The perfect University Application

[genius19971995]

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Hello, in the Fall I will begin my career as a student at Harvard University. I would like to spend a few moments to assist those of you who do not have excellent grades, but have a profound interest in attending an Ivy league, or just a prestigious school in general.

First and foremost... Universities look for a lot more than just grades. I know someone who attained a perfect score on the ACT and a 2390 score on the SAT. This individual also had a 4.0 Grade Point Average. He applied to Harvard and he was NOT accepted. Universities are interested in grades, but they are even more interested in test scores, volunteering, and extra-curricular activities.

Volunteering: By the end of your high school career, volunteer as much as you possibly are able to. Every opportunity. Especially when you have low grades. Universities such as Harvard are interested in well-rounded individuals.

Test Scores: One word, Study! If you have a low GPA, this is your time to compensate for it. Those who receive a 36 on the ACT are NOT geniuses, they simply study hard. Begin as early as you possibly can to study for both the ACT and SAT exams. If you have any questions, there are several reference materials/ books for studying. This is especially crucial when your GPA is relatively low, or at least when compared to other applicants.

Extra-Curriculars: Once again, join as many Extra-curricular activities as you can. Especially those involved in giving back to your community. Several of the Extra-curricular activities I participated in, we did not actually do anything. The review board thought so however.

Scholarships: Competition in scholarly competitions that make you stand out. Not just Merit scholarships, if you are interested in Science, try the Siemens Scholarship.

Take advantage of every opportunity that crosses your path.

Foreign Language: Pop the Rosetta Stone in your laptop. Colleges look highly upon individuals who possess rare skills. Putting "fluency in Chinese," for example, is very significant.

Below are some of the credentials that I included on my application.

Grade-Point Average: 3.95
ACT score: 36
SAT score: 2380
Volunteering/ Community Service Time: 120 hours
Extra-Curriculars: Twelve
Leadership: Class President
Class Rank: Not number 1***

Siemens Scholarship Finalist
Ronald Reagan Scholarship
National Merit Scholarship

AP US History Exam Score: 5
AP Chemistry Exam Score: 5
AP Biology Exam Score: 5
AP Physics Exam Score: 5
AP Calculas Exam Score: 5

Fluency in Chinese, but no Literacy
Pilot

Feel free to reply, I would be ecstatic to assist you.

 

[drorthoman]

Okay, so here's my story:

I went/go to a very small school. It's K-12 with about 5 high schoolers in all (I believe a lot of kids only do online but some kids come in and take like one class and then leave) for the entire day. It's 3 days a week, and it has no extra curricular anything. No clubs, no sports teams - nothing. However, I'm going to be dual-enrolling at a local CC, and I'll be taking most of my classes there (only taking one at my high school). So, looking at all the clubs and activities my public and even private school friends are doing, I really feel like I'm at a disadvantage. Granted, I hope to join the 2 or 3 clubs available at my CC, but I don't think it's enough. I've been volunteering (I've done 100 hours so far) and continue to do so. I'm peer tutoring and I've been working at my dad's gift shop.

I took the SAT as a sophomore (school made me take it in order for me to Dual Enroll) and scored a 2030. Now, I know that's nowhere near as good I need it to be, and I'm going to take it again in May and I'm aiming for a 2300+. I'm also taking the SAT Literature, SAT Math Level 2, and the SAT Chemistry subject tests. What else do you think I need to do in order to raise my chances of getting into a school like University of Chicago, a high-tier BS/MD program, and of course, an Ivy League school? BTW, thanks for your time!

 

[genius19971995]

Well, there are several ways you can tackle this issue. But first at foremost, you are at a significant disadvantage. Do not let this set you back. Firstly, raise your SAT scores as you mentioned. The higher the better. Secondly, tutoring will be seen highly from the University's standpoint. Thirdly, since you made it very clear you are going to pursue the medical field, try volunteering at local hospitals. Many people say college interviews do not matter. This is not true. You have to be sure to make a very good impression on the interviewer. If you do not participate in an interview, your chances of acceptance are minimal. Exactly how old are you? If you have any scientific knowledge, there are many scholarship programs out there such as the Siemens scholarship, that would make you stand out considerably.

