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小中（或亚裔）女申请Stanford的真实资料（2012-2015）

小中（或亚裔）女申请Stanford的真实资料（2012-2015）

来源: 于 2015-01-13 07:48:58

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所有的资料取自http://www.collegeconfidential.com/。仅作参考，欢迎理性地发表建设性意见。小中（或亚裔）女申请Stanford的真实资料（2012-2015）

2019
Accepted
Case 1:
Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): M 750 CR 800 W 800 Essay 11
SAT II (place score in parentheses): Math II (780) USH (780)
GPA: 4.61 (weighted); 3.98 (unweighted)
AP (place score in parentheses): World History (5), Spanish Language and Culture (4), US History (5), Computer Science (5)
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc BC, AP Physics, AP Music Theory, AP English, Shakespeare, HarvardX edX CS50
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Commended, National AP Scholar with Honors, NCTE Achievement Award Winner
School Awards: Letters of Commendation in Honors Geometry, Honors Biology, Honors English 10, Honors American Lit

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses):
Music—School Orchestra (Concertmaster, Vice-President), Tri-M Honors society, Renown Local Youth Orchestra (toured Netherlands, Carneige Hall), Senior Districts, All-States, All-Eastern, National High School Honors Orchestra, All-National Honors Orchestra, Community service outreach**, Started chamber program at local middle school school a cappella group (President, arranger, singer)
Politics/Relations— Politics Club (Founder, President), Model UN (founded and fundraised for the school’s team, Head Delegate), Civics Bee (chosen for the town’s team), school rep and project leader for Greater Boston Students of Color Achievement Network
Sports— Varsity Soccer, Swimming, Assistant swim coach at town’s summer swim program, sports correspondent for town paper
Writing— NCTE Achievement Award Winner, literary magazine article
Volunteer/Community Service: From the Top Center for the Development of Arts Leaders (helped inner city kids learn chamber music), Sports correspondent for town paper, Assistant swim coach at town’s summer swim program
Summer Activities: Music festivals, Netherlands tour with orchestra
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Let’s say a 10 is the best of my ability. Common app 10, IV 10, Extracurricular 8, Roommate 9, What matters 10
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): Didn’t see any of these so this is based off of my intuition/relationships with them.
Teacher Rec #1: English teacher jr year– stellar. 10
Teacher Rec #2: Math teacher jr year– probably good, but not as confident about this one.
Counselor Rec: Good relationship with her, but I’m not really close with her.
Additional Rec: Probably good, but not as confident about this one.
Interview: Went well!

Other
State (if domestic applicant): Northeast
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Female
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): female interested in computer programming

Reflection
Strengths: Stanford is currently trying to boost its music program so my violin playing helped a lot I think. I’m a female interested in programming, which there aren’t very many of. And possibly my biggest strength was my ESSAYS. Poured my heart out into them.
Weaknesses: Asian that plays violin 
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: See strengths.
Where else you are applying or have already applied: Will apply to Harvard RD and then choose between!

I can’t believe I’m in. I’ve been dreaming about this moment for so long and I had really thought I’d be rejected. But for all of you that are gonna be future applicants, DON’T LOSE HOPE! BELIEVE IN YOURSELF!! HARD WORK PAYS OFF.

 
Case 2:
 
Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2290 total – 730 CR, 770 M, 790 W (9)
ACT (breakdown): N/A
SAT II: Math II 800, Literature 740
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.975
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Calculus AB (5), AP Chinese Language and Culture (5), AP English Language and Composition (5), AP U.S. History (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP English Literature and Composition, AP Statistics, Chemistry, Computer Programming Java, U.S. Government / Economics (semester-long classes), Studio Art
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Semi-Finalist; AP Scholar with Honor Award; Le Grand Concours Lauréat National (national recognition in a nation-wide French exam); Red, White & Blue Award (the most prestigious academic award at my high school)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): National and international level harpist; pianist of twelve years; Music for Community club (President); member of Barbershop Quartet club; member of a table tennis club in my local community; Chinese School student
Job/Work Experience: N/A
Volunteer/Community service: Music for Community, in which students perform music for the elderly at nursing homes in their local community
Summer Activities: Traveling across the state, country, and nation’s borders for national and international harp competitions and performances
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
– Common App: wrote about my harp competitions and performances and the lessons I’ve gained from my experiences
– Activity Question: wrote about my involvement and leadership in Music for Community
– Intellectual Vitality: wrote about how art classes have taught me to think differently and take risks
– Roommate: wrote about my two younger brothers and their role in my life
– What matters: wrote about my contributions to the community through harp and the harp’s significance to me
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: Math teacher – waived right to view, but I performed exceptionally well in her class, and she and I have a very good relationship. She knows I play the harp and invited me to perform at her wedding. 10/10
Teacher Rec #2: Physics teacher – waived right to view, but in his class, I displayed diligence, honesty, and selflessness in unusual circumstances in which no other students did. 10/10
Counselor Rec: Waived right to view, but she and I have a very good relationship. She is aware of both my academic capabilities and personal talents. 10/10
Additional Rec: N/A
Interview: N/A

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Undeclared
State (if domestic applicant): California
Country (if international applicant): N/A
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Asian-American
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: ~ 90K
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): N/A

Reflection

Strengths: Academically qualified, deep involvement and significant accomplishments in a unique extra-curricular activity, strong music and art supplements, very strong teacher recs, essays
Weaknesses: Light number of AP classes( compared to my peers – I attend a very competitive high school), light senior year schedule, few Subject Tests, less experience in leadership, few activities unrelated to music
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: All of the strengths listed above, but it all came down to the essays. The essays are so important, I cannot emphasize this enough. When writing, I tried to tell a story, illustrate a scene so my audience could visualize everything and feel something in their hearts. What was important was to write something from my heart and something that would leave a lasting impression on an audience that was reviewing thousands of applications.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted at Indiana University at Bloomington

General Comments: I am incredibly grateful, honored, and humbled that Stanford selected me to be part of their Class of 2019. I realize that others may have to wait several more months to receive their decisions, and others still may have been already rejected. To all of those students, I offer you my best wishes and support as you continue applying for colleges. I believe that we will receive answers to all of our questions in time, so just keep having faith that everything will be all right, and keep persevering and never lose sight of what’s most important to you. To those who have been accepted to Stanford, congratulations. I look forward to meeting you next year!

 
Case 3:
Decision: Accepted!!!!!!!!!!!

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2310 (780 W, 770 M, 760 R) <– though this is superscored; my best sitting is actually something like 2270
ACT (breakdown): 35
SAT II: 740 Chem, 760 Math 2
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1 (I’m technically tied for 1st but I believe my counselor and I both put 1…)
AP (place score in parenthesis):
5 – Calc BC, Chem, Lit, Psych, Geo
4- Comp Sci A, Physics C EM/Mech, Macro/Micro Econ, US History
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Lang, AP Gov, AP Bio, APES, Band, online gym? lol… >.>
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): ISEF twice, BPA nationals twice. NCTE nomination for school, does Harvard Book Award count? National AP Scholar.

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Cultural asian dance, band, scioly, math league, BPA, science fair.
Job/Work Experience: Private tutor for elementary/middle school kids
Volunteer/Community service: Local hospital volunteer for 3 years, NHS for 2 years (though NHS at our school is utter crap).
Summer Activities: read??? babysitting… eat food and get fat. Regret it after summer.
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Common App- 10- I described how cultural dance created a "content environment" for me.
Intellectual Vitality- 8- science fair project idea origin…. pretty unique, but i thought it probably wasn’t "intellectual" enough…? Kinda philosophical in nature.
Letter to Roommate- 8- meh just put it together the day before. Though I did include things like my irrational love for marching band, Iron Man (or all Marvel movies in general), um my hello kitty table drawer (totally random??), how I ponder the existence of astronomical objects, how much I love books. And frozen yogurt. And exploring. And talking like a Minnesotan! Oh ya betcha! Also my need to apologize every 2 seconds. 
What Matters to You- 10- It made my counselor cry when she read it so must be pretty good?

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1/??: Did not read, but pretty sure it was solid because my math teacher is DA BOMB <3
Teacher Rec #2/8: Read, was a solid essay.
Counselor Rec/10: Beautiful, made me cry!
Additional Rec:
Interview: Thought it went well! Took a bit more than an hour; we just chatted and shared our love for medicine and the interdisciplinary aspect of Stanford.

