What do you think?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Princeton University
1

<p>Hello all,</p>

<p>I am posting to ask your opinions on how my profile looks right now, to be applying SCEA to Princeton (actually, not entirely sure whether to apply to Harvard or Princeton SCEA yet)</p>

<p>Now, don't get me wrong. I know that you are all students/parents , not adcoms. I know no one has accurate chancing. But tell me what YOU think, as a CCer who has better knowledge on these things than anywhere else on the web :)</p>

<p>ACT: 34
Rank: 15/550
Subject 2 Test: Bio 730, Chem 720
GPA: 3.95 / 4.88 weighted
Course load: Most rigorous available at school</p>

<p>Major awards: </p>

<p>2013 Davidsons Fellow
1st place at International Environmental Sustainaibility Olympiad (ISWEEEP), 2012, 2013
2nd place and 3rd place Intel International Science Fair (ISEF), 2012, 2013 respectively
Patrick J. Hurd Sustainability Award National 1st Place - EPA, 2012</p>

<p>ECs: Senior Class President, Debate Varsity Member and Mentor (active member, represented the first CX team ever in my school), Science Fair, Arsenic Remediation efforts overseas through nonprofit</p>

<p>Volunteer Experience: Help in arsenic poisoning remediation efforts overseas using my science project inventions , pretty much that's it, but I spent over 300+ hrs here.</p>

<p>Summer: Attended 3 summer camps, 1 in 9th grade, 1 in 10th grade, 1 in 11th, all were done under full merit-based scholarships, and were related to Science and Engineering</p>

<p>Ethnicity/Country: South Asian, living in America </p>

<p>School: Large public school, pretty ghetto</p>

<p>Rec letters: Hopefully good :)</p>

2

<p>Looks really good! You will get into some great schools.</p>

3

<p>You seem really passionate about science, which is good because it seems as if top schools prefer young people with one or two highly developed (and sincere) passions to those whose extracurricular involvement is scattered and “well-rounded.”</p>

<p>I’d suggest applying to Stanford in addition to your SCEA schools.</p>

4

<p>OP it looks good but don’t you need three SAT IIs? Also isn’t Math II required? Maybe they’ve changed really recently…</p>

5

<p>@BiologyMaster64 I believe the Math subject test is only required if the OP is considering applying for engineering, which I don’t think they specified. Also according to this website [Application</a> Checklist | Princeton University](<a href=“http://www.princeton.edu/admission/applyingforadmission/checklist/]Application”>http://www.princeton.edu/admission/applyingforadmission/checklist/) only 2 subject tests are required although my son applied having taken 3 (and was admitted/matriculated to the class of 2016 which I believe is your class also?). </p>

<p>@terminatorp it looks like you have a strong background to apply to some selective schools as well as some safeties. You didn’t outline your rationale for Princeton vs Harvard so it’s difficult to respond to which school might be a better fit of the two. If you are considering engineering, for example, Princeton offers a considerably stronger program IMHO. Defining why you are looking at each of these schools is a very important component of your application and will need to be reflected in your essays to be considered a strong enough applicant to be admitted.</p>

6

<p>Thanks to all who responded so far!</p>

<p>@aleaiactaest Yep, I really like to do anything related to science that might correlate to real-life use. My Intel project was pretty much a humanitarian project converted to compete at the fair. Stanford looks to be good, but it’s restrictive as well, so I can only pick one. I might apply there on regular admission perhaps. </p>

<p>@BiologyMaster64 You only need 2 subject tests. I recall at some point earlier Harvard required 3, but now both Princeton and Harvard require only 2, and if you want to apply for engineering, you need to take Math 2, or Math 1, as Cantiger said. I don’t plan on applying to engineering, I really want to go for a Bachelor in Arts and Sciences, and then pursue med school afterwards. </p>

<p>@Cantiger Thank you for your views! I am not going into engineering, I am planning on going into a more general Bachelor of Arts and Sciences type curriculum. Both colleges are well-known for a well-rounded liberal arts education. Harvard however, has better medical schools, and thus I might have a better chance to intern or work as some kind of assistant while over there. Both colleges however, I picked because of the potential connections I can make. I know that the best students in the nation get in these schools, and thus they can only help make me a better person in what I want to do. In a more technical aspect, Princeton in particular, is hugely undergraduate focused, with lots of resources at the disposal of undergrads, which other colleges cannot match. Harvard has lots of resources as well, although not focused on undergrads as Princeton. Both colleges will have a level of opportunity and resources, and student body talent that the majority of other colleges will never match. Want to learn about water sustainability? One of the world’s best professors conducting research on water pollution might be just two buildings away in the campus of Princeton or Harvard. Lots of the stuff I said might sound really generic, but I really do believe in it. </p>

