What are my chances at early action at MIT and Caltech?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Hi, </p>

<p>My name is Lindsay and I just finished applying to Caltech and MIT early action, and I was wondering what my chances are. I'm going for the tube! :) </p>

<p>I am a white female from Scottsdale, AZ. </p>

<p>GPA: 4.0 (unweighted) 4.76 (weighted) School does not rank, but top 1% of class (of 568)</p>

<p>SAT: (Reasoning) M: 760 W:770 R:700
(Subject) Chemistry: 730 Math II: 750</p>

<p>Activities: Gymnastics - This is my big thing. 26 hrs/ week
Helping Hands in Africa - an organization that I've done a bunch of volunteer work for (service trip to South Africa, Silent Auction organizer, etc.)
Apple Computer Club - I founded this club as a junior, and I am the president.
NASA Club - Treasurer as a sophomore, and president last year and this year
Other Community Service - I have various other community service activities
National Honor Society
Society of Women Scholars</p>

<p>Interview: Lasted 1.25 hours; I think it went pretty well</p>

<p>Recommendations: Hard to know since I haven't seen them, but I think at least one is really good. </p>

<p>Essays : Activity you do purely because you enjoy it - I wrote about doing a word puzzle every morning.
Program that appeals to you at MIT - I wrote about D-labs
Challenge - I wrote about balancing the training for the national gymnastics competition with AP tests last spring.
Creativity - I wrote about coming up with the idea to assemble pencil boxes for the preschoolers in South Africa for my birthday last year.
World you come from/ aspirations - I wrote about my interest in chemical engineering and how I hope to use my knowledge.
Optional - list of 20 random things about me</p>

<p>Awards: 2009 AZ Level 9 Gymnast of the Year
AP Scholar with Distinction
National Merit Semifinalist</p>

<p>AP's : European History 4
Calculus BC 5
Chemistry 4
English Language 5
US History 4</p>

<p>Classes:
Freshman - H English, H Geometry, H Biology, Piano, Dance, Intro to Engineering, P.E., Spanish 3-4
Sophomore - H English, H Pre-Calculus, H Chemistry, AP Euro History, Dance, H Spanish 5-6
Junior - AP English, AP Calculus BC, AP Chemistry, AP US History, H Spanish 7-8, Student aide for spanish teacher
Senior - AP English, AP Physics, AP Statistics, AP Government, AP Macroeconomics, AP Spanish 9-10, H Calculus III/ Differential Equations</p>

<p>Thanks so much! :)</p>

2

<p>if u dont get accepted, i dont know who would</p>

3

<p>Thanks! Also, I have a 33 on my ACT. I forgot to put that up there.</p>

4

<p>being female helps you a ton</p>

<p>70% for mit
70% for caltech</p>

<p>albeit, i think caltech sucks. why would you apply there</p>

5

<p>Being a completely objective third party here, I would have to say your chances are extraordinary. You can forget about people who do little math things over the summer and get 800’s on SATs. Those people don’t have the dedication to go and work out for 26hrs a week. Plus I bet you’re one of those kids who have a love for math that is so strong that it drives them to wear nerdy shirts to school on Thursdays ;). You are probably also applying to like 12 different schools aswell. Don’t worry about MIT and Caltech. They adore people like you. Just like I do :). You’ll be fine Lindsay just remember to breathe, take a look, and then check it off.</p>

6

<p>I hate to break it to you, but I’m pretty sure CalTech doesn’t care at all about anything that’s not math/science related. You’ve got a good shot at MIT, but I don’t think you’re a great fit for CalTech.</p>

7

<p>You have a nice shot, unless, of course, L J is applying.</p>

8

<p>Hate to say this but I don’t think you have a shot at getting into Caltech. Unlike MIT, Caltech really demands a heavy commitment to math and science just for a student to successfully graduate from there. As lame as this may sound, your subject test scores might actually keep you out of there because of this. MIT is a lot harder to predict, but certainly your chances there are not next to nil.</p>

9

<p>oh lucky i cant get a 4.0 uw anymore:(</p>

10

<p>are you being recruited by MIT or Caltech for sports at all?</p>

<p>Your high level sports participation is amazing and I particularly like your creativity essay topic :).</p>

<p>I think your shot is amazing! :D</p>

11

<p>Everything is good except for awards. The lack of awards in Science and Math is a little disorienting considering the biased nature of MIT and Caltech. </p>

<p>Average SAT scores for acceptants, good EC. Its hard to judge. Many sport people put in a good 20 hours a week and including other clubs and EC can go to 30 hrs a week in EC commitment.</p>

<p>What I think is a critical weakness if the SAT 2 subject scores. It takes literally like a 80% to get an 800 on Math 2 and 730 on Chemistry is only slightly better than average score of like 670.</p>

<p>All things considered, id say you are a low reach for MIT and Caltech.</p>

12

<p>Lots of misinformation here. If you look at the stats for both schools, your CR score is a big issue. Hopefully the reading in better on the ACT. being from AZ does help and you certainly have a shot, but these ‘you’re in’ comments are destructive and show a total lack of looking at the stats.</p>