Wow

Colleges and Universities A-Z Johns Hopkins University
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<p>"I understand that this may come as a disappointment, but I hope that it is tempered by good news from other schools to which you have applied."</p>

<p>In my case, I got rejected at Duke and JHS and waitlisted at Wash U (= rejection). All I am waiting for now is Harvard, and we all know the outcome of that decision. I have to go to my saftey school :(. This is taken from Wash U regular decision.</p>

<p>Decision: Waitlisted</p>

<p>Stats:
-SAT I: 630 CR 780 M 650 W E-10 (one sitting)
-SAT IIs: 770 Math II 730 Chem 710 US H
-ACT: n/a
-GPA: 4.00 (unweighted), 4.44 (weighted)
-Rank: 1/204
-Other stats: Member of a Research Institute/H Rights Advocacy Group toward Lebanon. President of my church youth group (also an ethnic youth group). I play Rugby on a nationally competitive team (won an award for defense on the team). Teach bible classes at my church to kindergartners. Senior editor of Yearbook (only senior in the yearbook club). And a couple other minor-school-based clubs. (e.g. Investment Club). About 2-4 hrs of service per week (tutoring in school, out of school, et. al.)
-Essays: The writing for my essay was decent, but the topic was very unique IMO. I wrote about how I came to finally appreciate the land of my heritage (Leb) after experiencing the 2006 Summer War in the country and observing the interesting psychological state of those around me (and myself) while we were trapped in the country amidst warfare.
-Teacher Recs: One should be very good, another should be very good/good.
-Counselor Rec: I have no idea.
-Hook (if any): Not really. I guess I just have had more unique experiences in my life than the typical applicant. I live in Leb every summer, speak arabic, and (as you can see), much of my Ex-Cs are geared toward my heritage.
-State or Country:
-School Type: College-Prep
-Ethnicity: Leb.
-Gender: Male
-Perceived Strengths/Weaknesses: My strengths include my GPA, class rank, Ex-Cs, Service, Essay, Some Recs. My weaknesses: SATs of course! (especially CR). SAT IIs are not that great, but I guess they are decent. I also showed no interest toward Wash U (visits, mailing list, etc.). </p>

<p>-Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/denied: I think I was waitlisted because of 1. My SAT score. 2. Lack of Interest. or probably 3. A combination of poor SAT scores and lack of interest.</p>

<p>General Comments/Congratulations/Venting/Commiserations,etc: I was actually expecting an acceptance, but looking at all the other more qualified applicants who were accepted/waitlisted, I realize I have no reason to complain. Wash U was my 2/3rd choice, so I am definitely staying on the waitlist. Congrats to all accepted!</p>

<p>Ok, so I really do not want to go to my saftey school, but it looks like I have no choice. All I plan on doing now, is emailing Wash U about some new awards. Does anyone else have suggestions. Appeal the decision?</p>

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<p>It wouldnt hurt to appeal…But you might get into Harvard, u never know :)</p>

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<p>Thanks for the hope. But for now, I am assuming that it wont happen. On a side note, the “wow” title just represents my sadness/shock. I understand why these schools would reject me.</p>

4

<p>well send a letter of intent to washu, and appeal JHU…and cross ur fingers for harvard. :wink:
GOOD LUCK</p>

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<p>don’t lose hope! definitely let your waitlist schools know that you are very interested, and hope that your harvard adcom was in a good mood when they reviewed your app. i’m so sorry that you’re disappointed-- you seem like a really nice person. remember that no matter where you end up, even if it’s just a safety school, it’s what you make of the experience that counts. take advantage of all the opportunities that come your way, and you can have just as much success (if not more!) at a school that doesn’t carry a brand-name reputation.</p>

6

<p>True, thanks for the hope. I plan on appealing Duke and sending a letter to Wash U. I guess Harvard is the school most likely to see my diversity through the application (being in a war, bombing raid, having terrorists (Hizb…) threaten my grandpa, being completely immersed in the Leb culture, being very active with my parish/ethnicity, etc.) </p>

<p>I just feel that now a days, diversity is only seen in the “majority” minorities. They just don’t seem to care about other cases of diversity. I think it is safe to say I am more diverse than the typical URM. </p>

<p>On a side note, I do not support AA; just because someone is of a particular race, does not mean they lived a significantly different lifestyle/ are more diverse. But if they are going to play the “promote diversity card”, they should at least accept real cases of diversity or tell the truth.</p>

<p>Again, I do not feel entitled to admissions for any of the three colleges; they clearly have reasons for rejecting me (CR score). But if they really cared about diversity, I think I would have been accepted into at least one of those colleges?</p>

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<p>Dude same thing happened to me. I applied as an AA but also an Indian… i represent 4 different countries lol, including Canada. I had a 1970 SAT I (cuz of ****ty 580 in CR), but the rest of my app was solid. I got half tuition scholarships at other places i applied to (some good places)</p>

