What are my non-exsistent chances

Colleges and Universities A-Z Cornell University
1

<p>hey everyone. i am from pakistan i was wondering if someone could help me out here. u see i graduated from school, took a gap year and applied to a couple of unis in the U.S (jhu, middlebury, macalester, and vassar) from where i got rejected :(. i also applied to LUMS, the most prestigious university in pakistan and got in, but they didn't have biological sciences. now i am a freshman at karachi university studying microbiology but i just dont see it going anywhere. i really want to experiment with different science majors to pick the right one and that kind of system is unavailable here. so i am thinking of applying again which has now become a necessity. transfer is not an option since we don't have a credit hour system. my stats are listed below. could u help me out here.</p>

<p>SAT 1240 1st try
SAT 1380 2nd try (760 math, 620 verbal)</p>

<p>SAT2 math2c 740, writing 780, biology E/M 750. </p>

<p>(high school).
eng lang. 94
math 90+
chemistry 93
biology 96
physics 86</p>

<p>(college)
transcripts haven't come out yet</p>

<p>ECs
(high school)
member of the prefectorial council
member of the public speaking club
member of the community service club
member of the badminton team
first prize in art competition city wide
first prize in elocution contest school wide
volunteer work in a charity instituition of disabled kids</p>

<p>(college)
*founder, current pesident of the literary society (there never had been a concept of such a society before)
i've organised, managed and given presentations on avian influenza, relativity, artists of the renaissance,evolution and more are underway. we're also conducting an I.Q test of all students in the dept. and organizing a debate competition.
won a cash prize on my first presentation.
*editor of yearly magazine 'microbia'.
*am single-handedly organizing,paying for, and advertising an exhibition for my comic-book/fantasy artwork, being the first to give comic books a platform in pakistan.
*i have been teaching 2 'o'level kids math for a year now, and also help them out in biology, add math, chem, and physics. their grades have really improved over time.
*i also have plans to write two books, but due to the paucity of time they might not get done before i apply.</p>

<p>Olevels
english 83
urdu(foreign language) 95
chem 84
biology 85
physics 88
math 86
pak.studies 72
islamiat(religion) 80</p>

<p>As levels
general paper (writing) 95
biology 93 (highest in the whole school and the only 90+ to our school after 2 yrs)
math 90
chem 89
physics 88</p>

<p>A levels
biology 86 (highest again)
math 89
physics 84
chemistry 82</p>

<p>i took a gap year to give my dad a break from the fiscal burden he had to bear to pay for my high school education, although my family was against it. the job was intended to help him out financially and to pay for my exhibition. i know that my scores aren't stellar, but the other stuff i've done (the exhibition, society n stuff) is unbelievably difficult to pull off since there is no conception of these things here, and there is a hope that these things, and other burdens wouldn't go past consideration when i apply.
could you help me out in deciding whether or not i should give the SATs again? how many of the above colleges have representatives in pakistan? what are my chances at all these schools? how do i convey to them the situation/ difficulties i faced in accomplishing what i have, and abstract qualities like leadership, intellectual curiosity etc, and that i have done everything uptil now on my own with no external help whatsoever in anything. and any other advice that you may have will be welcome. just keep in mind that there is not much i can contribute financially to college education and any safeties etc u might recommend must be generous in giving need-based aid.</p>

2

<p>hey ask Arjun Shankur Prakash, he's an international too, he would know</p>

3

<p>I don't think you'll get in</p>

4

<p>Retake your SAT-1s and SAT-2s.
Your HS scores aren't extrememly impressive, but that isn't the end of the world.
For someone from the subcontinent, those are very good ECs...they'll certainly boost your application, if presented the right way. Your ECs display a fair deal of initiative too.
I would recommend that you concentrate on that part of your app.
Universities would also consider the hardships you've faced.
Latly, apart from reccomendations from your HS teachers, also get a few from your University professors.</p>

<p>On the whole, a decent chance, considering your background and ECs...but, do not expect aid from Cornell because as I said in the Int'l forum, Cornells need-blind for admissions, but not aid.</p>

5

<p>consider the UC's, like UCLA or berkeley... they're both stellar schools, and i'm pretty sure they're international friendly, and i promise you that the weather is unsurpassed in california, being a california native</p>

<p>you shouldn't rule out those schools, as they are extremely strong, especially in the sciences, and the environment they foster is very friendly to people of all kinds of backgrounds. private message me if you have any more questions</p>

6

<p>why did you score the lowest in Pakistani studies and Islamiat? Also if you're taking Urdu as a foreign language what is your native language, Punjabi? also, if you want to do medical studies in Pakistan shouldn't you be going to Agha Khan University, not Karachi University?</p>

<p>EDIT: nevermind it just says you want to do bio sciences, not medical... but still why didn't you go to Agha Khan?</p>

7

<p>If you're looking for more of a safetie school that will let you experiment with the different types of sciences, I'd say to look into University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC). I recently read an article about how it takes a different approach to sciences than many other colleges - instead of trying to "weed out" the students they try to make it accesible to everyone and really allow people to explore - and they've been getting great career placements afterwords. UMBC is really moving up for sciences, without being cutthroat, allowing people to explore, and it just seems really great. You might want to check that out.</p>

8

<p>english is my first language.
why don't u think i'll get in they're are lotsof people here with way lower scores and ppl are saying they should go fr RD and that they stand fair chances?</p>

9

<p>
[quote]
see i graduated from school, took a gap year and applied to a couple of unis in the U.S (jhu, middlebury, macalester, and vassar) from where i got rejected .

[/quote]
</p>

<p>You're an interational, your SATs aren't outstanding and your grades aren't great.</p>

10

<p>non-existent</p>

11

<p>I still think you should go for it!</p>

12

<p>thanx figgy. but i seriously might consider not applying there.</p>

13

<p>Umm.. can you ppl please clarify to me how his HS stats is not impressive; it looks quite good to me..</p>

14

<p>^^^ Yeah, I think his stats are good and his ECs are great. I don't see it either. Maybe y'all are too picky. Well, good luck!
I'm jealous. You have a badminton team. That's the only sport that I can play really well.</p>

15

<p>I am Pakistani too, but I live in the United States, I have a 2000 right now on the new SAT, don't know what that translates into, but its high 1300, and a lot of people tell me that I need to raise my scores for such schools. It makes sense, because we are just above the median score. I am planning on taking the SAT I the second time, this coming october. Good luck with your aspirartions, oh yeah, my DAD went to LUMS (well he first went to Notre Dame for chip design, and graduated then went to LUMS), really good school. Where in Karachi do you live, I have grand - parents out there. Did you go to Atchison College in Lahore, excellent school!!!</p>

16

<p>thanx again u guys. although i am giving the sat again.
i am in karachi. i graduated from the city school darakhshan
and applied to lums just fr the heck of it. though they tell me they're starting biology next year . i might apply again.</p>

17

<p>awesome...definitely raise your scores as I am hoping to do, and I think we should be set!!!</p>