<p>Tldr : My state school will never be able to match the amount of high-end connections I might be able to make in a college like Harvard or Princeton, nor have as much opportunities available to undergrads as them.</p>

7

<p>OP, have you looked at the Integrated Science Program? Professors at Princeton really like interacting with students in general but I heard the kids in that program get nice opportunities in science research.</p>

8

<p>I haven’t heard of it, but I will take a look into it! But I am certain there are excellent opportunities in science research there. I did visit Princeton this summer, and saw that of all the Ivy Leagues, Princeton is the most undergrad focused. Pretty much 3/4ths of the students on campus are undergrad students, and Princeton has the most endowment per undergrad compared to all other Universities in the world!</p>

9

<p>If you really did place at intel, you’re getting into every single university that you apply to. On another note, though, your “numbers” aren’t quite strong for Princeton, just based off of the institution’s statistics. However, you’ll get in, if all of your extracurriculars are true.</p>

10

<p>I assure you my EC’s are true to the best of my ability :slight_smile: I don’t have very many awards, so the ones I do have, I remember quite vividly lol. Check my past posting history, it’s consistent! Thanks for your honest evaluation! I am not sure about getting in every university though…I know of many Intel ISEF rankers who didn’t get in some of the Ivy Leagues they applied to.</p>

11

<p>This is the Intel ISEF contest in which winners like, for example, find breakthroughs in cancer research, right?</p>

12

<p>@terminatorp it sounds like you have a realistic understanding of how difficult it is to gain admission into some of the most selective schools. I wish you the very best!</p>

13

<p>Stop procrastinating and start on your ESSAYS…whether you apply early or regular…work on your essays as if they are the most important thing in the world NOW…essays that MOVE admissions officers versus essays that are GENERIC and appear RUSHED can mean the difference between an acceptance or a rejection…</p>

<p>…with your application being pretty much equal among all the other applicants…your ESSAYS and RECOMMENDATIONS can set you apart from the others…</p>

<p>…I can’t emphasize that enough!</p>

14

<p>Adequate grades/test scores and great extracurriculars and awards with clear focus on environmental sciences. You’ll do fine! Don’t worry…</p>

15

<p>Wadup. . . </p>

<p>While ISEF is a true top tier award, such an honor alone (or even in conjunction with lots of other stuff) doesn’t get you in - I wish it did. I personally know a first place ISEF winner (one of 34 who won first place awards in 17 categories and whose work was done completely in a HS lab working alone), who was rejected from Stanford (with a bit higher GPA and subject scores, same ACT), and waitlisted to a couple of Ivies. That person is attending Princeton as a BSE.</p>

<p>The acceptance process is a mysterious black box about which we can only hypothesize.</p>

<p>I would agree with a statement that the OP will have some great choices come April.</p>

16

<p>“The acceptance process is a mysterious black box about which we can only hypothesize.”</p>

<p>YEP! I had lots of deserving friends who were rejected from all the “top” schools they applied to.</p>

<p>Apply to lots of places is my only advice with regard to this. </p>

<p>But yes, I also second the “make your essays unique” comment.</p>

17

<p>I agree with stemit, EC’s alone don’t justify acceptance. HYPS won’t accept every Intel ISEF finalist that applies for the class of 2018, as firstly, there’s simply too many, considering that there’s only 1600+ seats, and about 100-200 ISEF Finalists (perhaps lets say about 50 rising seniors in that pool) out there. I do hope for the best, but I realize that I am still just like most of the moderately qualified applicants out there :)</p>

18

<p>@exile3418 Thank you for your response! I do certainly hope the adcoms think so ! ;)</p>

19

<p>We are all “just folks,” unless you’re an amazing athlete.</p>

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<p>Eh, what a downer…lol :slight_smile: Dude don’t worry, everyone’s got something special. We all want a bit of reassurance every now and then (which is why I started this thread…lol), but really, we all know deep inside we have the same chance as everyone else! </p>

<p>And us CCers…I see that everyone is so smart and talented that everyone will end up in great places anyways!</p>