If Machine Learning is your thing, it confuses me that you're transferring out of one of the top institutions for Machine Learning research.
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Applying to college
- Thread starter xenu
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Look at the AI rankings from US News.
Still not changing the fact that Columbia's faculty who specialize in these areas produce a lot of papers on the subject (a lot of which are cited very heavily). I do research in swarm AI in UAVs, so I do go through a couple of papers on the subject. I feel like you're trolling me now, especially since a person who goes to Columbia would recognize the strength of their machine learning research regardless of U.S. News rankings.
I had a response to this, but I removed it because it was too edgy.
Instead, I will talk about Mike Jordan.
if i can interrupt the dick-measuring spat to ask a question of knowledgeable smogon members:
what do i take my first yr of college? i understand this is too broad a question, but like what are dos and donts. Im interested in political science economics and statistics maybe trying to go to law school. I was thinking Stats course - Microecon (which wont be as hard bc i took econ in hs, although still hard, prolly), a political science course, and an english class. it's hinted at in the catalogue i can place out of stats 101 based on the ap score: is this typically good or bad to do? idk im just confused
what do i take my first yr of college? i understand this is too broad a question, but like what are dos and donts. Im interested in political science economics and statistics maybe trying to go to law school. I was thinking Stats course - Microecon (which wont be as hard bc i took econ in hs, although still hard, prolly), a political science course, and an english class. it's hinted at in the catalogue i can place out of stats 101 based on the ap score: is this typically good or bad to do? idk im just confused
It ultimately depends on which institution you go to. A lot of institutions have 4-year plans which gives you the recommended path one should take to complete his or her major in four years. You can usually google your institution, major, and specify 4 year plan and get what you need in the first link or two Shrug
You should take courses your first year that are prerequisites for a lot of the upper-level courses you wish to take, if such courses exist. That way, you don't realize halfway into your academic career that because you didn't take chemistry 1, you can't get into the biochemistry class you really need to take for a biomedical engineering major (as a lazy example).
What year are you now, in high school I would assume?
It really depends on what you're comfortable with. If you have AP credits, then you'll have free courses out of the way, which means you can either move up classes that you've completed prerequisites for (as in take them a semester early) or take classes in other degrees. Most colleges should have a "flowchart" of courses that you're planned to take each year, and if your school doesn't have one then get an excel spreadsheet out and make one yourself. That way you can see what the difficult years are, which classes you can move around to balance things out, or which semesters will be easy ones for you to pad your GPA. You have to consider tradeoffs between doing well in the classes, graduating a semester early if possible, and managing extracurriculars/personal time.
Represent. PM me with questions.
I had an Excel spreadsheet planning out four years of college - and it didn't go like my plan in HS, but better. Adjust accordingly.
I would definitely be fine with English / PoliSci / MicroEcon - even if you have AP credit in those classes, there are usually variations that are not review classes from high school. Be careful with what Stats you take - there is a HUGE difference between calculus based stats and non-calculus based stats (AP really only covers stats without Calc, and econ / stats majors will most likely need to take calc-based stats). It was also common at Wisconsin for students to not do as well overall if they took a math class their first semester - a bigger issue with calc than stats, though.
The fourth class should be something random and fun, IMO. The more random the better. Enjoy what the massive course catalog has to offer before locking yourself in and facing a crunch to graduate on time.
When deciding between taking and not taking AP credit, remember that 2 successful grades >>> 1 not so great grade. They did help me graduate in 4 years when I wouldn't have otherwise, but it wasn't always a smooth transition from AP to college. Keep in mind that you're not only taking a harder class, you are also competing against students a few years older with better study habits. Hard to top the curve (or even make friends) in that type of class no matter how good your HS background. The material doesn't always change between AP and college, but the pace certainly does.
Also if you have retroactive foreign language credits, take advantage of that by enrolling in a language course. Wisconsin granted retroactive credit for foreign language classes given a B or higher in the first university class taken.
bump
I'm applying rn! Applying to University of Washington and Western Washington cause I did an in-state "community college in high school" program (Running Start) and want my college credits to transfer. Really hoping I get into UW, I have a 3.99 GPA (literally ONE A- KILL ME), 1380 SAT, and I did Running Start which they supposedly like at UW :D My only problem is I have very low extra-curriculars, I only did National Honors Society and some babysitting here and there, and while NHS did provide a lot of community service and require a high GPA I'm not sure it'll be enough... I've been wondering if it'd be worth putting all the articles / analyses I wrote for this website on my app, what do you guys think??
