Applying to college

That's only if you're pursuing grad school, law school, med school, etc.

As a transfer applicant right now, I really look into a University's research programs and projects as well as internationalism of its community since I'm planning to go down an engineering/international policy path, and thus I'm looking for schools that offer that kind of education atmosphere.
 
Did really well first semester in college so looking to transfer for monetary/might as well go to a better school reasons, you guys think its worth retaking the SATs? I got a 2030 in highschool but im looking to apply to like UMich, UCLA, UNC, UVA, basically a state school with a good business program so i know my SAT is low but idk how much that matters. My GPA first semester was top 5% of my class or something in college though at Tulane
 
Laurel said:
Did really well first semester in college so looking to transfer for monetary/might as well go to a better school reasons, you guys think its worth retaking the SATs? I got a 2030 in highschool but im looking to apply to like UMich, UCLA, UNC, UVA, basically a state school with a good business program so i know my SAT is low but idk how much that matters. My GPA first semester was top 5% of my class or something in college though at Tulane
Click to expand...

2030 is adequate for all schools you listed. If you are not accepted as a transfer, your SAT will not be the reason why.
 
I spend a fair amount of time researching this stuff, and my opinion has changed. Right now, I really prefer state schools to public schools. My top choice right now is Georgia Tech, because it's a good school and not that expensive. Michigan Ann Arbor would be awesome if I get in, but that's difficult. Also, University of Maryland seems pretty neat. I've kind of lost interest in Cornell and JHU simply because they seem so difficult, and I don't want to spend time surrounded by intense academics all the time. Some private schools that still kind of interest me are Case Western Reserve University, Carnegie Mellon University, and Bucknell University. Another University that kind of came out of left field but still interests me is Stevens Institute of Technology (Hoboken, NJ.) It has some of the highest paid graduates and is ranked very high for return on investment. My parents are not going to be able to shell out for college, so stuff like that is important to me. Even though I live in NY, I don't really like Binghamton all that much. Maybe it's because my neighbor (who I am honestly much smarter than) is there and I don't want to admit we ended up in the same place. I could maybe get money there and she was wait listed for a long time, but the same school still gets to me. One last place I kind of am interested in is Carleton College, in Minnesota. It's a pretty high ranked liberal arts school, and it has good CS programs. I also have some family there, and they probably don't get many apps from NYC suburbs, so I /should/ be able to get in.

Also about Rutgers: my uncle went there, majored in math at New Brunswick, went to Chicago Business, makes over 300k a year from my estimate. Rutgers is not a joke, and I would have no shame applying there.

Also, my ACT is now a 33, but I'm retaking it and except a 35. I like fell asleep during science or something an got a 28, and I already have 33.25 composite, so I think getting English or Math up a point and getting science up a bit will easily super score me to a 35. I need 5 more total. My current scores are 34 English / 35 Math / 36 Reading / 28 Science (lol.) Getting that total up to a 35 is a goal of mine that I think I can achieve, which puts me over average by a bit for my top schools, hopefully it can balance out my less impressive academic performance (but my GPA will break 3.7 by the end of junior year.)
 
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If you're interested in Georgia Tech I'd highly recommend University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign. They offer a comparably selective Computer Science program with a much nicer gender balance ratio. They were also really nice about letting me bring credits in.
 
Got into UMD, Penn State, and Pitt :). Georgetown, Columbia, and others come later but this really takes a lot of the stress off.

Any smogonites at these schools care to share about the student life/ their experiences?
 
DavisWuhu said:
So I looked through this thread and saw some really good advice. That being said, as I'm about to start this process in a year or two (currently 10th grade), I'm also looking for some personal tips.
Like I said, I'm a sophomore in WI, and I have a 4.0 unweighted GPA including this fall semester. I took the ACT once in 8th grade and got either a 31 or 32 (can't remember). Took the PSAT and got a sort of crappy 209, but on the other hand I didn't really study for it so that's my fault.

