<p>Okay, I had two questions. I applied to Hopkins last year but was rejected. Anyways, I decided to take a year off and I applied to Hopkins again this year but as an Early Decision Candidate. Can anyone shed any light on how that may be viewed by the admissions staff? </p>
<p>Next, for the $10 Adventure Essay I made a documentary of the 7.6 Earthquake that rocked the South Asian region, mostly the region of Kashmir between India and Pakistan. I documented the devistation and talked to people there and you know, the whole documentary thing. Got myself screwed a few times…wasn’t that safe there at that time. But anyways, the edited version came out to a total of 31 mins. I read in a post by laxfan that media submissions shouldn’t be over 5 mins…now how the hell is that going to work out?</p>
<p>Hey!!
Sorry about the rejection…
Didn’t you make a video about donkey cart racing…I liked your idea…thought it was “different”…
This year too…you have a nice topic and if your documentary is interesting everything will be fine…(hopefully)
BTW there is no use worrying…(as you must’ve already sent it)…Hope for the best
P.S. personally, I think 31 min. is a bit too long…anyways…best of luck</p>
<p>hmn, yeah it is long. But if i cut anything from the video it would have taken away from teh experiences and the ‘adventure’. You can imagine what was going on over there. So my attitude was, if they watch it, they watch it…if they don’t, they dont. But you know, I don’t want all that hard work going down teh tubes…okay if they reject me but watch and appreciate the bloody video.
I wonder what my chances are at Hopkins anyways…my applications less than stellar. I hope the essays make up for what I don’t have.</p>
<p>What exactly are the weaknesses in your application??
I mean…dont expect the essay to work miracles…
The essay(specially the 10$ one) is undoubtedly very important…but an essay can rarely make up for major flaws in the application.(Low SAT scores and stuff…)
Though an exceptionally good essay can get you in inspite of such flaws. </p>
<p>“But if i cut anything from the video it would have taken away from teh experiences and the ‘adventure’. You can imagine what was going on over there.”
I understand. But no use worrying…hope for the best</p>
<p>“I hope the essays make up for what I don’t have.”
Well I hope so tOO</p>
<p>I was wondering…how exactly did you go about making the movie??
I mean the area isnt very safe…(teeming with jehadis and militants…)
I dont know what the situation is like in POK and pakistan…but these terrorists have made life miserable for the inhabitants of Kashmir(the Indian part)…
It is really depressing…
Everyday in the morning newspaper…(yes everyday)…are pictures of people crying, mourning the loss of loved ones…ruined buildings…orphaned children…
What depresses me more is the lack of international concern over this issue…I mean the whole world was concerned when the WTC thing occured…on the other hand … hundreds of people die every week in Kashmir…mostly school children and women…and no one seems to care…isnt it sad…
Sorry…deviated a bit…( a bit?? a lot… )
And if you havent realized…yes I live in India…technically that makes us enemies…hehehe just joking…(Bad joke…:))
The peace talks betwen India and Pakistan were quite heartening…what do you think?? They discontinued them…politics…disgusting…
Which other colleges are you applying to?
How did you do on the SAT…and do you have any special interests??
Varun</p>
<p>shud be brethren/fellow countrymen…not fellow brethren…(stupid isnt it…)…how cud I ???..
Hey isnt this becoming a monolouge…sorry…i wont post anymore silly posts… :D</p>
<p>hey varun…how did I go about making the video? well im kashmiri myself, so I had no problem communicating and stuff…was very easy to get around cause i could communicate effectively. Public Buses! Safe? I guess foreigners stand out more…but the jehadis really have only made hell in Indian controlled Kashmir…go figure…I’m an american citizen so I easily crossed the Waga Border and strolled into Indian Kashmir. Works out well when you speak Punjabi/Hindko.
Basically my video went like this…I started out in karachi…took a Bus ride to the airport. From there I used frequent flyer miles and got to Islamabad. From there I joined an NGO which provided me transport to Muzaffarabad. About 20 kms by the side of the Jhelum river was a medical camp at which I was working. I’d treck around, assess the siutation and interview people. That was the focus of my video…the destruction and devistation of the area that now needs soo much help. I ended up with about 2.5 hours of raw footage…so i used a firewire to get that video onto my comp and edited the video in a 31 minute documentary…highlighting my ‘adventure’. I think the movie was sooo long cause getting there was rough. I slept in a tent for a week…no showers, no nothing. No bathrooms for God’s sake. Haha, I even have a clip in teh final video of my uncle squatting in teh Bushes by the river.
The flaws of my app…lets see. </p>
<p>Well I have a 1410 on my SAT, SAT IIs: BioM - 760, Chem - 720, Math IIC - 720, Writing 690.
As far as APs go…i took 7 APs and the good scores were: Bio 5 and Calc AB, 4. the rest were 3’s (I’m in an International American Highschool…a U.S. Embassy School). </p>
<p>My GPA sucks: 3.3 …I was suspended in 9th grade for messing around with the comps…an overreaction by the administration so i got a 1.76 that semester. That weighs my average down. if you remove that it’ll be around 3.5, 3.6.
