmental cases. The admit rates for your average great student with a 1500+ is probably more like 4-6%.</p>

9

<p>There's nothing in there that disqualifies from being admitted, and quite a few things that are very good. It's ultimately a bit of random chance, but there's no reason not to apply EA, as long as you realize that you may or may not get in.</p>

10

<p>No, sinbad, when I said 'passable,' I meant that it was pretty good. Sorry, I have a tendency to downplay my words. However, I DO think that tons of extracurriculars could work against the OP. Most of them have to do with math and science, which shows a passion for those fields, and that's good. Even so, just don't get your hopes up, though you have as good a shot as any.</p>

11

<p>Regardless of what anyone says, just apply. Worst case scenario is getting rejected. It's better than to just throw in the towel base on what people say.</p>

12

<p>It's true, I don't have the typical captain or president of club leadership positions... but I founded and "led" the Liberian program, I work alongside a postdoc and a technician to "lead" scientific research (by no means are my internships paper-pushing... and the current one is paid, btw; also, I have an intern...), in a lab that has won practically every major award out there except the Nobel, and my PI is writing me a rec. So what if I don't fit the typical "leadership" mold... I think that's a plus.</p>

<p>Oh yeah, and I got a 5 on the AP Bio and 3 on the AP Chem exams, without having taken the classes.</p>

<p>And my Yale interview rocked.</p>

<p>I don't know, I feel at once so close and yet so far (not to be melodramatic or anything).</p>

<p>(Thanks, everyone.)</p>

13

<p>Your internships are nice, but are not a hook. Your stats are very similar to Freckly Becky from last year. Do a search on her threads. She did her research projects in Yale Medical's lab (where her father taught) and had presented at several juried forums. She was deferred and ultimately rejected. She will be at UMich this fall. You will find many people applying with similar positions on their resume, but with Intel and Siemens awards and SATs well over 2250. That's your competition. How do you stack up against the Stuy and Bronx Sci kids? </p>

<p>As we have all said, you have a shot. Just don't get the feeling that you're in. You are from an over-represented area. Find other schools that you can love just as much where you have a better than 50% chance of admission. Treat Yale as a wish, and be overjoyed if it comes in, but don't count on it.</p>

14

<p>"There's nothing in there that disqualifies from being admitted"</p>

<p>What about the C in the bio course at Harvard? What does that convey?</p>

15

<p>That 2 years before entering college, perhaps I wasn't fully ready to cram all of that material into 8 weeks and do more than just pass... </p>

<p>But, ten months later without any additional prep, I earned a 5 on the exam for the same material/course. I don't know. Personally, I view it as a shortcoming, but I am a crazy perfectionist and have often been known to put things out of perspective, even for uber-critical admissions officers; it was an extra course, it ate a summer that I should have been spending resting after a long period of work (I had worked through the last summer as well, so maybe I finally needed a real vacation, even just a week-long break, and that need trumped my work?)...so it could be said that I try to do too much. However, I feel as though I show that, in the long term, I did not only take care of myself and learn to deal with my needs, but I also manage to master the material (and it's not just the 5 that says this).</p>

<p>Also, I know the Stuy & Bx Sci kids you're referring to, and in all instances they either don't show the same long-term determination and seriousness about science, or they're just that, science internship and nothing else (I did not get into enough detail up there about the "other" aspects of my life, the writing, photo, etc.). But, absolutely, they are my competition.</p>

<p>I'm not treating Yale as a certainty, and I appreciate all of your help; this has definitely been helpful in figuring out how to better structure my application (essay topics, recs, etc).</p>

16

<p>ojectif_lune, I like it. it doesn't matter if you haven't won an award. you have a succinct list and a passion. starting that IHELP group could help.</p>

<p>i think you should apply. your resume is meaningful and isn't a laundry list. your gpa and sat are also great.</p>

17

<p>Can we agree he has an average (10%) chance?</p>

18

<p>yep.</p>

<p>i think anyone here that posts his/her stats has a valid chance.</p>