I've got a pretty challenging course load atm IMO. Currently I'm taking:
- English 10 Honors
- Math Physics (1 grade ahead of grade level)
- Spanish 3
- AP Calculus AB
- AP Statistics
- Chemistry
- AP Euro

Last year some toughish classes I took:
- English 9 Honors
- PreCalculus
- Biology Honors
- US History Honors
- Spanish 2

Next year I'm probably taking AP Calculus BC, AP Gov, AP Comp Sci, AP Physics B, Spanish 4, and one or two honors English classes. Over my four years I'm shooting for 10 APs (will have at least 7 by junior end) and one or two classes at the UW (already got math senior year, maybe physics/statistics?)

Note that I'm not just taking these classes cuz they're advanced, but I really like being academically challenged. Stimulates dat brain.

My extracurriculars include:
- Science Olympiad (6th-8th grade, multiple medals at State and Nationals qualifier, might pick up next year if there are good events)
- Madison West Rocketry (9th grade-present, qualified for TARC Nationals last year)
- Piano (9-10 years and ongoing, won several competitions)
- Violin (4-5 years and ongoing, first violinist in highest orchestra in Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras)
- Tennis (Freshman team last year and looking for high JV this year)
- Possible internship at UW - Madison this summer? Application date is in a couple weeks
- Volunteer at Music Makers during summer: nonprofit organization where highschoolers give free/very low cost music lessons to children from low-income families
- Possible TA next year for a class at West? Probably something math related

I might plan to major either in business, computer science, or STEM, but I need to take more classes before I come to a conclusion (esp. Business, since all the business classes at West are super super super shitty so I haven't taken any). My ultra dream schools, depending on my major, are Harvard, UChicago, Stanford, Columbia, Cornell, Rice, UPenn, MIT, the like. As per some people's advice on this thread one of my safeties is probably UW-Madison, UMichigan, or UIUC.

My biggest weakness? PROCRASTINATION. Holy shit I know I do this all the time but I can't seem to get rid of it, only get around it.
Academically? Probably English and History (AP EURO HOLY CRAP DAT 89.54% THO); they're my "stress classes" when it comes to finals. So I'd like some advice on the college essay writing process.
Also, I'm Asian so IDK if that plays a huge factor in admissions.

Sorry if this post offends some people due to the listing of my achievements ("lol what do you need to worry about nerd"), but I feel like I need to put everything I can out there for advice that can really help me.
But yeah, thanks for reading my long post, I would really appreciate it if someone could give me feedback/comments/advice/tips.
Click to expand...
Holy shit dude that's actually an extremely impressive resume. Provided you don't slack off too badly, you should be in the clear, and you've got a great shot at damn near all of your "ultra dream" schools. If you want to get that test score up, I suggest some SAT classes- they actually helped me a lot, raising my 1940 to a 2220. It's also cool to see a sophomore asking for advice. It is never too early to start!
 
DavisWuhu said:
So I looked through this thread and saw some really good advice. That being said, as I'm about to start this process in a year or two (currently 10th grade), I'm also looking for some personal tips.
Like I said, I'm a sophomore in WI, and I have a 4.0 unweighted GPA including this fall semester. I took the ACT once in 8th grade and got either a 31 or 32 (can't remember). Took the PSAT and got a sort of crappy 209, but on the other hand I didn't really study for it so that's my fault.

I've got a pretty challenging course load atm IMO. Currently I'm taking:
- English 10 Honors
- Math Physics (1 grade ahead of grade level)
- Spanish 3
- AP Calculus AB
- AP Statistics
- Chemistry
- AP Euro

Last year some toughish classes I took:
- English 9 Honors
- PreCalculus
- Biology Honors
- US History Honors
- Spanish 2

Next year I'm probably taking AP Calculus BC, AP Gov, AP Comp Sci, AP Physics B, Spanish 4, and one or two honors English classes. Over my four years I'm shooting for 10 APs (will have at least 7 by junior end) and one or two classes at the UW (already got math senior year, maybe physics/statistics?)