I have extensive research on my resume: I worked with the professor of Cell and Molecular Biology on projects concerting MRSA. I handled my own project under his supervision…it was basically constructing a phylogenetic tree based on DNA and structural analysis of Archeoids in hot springs. Right now im trying to get a grand to work on MDMA research. That about sums up the highlights i guess. What do you think?</p>
<p>yeah…that research is being done at the Aga Khan University…a very famous medical school in Pakistan and its well known internationally. </p>
<p>Other stuff on the resume was: Ambassador/Head of a Delegation representing Africa (lol) at the Hague International Model United Nations, hmn, Spansih Honoor Society, Mensa…umn…and Varsity Cricket. Hey, Varun, we used to fly to Delhi and Bombay for meets for volleyball and basket ball at the American Embassy schools there. You know of them?</p>
<p>Hey Danmir…
Looks like we have a lot in common… My favorite subject is Biology too…Though I love the subject as a whole…I am fascinated by DNA and molecular biology…my love for which is outrivalled only by my love for animals…(mad about them)</p>
<p>About SAT scores: I got :
720-math
680-critical reading
730-writing
A decent total of 2130/2400</p>
<p>790 in biology-m
Going to give chem, math II c and physics…in december.</p>
<p>yes yes yes…I love flaunting my scores…(though i dont think I have flauntable scores…just trying to be modest …hehehe) </p>
<p>I am an american citizen…(born in boston…grandparents live there)
I have a nice gpa…i can only estimate…since I dont go to an international school…my school is small and cbse(central board of secondary education-India) affiliated…so no AP’S</p>
<p>But we have a real tough courseload…i have done calculus( differential eq., integration and all)…Studied genetics and human body systems in detail…Physics and chem are tough too…But hey…I am not complaining
I love studying…everything except math…
find it dreadfully dull…:D</p>
<p>Taking about ec’s I am not the “outdoor contact sport” kinda person…(now dont imagine me as a skinny jerk wearing outsized tshirts…though I wear glasses…:D) I am into swimming, badminton and table tennis…and just a bit of cricket</p>
<p>What i prefer is painting…locked in my room i can paint for hours at a strech…I am addicted to the lovely smell of oil paints…I also love community service…I dont say that just to look good on my resume…I really like it…</p>
<p>YOUR RESUME LOOKS GREAT…I THINK YOU WILL GET IN:)
what about me???..I hope i get in…I am dying to go to JHU.</p>
<p>BTW…ANGELINA JOLIE…(YES…THE ONE AND ONLY)…WAS IN PAKISTAN RECENTLY…VISITING THE QUAKE HIT AREAS…DID YOU CATCH A GLIMPSE???..</p>
<p>you really worked hard…i mean no bathrooms??..hope the jhu adcoms notice the effort you have put in your essay…they will I am quite sure…best of luck !!</p>
<p>Haha, I even have a clip in teh final video of my uncle squatting in teh Bushes by the river."
THATS NASTY…HAHA…: :D</p>
<p>here’s what i think will happen; assuming the adcoms are impressed by basically everything else in your app, they’ll pop in your movie (only after they’ve reviewed everything if you tell them it’s 30ish minutes for they know that it’ll take up a substantial portion of time) and literally watch the beginning and fastforward their way through the entire thing until they get to the end; they might not even bother with ffing through the thing and might just stop watching it halfway through or something. Also, here’s a suggestion. Figure out exactly how much dialog you have in there and try to imagine how many pages of script you have…compare that to a normal essay length (max 3 pgs DS for their essay) and you’ll understand why they don’t want to spend a huge part of their app review times on it. Some sources say that adcoms can usually tell of you’re in or not in their college within the first minute of reviewing your app; total, they spend about 3 mintues reviewing each candidate. That means that if they pop in your movie even b/f they start to review your stats and all, they’ll only watch 10% of your movie…and taht’s the first 10%. I would really reconsider sending in a movie at all (I know they take FOREVER to make…i’m a video editor myself) because I know you’re short on time (or atleast time’s up!) Sorry my post might not be the exact answer you wanted, but that’s really what i thought about it! Also, althought they don’t have a word count or a limit on the $10 thing, I think you ahve the equivallence of a 20 page autobiography…not what they’re looking for…</p>
<p>hey dude…there was no commentary in it…like no dubbing. So there was no script. All the commentary was done while i was making the raw footage…talking and interviewing and what not. It was all impromptu…my first reactions to what i saw. And as far as the length goes…apparently john latting says: ‘it doesnt present a problem for us’. </p>
<p>my position is such…if i don’t get in…can’t do anything about it. thats the only college im applying for in the US…i already got admission into a medschool here…so if things don’t work out i’ll stay here.</p>
<p>…for the record, I’m also a fellow indian! Hmm…i wish you the best of luck with the video thing! I bet it’ll probably be a HUGE success as the adcoms see you and how you reacted to such difficulties and and problems caused by the disaster. Anyways, best of luck!</p>
<p>“Some sources say that adcoms can usually tell of you’re in or not in their college within the first minute of reviewing your app; total, they spend about 3 mintues reviewing each candidate.”</p>
<p>That’s DEFINITELY not true…3 minutes is practically nothing…</p>
<p>Laxfan told us that the adcoms spend about twenty minutes reviewing each app…</p>
<p>hey thanks for the support, but i’m going into all of this as a skeptic. After last year…i’ve become a skeptic. So atleast I won’t be disappointed.</p>
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