T-bird

@Gordman - I assume it's the EA deadline, but I could be wrong. That's when I asked my lab professor to send in her rec by, anyhow.

molliebatmit

As far as I know, what happens with QB apps is that the QB organization screens the applications first, then passes some number of them on to MIT. MIT reads them and decides if they will take any students for the QB match. Those who were not matched will be rolled over into the EA pool, but their applications were already read by the MIT admissions officers.

Sending it as early as possible is best, but if it arrives by mid-November, that should be fine. The first few weeks after the deadline will be reserved for reading applications; MIT doesn't usually start making EA decisions until early December, but you want your supplemental material to arrive in time to be read.

tomjonesistheman

^Thanks! I'm not sure if my QB app is "perfect" though. Is there a way that I can withdraw my QB app if I do not get Matched, then use the MIT app for regular decision?

kaekae

When filling out information about my siblings, I should consider only undergraduate degrees, correct? Also, should I list the college in which one of my siblings is working on a degree but hasn't graduated yet? Also, should I put what they majored in (for example, "Psychology") or the type of degree ("B.S.")?
Finally, what should I do for APs that I have self-studied? I didn't take courses for them...

molliebatmit

Not as far as I am aware. If you're not matched nor admitted EA, though, it's likely your application will be deferred to RD, and you can send any updates or supplemental material you'd like to send at that time.

pandadragon

for the summer activities, do we just put last summer or past 2 summers or...? not specified

for the AP tests, do we have to put all of the scores or can we omit one we did not so great on?

PaperChaserPop

Will a recommendation from a debate class teacher meet the humanities recommendation requirement?

sujinpark8

Hi Mollie, just wanted to ask you a question..
I received an letter from immigration stating that my application to adjust to permanent resident status has been accepted and I'm just waiting on my green card to actually get sent to my house but MIT wants a copy of it sent via mail for EA applicants but I don't know when the card will get here.
Should I just send a copy of the letter that I got from immigration? Is that okay? Or will the admissions office put my application into the international applicant pool if I do that?
Thanks

molliebatmit

As far as I am aware, you can put activities you've done during all summers of high school. You could pick and choose if there's not enough space.
You can choose to omit scores. Just weigh your options, because it's not automatically better to write down all 5s unless you have taken a large number of AP tests.
Yes. The guideline is that you want to pick a teacher whose class, were it taught at MIT, would be taught in the School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences. My feeling is that if a debate class were taught at MIT, it would be taught in the SHASS, and probably in the philosophy department specifically.
You can send a copy of the letter with a note saying you'll update them with a copy of the green card as soon as it's available.

soomoo

My S attends a rigorous high school with a very diverse student population. Since students arrive at the school with very different backgrounds it is the school's policy to only report to colleges freshman grades on a P/F basis (although the students are given final reports with actual grades). This gives everyone a chance to get up to speed.

Since MIT asks you to self report grades on the app, can he report his actual grades, even though the transcript his school will send will only show P/F? He had a very strong freshman year and would like MIT to know this.

He checked the MIT admissions page and couldn't find a place to ask.

Any thoughts?

Nintendo360

Wait... I have a question...

Does MIT or any other college take into account the high school you are coming from and its reputation? i.e., if the classes at my high school are college level (yes, every single level), and you get an A- or a B+ as opposed to an OK high school and getting an A+, would MIT acknowledge that?

molliebatmit

Of course. Everything is evaluated in the context of your environment.

Nintendo360

Will they consider any Harvard Extension courses or other forms of Distance Ed?

How much, if any, weight would they put on these things?

molliebatmit

Yes, many applicants have taken courses outside their schools. It's a good thing to have on an application, although I'm not sure how to quantify the impact it has.

CalAlum

@soomoo:
You asked for "thoughts," so here are mine: Don't do it. Here's why:
1. Students are supposed to report the grades on the official school transcript, and the official transcript at your son's school reports freshman grades as P/F. Reporting grades that differ from the official transcript will only raise red flags, in my opinion.
2. Of all the years in the high school, the freshman year is the least important. The University of California system doesn't even consider the grades from that year, for instance. A student could have relatively poor grades as a freshman and still gain admission to MIT if the academic record showed strength in subsequent years.

At MIT, students in the freshman year take courses P/F, and when they apply to grad school, they can not submit "real grades" for those classes, even though MIT students do receive actual grades in the classes. They simply are not part of the official grading process and don't appear on the official transcript. Your son's school has a similar policy, and MIT will understand this.