Note that I'm not just taking these classes cuz they're advanced, but I really like being academically challenged. Stimulates dat brain.

My extracurriculars include:
- Science Olympiad (6th-8th grade, multiple medals at State and Nationals qualifier, might pick up next year if there are good events)
- Madison West Rocketry (9th grade-present, qualified for TARC Nationals last year)
- Piano (9-10 years and ongoing, won several competitions)
- Violin (4-5 years and ongoing, first violinist in highest orchestra in Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras)
- Tennis (Freshman team last year and looking for high JV this year)
- Possible internship at UW - Madison this summer? Application date is in a couple weeks
- Volunteer at Music Makers during summer: nonprofit organization where highschoolers give free/very low cost music lessons to children from low-income families
- Possible TA next year for a class at West? Probably something math related

I might plan to major either in business, computer science, or STEM, but I need to take more classes before I come to a conclusion (esp. Business, since all the business classes at West are super super super shitty so I haven't taken any). My ultra dream schools, depending on my major, are Harvard, UChicago, Stanford, Columbia, Cornell, Rice, UPenn, MIT, the like. As per some people's advice on this thread one of my safeties is probably UW-Madison, UMichigan, or UIUC.

My biggest weakness? PROCRASTINATION. Holy shit I know I do this all the time but I can't seem to get rid of it, only get around it.
Academically? Probably English and History (AP EURO HOLY CRAP DAT 89.54% THO); they're my "stress classes" when it comes to finals. So I'd like some advice on the college essay writing process.
Also, I'm Asian so IDK if that plays a huge factor in admissions.

Sorry if this post offends some people due to the listing of my achievements ("lol what do you need to worry about nerd"), but I feel like I need to put everything I can out there for advice that can really help me.
But yeah, thanks for reading my long post, I would really appreciate it if someone could give me feedback/comments/advice/tips.
Click to expand...

Write and revise your essays early, apply very broadly, and hope that one of them snatches you up (they most likely will). That's how you get into a (several?) top undergrad program with your resume.
 
DavisWuhu said:
I might plan to major either in business, computer science, or STEM, but I need to take more classes before I come to a conclusion (esp. Business, since all the business classes at West are super super super shitty so I haven't taken any). My ultra dream schools, depending on my major, are Harvard, UChicago, Stanford, Columbia, Cornell, Rice, UPenn, MIT, the like. As per some people's advice on this thread one of my safeties is probably UW-Madison, UMichigan, or UIUC.
Click to expand...


Your ACT probably needs to be closer to a 34 or 35 for most of the dream one's (you can boost it with some cheap tricks though, see below. Real talk though, if those are your dream schools, start early and apply to all of them. Top, top, top schools will tell you that every year they have to deny people that could succeed in their academic curriculum, and casting a wide net is one of your best options if you are really serious about your wants. Also pay attention to the quirks about each school. If you're serious about UChicago you'd better put double or triple digit hours into your essay, and make sure that it's not a generic AP 5 one, etc.


Wrt ACT,

-everything on the math test being to scale, eliminating geometry and trig questions

-several patterns in english and reading (like if x is a multiple choice option it is always the right answer [you'd need to take a review course, idr what x is])

-Don't read the paragraphs in the science section, just read the question, then the relevant graphs, then answer, only going to the paragraphs as a LAST resort. They can confuse you and are major time wastes.





-If you're a fast taker, know that the ACT is a "balanced test", or that the purposely try to eliminate strategies like "when in doubt guess c". To that end, if you look at all of the released ACT scores (at least as of 2013-2014 when I tested) you'll notice a pattern. For instance, if the math section has 60 questions and 5 choices (they alternate but lets just call them all A B C D E), you will find that there are 12 A's, 12 B's, 12 C's, 12 D's, and 12 E's, plus or minus a couple of 13's and 11's and once in a blue moon 14 or 10. If you know 55 of the 60 questions dead on and can eliminate the last 5 down to 2 or 3 answers each you can count up all of the answers you know and figure out that if say, you're absolutely SURE that there are 14 correct A's, there will most likely not be any more A's on the test, eliminating more answers from the one's you don't know. I was taught this by a math tutor, who, at his company, most of the staff would be competent enough to get 34's and 35's naturally in their individual sections, and use this trick to get up to the 36.
 