Western is my safety although tbh if I don't get into UW I'd probably just try to transfer with an AA since I'll be pretty close to it by the time I've graduated high school.
Western is my safety although tbh if I don't get into UW I'd probably just try to transfer with an AA since I'll be pretty close to it by the time I've graduated high school.
Applying to colleges now as well; running took up most of my "after school time", so wouldn't look better that I did XC, indoor and outdoor track for 4 years with large improvements (in times) as opposed to multiple clubs/ groups? I already finished my Common Application essay (the 650 word max one) and wrote about a summer job I had done. Applying for architecture if anyone else can relate; almost finished with my portfolio thank god.
just checked this thread randomly. My advice to incoming freshman is to skip every class you possibly can (in terms of applying AP credits). your "intro to randomthingoutsideyourmajor" class is going to teach you about as close to nothing useful as they can possibly pass with these things still being considered 'courses'. You're not going to get blasted in the second introductory econ course because you didn't take the college version of intro econ, unless you go to a truly ultra-rigourous school like caltech or something. And, if you're anything like me, a few years down the line you'll really be resenting having that 5-6 hours cut out of your week writing bullshit bio 2 lab reports when you could be doing anything useful (developing in-major skills, hobbies, friends, reading, the list goes on). Knock anything that you can out.
as a side note, don't just apply to schools based on prestige. You will learn far more and have a better time if you're at a school which is a good fit for you personally. I go to georgia tech and it definitely bugs me that my junior and senior level CS classes are still massive impersonal lecture halls -- if I could do it over again, maybe I'd go somewhere smaller. Easy to gloss over the fact that your social life is still important when you're applying to schools.
as a side note, don't just apply to schools based on prestige. You will learn far more and have a better time if you're at a school which is a good fit for you personally. I go to georgia tech and it definitely bugs me that my junior and senior level CS classes are still massive impersonal lecture halls -- if I could do it over again, maybe I'd go somewhere smaller. Easy to gloss over the fact that your social life is still important when you're applying to schools.
As someone who took a class that I didn't need to (I could've skipped it using AP credits) for the sole purpose of making my schedule "easier," i'd like to echo bad ass's statement about skipping all classes you can. It's not worth it, it's a waste of your time and effort, and you won't learn anything from it. If there's any situation where you can get out of intro classes, absolutely do it.
If you really really want to take an intro class that you've ap'ed out of for whatever reason, at least try to talk to students already in the college to see whether it's a good idea or not. There may be some situations where it's a good idea to retake classes, but it's almost always not worth it.
If you really really want to take an intro class that you've ap'ed out of for whatever reason, at least try to talk to students already in the college to see whether it's a good idea or not. There may be some situations where it's a good idea to retake classes, but it's almost always not worth it.
To further drive home the point of the pair of previous posters: I actually took AP Chem in high school and passed my exam with flying colors and could have skipped intro Chem. I figured since I was going into the sciences, I should go ahead and take that course anyway (while still taking AP credits to skip out on other courses where applicable, like intro English). LOL WHAT A WASTE OF MY DAMN TIME just skip everything you can
Ahh, I know I kind of already asked this, but what do you guys think about putting the written work I've done for this site on my college application? As in, the Pokemon analyses I've written? I've pretty much finished my UW app, and it's looking pretty good, but my list of activities is horrible right now lol... It's like NHS, babysitting, and Yearbook :/. The admissions office wrote advice that was like "We know you'll probably have more than five but try to shorten it down" and I'm don't even have four! So that's why I was thinking I could put down my writing, at the very least it was something I did during my freshman / sophomore year... and if I split NHS and community service into two categories then I'd have five activities (which is their limit). Although, I feel like it could backfire because writing about Pokemon might look stupid or like a waste of time to them lol. What do you guys think??
I was just given the opportunity to review my college application a few days ago and I thought I'd share some of my experiences here for people currently applying. I got into Johns Hopkins ED last year.