Also, try to establish connections at the University.

Colleges look for prospective students who are not only intellectually competent, but those who stand out. You have to standout. There are many creative ways to do so. This may seem desperate, but even if you went to a bookstore and purchased a book on a computer language. If you have the ability to say that you are indeed an expert on a particular software setting, this will help you standout. As I said, you could even try to learn a language. Your first problem is being accepted into the university.

If you could find someone, preferably a professor that would allow you to do some sort of research, this would have an astronomical effect on your probability of acceptance. A professor at the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor allowed me to 'assist' him. Even if you are the once standing there holding the flash light you could still say you assisted in research.

It is not what you know, it is who you know.

Lastly, are you by chance a minority? Also, what social/ fiscal class are you in? What is your financial situation? All this factors can assist you.

 

[drorthoman]

I'm going to reply tomorrow. Right now I'm on my phone and it would be impossible to reply properly. See you tomorrow lol?

 

[pacific123]

genius19971995: Good points. And useful ones. One curious question. Let us say I score 36 in ACT and 2330 in SAT. In my college applns, if I disclose my ACT scores only, would this be considered BAD or Perfectly Accepted practice. The reason I am asking is (I am a 10th grader) I am clocking 34 in ACT and 2250 in SAT right now. Based on my projections, I will get 36 in ACT and 2330 in SAT.

 

[drorthoman]

genius19971995: Good points. And useful ones. One curious question. Let us say I score 36 in ACT and 2330 in SAT. In my college applns, if I disclose my ACT scores only, would this be considered BAD or Perfectly Accepted practice. The reason I am asking is (I am a 10th grader) I am clocking 34 in ACT and 2250 in SAT right now. Based on my projections, I will get 36 in ACT and 2330 in SAT.

Don't ever project anything when it comes to standarized tests. Until you get that 35 or 36 score consistently (from the official ACT tests), do not assume that you'll get a 36. Standardized tests will always be unpredictable no matter how much you study. The same goes for the SAT. I was scoring about 2120-2170 on my practice SAT tests from the Official SAT Study Guide. However, on the real deal, I got a 2030. I'm going to take it again as a junior this year, so we'll see what happens. In summary, don't assume anything when it comes to standardized tests.

 

[genius19971995]

Overall, the SAT is far more difficult to obtain a perfect score on then the ACT. Rather or not you should disclose both of your test scores depends on the University you are applying to. A 2330 is very good, as is a 36 on the ACT. If a school only requires that you take the ACT, I would advise showing both scores. A 2330 is very impressive on the SAT. You never know, you may even do better!

 

[drorthoman]

Well, there are several ways you can tackle this issue. But first at foremost, you are at a significant disadvantage. Do not let this set you back. Firstly, raise your SAT scores as you mentioned. The higher the better. Secondly, tutoring will be seen highly from the University's standpoint. Thirdly, since you made it very clear you are going to pursue the medical field, try volunteering at local hospitals. Many people say college interviews do not matter. This is not true. You have to be sure to make a very good impression on the interviewer. If you do not participate in an interview, your chances of acceptance are minimal. Exactly how old are you? If you have any scientific knowledge, there are many scholarship programs out there such as the Siemens scholarship, that would make you stand out considerably.

Also, try to establish connections at the University.

Colleges look for prospective students who are not only intellectually competent, but those who stand out. You have to standout. There are many creative ways to do so. This may seem desperate, but even if you went to a bookstore and purchased a book on a computer language. If you have the ability to say that you are indeed an expert on a particular software setting, this will help you standout. As I said, you could even try to learn a language. Your first problem is being accepted into the university.