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Y
Intended Major: Chemistry? Though that might change…
State (if domestic applicant): MN (Midwest baby!!)
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Chinese
Gender: F
Income Bracket: $20,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):

Reflection

Strengths: Strong extracurricular/international or national awards. My essays really shined and showed the "human" side of me, because my ECs showed how much of a machine I am (secretly). Twas a nice balance.

Weaknesses: I hate standardized testing. But I can’t complain, I have to say I’m satisfied with the scores I ended up with (after taking it soooo many times…. finally…). I had a lot of ECs, and I only have so much time to focus on a few specific ones, so I maybe stood off as trying to be too involved. (i.e. Scioly and math league, like I never spent any time preparing for them so I never really did well… )

Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Honestly, when it comes down to 10% acceptance rate, it’s a bit like asking to win the lottery. Very holistic and arbitrary; who knows?? Maybe the admission officers were just having a good day?

Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: NADA! Stanford’s the first one. Pretty nice gift before the break!!! 

General Comments: For real though, this is the real life. I bawled my eyes out the minute I got my email, and then bawled for the next few hours before I went to sleep (if I even went to sleep at all….). Still in disbelief and shock – I’ve been refreshing my email frantically, making sure that they won’t send an email saying it was a fluke (which has totally happened to me before with one of those prestigious summer research programs… can’t remember which one). Essay advice, just be yourself. To be honest, I didn’t let anyone check my essays and just trusted my gut instinct. And wrote them with a month left to go. You just have to wait for that spark of inspiration; you can’t force words to come out. I am so thankful that this has happened to me – so many negative events have happened and I sort of just broke down into a bundle of nerves; but in retrospect, good things will come to those who wait. Always be optimistic – even if you get rejected, there’s always other colleges out there. I’m sure you will find the perfect match for you.  And if you got deferred, keep those spirits up!! You’re one of those rare cases that Stanford values enough to keep in the running. I believe in every single one of you. No matter what happens, never stop loving yourself, because that’s all that will matter in the end.

 
Case 4:
Decision: Accepted

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2390 (800 M, 790 CR, 800 W)
ACT (breakdown): 35 (36 M, 35 R, 34 S, 35 E)
SAT II: Math II – 800, Biology M- 800, Chemistry- 800, Literature – 790, World History – 770
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 3
AP (place score in parenthesis): Calculus AB/BC (5), Biology (5), World History (5), US History (5), Statistics (5), Chemistry (5), Psychology (5), Literature (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
Senior Year Course Load: AP Spanish, AP Gov/Econ, AP Physics II, AP Language and Composition, AP Environmental Science
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Commended Scholar, AP Scholar with Distinction, National Honor Society, International Thespian Society

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Volleyball (Captain, Varisty), Track (Varisty), Badminton (Varsity)
Red Cross Club (President), Medical Club (Co-President)
ASB (Treasurer & Vice President)
Job/Work Experience: Private Tutor for SAT/ACT/school
Volunteer/Community service: Girl Scouts (Gr 3-10), Key Club (Vice President), UNICEF (Vice President), NHS volunteer, Elderly center (450 hours), Leader for hospital volunteering (600 hours)
Summer Activities: College classes, Researched cancer for a private program @ UCLA
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Overall 9/10, Spent weeks on them, gave them to teachers to read, etc.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 9-10 AP Biology teacher- Really wanted to help me, had faith in me
Teacher Rec #2: 9 AP Literature- I was probably her favorite student Junior year bc I would always talk to her after school and at lunch.
Counselor Rec: 8- Counselor knows me but not personally
Additional Rec: 9- One of head surgeons of the hospital I volunteered at. I always asked him questions and he would take his time to explain everything
Interview: n/a

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: no
Intended Major: Human Biology
State (if domestic applicant): California
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Large public
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: ~200k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): n/a

Reflection

Strengths: Essays, Grades, Test Scores, Experience, Leadership
Weaknesses: No actual internship
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Essays and Recs probably.
Where else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: n/a

General Comments: I was stocked to see the acceptance letter and felt that the hard work actually DID pay off in the end. Three other students from my school got accepted. Best friend got rejected but made it into Harvard.

 
Deferred
Case 1:
Decision: Deferred

Objective:
ACT (breakdown): 35 (english 36, math 35, reading 36, science 34, writing 8)
SAT II: Bio E (780), Math II (790)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): school doesn’t rank, but other applicants from my school were equally competitive
AP (place score in parenthesis): Calc AB (5) — school doesn’t offer APs
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load (first semester): Intro Philosophy, African-American Literature, American History Seminar, Chem B, two college courses (math and macroeconomics)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Semifinalist, ISAC Scholar

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Ballet (company dancer, volunteer teacher — 13 years, 15-20 hrs/wk. Performances in several productions & participation in intensives at some amazing national studios. My main extracurricular), production intern with local radio station (3 yrs), neurology shadow (2 yrs), VP of state Latin organization
Job/Work Experience: Tutor (math & reading, with a company — almost 2 years)
Volunteer/Community service: Camp counselor (1 yr only), SSAT tutor for underprivileged children with organization (3 yrs)
Summer Activities: academic summer programs at universities, work, shadowing neurologist, camp counselor, ballet intensive, etc. Not very cohesive
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common App (9 — I was really proud of this one. Talked about ballet from a failure aspect/redefining success), Extracurricular (7 — nice, uplifting, and pretty, but doesn’t tie in too much with the rest of my app or life in general, as it discussed the kid I worked with at a disability summer camp), Short Answers (7 — honest, varied, but nothing standout here. Tied in ballet and neuroscience, two big passions, though), Intellectual Vitality (6 — talked about how my love for neuroscience started in the home but grew into an animal of its own. I liked it a lot when I submitted it, but to be fair, it’s cliche), Future Roommate (7 — the mix of big city/small town feels in my hometown and how that’s developed my hobbies/kept me curious. Bubbly little essay, but again, not exactly "wow"), What Matters (8 — how family dinner has evolved over the years)
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): didn’t read any, but here are my guesses

Teacher Rec #1: Bio teacher of 2 years, though I don’t have him this year. Really enjoyed his class and he was very enthusiastic to do this (7 — not "best student ever" or anything, but very positive)
Teacher Rec #2: English teacher of 2 years. Hands down most passionate teacher I’ve ever had, and such a good writer. (I’m guessing 8 for the same reasons)
Counselor Rec: Loved her! We met all the time and she even read over some of my essays. Knew me pretty well, and was always so warm (9?)
Additional Rec: Neurologist that I shadow on weekends (8 — he probably had some good details that couldn’t be captured by regular schoolteachers)
Interview: n/a

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: no
Intended Major: Biology
Area: Midwest
School Type: small selective admissions public school
Ethnicity: Asian-American
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: $100,000+
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none

Reflection

Strengths: common app essay, long-term dedication to ballet, scores and GPA
Weaknesses: no major awards, a few subpar essays, too scattered — some "themes" but none shining out

General Comments: Hey, the most selective college in America thinks I’m worthy of another look in RD, that’s definitely something! I normally wouldn’t want to post my stats like this, but just writing this post really got my head together, so here goes. Good luck everyone 

 
 
 
Rejected
Case 1:
Decision: Rejected

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): (one-time) 2350; Critical Reading-760, Math-800, Writing-790
ACT (breakdown): N/A
SAT II: 800 Math II, 800 Physics, 760 Chemistry, 720 World History (did not submit World History)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0 (or really close, not exactly sure b/c my school uses 6. 0 scale)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1st
AP (place score in parenthesis): Calculus AB, Psychology, Physics B, English Language and Composition, Statistics, Biology, Chinese Language and Composition, Human Geography, World History- all 5’s; Chemistry and Spanish Language and Composition – 4
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Macroeconomics, AP U.S. Government, Advanced Anatomy and Physiology, AP Calculus BC, AP English Literature and Composition, AP Physics C, AP Environmental Science
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Semifinalist, AP National Scholar, AP Scholar with Distinction, Carson Scholar (some more extracurricular/science fair stuff but not big like Intel/Siemens)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): President of Red Cross Club, Secretary of Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA), Model UN, National Honor Society, Science Fair, Cross-country JV, Advanced Dance; for HOSA went to State for Extemporaneous Writing
Job/Work Experience: Worked over summer (rather not say where)
Volunteer/Community service: Lots of stuff, but did not volunteer at one place consistently
Summer Activities: Dual credit (high school + college credit), work
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common App 7, about failing – some parts unique, some parts cliché, but it was a true story
Intellectual Vitality 8 – talked about a letter I found and talked about the use of punishment as a mode of learning
Roommate 9 –not perfect, made it funny but no jokes
Matters 8 – Health

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: waived rights, but I expect it was a 10
Teacher Rec #2: waived rights, I expect 9-10
Counselor Rec: waived rights, 10
Additional Rec: N/A
Interview: Went pretty well! Kind of stressful – the coffee shop was full and we had to go to another place…and another place…but it was a good opportunity to show how I coped with stress. Interview was conversational and I felt at ease.