wh0sy0urpapa said:
Holy shit dude that's actually an extremely impressive resume. Provided you don't slack off too badly, you should be in the clear, and you've got a great shot at damn near all of your "ultra dream" schools. If you want to get that test score up, I suggest some SAT classes- they actually helped me a lot, raising my 1940 to a 2220. It's also cool to see a sophomore asking for advice. It is never too early to start!
Click to expand...


Ok, this is actually quite reassuring, as I'm in a fairly similar boat (taking Latin instead of Spanish, one year behind in math, and only a 3.7), and my dad (a college professor in chemistry at a nearby school) keeps saying that it's highly doubtful that I will be able to get into one of my dream schools (Cal Berkely or U Santa Clara, mostly for the location) due to my (relatively) low GPA (most of my friends have 4.4s).
 
DavisWuhu said:
So I looked through this thread and saw some really good advice. That being said, as I'm about to start this process in a year or two (currently 10th grade), I'm also looking for some personal tips.
Like I said, I'm a sophomore in WI, and I have a 4.0 unweighted GPA including this fall semester. I took the ACT once in 8th grade and got either a 31 or 32 (can't remember). Took the PSAT and got a sort of crappy 209, but on the other hand I didn't really study for it so that's my fault.

I've got a pretty challenging course load atm IMO. Currently I'm taking:
- English 10 Honors
- Math Physics (1 grade ahead of grade level)
- Spanish 3
- AP Calculus AB
- AP Statistics
- Chemistry
- AP Euro

Last year some toughish classes I took:
- English 9 Honors
- PreCalculus
- Biology Honors
- US History Honors
- Spanish 2

Next year I'm probably taking AP Calculus BC, AP Gov, AP Comp Sci, AP Physics B, Spanish 4, and one or two honors English classes. Over my four years I'm shooting for 10 APs (will have at least 7 by junior end) and one or two classes at the UW (already got math senior year, maybe physics/statistics?)

Note that I'm not just taking these classes cuz they're advanced, but I really like being academically challenged. Stimulates dat brain.

My extracurriculars include:
- Science Olympiad (6th-8th grade, multiple medals at State and Nationals qualifier, might pick up next year if there are good events)
- Madison West Rocketry (9th grade-present, qualified for TARC Nationals last year)
- Piano (9-10 years and ongoing, won several competitions)
- Violin (4-5 years and ongoing, first violinist in highest orchestra in Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras)
- Tennis (Freshman team last year and looking for high JV this year)
- Possible internship at UW - Madison this summer? Application date is in a couple weeks
- Volunteer at Music Makers during summer: nonprofit organization where highschoolers give free/very low cost music lessons to children from low-income families
- Possible TA next year for a class at West? Probably something math related

I might plan to major either in business, computer science, or STEM, but I need to take more classes before I come to a conclusion (esp. Business, since all the business classes at West are super super super shitty so I haven't taken any). My ultra dream schools, depending on my major, are Harvard, UChicago, Stanford, Columbia, Cornell, Rice, UPenn, MIT, the like. As per some people's advice on this thread one of my safeties is probably UW-Madison, UMichigan, or UIUC.

My biggest weakness? PROCRASTINATION. Holy shit I know I do this all the time but I can't seem to get rid of it, only get around it.
Academically? Probably English and History (AP EURO HOLY CRAP DAT 89.54% THO); they're my "stress classes" when it comes to finals. So I'd like some advice on the college essay writing process.
Also, I'm Asian so IDK if that plays a huge factor in admissions.

Sorry if this post offends some people due to the listing of my achievements ("lol what do you need to worry about nerd"), but I feel like I need to put everything I can out there for advice that can really help me.
But yeah, thanks for reading my long post, I would really appreciate it if someone could give me feedback/comments/advice/tips.
Click to expand...