If you could find someone, preferably a professor that would allow you to do some sort of research, this would have an astronomical effect on your probability of acceptance. A professor at the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor allowed me to 'assist' him. Even if you are the once standing there holding the flash light you could still say you assisted in research.

It is not what you know, it is who you know.

Lastly, are you by chance a minority? Also, what social/ fiscal class are you in? What is your financial situation? All this factors can assist you.

Okay, my first question. If I have a sibling who is almost the same age as me, and I help him/her out, does that count as peer tutoring, or is it JUST tutoring? Now, if I tutor someone who is 5 or 6 years younger than me, how would I put that down in my college app?

My 100 hours of volunteering have been at a hospital near me and in a few weeks, I will be starting again, hoping to finish another 100 hours. Is it possible for one to get better at the process of being interviewed, or is it just a natural talent? I know that you can maybe have answers to some questions already thought out, but can I do anything else that would make me appear better in an interview? I know this is a vague, poorly written question, but I hope you get my point.

I am 16 years old; a rising junior. By no means, would I say I'm a science guru or anything of that sorts. I believe the deadline is October 1st. Would I have enough time to start a project that I have never done before and be able to actually present something presentable? To be able to do any project, would I have to have access to a lab, or can I do research and write a report of books that I read, and small experiments?

About research, please look at the thread I have created about my research opportunities? Basically, it says, I have not found any and that I've given up on it because I plan to focus on other stuff (SAT, volunteer, GPA, etc...).

When you say to learn something to stand out, how exactly would I write that I learned (example: Spanish)? Would I just write that I'm fluent in Spanish or a certain computer programming language as a side note?

 

[mmmcdowe]

Okay, my first question. If I have a sibling who is almost the same age as me, and I help him/her out, does that count as peer tutoring, or is it JUST tutoring? Now, if I tutor someone who is 5 or 6 years younger than me, how would I put that down in my college app?

My 100 hours of volunteering have been at a hospital near me and in a few weeks, I will be starting again, hoping to finish another 100 hours. Is it possible for one to get better at the process of being interviewed, or is it just a natural talent? I know that you can maybe have answers to some questions already thought out, but can I do anything else that would make me appear better in an interview? I know this is a vague, poorly written question, but I hope you get my point.

I am 16 years old; a rising junior. By no means, would I say I'm a science guru or anything of that sorts. I believe the deadline is October 1st. Would I have enough time to start a project that I have never done before and be able to actually present something presentable? To be able to do any project, would I have to have access to a lab, or can I do research and write a report of books that I read, and small experiments?

About research, please look at the thread I have created about my research opportunities? Basically, it says, I have not found any and that I've given up on it because I plan to focus on other stuff (SAT, volunteer, GPA, etc...).

When you say to learn something to stand out, how exactly would I write that I learned (example: Spanish)? Would I just write that I'm fluent in Spanish or a certain computer programming language as a side note?

"Peer tutoring" your brother is fairly week tutoring, if you ask me. I suppose it technically counts. To me peer tutoring refers to tutoring someone in the same class at you, even better if it is the same course you are currently taking. Tutoring a student younger than you would just be "tutoring" or "middle/elementary/etc school tutoring". I wouldn't split hairs too much about it.

Given you haven't started research and have no leads, it would be fairly unlikely that you could produce something from scratch in this time period and have it be competitive. That being said, many labs just give data/projects to students that are already or almost finished, so I'm sure in that situation you could have something in time. However, since you haven't found any leads that will also be a problem.

 

[drorthoman]

So maybe I should forget about entering any competitions this year and try next year? Actually, thinking about it right now, it would be in my best interest to wait till the next competition. I'll have my SAT's, SAT Subject Tests, Volunteer hours, out of the way, and I'll have a lot more free time. But let's say that I don't find any research opportunity anywhere. Would I be able to enter a competition without having done any experiment in the "lab", or would I be considered a joke?

Well, I have a twin brother, so he is technically in the same "class" as me, so would that be much more agreeable in terms of "peer tutoring"?