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Bioengineering
State (if domestic applicant): Texas
Country (if international applicant): N/A
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: 100
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): N/A

Reflection

Strengths: My grades, AP tests, I thought essays were good overall
Weaknesses: Maybe the essays were too cliché? I can’t really blame myself if this were the case because I do believe that they represent myself.
Why you think you were rejected: Lack of very good extracurriculars – although I have leadership positions and am very involved in my rather few activities, I seem to lack the things that make me STAND OUT. No Intel, no Siemens or any of the sort. Red Cross is a relatively new club but I can’t say I founded it because it’s in its 2nd year. No one needs to win big things like Intel or even go but I believe that in my case it just made me a mediocre candidate.
Where else were you accepted: University of Texas-Austin

General Comments: Congratulations to everyone I got in! For those rejected, I understand how you’re feeling. However don’t be discouraged! There are other colleges out there that will accept you! Good luck to everyone!

 
 
2018
Rejected
Case 1:
[size=+2]Decision: Rejected[/size]

Objective:

  • SAT     I (breakdown): 2270 ( 760 CR 720 M 790 W)
  • ACT:     36
  • SAT     II: none lol
  • Unweighted     GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
  • Rank     (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/ 544
  • AP     (place score in parenthesis): stats (5) whap (5) apush (5) english lang     (4) chem (5)
  • IB     (place score in parenthesis):
  • Senior     Year Course Load: calc BC, physics C, AP english iv, AP gov/econ, AP bio,     AP psych, orch, study hall
  • Major     Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
NONE HAHA
Subjective:
  • Extracurriculars     (place leadership in parenthesis): orchestra, region orch, musical orch
  • Job/Work     Experience: summer at cell phone repair shop and summer at pizza shop (min     wage)
  • Volunteer/Community     service: wildlife center, tutoring, festival stuff (NHS)
  • Summer     Activities:
  • Essays     (rating 1-10, details): do i give     myself a 3? naw but it was about my struggle to lose weight and failing bc     i wasn’t trying, it was sort of dumb,     roommate : pleased with it
  • Recommendations     (rating 1-10, details):
    • Teacher      Rec #1: 3 (ugh just all these big statements and no examples, a "to      not" for a rec, my orch director)
    • Teacher      Rec #2: (9, wonderful, i gave her a letter with stuff I wanted her to      write…eh)
    • Counselor      Rec: (dunno)
    • Additional      Rec:
  • Interview:
had one, it was nice
Other
  • State     (if domestic applicant): TX
  • Country     (if international applicant):
  • School     Type: public
  • Ethnicity:     chinese
  • Gender:     F
  • Income     Bracket: 110k
  • Hooks     (URM, first generation college, etc.):
female engineer?
Reflection
  • Strengths:     grades, test scores (ACT?), rank
  • Weaknesses:     essay, recs, EC
  • Why     you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: it’s stanford, i wasn’t     remarkable
  • Where     else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
none yet
General Comments: i applied for kicks, wasted $90, didn’t really work on my essays, got what i deserved oops.
 
Case 2:
[size=+2]Decision: Rejected[/size]

Objective:

  • SAT     I (breakdown): 800 Writing, 700 Math, 760 CR (2260)
  • ACT:     33
  • SAT     II: 750 Lit, 730 US History
  • Unweighted     GPA (out of 4.0): 3.9
  • Rank     (percentile if rank is unavailable): 63 out of 11,000 something     (county-wide)
  • AP     (place score in parenthesis): US History, Environmental Science, Studio     Art, World History, European History, Language (5’s on everything but Art)
  • IB     (place score in parenthesis): Taking this year
  • Senior     Year Course Load: IB Classes – English HL, French SL, History SL, Physics     HL, Math SL, Psychology SL, Theory of Knowledge
  • Major     Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
National Merit Semifinalist, NHS, French Honor Society
Subjective:
  • Extracurriculars     (place leadership in parenthesis): Some minor clubs, historian of one
  • Job/Work Experience:
  • Volunteer/Community     service: Hospital/cancer center, humane society, relay for life
  • Summer     Activities: Worked at a cancer center for 3 summers, did lab work in     combination with that for the last summer
  • Essays     (rating 1-10, details): Intellectual – 8 – Wrote about Pokemon and most     people I read said I made an unlikely topic work
         Roommate – 6 – Kind of meh, just talking about my interests
         Matters – 9 – About my art and I really like this one because it wasn’t in     a normal essay format
  • Recommendations     (rating 1-10, details):
Psychology teacher, French teacher, additional rec from the cancer center where I worked, but I can’t rate because I didn’t read any of them
    • Counselor      Rec: No idea, didn’t see
  • Interview:
Other
  • State     (if domestic applicant): Florida
  • Country     (if international applicant):
  • School     Type: IB magnet
  • Ethnicity:     Asian
  • Gender:     Female
  • Income     Bracket: Upper middle class
  • Hooks     (URM, first generation college, etc.):
Reflection
  • Strengths:     Submitted an art supplement and art was a main theme of my app
  • Weaknesses:     Asian, subpar stats, generally not a super strong app
  • Why     you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: See weaknesses
  • Where     else were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
No idea yet
General Comments:
This surprisingly didn’t hurt that much, partially because I had been starting to doubt whether I really wanted to attend Stanford or not towards the end. I don’t want to sound like one of those people who says that just because they’re bitter, but I realized that since I still wanted to continue something in art, I might be better off going somewhere else to play to my strengths. Anyway, I didn’t have a spectacular application or anything, so this wasn’t too shocking for me. Was disappointed that my arts supplement didn’t make a difference though.

Congrats to accepted and deferred! Time to go work on my other applications with double the effort.

 
 
2017
Accepted
Case 1:
[size=+2]Decision: Accepted[/size]

Objective:

  • ACT:     33/35/35/33/29/10 (Comp/English/Math/Reading/Science/Writing)
  • SAT     II (if submitted): 750 Math II, 720 US History
  • Unweighted     GPA (out of 4.0): 3.78
  • Rank     (percentile if rank is unavailable): top 10%
  • AP     (place score in parenthesis): US History (5), Lang Comp (5), Biology (4),     European History (4), Art History (5)
  • Senior     Year Course Load: AP Economics, AP Government, AP Calc BC, AP Lit, AP     Psych, AP Spanish, AP Physics C
  • Major     Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Scholar with Distinction, National History     Day
Subjective:
  • Extracurriculars     (place leadership in parenthesis): Key Club (VP in 11th grade, Historian in 10th grade,     now Scholarship and Awards Coordinator in 12th grade, chairman of lots of     events), Junior LA County Fair Board, Art and Architecture Club (VP), Math and Science Scholar for Physiology Department –     research at a local college with a professor
  • Job/Work     Experience: Student     teacher for Algebra I over the summer
  • Volunteer/Community     service: Organizer of Shoes That Fit shoe and sock drive – worked with     other kids from neighboring communities to collect shoes and socks for     Shoes That Fit, an organization that gives these shoes and socks to     children in need
  • Essays:     Common App (the time I went to a political protest, connected with my     culture there), intellectual vitality (why I take so many AP classes),     roommate (love of Bollywood movies, Korean dramas – how much I love other     cultures), what matters (writing a blog about connecting economics to     teenagers)
  • Teacher     Recommendation: Both should have been great – one teacher is known for     writing great recs. The other teacher’s class last year was the hardest     class of my life. I’ve never worked harder for a class than I did in his.
  • Counselor     Rec: Based off the packet seniors at our school fill out for the counselor     recs
Other
  • Applied     for Financial Aid?: yes.
  • Intended     Major: Economics
  • State     (if domestic applicant): California
  • School     Type: public
  • Ethnicity:     Asian
  • Gender:     female
  • Hooks     (URM, first generation college, research, etc.): first generation
Reflection
  • Strengths:     I thought my ACT was, but now that I’m seeing all these amazing 35’s, I’m     not so sure xD Definitely my essays. I spent part of August and all of     September writing, re-writing, and editing them.
  • Weaknesses:     SAT subject tests… I was too lazy to re-take them.
  • Why     you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Essays.
General Comments: I was so prepared for rejection before opening that e-mail! Stanford gets such great applicants and lots of qualified students are turned away.
 