My resume looked a lot like yours in high school, and one of the Ivies you listed took me. Do make sure that your essays are solid, and you'll really have no need to worry. Mine was on how my interpretation of the word "love" changed as I grew older. My biggest advice to you, however, (and this is no doubt going to be controversial) is to pick a direction you want to go in and do it early. Being well-rounded is good for college applications, but because I liked so many things, I was suuuuuper vacillatory as a freshman and it didn't do me much good since everyone else was so specialized and better at stuff than I was. I eventually started doubling down on my CS studies and the specialization helped me build confidence. Good luck!

P.S. For anyone wondering whether to take APs, absolutely fucking do them. It was one of the best decisions I have ever made. I got SO much credit for them in college--to the point that I could have graduated a year early if I had so desired. Your mileage obviously may vary depending on your scores and whether your university takes the credit, but it's very likely that you'll free at least a class or two to do whatever you want.
 
^ Nice man!

As for me ... current senior, I'll have done 10 AP classes by the time I've completed high school (already done Bio, US, English Lang, Calc AB, and Music Theory - 5s!!!) and I'm currently in AP Computer Science A / Chemistry / English Lit / US Gov / Spanish Lang (along with a creative writing class and band, lol). Luckily in the top 10% of my class by a good margin but unfortunately nowhere near the top 15 (which is basically 3 APs sophomore year and more after that..); Stressful senior year considering I do a lot of music stuff outside of school too (not to mention applying to colleges AND music conservatories...) but I like the challenge.

So far I've been accepted to Ohio State (half tuition scholarship automatically but I applied for the full-ride program), Case Western (25 k / year scholarship too but it's still pretty darn expensive...), Kent State (basically free), and Indiana. I've yet to hear back from Michigan, Rochester, Johns Hopkins, and Wash U in terms of academic schools. I applied to the music programs for everywhere I applied to academically, and I applied to the Peabody Conservatory (separate from Hopkins), the Cleveland Institute of Music, and Eastman (which unfortunately rejected my prescreening recording but getting past 2/3 of those [CIM + Michigan] is pretty good!). The one thing I'm most nervous about is Wash U because I have a lot going for me there in terms of personal connection but I applied for scholarships there and I'm more nervous than anything about how I fare in the applicant pool for that.... Oh well.

Planning on music major (if I get into Peabody I'd be doing their recording arts program because that's top-notch) alongside linguistics (if I end up somewhere that isn't a conservatory).

E: if anyone wants to bet on my chances: 34 ACT (3rd try, unfortunately); 2320 SAT superscore (2220 both times I took it); National Merit Commended Scholar (206 PSAT); 4.3 GPA cumulative


BIG E: This is retrospective editing basically: I ended up getting rejected from CIM, Hopkins and Peabody but I got into Michigan for music (not academics tho...?), Rochester, and Wash U. Lots of stuff to choose from but I'm going to Ohio State next year in the honors program which actually has a linguistics program and is basically stress-free. It was a good run tho
 
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Yeah the Ivies have a lovely double standard where if your school offered APs and you don't take many, it hurts you, but if you get in, none of them will count anyway.

You get some equivalent credit that can count toward general number of minimum credits needed to graduate, but everyone gets past that anyway. If you're lucky, some placement, usually in math or foreign language.
 
PikachuCandyツ said:
College sounds like a lot of pointless essays and math. God I'm gonna lose it if I ever go there ;__;
Click to expand...
its mostly a lot of pointful essays and math, at least in my experience as a freshman Computer Engineering major

im all for people seeking out alternatives to college that work for them, but if i may ask, what are you planning to do?
 