<p>I got my ass handed to me by JHU, so they can screw off haha</p>

<p>I’m waiting on Brown now, and that’s almost definitely not happening. If it does, I’ll be sure to let JHU know</p>

<p>but ya man i feel your pain… this was unexpected</p>

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<p>Someone at my school 3 years ago was outright rejected by Georgetown, but she ended up getting accepted to UPenn. So you never know - there could still be a chance with Harvard. Harvard tends to put less emphasis on standardized test scores, which could help you b/c just about the only thing I see holding you down is your SAT score. I’d say that everything else on your app is right on; don’t give up hope just yet.</p>

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<p>I think you’re focusing too much on your “diversity” aspect. While it’s great that you are proud of your heritage, I don’t see too much leadership or passion in your stats you posted. Did you attempt to convey what you want to do with an education at ____ university to help better the world? Also, did you take AP classes, or did you take easier classes in order to be number one. I think your accomplishments are very impressive, its just your’re trying to get admitted to some of the top schools in the WORLD and that requires more than having a diverse background and being validvictorian. </p>

<p>On a second note, ur SAT scores are hardly bad, I had a 2100(superscore) and was accepted to duke and jhu.</p>

<p>keep ur chin up</p>

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<p>I do not have too many leadership roles, but I have been the VP/tres./ and now the current president of my church/ethnic youth group . I did not convey “how I will help Lebanon” but I thought that is apparent through the Ex-Cs (some are service) directed at my heritage. I am a junior member of a research (not scientific) institute/ human rights advocacy organization. In Lebanon, this organization functions as a major political party supported by the US and the western world. (I did not include the political party aspect of this organization in my app). </p>

<p>By the way, I did not focus too much on the diversity factor in my app, right now I am focusing on that factor because I am wondering to what extent it was noticed/ respected by the adcoms.</p>

<p>As for AP classes, I took 2 Junior year and 4 Senior year (the most I can take at my school :(). Anyways, the school weights AP and honors classes so you cannot be a val or sal without AP classes. </p>

<p>About the SAT, I think a sub 650 score is an instant turn off. I would have been better off with a 700 CR and a 710 M (1410 overall) than a 630 and 780. BTW, I do exceptionally well on AP Eng Lit multiple choice questions, but for some reason I just do poor on the SAT CR section. If I took the SAT again, I would get a similar math score, definitely a 710+ writing score, and possibly a 660-680 CR score. But its too late now.</p>

<p>About being Val, I never was trying! I just worked hard and hoped for straight As. Junior year, I found out that I was Val so far, and I have kept that position ever since. My friend , on the other hand, has worked all his years in hs to be a val. He would bribe teachers (xmass presents) and beg for extra credit points in order to maintain As in some classes. I did no such thing, and am proud I did not degrade myself to the same level many Ivy-hopefuls fall to. </p>

<p>In the end, he got into Cornell and I got into nowhere but my saftey. ■■■. </p>

<p>Life isn’t fair. All I want is a “Congratulations… !” from some some college I care about! I will never have the experience of getting accepted into a college of interest! I guess I set the bar too high for myself?</p>

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<p>I got accepted to JHU with a 600 CR. I am an international applicant as well.</p>

<p>Sorry. I hope you get into Harvard. Your stats are ivy-caliber for sure.</p>

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<p>Thanks and congrats.</p>

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<p>How many schools did u apply to?</p>

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<p>Only 5. I know, that was a dumb mistake. Those were the only schools I was interested in. I am not going to go/apply to a top-level/ Ivy League school because of their prestige. My counselor told me I would get into at least one of those three schools (Duke, Wash U, JHS), and that Harvard was a reach (at least that part was true). So, I figured that I did not need to apply for other schools. And now look where I am. Never underestimate the necessity of a safety school (Case), I guess.</p>

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<p>s hit, we are so much alike b.c. i also applied to all those schools!! I’m really nothing special in the context of the ivy/duke/washu/jhu applicant pool so I spent the last week of december writing essays like it was my job(18 in all) I compared it to being a marathon runner who could see the finish line. Although it s uck ed to have to write so much on vacation I knew if I wrote bad ones it would be equivalent to falling inches from the finish line after “running” for years.</p>

<p>I hope that you can spend your remaining energy and time on writing a really detailed and articulate letter to the schools you got w listed at to show how interested you are in them.</p>

<p>Then again…who nows…harvard could come knocking</p>

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<p>Anyways, what schools did you get accepted to (out of those three)? Which is your favorite?</p>

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<p>um i got into case(im assuming they gave you a boat load of money), duke, jhu all for engineering after being denied from MIT(deferred EA) which was my dream school</p>

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<p>Case gave me a decent amount of money. Congrats on Duke and JHS. You would probably have a better college experience at either school over MIT anyways.</p>

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<p>ya haha, thats what im thinking bro, well good luck, im gona peace</p>

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<p>CASE is a good school. Especially if Biomed is your choice. They are great in that they give good merit scholarships.</p>