Case 2:
[size=+2]Decision: Accepted[/size]

Objective:

  • SAT     I (breakdown): 2400     second try, single sitting (11     essay)
  • ACT:     Never took
  • SAT     II (if submitted): Math 2 & Chem (both 800s)
  • Unweighted     GPA (out of 4.0): All As, school grades on a 0-100 scale, so I guess a 4.0
  • Rank     (percentile if rank is unavailable): 4/704
  • AP     (place score in parenthesis): Human Geography, Comp Sci A, World Hist.,     Chem, Eng. Lang., Physics B, Stats (all 5s), US Hist. (4)
  • IB     (place score in parenthesis): Not offered
  • Senior     Year Course Load: Bio AP, Calc BC, Eng. Lit., Japanese AP, Physics C,     Psychology AP, Macroeconomics AP, US Government AP, PE
  • Major     Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit, National AP Scholar, Oracle Professional     Programmer and Microsoft Certified Professional. Some UIL awards, but nothing major.
Subjective:
  • Extracurriculars     (place leadership in parenthesis): A whole bunch. See my chance thread for     more details. Generally very focused, yet diverse enough to demonstrate     strength in several areas.
  • Job/Work     Experience: IT Intern     at ST Aerospace
  • Volunteer/Community     service: Dont really believe in volunteering. I just do the minimum     required for NHS. Tutoring, I guess?
  • Essays:     Good, I guess. I didnt let anyone else read or see them, since I felt that     would let me be more personal.
  • Common     App: About a book very dear to me: The Windows 95 Resource Kit.     It was unique, but not overbearing. I tried to keep it as simple as     possible.
  • EC     Essay: About making websites, which I have done in several of my ECs.     Showed a lot of passion and creativity.
  • Intellectual     Vitality: About my familys history. My dad was literally a peasant farmer,     but he got out of it through education. I talked about how education isnt     about money, but about extending mans potential.
  • Roommate:     About my love for graphic design and my evolving personality. Showed a bit     of my self-deprecating humor. I was really unsure about this one.
  • What     Matters: About how I overcame my parents racism toward Japanese people, by     learning Japanese myself and learning about their culture. Very heartfelt.
  • Teacher     Recommendation: Both definitely awesome.
  • Counselor     Rec: I dont know. Probably better than average.
  • Additional     Rec: From my research professor. Accidentally saw some of it, and it was     good.
  • Interview:     Not offered
Other
  • Applied     for Financial Aid?: Yes
  • Intended     Major: Computer Science
  • State     (if domestic applicant): TX
  • Country     (if international applicant): USA
  • School     Type: Very large, public, yet few students, if any, go to HYPSM each year     despite the school being the richest in the city. Those accepted are     generally URM, since half the school is Hispanic.
  • Ethnicity:     Asian (Chinese)
  • Gender:     M
  • Income     Bracket: High
  • Hooks     (URM, first generation college, research, etc.): Research paper accepted     to bioinformatics conference and will be published early next year.     (Generally, computer science conferences are more prestigious than     journals)
Reflection
  • Strengths:     Stats, ECs, essays (in retrospect)
  • Weaknesses:     Didnt volunteer much. No amazing awards like USAMO.     Asian.
  • Why     you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Showed a lot a passion.     Wasnt afraid of my race.
General Comments:
Im still in shock. Stanfords my first choice, but Ill apply to a few other colleges for the fun of it. Good luck to everyone who hasn’t been accepted yet. I’m sure you’ll find a place right for you.
 
Deferred
Case 1:
[size=+2]Decision: Deferred[/size]

Objective:

  • SAT     I (breakdown): 800, 800, 800 = 2400 (second sitting)
  • ACT:     N/A
  • SAT     II (if submitted): 800 (Math II), 800 (English Literature), 790 (US     History)
  • Unweighted     GPA (out of 4.0): 3.92 (counting +’s and -‘s), 4.0 (not counting +’s and     -‘s)
  • Rank     (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A, school doesn’t rank
  • AP     (place score in parenthesis): BC Calculus (5), AB Calculus Subscore (5),     AP English Literature & Composition (5), AP US History (5)
  • IB     (place score in parenthesis): My school doesn’t offer IB
  • Senior     Year Course Load: Playwriting, Poetry, Photography, Concert Choir, AP     Statistics, Japanese Culture and Communications (fourth year level),     Mandarin Independent Study (sixth year level)
  • Major     Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Semifinalist (will likely be Finalist),     National Council of Teachers of English Superior Writing Award (only four     winners in my state), first place in All-School Writing Contest for two     consecutive years, AP Scholar, National Society of High School Scholars
[ b]Subjective:[/b]
  • Extracurriculars     (place leadership in parenthesis): Model United Nations, Mock Trial, Varsity Fencing, Art     & Literature Magazine (editor), Concert Choir, A Capella
  • Job/Work     Experience: I work as a     private tutor in math and writing for about five hours each week
  • Volunteer/Community     service: executive member of the Youth Advisory Council for a nonprofit     for the prevention of teenage substance abuse and suicide; I also     volunteer on a local suicide hotline for three hours each week
  • Essays:     all extremely well written; I want to be a novelist when I grow up, and my     writing is my strongest skill
  • Teacher     Recommendation: not allowed to read according to school rules, but my     counselor said they were fantastic
  • Counselor     Rec: didn’t read either, should be fairly excellent
  • Additional     Rec: none
  • Interview:     I thought it went well, but I’m not sure I managed to distinguish     myself–I’m rather shy, and conversing with strangers is not my forte
Other
  • Applied     for Financial Aid?: yes, couldn’t go to college otherwise
  • Intended     Major: undecided
  • State     (if domestic applicant): Oregon
  • School     Type: private Episcopalian school, top ranked in state
  • Ethnicity:     50% Asian, 50% white
  • Gender:     Female
  • Income     Bracket: ~59k with one working parent and four siblings
  • Hooks     (URM, first generation college, research, etc.): I’m only first-generation     if you don’t count my non-custodial parent, an immigrant who attended     college in another country; my main hooks would be my writing and low     socioeconomic status
Reflection
  • Strengths:     grades, test scores, essays, recommendations
  • Weaknesses:     Asian, no four-year extracurricular     involvement or serious sports, somewhat weak senior curriculum (not my     fault, I had to fulfill credit requirements or I couldn’t graduate, and my     school has a serious lack of AP classes)
  • Why     you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Honestly, I think the     biggest point against me was my ethnicity. As far as I know, Asian (even     half-Asian) is the worst race to be in college admissions, even though my     custodial parent (my parents are divorced) is white.
General Comments:
I’m very disappointed and somewhat hurt. I can’t think of any ways to improve my application between now and February; the only major disadvantage I have, my ethnicity, is something that I can’t change. I thought a 2400, excellent grades, decent extracurriculars, and unique essays would be enough to get admissions officers to overlook the color of my skin. Guess not. Another point: for the past five years at my school, 3 members of the senior class (70-80 students) have been admitted to Stanford each year. This year, no one was admitted through REA. Including me, two were deferred, and the other two rejected.
 
Rejectted
Case 1:
[size=+2]Decision: Rejected[/size]

Objective:

  • SAT     I (breakdown): 2310 (CR: 730, M: 800, W: 780) (All 2nd sitting)
  • ACT:     N/A
  • SAT     II (if submitted): Math II 800 / Chemistry 760 / Chinese 800 / Biology M     780
  • Unweighted     GPA (out of 4.0): 3.975
  • Rank     (percentile if rank is unavailable): 9/519 Weighted, 10/519 Unweighted
  • AP     (place score in parenthesis): World History (4), Chemistry (4), Biology     (5), Physics B (4), Calculus BC (5, AB subscore: 5)
  • IB     (place score in parenthesis): N/A
  • Senior     Year Course Load: AP English Literature and Composition, AP US Government,     AP Macroeconomics, AP Psychology, AP Statistics, Wind Ensemble, AP     Computer Science
  • Major     Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Semifinalist, AP Scholar with Distinction
Subjective:
  • Extracurriculars     (place leadership in parenthesis): Marching Band 4 years (Clarinet Section Leader), Piano (like     any other Asian..), 3 years in 2 Volunteer Clubs in school (Treasurer for     both this year), 3 years in Tri-M Music Honor Society
  • Job/Work     Experience: Unpaid     research assistant at a university research center during the summer
  • Volunteer/Community     service: Tons of stuff for church (Praise team, VBS..), organization that     gives out books to underprivileged kids, 2 aforementioned volunteer clubs,     about 200 hours total
  • Essays:     Common App Main: 6, wrote about piano
         Intellectual Vitality: 7, wrote about why biology appealed to me so much,     especially after I got to see it being used in the lab during my short     research stint.
         Letter to roommate: 7, wrote about squirrel-watching.
         What matters to me: 8, wrote about how my childhood and the optimism and     wonder at life I had then mattered to me.
  • Teacher     Recommendation: Got them from 2 of my favorite teachers, they should be     relatively decent.
  • Counselor     Rec: Typical public school counselor who doesn’t really know the kids,     probably decent as well?
  • Additional     Rec: Got one from the head of a small organization I volunteer with, only     one I got to read, and I thought it was pretty good.
  • Interview:     N/A
Other
  • Applied     for Financial Aid?: Yes
  • Intended     Major: Biochemistry
  • State     (if domestic applicant): California!
  • Country     (if international applicant): US
  • School     Type: Noncompetitive Public
  • Ethnicity:     Chinese
  • Gender:     Female
  • Income     Bracket: >$200k
  • Hooks     (URM, first generation college, research, etc.): None. D:
Reflection
  • Strengths:     Academic courseload?
  • Weaknesses:      I’m Asian.. and relatively     stereotypical at that.
  • Why     you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Didn’t stand out too     much, no major awards
General Comments: I’m totally okay with my rejection, actually. Taking it way better than I thought I would, because I’ve always been on the fence between Stanford and UCLA as my dream schools, and after getting rejected, I realized that UCLA probably has a much better fit for me than Stanford does. I’m glad the admissions officers were able to realize I wouldn’t fit in at Stanford before I realized it. [:
That being said, congratulations to everyone who got accepted! I’m sure you all will have a wonderful time at Stanford, and I’m truly happy for everyone who got in.
To those who were deferred, good luck! Three months will be over before you know it.
And to those rejected like me, please don’t be too upset about it. I’m sure all of you will find a college where you can happily pursue your dreams. After all, everyone says college is what YOU make of it, right?
 
Case 2:
[size=+2]Decision: Rejected[/size]

Objective:

  • SAT     I (breakdown): 2380 (800/800/780) one sitting
  • ACT:
  • SAT     II (if submitted): 800 Bio M, 800 Latin, 800 USH, 800 Math II, 800 Chem
  • Unweighted     GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0 (97.73)
  • Rank     (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A
  • AP     (place score in parenthesis): AP Lang (5), AP Stats (5), AP Chem (5), AP     Macro/Micro (5’s), APUSH (5), AP Physics B (5) – self study, AP Euro (4)
  • IB     (place score in parenthesis):
  • Senior     Year Course Load: AP Lit, AP Gov (US + Comp), AP Calc BC, AP Bio, AP     Studio, AP Psych, AP Latin, Health + semester elective
  • Major     Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National AP Scholar, National Latin Exam Gold Medal x4,     National Latin Exam Dictionary Award, Rotary Youth Leadership Award
[ b]Subjective:[/b]
  • Extracurriculars     (place leadership in parenthesis): Model UN (Co-President, 3x Committee Chair, awards),     Chinese School Teacher’s Assistant (3rd year now), Piano (11 years), Quiz     Bowl-like team (Co-President 2 years, JV Captain in 10th grade), Interact     Club (VP for Fundraising 2 years), New Student Mentor, Great Books Club     (Reorganizer–revamped entire concept to attract new members), Math League     Varsity/All Star, Chinese Club (Treasurer/Secretary), Ballet/Pointe (11     years), Math Contest Club (Founder, prepare people for AMC), NHS
  • Job/Work     Experience: Summer     internship at local university lab for two summers (300+ hours)
  • Volunteer/Community     service: ~200 hours
  • Essays:     Unique and very true to who I am–Common App about how I better understand     myself through TV character (8/10), Extracurricular about why I love MUN     (7/10), Intellectual Vitality about how growing up in NYC shaped my     aspirations as a woman (9/10), Roommate about balancing American/Chinese     lives (10/10), What Matters about finding connections between different     subjects (10/10)
  • Teacher     Recommendation: Terrific–had Latin teacher all 4 years, Precalc teacher     really liked me
  • Counselor     Rec: Terrific–we get along well
  • Additional     Rec: Lab mentor from internship, got Ph.D. from Stanford (whether it’s     significant), 2 Arts Supplements
  • Interview:     Not in zone
Other
  • Applied     for Financial Aid?: Yes
  • Intended     Major: Human Biology
  • State     (if domestic applicant): NY
  • School     Type: Public, relatively competitive
  • Ethnicity:     Asian
  • Gender:     F
  • Income     Bracket: High
  • Hooks     (URM, first generation college, research, etc.): None
Reflection
  • Strengths:     Academics, leadership in extracurriculars
  • Weaknesses:      Perhaps breadth of     extracurriculars? After seeing what people are saying now about committing     to single area…
  • Why     you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Seemed unfocused in     activities
General Comments: This is sad.  I don’t want to do anything else now.
 
Case 3:
[size=+2]Decision: Rejected[/size]

Objective:

  • SAT     I (breakdown): 2320 (one sitting) 780 CR, 750 M, 790 W
  • SAT     II (if submitted): 800 Math II, 780 USH, 750 Physics, 760 Chinese
  • Unweighted     GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
  • Rank     (percentile if rank is unavailable): 7/477
  • AP     (place score in parenthesis): Physics B (5), Calc BC with AB subscore (5,     5) US History (5), Computer Science A (4)
  • Senior     Year Course Load: AP English Literature, AP Biology, AP Art History, AP     Stats, CP Chemistry, School Newspaper, AP Gov
  • Major     Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Semifinalist, AP Scholar with Honor (Okay     who cares about that?)
Subjective:
  • Extracurriculars     (place leadership in parenthesis): School newspaper, theater review, MUN (all top leadership     positions but I’m going to be vague here because I’m lazy), piano, tennis
  • Volunteer/Community     service: Library (120+ hrs), food pantry, used to do clubs but not anymore
  • Essays:     Common App: What I gained from quitting piano; Vitality: the connection     between art & math (fractals, Islamic art); Roommate: on how much I     love Veronica Mars, the TV show; What matters to me: books!
  • Teacher     Recommendation: Waived my right. Both awesome I’m assuming. One of them     used to work at Stanford.
  • Counselor     Rec: Waived my right. Thorough, insightful, although I think he hinted     that Stanford may not be the best fit for me.
Other
  • Applied     for Financial Aid?: Yes
  • Intended     Major: Mathematics
  • State     (if domestic applicant): CA
  • School     Type: Public
  • Ethnicity:     Asian
  • Gender:     F
  • Income     Bracket:
  • Hooks     (URM, first generation college, research, etc.): None
Reflection
  • Strengths:     My grades, my essays (I thought they showed a lot of me), my letters of     rec.
  • Weaknesses:      My extracurriculars weren’t     particularly outstanding, nor did it match my intended major. I decided my     major quite late in the game.
  • Why     you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Aside from the weaknesses     I listed above, I don’t strike as Stanford material. I’m not     "egg-shaped." I also didn’t want to go there as much as other     schools. The SCEA was my parents’ suggestion, and Stanford’s supplements     came most naturally to me.
General Comments:
Congrats to everybody who got in!  And to those rejected, here’s an Internet hug and some comfort. (I’m still grumpy over the one line in the rejection letter where Richard Shaw suggested we read an article he wrote.)
 
