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Chance me please?
daunt18
147 replies7 threads Junior Member
I’m definitely applying to UC Berkeley, UCLA, UCSD, Cornell, and RPI, but I’d also like to know my chances at MIT, Caltech, and Stanford to see if I should try. I do have safeties in place.
Intended Major: Computer Science / Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
State (if domestic applicant): California
School Type: All-girls, Catholic, private
Gender: Female
SAT: 800M, 780RW
Unweighted GPA: 4.0
Weighted GPA: 4.83
Weighted and Capped UC GPA: 4.67
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/192
AP (All 5s so far, this list includes AP classes for junior year and my senior year schedule): Computer Principles, Computer Science A, World History, US History, US Gov, Calc AB, CalcBC, Statistics, Spanish Lang, English Lang, English Lit, Phys1, PhysC Mechanics, Chem, Bio
Extracurriculars
- VEX Robotics Troop (President): We went to nationals for the first time the year I became president and ranked in the top 20. I was a member for 3 years, and captain of a subteam (4 teams in the troop) for 2 years.
- FRC Robotics Team (Software Lead) - We went to worlds for both of the years I was a member and are likely to qualify again my senior year.
- Math Team (President)
- Lincoln-Douglas Debate (Chair) - Won two tournaments, medaled in nearly all
- Independent Science Research - Competed in Synopsis, won first in the region once and second once
- ASB Homeroom Rep
- CSF (President)
- NHS member
- Advanced Choir
Job/Work Experience:
- Math grader and substitute teacher at a local math school
Volunteer/Community service:
- 250+ hours at my community center
Summer Activities:
- UC Cosmos
- Took AP Stats and AP PhysC at a community college
- Did research for a college CS Professor
Awards
- Rensselaer Medal
- Presidential Gold Award for Service
- Synopsis regional winner
Letters of recommendation: Calc BC teacher, PhysC teacher
I really appreciate any feedback you give!
38 replies Intended Major: Computer Science / Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
State (if domestic applicant): California
School Type: All-girls, Catholic, private
Gender: Female
SAT: 800M, 780RW
Unweighted GPA: 4.0
Weighted GPA: 4.83
Weighted and Capped UC GPA: 4.67
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/192
AP (All 5s so far, this list includes AP classes for junior year and my senior year schedule): Computer Principles, Computer Science A, World History, US History, US Gov, Calc AB, CalcBC, Statistics, Spanish Lang, English Lang, English Lit, Phys1, PhysC Mechanics, Chem, Bio
Extracurriculars
- VEX Robotics Troop (President): We went to nationals for the first time the year I became president and ranked in the top 20. I was a member for 3 years, and captain of a subteam (4 teams in the troop) for 2 years.
- FRC Robotics Team (Software Lead) - We went to worlds for both of the years I was a member and are likely to qualify again my senior year.
- Math Team (President)
- Lincoln-Douglas Debate (Chair) - Won two tournaments, medaled in nearly all
- Independent Science Research - Competed in Synopsis, won first in the region once and second once
- ASB Homeroom Rep
- CSF (President)
- NHS member
- Advanced Choir
Job/Work Experience:
- Math grader and substitute teacher at a local math school
Volunteer/Community service:
- 250+ hours at my community center
Summer Activities:
- UC Cosmos
- Took AP Stats and AP PhysC at a community college
- Did research for a college CS Professor
Awards
- Rensselaer Medal
- Presidential Gold Award for Service
- Synopsis regional winner
Letters of recommendation: Calc BC teacher, PhysC teacher
I really appreciate any feedback you give!
Replies to: Chance me please?
Also, should I prioritize the Synopsis contest or research for the professor in my app? I know the contest is usually the go-to, but I've been hearing a lot that research is really important, so should I devote an essay to that instead? I learned a lot doing both and forged bonds with fellow students and teachers alike, and I'm not sure which will carry more weight.
You have space for 10 EC’s and awards so I do not see an issue on prioritizing one over the other. The accomplishments that carry the most weight would probably up to the discretion of the application reviewer.
This is important, and saves me from making what is probably my most common comment!
With this, I think that if you want to attend "MIT, Caltech, and Stanford" then it is worth applying. All three are reaches. However, your stats are great, I like your ECs, and I think that your chances are good enough to be worth applying. It is difficult to guess how your chances compare to the acceptance rate at all three. Being a woman probably helps you (since women are scarce in CS and high tech), being a CS major does not help but at least for MIT will not matter, your SAT is great. It looks to me as if you have done the ECs that you wanted to do, and did them well. This is exactly what I think that a high school student should do.
Be aware that MIT, Caltech, and most or all of the other schools you mentioned will be a lot of work. However, I think that you are up to it and that you are likely to do well wherever you end up.
Stanford and MIT is always a lottery. Do note that for Stanford (and probably other schools) they would prefer you have one techie review, one humanities review. In other words you should get your English or 11th grade social science teacher to do your 2nd review.
And when it’s all said and done, go to UC-Berkeley (wink, wink)
If I manage to get into Berkeley, that's my second choice after MIT (which is likely not happening) so I'll definitely go there. And now I need to build my relationship with that APGov teacher so for her rec, thanks for letting me know early!
Why not Carnegie Mellon? Although the acceptance rate for EECS there is about the same as an Ivy. I would still consider it.
Harvey Mudd would be a good target school too.
These two questions are important nowadays for many admissions committees. They want to see if your parents had any influence. This will have a bearing on some of the schools on your list (although probably not Caltech and the UCs).
Are you planning any EA apps (Caltech, MIT)? Or SCEA/ED (Cornell, Stanford)?
@sgopal2: I actually don't have any prestigious national-level awards, since National Merit Semifinalist, National AP Scholar, and Presidential Service Award aren't big, Rensselaer Medal is just for the top STEM student per high school, and my robotics teams' accomplishments aren't mine individually to talk about.
I'm ethnically Asian, and my parents were immigrants but are now US citizens. If possible, since saying Asian is only going to bring down my admission chances, I'll probably put "decline to state" or its equivalent. I'm not sure if that's an option.
My parents don't have much influence (nothing Sheryl Sandberg-esque), but both work in CS.
I'm probably applying SCEA Stanford and EA MIT/Caltech, everything else RD. Though apparently EA doesn't do anything for MIT, so I'm not sure where to go there.
Per Stanford's website:
Restrictive Early Action Policy -- Applicants do not apply to any other private college/university under their Early Action, Restrictive Early Action, Early Decision or Early Notification program. Applicants may apply to other colleges and universities under their Regular Decision option.
For the schools that do care about race, how much is my being female in CS able to outweigh being Asian in CS?
Yes, a consistently good record. But all the colleges will have some degree of holistic, most especially Cornell, MIT, Caltech, and Stanford.
Right now is the time to take a deep look into what those 4 want. Read the MIT blogs.
What do you do at the community center?
Pointy is iffy. It can be a critique. The right rounding can show openness to more than just stem. Debate and choir are great. Anything else?
I think you have excellent chances for the UCs. It's just the others can be so dang perfectionist.
I also founded a Dead Poets Society club in sophomore year, where we basically do the same thing as in the movie, sharing and analyzing prose and poetry. Would this count?