Pwnemon said:
its mostly a lot of pointful essays and math, at least in my experience as a freshman Computer Engineering major

im all for people seeking out alternatives to college that work for them, but if i may ask, what are you planning to do?
Click to expand...
Hopefully going to the Army special forces, it's a long term dream and goal. I can't think of anything else I'd love to do more, but I guess it's mostly just personal preference.
 
uraga said:
yoooo i'm doing eecs minor here and know hella eecs ppl lemme know if u got questions =] but u should cum
Click to expand...
EECS is something I've been interested in but I don't really know much about it. Can you tell me your experience with it and what people should expect it to be like if they chose that path?
 
BanSpecsMachamp

well typically people have an idea when they go into EECS of which part they want to focus more on, either the EE (electrical engineering) or the CS (computer science). they are inter-related and are useful in tandem but in terms of the major you only take intro classes in each topic and then you can pick from a wide variety of classes that are more specific that you can tailor to your interests, like hardware/software/theory in cs or other detailed topics in EE. I'm more interested in the cs part so I've mostly taken those classes. EECS or just CS is one of the fastest growing majors currently because of how prolific coding is in our everyday lives, so many jobs and services are becoming automated through programmed stuff and there are lots of startups for all kinds of crap that people didn't even know they wanted. plus during this boom there are plenty of jobs to go around and beginning software engineers' salaries are very high compared to entry-level jobs in other fields and people are obviously attracted to that.

overall I've enjoyed the classes I've taken and am definitely trying to incorporate the knowledge I've gained into my own life through some personal projects and other classes, haven't worked in CS really so can't speak much to that. EECS at my school at least has the rep of being a really hard major that people have to be hella nerdy to study but I think if you're interested in it it definitely is cool and potentially very useful. I think that even if you're not sure about a programming career or anything like that learning it gives you a new perspective on problems because you definitely learn to think in a different way.
 
A question about the UC apps.

For the a-g courses, is criterion (f) really necessary? Where I live (and I believe in an assload of other countries as well), visual arts and performing isn't commonly offered in school. Anyone facing/faced the same problem?

Also imo a 3.4 minimum GPA sounds brutal, if the GPA-to-percentage conversion is to be believed. Hot damn an 80% is hard to scrape by (or is it just me?), much less 90%, just for a minimally acceptable grade.
 
if you're referring to the a-g requirements, f is certainly also a 'requirement'. 3.4 gpa is not that difficult to get, though it is slightly easier to get in college than high school (since you choose the classes), it depends on what you study. You don't want to enter the UC as a frosh anyway, waste of money, go to CC and transfer.
 
Myzozoa said:
if you're referring to the a-g requirements, f is certainly also a 'requirement'. 3.4 gpa is not that difficult to get, though it is slightly easier to get in college than high school (since you choose the classes), it depends on what you study. You don't want to enter the UC as a frosh anyway, waste of money, go to CC and transfer.
Click to expand...

Well, the GPA thing could just be my own incompetence, although I'd like to think I'm doing sort of okay.
If I go by the GPA-% conversion, my GPA is a measly 2.5 right now. At the same time I'm also in the top 5% of my class. Maybe my whole class just sucks? Who knows?

I've had friends who transferred schools and came under the GPA scoring system, and their grades seemed to have significantly improved afterwards. I have several reasons to believe the GPA scoring system is relatively lenient.

Not sure about going to CCs though. I'm coming all the way from Singapore after all, it seems nicer to just settle down directly in a huge comfortable campus. I may be having the wrong idea though, feel free to give pointers.
 
I finished all my applications, but the schools I applied to don't reply until late March or early April. My strategy was to apply to a lot of reach schools and at least one that I knew I could get into.

I've got the straight A's all through high school (valed yo), and my test scores are okay (SAT: 2250 ACT: 34).

I have applied to Duke University in Durham, NC, Vanderbilt University (home of Stellar) in Nashville, TN, University of Chicago in Chicago, IL, Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, GA, Columbia University in New York, NY, as well as my guaranteed Clemson University in Clemson, SC.

I've only heard back from Clemson, and I got into the honors college with a pretty good scholarship. Hoping for the best in the coming months.

Good luck to everyone else as well!
 
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