Case 4:
[size=+2]Decision: Rejected[/size]

Objective:

  • SAT     I (breakdown): 2280, 690 M 790 R 800 W
  • ACT:     did not submit
  • SAT     II (if submitted): 800 chem, 790 US History, 750 Literatire
  • Unweighted     GPA (out of 4.0): 3.9
  • Rank     (percentile if rank is unavailable): top 5%
  • AP     (place score in parenthesis): 5s on everything. Chem, USH, Psych, Euro,     Lang, Human Geo
  • IB     (place score in parenthesis):
  • Senior     Year Course Load: AP everything. Econ Macro/Micro, Physics C, Calc BC, Eng     Lit, Gov/Comp, World, studying Latin on the side
  • Major     Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP whatever it is with that many tests. I am not a     science/math major.
Subjective:
  • Extracurriculars     (place leadership in parenthesis): Latin Club (President), Parliamentary Debate (Varsity),     Science Research Program, Peer Tutor, Peer Mentor, Honor Society, JSA
  • Job/Work     Experience: I tutor     for a bit of extra cash, but did not mention it.
  • Volunteer/Community     service: God knows how many hours I’ve put into a local community center     that I’ve been volunteering at since 8th grade.
  • Essays:     CommonApp: 9/10 – summer exchange program. Topic is slightly contrived,     but I thought my humor came through. Roommate: Not my best. 6/10,     Intellectual thingamabob: Wrote about how my first history teacher     inspired me in 4th grade. 8/10. Matters to me: Wrote about honesty. Did     not like this essay much either. Slightly unfocused. 7/10
  • Teacher     Recommendation: English and Physics. Former has known me since freshman     year, and I have her again now. Latter I had for sophomore year, and TA’d     for a semester in junior year, and is club advisor for JSA
  • Counselor     Rec: Probably only above average. Counselor knows me better than most, but     we aren’t that close.
  • Additional     Rec:
  • Interview:
Other
  • Applied     for Financial Aid?: Yes
  • Intended     Major: History/Political Science
  • State     (if domestic applicant): CA
  • Country     (if international applicant):
  • School     Type: Competitive Public. We have long-standing tensions with Stanford.     Most of us here who apply are incredible students, but they have ridiculed     us as AP machines. I guess I’m no exception, chalking up a grand total of     16 by the time I finish high school.
  • Ethnicity:     Chinese (whodaguessedit?)
  • Gender:     Female
  • Income     Bracket: Middle Class. 90-110k
  • Hooks     (URM, first generation college, research, etc.): Nothing.
Reflection
  • Strengths:     Volunteering Commitment (5 yrs), SAT score, APs
  • Weaknesses:     Ethnicity. Unbalanced SAT score (reflected my ** in math), AP scores, Unimpressive ECs, no awards
  • Why     you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I tried to portray myself as     an academically oriented person, but still had a soul – humor,     volunteering, etc. Guess it didn’t work.
General Comments: Guess it’s time to go work on my liberal arts college apps.
 
2016
Accepted
Case 1:
[size=+2]Decision: Accepted[/size]

Objective:

  • SAT     I (breakdown): n/a
  • ACT:     35
  • SAT     II:chem-770, bio-760, math2-800
  • Unweighted     GPA (out of 4.0): 3.75
  • Rank     (percentile if rank is unavailable): n/a
  • AP     (place score in parenthesis): n/a (school doesn’t "do" AP, we’ve     replaced it with "AT"– we don’t take the AP tests.
  • IB     (place score in parenthesis):n/a
  • Senior     Year Course Load: most rigorous courseload available: all AT’s except for     spanish. bc calc, english lit, chem, studio art, and macroeconomnics
  • Major     Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): PSAT natl merit commendation?
Subjective:
  • Extracurriculars     (place leadership in parenthesis): fencing- nationally ranked, got recruited by the team, many     natl medals, travel around alot, etc. and same thing with debate (‘cept i     wasn’t recruited for that!!)
  • Job/Work     Experience:Clerk at the town’s local bakery for the last 2 years.     Internship at the Animal Hospital for the last 2 years
  • Volunteer/Community     service: 60 hours at Costa Rica one summer
  • Summer     Activities:internship at vet, nationals for fencing and debate, job at     bakery, studied abroad in UCLA and Oxford.
  • Essays:
  • Common     App Main: about how i’m an "oxymoron" 10/10 <– most awesome     essay of my life
  • EC     Short Answer: about debate 9.5/10
  • "Profile"     questions: i wrote down what i actually liked to do, in contrast to what i     thought they would like…. idk, seemed to work out!! 
  • Intellectual     Vitality Essay: about sudoku 7/10
  • Letter     to Roommate Essay: i was very funny, very chill, 9/10
  • What     matters to you and why? Essay: wrote about my dog  hehe 8/10
  • Teacher     Recommendation: verrry good!
  • Counselor     Rec: Good
  • Additional     Rec:i think it was OK… don’t think the guy really likes me, but i’ve     contributed a lot so…
  • Interview:N/A
[ b]Other[/b]
  • Applied     for Financial Aid?: No
  • Intended     Major: Undecided
  • State     (if domestic applicant):NY
  • School     Type: Public- very competitive
  • Ethnicity:     White
  • Gender:     F
  • Income     Bracket: 100K +
Case 2:
[size=+2]Decision: Accepted[/size]

Objective:

  • SAT     I (breakdown):NA
  • ACT:34
  • SAT     II: 760 Math II, 790 Chem, 780 World History
  • Unweighted     GPA (out of 4.0):4.0
  • Rank     (percentile if rank is unavailable):2/829
  • AP     (place score in parenthesis): WHAP-5 APUSH-5 AP Stats- 5 AP HUG- 4 AP     Chem- 5 AP Euro- 5 AP English Lang-5
  • IB     (place score in parenthesis):NA
  • Senior     Year Course Load: AP Bio, AP Calc AB, AP Art History, Independent Study     and Mentorship, AP French Lang, AP English Lit, AP Gov, AP Econ
  • Major     Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):Siemens Semifinalist, Texas Girls State, US Academic Achievement Scholarship
Subjective:
  • Extracurriculars     (place leadership in parenthesis): Debate (TOC bid in Extemp, LD Captain, Extemp captain,     secretary), Key Club (co founder and President), Team HBV (Vice President     and Treasurer), Independent Study (did     research on historical figures), National Society of High School Scholars     Ambassador, National English Society President, French Club VP
  • Job/Work     Experience:2 year research internship in addition to working on some small     research projects.
  • Volunteer/Community     service: Key Club stuff, Team HBV Stuff, I also worked with some Stanford     nonprofits
  • Summer     Activities: research at UTMB, Girls State, debate camp
  • Essays:     See below
  • Common     App Main: I wrote about overcoming mental illness (depression) because of     perfectionst standards I created because I didn’t fit in, and how that     motivated me to fight for mental illness. Bit risky, but it paid off 
  • EC     Short Answer: I wrote about debate and how I had to overcome difficulties     of being from a small team.
  • "Profile"     questions: was myself 
  • Intellectual     Vitality Essay: I wrote about stem cells and the research I had done.
  • Letter     to Roommate Essay: I wrote about getting up halfway in the morning to     write down my crazy ideas… don’t ask 
  • What     matters to you and why? Essay:I wrote about working in Team HBV, and how     my dad being a Hepatitis B researcher motivated me to do this work.
  • Teacher     Recommendation: I asked my AP Stats and AP Euro teacher… should have     been good.
  • Counselor     Rec: didn’t know my counselor too well. Should be standard.
  • Additional     Rec: got my research mentor to write me one  Should have been     pretty good.
  • Interview:     was not offered one (did not have one in my area)
Other
  • Applied     for Financial Aid?:Mais oui 
  • Intended     Major:Uh.. Public/Global Health or Neuroscience. Considering Internatinal     Relations and Women’s and Gender Studies aussi 
  • State     (if domestic applicant):TX
  • Country     (if international applicant): NA
  • School     Type:PUBLIC
  • Ethnicity:Asian     and proud baby
  • Gender:     chick
  • Income     Bracket: 80,0000-90,0000
  • Hooks     (URM, first generation college, etc.): my older bro goes to Stanford.     Also, lots of work with Stanford non-profits and did some research for a     Stanford professor (not like medical research. Like literally looking up     articles).
Reflection
  • Strengths:academics,     extracurriculars (kind of), and solid passion
  • Weaknesses:     not too many national awards
  • Why     you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I honestly think it was     because of my brother.
General Comments: SO HAPPY. PM if you have any questions  Also, don’t trust CC. Too many **** lulz.
 