 

[mmmcdowe]

So maybe I should forget about entering any competitions this year and try next year? Actually, thinking about it right now, it would be in my best interest to wait till the next competition. I'll have my SAT's, SAT Subject Tests, Volunteer hours, out of the way, and I'll have a lot more free time. But let's say that I don't find any research opportunity anywhere. Would I be able to enter a competition without having done any experiment in the "lab", or would I be considered a joke?

Well, I have a twin brother, so he is technically in the same "class" as me, so would that be much more agreeable in terms of "peer tutoring"?

By class I mean grade (i.e the class of 201X). Your peers are those in your grade and at your school (technically). Again, I think tutoring your brother is a fairly week tutoring EC, but yes it would be peer tutoring if he is in your same grade. It's like helping your girlfriend with homework and calling it a tutoring ec, the context of the relationship is a little different than volunteering your time to struggling students that you have little pre-formed emotional connection with.

Doing research for these projects typically requires a novel project, not an analysis of prior work. As far as I know they don't accept review articles for these projects. Perhaps a high quality meta-analysis, but I would personally recommend trying to do some sort of real research. A physical "lab" is not necessary for a lab to exist. For example I work in a couple labs. One has a physical lab with animals, and chemicals, and equipment. The other is just a group of people working on computers acquiring and analyzing patient data. Both would be acceptable options, since they are both creating novel data for publication/presentation.

 

[drorthoman]

By class I mean grade (i.e the class of 201X). Your peers are those in your grade and at your school (technically). Again, I think tutoring your brother is a fairly week tutoring EC, but yes it would be peer tutoring if he is in your same grade. It's like helping your girlfriend with homework and calling it a tutoring ec, the context of the relationship is a little different than volunteering your time to struggling students that you have little pre-formed emotional connection with.

Doing research for these projects typically requires a novel project, not an analysis of prior work. As far as I know they don't accept review articles for these projects. Perhaps a high quality meta-analysis, but I would personally recommend trying to do some sort of real research. A physical "lab" is not necessary for a lab to exist. For example I work in a couple labs. One has a physical lab with animals, and chemicals, and equipment. The other is just a group of people working on computers acquiring and analyzing patient data. Both would be acceptable options, since they are both creating novel data for publication/presentation.

Meaning that it would be perfectly fine for me to do a project that requires no "physical lab" at home? As in, I would be wise to pick a project that I know will not require me to have any lab equipment or the likes? Correct?

 

[mmmcdowe]

Meaning that it would be perfectly fine for me to do a project that requires no "physical lab" at home? As in, I would be wise to pick a project that I know will not require me to have any lab equipment or the likes? Correct?

Wise is probably not the right word. It is mostly personal preference if you would rather be doing something hands on or something with mostly excel sheets. Also, understand that just because you don't have to run PCRs or something doesn't mean you can do it from home. You will likely need access to patient clinical information that may not have been collected alrady. If that is in physical charts, you will have to do it in the hospital. Even if it is online in an electronic medical record, you may not be allowed access to it from home. If that is the case, you will still have to go on campus and us an on-campus computer. Different hospitals/labs/states have different rules about this. You may also need to interact with patients in order to collect information. This may be phone calls, which could be done from home, or it may be surveys done in person while patients are in the clinic/hospital. It all depends on the project.

 

[drorthoman]

So basically, I should just forget about this whole competition thing lol. There's no way in hell that I'm going to get anywhere near a lab. This whole competition thing is a joke. All it is is a competition between whose mommy and daddy have the best connections (as one SDN poster put it). Whatever, I guess I'll focus on the stuff I mentioned before.

 

[Cephal0pod]

Is it possible for one to get better at the process of being interviewed, or is it just a natural talent? I know that you can maybe have answers to some questions already thought out, but can I do anything else that would make me appear better in an interview? I know this is a vague, poorly written question, but I hope you get my point.