TLDR
I learned that the most important thing is still your GPA and class rigor unless you are some national level champion in an extracurricular event
I learned that quantity can somewhat makeup for quality when it comes to extracurriculars bc I got ragged on not being involved in anything particularly time-consuming but still was rewarded for at least being active. Actually this comment surprised me quite a lot because they considered being in chamber orchestra and a captain of the debate team to not be "that much of a time commitment" so I question what they would consider to be a time commitment? Marching band I guess? Not so sure
I learned that they don't really care about your essays as long as you write about something important to you and it's well-written
I learned that teacher recommendations are really important; mine were surprisingly hugely impactful because they were very impressed
I learned that they will notice if you've really done a good job of researching the school and the opportunities it provides and how they fit in with your aspirations
Finally I learned that they don't really care about volunteering
idk if other schools do the same thing but I'm glad I got to see what they thought about me and I encourage people to find out if they are given that chance
TLDR
I learned that the most important thing is still your GPA and class rigor unless you are some national level champion in an extracurricular event
I learned that quantity can somewhat makeup for quality when it comes to extracurriculars bc I got ragged on not being involved in anything particularly time-consuming but still was rewarded for at least being active. Actually this comment surprised me quite a lot because they considered being in chamber orchestra and a captain of the debate team to not be "that much of a time commitment" so I question what they would consider to be a time commitment? Marching band I guess? Not so sure
I learned that they don't really care about your essays as long as you write about something important to you and it's well-written
I learned that teacher recommendations are really important; mine were surprisingly hugely impactful because they were very impressed
I learned that they will notice if you've really done a good job of researching the school and the opportunities it provides and how they fit in with your aspirations
Finally I learned that they don't really care about volunteering
idk if other schools do the same thing but I'm glad I got to see what they thought about me and I encourage people to find out if they are given that chance
You will definitely get into UW with those stats. I know people with less than a 3.3 GPA and a 1500 SAT on the 2400 scale that got into UW. Also my GPA was lower than yours and they accepted me. As long as you have something relevant and interesting in your essays, you will get in. Honestly I wrote my essays in about 20 min each because UW was the last school I applied to and I applied the night before the deadline LOL. I wouldn't worry too much. Plus you'll have a great advantage with running start credits and save lots of money :D
Omg!! You honestly don't know how happy that makes me haha. UW has been the dream school for me since like forever... And I spent literally so much time on my essay haha if they don't like it I will be very sad :(
As a college counselor, I can say that most of these are true. Some schools value specific types of volunteering (I.e. The Catholic Ivies) or volunteering in general (Swarthmore). One thing that competitive schools will notice for volunteering is if you start your own volunteering program, such as a high school mentoring program or local community clean-up club.
Personally, I was very involved in the music department, partaking in various ensembles, as well as athletics. Club advisor recommendations definitely help you a long way. As electrolyte said, schools will generalize your involvement in a club since different clubs will have different levels of time commitment (I.e. marching band in Texas (super competitive) vs.marching band in NJ (not as competitive)). An advisor's recommendation certainly helps illuminate your level of involvement in a club.
Furthermore, extracurriculars off campus (I.e. research) also show that you invest a lot of time in said activity.
Hello. I am Twenty One years old. I have been a NEET for the last 4 years of my life. Today I finally nutted up and applied for Multiple Universities. It feels like a huge weight was lifted off my back and now I can get to working on the rest of my life to make up for all these wasted years.
Just got in ED to the Digital Media Design (DMD) program at UPenn! I'm still sort of in shock and super excited. The major combines art, computer science, and communication, so anyone interested in animation/games/computer graphics should totally look into it.
Normally I don't post on threads like these but I feel like I owe a lot of gratitude to the Smogon community, as cliche as it sounds. I learned how much I loved digital art on this forum and I wouldn't be close to the level I'm at now if it weren't for Smeargle's Studio and the art staff. I started out here as a complete beginner, but after participating and getting incredible feedback from all the artists here (especially Bummer), I was decent enough to start considering art as a college option. I had to become a lurker after the application process began so I'm looking forward to start posting again!
Best of luck to everyone else applying right now!
Normally I don't post on threads like these but I feel like I owe a lot of gratitude to the Smogon community, as cliche as it sounds. I learned how much I loved digital art on this forum and I wouldn't be close to the level I'm at now if it weren't for Smeargle's Studio and the art staff. I started out here as a complete beginner, but after participating and getting incredible feedback from all the artists here (especially Bummer), I was decent enough to start considering art as a college option. I had to become a lurker after the application process began so I'm looking forward to start posting again!
Best of luck to everyone else applying right now!
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Ey I was Penn undergrad. Congrats!