Case 3:
[size=+2]Decision: Accepted[/size]

Objective:

  • SAT     I (breakdown): M 800, CR 800, W 800, first sitting
  • ACT:
  • SAT     II: Math II 800, Biology M 800, Chemistry 800
  • Unweighted     GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
  • Rank     (percentile if rank is unavailable): top 10%, was #2 but school doesn’t     officially rank
  • AP     (place score in parenthesis): Calc AB, Calc BC, Eng. Language &     Composition, US History, Biology, Chemistry, all 5s
  • IB     (place score in parenthesis):
  • Senior     Year Course Load: AP Physics B (school doesn’t offer C), AP US Gov., AP     Macroeconomics, AP Stats, AP Literature and Composition, T.A./Peer Tutor     (LOL my counselor said I’d never get in with this)
  • Major     Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):

    Intel ISEF 2nd Grand Award
    National JSHS 1st Place
         Single-author research paper published
         Scholastic Nat’l Art and Writing – 2 Gold Medals

Subjective:
  • Extracurriculars     (place leadership in parenthesis): Last 1.5 years I lived for my research XD Taught myself how     to design/code computer simulations and slaved away at a problem in     computational imaging from home. Somewhat ironically, I’ve also edited for     an international high school literary journal for 3 years (currently     Co-EIC), and transformed a lot of the ways we run things. Yep, those two     things are basically my whole life.
  • Job/Work     Experience:
  • Volunteer/Community     service:
  • Summer     Activities: Research, research, and more research, by which I mostly mean     spending weeks debugging single convoluted simulations XD Good times. And     editing through last-minute swamps of 1000+ literature submissions,     finishing editorial commentary, putting together final cuts, polishing the     publication versions, figuring out layout designs, etc…It’s horrific but     I love it XD Also took linear algebra at a local university sophomore     summer.
  • Essays:     I thought they were okay-ish when I submitted. Obviously, every time after     Nov. 1 that I read them, they sounded worse and worse XD So idk.
  • Common     App Main: On how my research converted me from a mathematics purist into a     believer in computational science. Not terribly original, but hey, you     write what you know.
  • EC     Short Answer: Editorial work.
  • "Profile"     questions: Most significant challenge – Discernment in the floods of     information offered by the digital age, particularly being conscious of     the ridiculous growth of pseudoscience. Favorite events – Mine were     totally weird, because TBH I don’t really get out that often XD Monterey     Bay Aquarium’s first-ever sea-dragon eggs, and the de Young Museum’s     "Balenciaga" exhibit. Historical moment – How Larry Page dreamt     up and coded the PageRank algorithm. Five words – expressive, keen-eyed,     exploratory, insatiable, idea-guzzling  Kitschy as hell, but I     guess they worked.
  • Intellectual     Vitality Essay: On wavelet transforms and multiresolution analysis, the     most brilliant signal processing concepts ever devised XD An ISEF judge     told me about them and I used them in my research.
  • Letter     to Roommate Essay: About how my brother and I are polar opposites and     still the best partners-in-crime ever.
  • What     matters to you and why? Essay: How I notice subtleties and that’s     basically all you need to love your world. Tossed in some poetry and a     bunch of weird obscure scientific observations XD It sounds super cheesy     but I think it was actually my favorite one.
  • Teacher     Recommendation: Definitely not bad, but I don’t think smashing brilliant     or anything for either of them.
  • Counselor     Rec: Ditto.
  • Additional     Rec: From the managing editor of the journal I edit for, who’s a novelist.     Didn’t read it, but it’s the one rec I would bet was ridiculously amazing     lol
  • Interview:
Other:
  • Applied     for Financial Aid?: Yes
  • Intended     Major: Electrical Engineering or Computer Science
  • State     (if domestic applicant): NorCal’s where it’s at.
  • Country     (if international applicant):
  • School     Type: Public, about 1800 kids
  • Ethnicity:     Asian and proud of it.
  • Gender:     F
  • Income     Bracket: ~$100,000
  • Hooks     (URM, first generation college, etc.): None
Reflection
  • Strengths:     Research and editing? Idk, those were basically the only things my whole     application talked about XD Test scores, I guess.
  • Weaknesses:     Prolly teacher recs. Again, not bad, but aside from the additional rec I     really wouldn’t think they were fantastic.
  • Why     you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: No freaking idea. I was     in the library when I found out and screamed XD
General Comments: Oh myyyyy Goooooood. So happy and so thankful, it’s been my dream school since forever  Don’t think it’s totally sunk in yet. I’ll prolly wake up tomorrow screaming. Three people from my school have gotten in so far, so we’re having a rocking year for admissions already XD
 
Case 4:
[size=+2]Decision: Accepted[/size]

Objective:

  • SAT I     (breakdown): 800 math, 770 writing, 730 CR
  • ACT:     none
  • SAT     II: 800 Math 2C, 800 US History, 780 Chemistry
  • Unweighted     GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
  • Rank     (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/736
  • AP     (place score in parenthesis): 5 Euro, 5 APUSH, 5 AB Calc, 5 MacroEcon, 4     Microecon
  • IB     (place score in parenthesis): 6 Chem, 6 Econ
  • Senior     Year Course Load: Theory of Knowledge IB, History HL IB, Math IB HL,     Physics Honors, Journalism class, English 4 HL IB, Spanish 4 IB/AP,
  • Major     Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit SemiFinalist, J8 World Summit USA Top Ten     Finalist, FBLA Nationals 2nd place public speaking, Published in the Wall     Street Journal, Multiple journalism awards in yearbook, HOBY delegate (chosen to be regional rep     for World HOBY)
Subjective:
  • Extracurriculars     (place leadership in parenthesis): CEO of 501(c)3 nonprofit, Founder of a newspaper, Yearbook     Editor in Chief, Model UN President, FBLA Vice President, National Honor     Society, Relay for Life Publicity Department, #1 Doubles Tennis team
  • Job/Work     Experience: Microphilanthropy firm intern, Senate intern
  • Volunteer/Community     service: Tutored underprivileged children at local elementary school, City     Youth Commission Chairperson
  • Summer     Activities: Northwestern journalism residency (cherubs), internships,     taking courses, yearbook camp
  • Essays:     Pretty good. I’m a writer, so I suppose they were good.
  • Common     App Main: Starting my own newspaper/ civic government.
  • EC     Short Answer: Speech helping me overcome past insecurities.
  • "Profile"     questions: Good and quirky. Talked about my music tastes and love for     sports. Very happy with these.
  • Intellectual     Vitality Essay: Economics’ application to philanthropy. Liked this one, as     I want to pursue this as a career.
  • Letter     to Roommate Essay: Made fun of myself. Go Nicki Minaj!
  • What     matters to you and why? Essay: Journalism-related. Very personal to all     the people I have met as a journalist.
  • Teacher     Recommendation: Strong. My history teacher always says how I’m one of the     best students he’s ever had, and my English teacher likes me enough I     guess haha
  • Counselor     Rec: Strong, have a good relationship with him although he has 350     students.
  • Additional     Rec: Very strong, he let me read it (from my newspaper editor from an     outside publication). Known him since freshman year and wrote about my     compassion as a writer.
  • Interview:     none
Other
  • Applied for     Financial Aid?: no
  • Intended     Major: Economics, English
  • State     (if domestic applicant): CA
  • Country     (if international applicant):
  • School     Type: Public
  • Ethnicity:     Asian
  • Gender:     Female
  • Income     Bracket: 100k+
  • Hooks     (URM, first generation college, etc.): none.
Reflection
  • Strengths: I     really showed my passion and accomplishments in journalism and zoned in on     it. It really is my great passion, and it shined in my essays.
  • Weaknesses:     I knew Stanford looked for that "special" quality in students,     and I really didn’t feel like I was that special. It’s that     "Stanford" quality everyone strives for, and I certainly felt     like my essays weren’t special enough.
  • Why     you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: NO IDEA. I really thought     I was going to get a rejection. I was balling in the car because I thought     I got rejected. I refused to open the email for 10 minutes haha. Not my     shining moment. :’)
General Comments: Never give up! I thought I HAD NO CHANCE AT STANFORD. I considered not applying, as I know a lot of amazing people who were rejected, but I thought I’d give it a shot. It’s been my dream school since the 3rd grade. My greatest piece of advice is zone in on something you truly love (not something an adcom would love) and let that thing shine! I refused to wear my Stanford sweatshirt for the past four months. I’m wearing it again right now though haha. GO CARDINALS <3
 
Deferred
Case 1:
[ size=+2][ color=orange][ b]Decision: Deferred[ /b][ /color][ /size]

[ b]Objective:[ /b][ list]
[ *] SAT I (breakdown): [2300] Math: 800 Reading: 760 Writing: 740 (Essay 8)
[ *] ACT:
[ *] SAT II: Biology: 750 Math II: 800
[ *] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.92
[ *] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): top 10% or maybe 20%?
[ *] AP (place score in parenthesis): CompSci (4) USH (4) Music Theory (5) Biology (5)
[ *] IB (place score in parenthesis):
[ *] Senior Year Course Load: APEcon Micro/Macro, AP English Lit, AP Stat, AP Chem, APC Mech/E&M, AP BC Calc
[ *] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
NCWIT (Computing) Award Winner, AIME qualifier (Missed USAMO by 20 points..so still a lot)