You can absolutely get better at interviewing. Google is your friend- look up typical interview questions, and practice, practice, practice. Grab a friend or parent (especially if you have a parent/friend who has been through interviews of any kind before) and have them interview you. Learn about and practice proper interview ettiquette, ways to deal with nerves, etc. Practice making eye contact with whomever is interviewing you as you talk- it's simple, but something a lot of people don't do. Relax, be confident (but not arrogant!), be pleasant, be polite, and do your thing. And be sure to thank your interviewer(s) when it's done. 👍

Also know that the more interviews you do, the easier and less terrifying it will be. I had to do a few throughout high school, and a lot for miscellaneous scholarship competitions at the schools I applied to my senior year, and it gets easier each time.

 

[genius19971995]

Okay, my first question. If I have a sibling who is almost the same age as me, and I help him/her out, does that count as peer tutoring, or is it JUST tutoring? Now, if I tutor someone who is 5 or 6 years younger than me, how would I put that down in my college app?

My 100 hours of volunteering have been at a hospital near me and in a few weeks, I will be starting again, hoping to finish another 100 hours. Is it possible for one to get better at the process of being interviewed, or is it just a natural talent? I know that you can maybe have answers to some questions already thought out, but can I do anything else that would make me appear better in an interview? I know this is a vague, poorly written question, but I hope you get my point.

I am 16 years old; a rising junior. By no means, would I say I'm a science guru or anything of that sorts. I believe the deadline is October 1st. Would I have enough time to start a project that I have never done before and be able to actually present something presentable? To be able to do any project, would I have to have access to a lab, or can I do research and write a report of books that I read, and small experiments?

About research, please look at the thread I have created about my research opportunities? Basically, it says, I have not found any and that I've given up on it because I plan to focus on other stuff (SAT, volunteer, GPA, etc...).

When you say to learn something to stand out, how exactly would I write that I learned (example: Spanish)? Would I just write that I'm fluent in Spanish or a certain computer programming language as a side note?

Technically, most colleges will accept tutoring your brother / sister, but they may look down upon it. The best approach is to tutor someone you are NOT related to. If you choose to tutor a young individual, document it. Request that a parent sign this document.

If you desire to make a good impression at the interview, first and foremost, dress well. When you enter the room, shake his hand. Do not be afraid to ask question of your own about the university. Even if you already know the answers, he may think you are interested and look positively on that. Prepare to defend your weak points in your application. Everyone has one or many. Also, are you going to be a senior, or are you going to be a junior. You apply senior year for your university of choice.

When I was discussing research earlier, I meant that I was assisting a professor. I was not exactly doing much, but I was in the room, so technically I was assisting him. First, let's be sure you understand the definition of fluency. This means that you can speak the language like you can speak English. Very proficiently. On the bottom of your application you could include a list of added or 'special' credentials.

 

[drorthoman]

So what did you learn on the side? As in what language or other "thing" (for a lack of a better word) did you learn, and HOW did you do it?

 

[genius19971995]

I learned Chinese predominately from Rosetta Stone, but also from classes. I learned the computer programming languages I know from simply reading books.

 

[genius19971995]

PS: Never lie about your credentials on your college application NEVER. If not, you will find out the hard way.

 

[drorthoman]

If I'm interested in learning a computer language, which one would be the best, in your opinion, for me to start out with?

 

[genius19971995]

In the past, most people started with BASIC and worked there way up to there. This is the twenty-first century, and we use object-oriented languages. Therefore, I would begin with one of the more-advance languages if you are up for the challenge. I would personally recommend one of the C languages. If you would like to develop some BS application for the App Store, then learn Objective-C. Otherwise try C++. If you choose any of these languages, do NOT use a for dummies book they SUCK.

 

[drorthoman]

If were to start learning Objective-C or C++, how long would it generally take me if I were to spend a reasonable time learning ever day?

 

[Crimson2016]

Someone of a high intellect could probably complete a programming language rather quickly. Within a few months.

 

[drorthoman]

much appreciated

Damn, bro, stop spamming the boards.