Advices on Future Steps for a [high school] Sophomore Student [WA resident, 4.0 GPA]

I think that green card is considered local students, not international, when applying to colleges. International students are non-immigrant students that does not attend HS in US or attend private HS in US with a F or M Visa. I do have older siblings that went through the process so I am certain about that.

I have the thought of start a interest club in my school focusing on addressing real world issues through innovation next year. I only have basic ideas and it still require a lot of works. So I am hesitating whether or not to actually do that.

A green card is for international students who now have permanent resident status. That isn’t you. You will be an international student applying for admission here. That really adds an extra layer for you.

What sorts of colleges are you thinking about? Any on your home country?

I agree with @MYOS1634 that it would be preferable to move AP Physics C to 12th grade. That way you will have more calculus background when you take Physics C, which will be helpful. Physics 2 is not as advanced as Physics C.

Considering that you have already taken classes in Bio and Chemistry, and you have AP Chemistry on your schedule for 11th grade, and since you said Physics C at your school doesn’t require a prior physics class, perhaps there’s something else you would like to take in place of Physics for 11th grade?

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What visa do you currently have.

@MYOS1634 any thoughts?

I currently have the immigration visa and I am a permanent resident. Which means I possess all the legal rights just as a U.S. Citizen except for suffrage rights. There are a lot of students that have the same situation with me in my HS that applied as a domestic students. I am pretty sure about that. As long as types of colleges, I do prefer larger universities, not LACs. I do not plan to apply any colleges in my home country.

List price of some private colleges is over $90,000 per year now. Be sure that they are ok with that amount or more by the time you enroll in college, or that they have run net price calculators on several colleges to see what net price after financial aid grants may be like. Many parents do not realize how much colleges may cost these days.

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I agree with you. But the AP Physics C is two separate course (i.e. Electricity and Magnetism + Mechanics). Our school only offers Mechs so I actually have a year to complete a semester long course. Also, Physics 2 has the Pre-req of Physics C or 1 in my school.

Not all legal immigrants currently have green cards (permanent residency). Some may be on various kinds of visas.

However, if you have a green card, you are generally considered a domestic student, rather than an international student.

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Thank you for the information. I will talk with my parents about this.

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Thanks for clarifying on that.

Yes
and thank you for clarifying that you DO have a green card.

Legal resident =/= legal immigrant, that’s why @thumper1 asked. If you/your parents are permanent residents and have green cards, then indeed you are considered a domestic applicant, which is very good for you vs. being an international.

You’re too early in your academic career to do any sort of actual research - your topic is good but sounds like a HS or perhaps freshman research paper (which is not what research is). Don’t bother with it and don’t worry, there’s a reason even college students work in a lab or with a PI. If you can join a research lab, be ready for grunt work - before they decide they can trust you researchers will want to check whether you’re exact, reliable, thorough, follow instructions, etc. Your take away is not going to be research but whether you like that environment or not, what you did and how it participated in the project, etc. If your role grows, document it.

It’s good you haven’t started with “I started a nonprofit”: this elicits guffaws from adcoms. Unless your parents are millionaires (/ready to donate or Provost List) or you have official support, it means “clueless kid” and/or “entitled”. Stay away from this.

Find a job and keep at it. Do it well. Not that many applicants actually do that.

Do something that is just YOU and that you love.
What do you LOVE to do?
We can help you turn it to 11 :wink:

Run the NPCs on the colleges listed on this thread.

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No one is asking you to act like a college student ALREADY and:

  • have research experiences,
    -developed nonprofits,
    -have relationships with professors at universities.

This is the surest way to be rejected.

They want a real kid who has enjoyed high school and is not in a rush to avoid high school. That’s the problem with trying to invent activities. It shows the admissions teams that you are attempting activities that you think will get you admitted.

The colleges want kids who have “sparks” that are not necessarily academic:
Part time jobs at fast food places/grocery stores/mall shops.
They want kids who have stepped out of their comfort zone and tried sports, drama, school clubs (that already exist), etc. You don’t have to be the “CEO” of the club, just participate and have fun, but stick with it for more than a couple of months.

My kids worked at the Zoo, a coffee shop, and amusement parks. They were on sports teams and had to manage their schoolwork, jobs and their practices while getting good grades.
You’re a sophomore who hasn’t yet had to hit the intense written essays, multiple AP study hours, and class discussions.
Be a HS student and find an activity that makes you happy and brings joy!

Work out the budget with your parents. Apply to safeties. Don’t just apply to exclusive schools where the odds are insane. Pick schools where you have a chance of getting in.
Be real.

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@aunt_bea @MYOS1634 Thank you for your advices! Those are highly-valuable advices that are exceedingly helpful for me. I will reflect on myself and think through these matters. I greatly appreciate your time and kind words :smile:

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Will you have four years each of English, Social studies, science, math and foreign language? And some arts course?

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Yes, I will have four years of those core classes. I will take 1 year of art class outside of school to fulfill the art requirement (school will grant credit for that, but no letter grade on the transcript, will not factored into GPA).

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If you apply to colleges that want an art course, you will report the grade (or send a transcript) from whatever high school or college you took the course at, regardless of whether your main high school includes it in its record.

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Yes, this is pretty much correct. I lived in the US with a permanent resident visa for quite a few years until I got my US citizenship. With a permanent resident visa, you are not supposed to be allowed to vote, and I am pretty sure that you cannot serve on a jury. There are some limitations wrt classified military clearance. You also cannot run for president, and possibly for some other elected positions. In terms of university admissions, you are the same as a US citizen. You are also the same as a US citizen in terms of internships, working a job, and paying taxes.

There are some people who are legally in the US on temporary work visas, or some other form of temporary visa. In terms of university admissions, I think that they are looked upon mostly as international students in most cases. However, this is not you.

In terms of the cost of education, there was recently an article about three private universities in the Boston area that for next year (starting in September) will cost more than $90,000 per year. I think that the most expensive that I saw was just barely over $95,000 per year. This is likely to surpass $100,000 per year by the time that you start university. Many private universities are not very far behind.

Given your excellent results to date, plus your obvious interest in science, some form of graduate school also seems plausible. While it is way, way too early to think about this, by the time that you apply to universities it might not be crazy to budget as if this is possible. While PhD’s are usually fully funded (assuming that you live frugally) some other graduate degrees typically are not.

In terms of extracurricular activities, I would recommend that you do not do anything for the purpose of impressing university admissions. Instead do what is right for you, and do it well. If you have started or will start some organizations, I would be tempted to think about how to prepare the organization to succeed even after you have moved on. Also, quality (doing a few things very well) is more important than quantity (doing a lot of things).

I will also point out that you are in a state with a very good public university or two. The University of Washington is a very good university.

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Some would say this would be a plus! :wink:

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