[ /list][ b]Subjective:[ /b][ list]
[ *] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Robotics (Captain), FBLA (VP), Technology Club (Prez), Speech & Debate, SciOly, Math Club, Piano (Lvl. 10)
[ *] Job/Work Experience: Piano Teacher, Web Designer, Mechanic
[ *] Volunteer/Community service: Camp Counselor & Other Small things (200 hours)
[ *] Summer Activities: Research at Stanford, Longboarding Business (Built & Sold)
[ *] Essays: Awesome. I believe they really showed who I was & I’m a good writer when it’s not analytical
[ *] Common App Main: Food & Family
[ *] EC Short Answer: Robotics
[ *] "Profile" questions: Eccentric
[ *] Intellectual Vitality Essay: Entrepreneurship
[ *] Letter to Roommate Essay: Wandering through cities
[ *] What matters to you and why? Essay: Research
[ *] Teacher Recommendation: Awesome/Alright? (didn’t see this one)
[ *] Counselor Rec: Who knows.
[ *] Additional Rec: Boss, different take on everything
[ *] Interview: N/A

[ /list][ b]Other[ /b][ list]
[ *] Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
[ *] Intended Major: CS or ChemE
[ *] State (if domestic applicant): CA
[ *] Country (if international applicant):
[ *] School Type: Public
[ *] Ethnicity: Chinese
[ *] Gender: Female
[ *] Income Bracket: High
[ *] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):

[ /list][ b]Reflection[ /b][ list]
[ *] Strengths: solid student
[ *] Weaknesses: I definitely had some horrible grades junior year. I probably should have explained them in my essays, as there were unusual circumstances, but I couldn’t find the right place for it.

[ *] Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected:
[ /list][ b]General Comments:[ /b]

Grades not perfect (in comparison to everyone else at my school)
Not as interesting (typical Asian/Engineering/piano type of activities)

 
 
Rejectted
Case 1:
[size=+2]Decision: Rejected[/size]

[/list][/b]Objective:[/b]

  • SAT I     (breakdown): superscore 2190 (M 720 R 720 W 250)
  • Unweighted     GPA (out of 4.0): 7.0 IB Scale (about 3.9ish on the 4.0 scale)
  • Rank     (percentile if rank is unavailable): 3%
  • AP     (place score in parenthesis): school doesn’t offer any
  • IB     (place score in parenthesis): IB examinations scheduled this May;)
         IB English HL
         IB Physics HL
         IB History HL
         IB Visual Art SL
         IB Math SL
         IB German Ab Initio
         Theory of Knowledge
  • Senior     Year Course Load: full IBDP course, listed above
  • Major     Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): none:P
[/b]Subjective:[/b]
  • Extracurriculars     (place leadership in parenthesis):
    Editor-in-Chief student     newspaper/MUN delegate/ambassador (THIMUN, RRMUN),Correspondent for     student magazine,Varsity Tennis,Tennis Club, Student Library Advisory
  • Job/Work     Experience: none
  • Volunteer/Community     service: service hours for the library. not a lot:P
  • Summer     Activities: German lessons
  • Essays:
  • Common     App Main: about a significant event. i wrote it like a prose passage, a     short story type. it wasn’t too witty or lighthearted. maybe it was a bit     cheesy. i don’t know… i just got my rejection letter like 15 minutes ago     so a bit insecure about all parts of my application right now;) 9/10
  • EC     Short Answer: wrote on landing the editor-in-chief position at the paper
  • "Profile"     questions: in the first one for listing the books and music etc i didn’t     write in two lines, doubt it had much significance though. was     lighthearted with it. i have a hunch the grammar was a bit off but don’t     want to look at the supplement now..
  • Intellectual     Vitality Essay: wrote about a Theory of Knowledge type issue. limitations     and restrictions on language. was pretty serious about it but     straightforward 8/10
  • Letter     to Roommate Essay: light and friendly. wrote about my habits and etc 7/10
  • What     matters to you and why? Essay: wrote about food, this was a second version     and came naturally 8/10
  • Teacher     Recommendation: should’ve been good but one teacher has very high     standards, i dont know what she wrote about me
  • Counselor     Rec: should be okay. i don’t expect anything spectacular though
  • Additional     Rec: didn’t send
  • Interview:     nope
Other
  • Applied for     Financial Aid?: No
  • Intended     Major: International Relations, Cultural Studies, Linguistics (interests)
  • State     (if domestic applicant): N/A
  • Country     (if international applicant): Nationality Korean, living in Europe
  • School     Type: private international school, English speaking
  • Ethnicity:     Asian (and proud to be.)
  • Gender:     Female
  • Income     Bracket: meh. 140+? euros and dollars..
  • Hooks     (URM, first generation college, etc.): none really
Reflection
  • Strengths:
         i thought my essays were pretty good, i love to write. but at the moment     i’m being harsh with myself. maybe i’ll come back later after i’ve     COMPLETELY gotten over the decisions and try to be objective about it..
  • Weaknesses:
    SAT scores, no particular     awards or summer activity, no internships, no research projects..:(
  • Why     you think you were rejected:
         What a weird question. Cause they thought i wasn’t motivated enough? My     grades from my public school back home were pretty grim. I jumped     tremendously after moving to my current school. But my thought when the     applications went out was that the huge increase would make me     interesting. Guess it didn’t.. overrated myself or something Lol I DONT     KNOW.
General Comments:
Im still slightly emotional, and so im going to blab on – it was really, really awful for about 3-5 minutes. But i think i’m pretty much over it now just i have all this complaining to get done. Will probably call my bf after this and get it all out instead of pouring out my insecurities here on CC;)
but that article from the Dean helped. i think it’s better to carefully read the whole rejection letter.
 
Case 2:
[size=+2]Decision: Rejected[/size]

Objective:

  • SAT I     (breakdown): 2280, 800CR/720 M/760 W (single sitting); 2340 super-scored
  • ACT:     didn’t take
  • SAT     II: 710 Math 2, 730 Bio M, 720 Bio E
  • Unweighted     GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
  • Rank     (percentile if rank is unavailable): 10 (it changed to 3 after I submitted     my application, grr)
  • AP     (place score in parenthesis): (all 5) Bio, Calc AB, World History, English     Lang, Stats, US History
  • IB     (place score in parenthesis): N/A
  • Senior     Year Course Load: AP Psych, AP Physics, AP Gov, AP Lit, Concert Band, year     2 of a healthcare academy program at my school, AP Chinese at an     off-campus Chinese school
  • Major     Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Scholarship Commended Student, NHS, CSF, AP     Scholar with Distinction
Subjective:
  • Extracurriculars     (place leadership in parenthesis): academic league (captain 9th, 11th, and 12th), concert band     percussionist, marching band percussionist (captain 10th), piano
  • Job/Work     Experience: private piano teacher, pipa / Chinese lute performing
  • Volunteer/Community     service: volunteering at the local library
  • Summer     Activities: performed     pipa at the county fair, took classes at local community college, visited     China and the East coast with my family
  • Essays:     See below
  • Common     App Main: I am a year or two younger than the average freshman applicant,     and I wrote about how I didn’t let that stop me from gaining opportunities
  • EC     Short Answer: I elaborated more on my pipa performing experience
  • "Profile"     questions: I was honest, though it took me a while to figure out what my     favorites were, haha
  • Intellectual     Vitality Essay: I wrote about how a debate assignment we had in chemistry     helped me become more open-minded to different points of view
  • Letter     to Roommate Essay: Fun, I told a cute story and talked about my love of     reading
  • What     matters to you and why? Essay: Learning… haha, I didn’t like this essay
  • Teacher     Recommendation: one teacher’s was amazing, the other’s I didn’t see
  • Counselor     Rec: I dunno
  • Additional     Rec: N/A
  • Interview:     N/A (I wish they gave interviews in their own state! -.- I love     interviews!)
Other
  • Applied for     Financial Aid?: I would     have, yes
  • Intended     Major: biology, pre-med
  • State     (if domestic applicant): CA
  • Country     (if international applicant): N/A
  • School     Type: Public
  • Ethnicity:     Chinese -.-
  • Gender:     Female
  • Income     Bracket: Below 60,000
  • Hooks     (URM, first generation college, etc.): Not really
Reflection
  • Strengths:     most of my academics, my pipa / Chinese lute performance experience &     music activities in general
  • Weaknesses:      I’m an ORM, I didn’t do many     healthcare-related activities, my SAT IIs weren’t that good
  • Why     you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: The weaknesses
General Comments:
I’m pretty sad, Stanford was my first choice… Oh well, I guess. Time to wait for my other colleges. Congratulations to everyone who is / gets accepted!
 

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