Can I get into Princeton

Chance Me / Match Me
1

<p>Can I get into Princeton?</p>

<p>I am 16 - just turned. In the USA that corresponds to a junior I believe. I am home-educated and Anglo-Irish (living in Ireland - our colleges here are good but are expected to soon introduce high fees). I want to major in pure mathematics. Beyond reading and basic numeracy skills (and for a brief time French), my learning has been autodidatic I have the following stats:</p>

<p>Last year I got about 2000 on the SAT test (This was the first time I have ever been in a school). Near perfect scores on maths and English (and I nearly fell asleep on this bit of the test, I get the distinct impression Americans are not very intelligent)- followed by a terrible score on the essay - I wrote it quite quickly without bothering to reread the question - slightly off-topic.</p>

<p>Mathematics - I have studied the entire secondary curricula. I have Calculus I, II and most of III save for the vector integration bit. Real Analysis (including a little bit of Fourier Analysis). Complex Analysis. Linear Algebra. Number Theory. Group Theory. Probability - proof based course. College Geometry, Set Theory. I am doing Ring theory at the moment as well as little bit of graph theory. Soon have topology lined up.</p>

<p>Economics. Again I have studied the entire secondary curricula. I have studied the university introductory course in both macro and micro. In addition to this I have done intermediate microeconomics. At the moment I am doing International Economics (textbook by Krugman). I have an intermediate macro course lined up after this.</p>

<p>Physics. Again I have studied the entire secondary curricula (A-Levels in this case). I am going through Essential Physics by Francis Firk (free ebook - am on Chapter 4) - similar apparently to Feynmann Lectures on Physics.</p>

<p>Chemistry. Again I have studied the entire secondary curricula. Done General Chemistry. Doing Org Chemistry 1.</p>

<p>Biology. With the exception of Genetics I loath this subject. Nearly finished it at secondary level (in two days) - A2.</p>

<p>Psychology. Completed an university introductory course in this.</p>

<p>Sociology. Completed an university introductory course in this.</p>

<p>English. Done this subject completely. To take the Leaving Cert I have to study a new book of poetry that has just come out though.</p>

<p>Computers. I know how to turn them on. I can program in Python basically. I am not too interested all things considered.</p>

<p>Critical Thinking. Done this at A-Level.</p>

<p>General Studies. Done this at A-Level</p>

<p>Linguistics. Focusing on A-Level English Language course. After finished will do linguistics university course.</p>

<p>Classical Studies. In the US I believe you call this a classical education. Have studied most of the usual texts (Plato, Iliad, Thucydides etc). Much of my philosophical knowledge comes from this plus a few later authors like Kant and Nietzsche. </p>

<p>Accounting. Am just starting leaving cert course (HL) in this. Know most of the basics - double entry system etc already.</p>

<p>Business studies. IB course.</p>

<p>Geography. I know quite a bit - the entire secondary curricula (A-Level). No university material though.</p>

<p>Applied Maths. Leaving cert course.</p>

<p>Game Theory. I know this is not a subject proper but is one of my pet obsessions.</p>

<p>History. Perhaps my favourite subject. I know a lot of information here. Am not sure exactly what courses it would correspond to but certainly well beyond secondary school. Perhaps beyond even undergraduate level. Reading an article on any nation in the newspaper I can put it into historical contrast.</p>

<p>Languages. My bete noir (pun intended). I can never seem to get the hang of languages. Perhaps this has to do with being uncertain with which to learn. Have tried Gaelic, French (probably my best), Latin, German and Spanish. With the slight exception of the first two on this list I have mastered precisely 0. Saying I am even able to speak them is an exaggeration - reading very slowly I can make French out though (maybe a page in fifteen minutes).</p>

<p>Logic. I have a fair amount of instruction in formal logic and common logical fallacies. It ought to be a necessity to study in this area before doing higher-level (proof-based) mathematics - it helps no end</p>

<p>Psychoanalysis and (Greek) Mythology. I have a great deal of useless knowledge in this area. Personally I wish I could forget some of it and free up some mental space.</p>

<p>Insofar as extra-curricula activities exist I have little to speak of. I have one paper which has just past preliminary review in a top journal (nothing close to Nature - top in its scientific field). I know that statistically, its chances of passing double blind peer review is small though.</p>

<p>Anyway I would like an estimate of my chances of getting into Harvard, Princeton or Cambridge. Princeton would be my first choice due to its maths and Presbyterianism .Personally I would not describe myself as an extrovert. I abhor alcohol. My background is a patchwork of Protestant and Catholic. I come from the border regions with Northern Ireland (not as dangerous as it sounds. Outside Belfast itself there are rarely any incidents - the Omagh bombing was a major exception). I am not sporty save for swimming (I last swam competitively about 6 years ago).</p>

2

<p>If you don’t think Americans are intelligent, don’t go to an American school.</p>

3

<p>To add to the well put post above, even if American schools are affiliated with a certain denomination, it doesn’t mean that the presence is dominant on campus. I’ve never heard anyone say they wanted to go to Princeton because it had presbyterian ties…</p>

4

<p>Two things. </p>

<p>1) You’re gonna need to retake the SAT probably. And take SAT subject tests because you’re both international and homeschooled.</p>

<p>2) Americans aren’t intelligent? Really? Don’t go to an American school if that’s your opinion of the people.</p>

5

<p>Let’s not get bent out of shape about a callous, dumb remark. Everyone knows that that America has the best post-secondary education system in the world. More elite, top, world-class institutions of higher learning here than in the rest of the world combined.</p>

6

<p>Wow…like everyone else said, you shouldn’t even look at American schools if you think we’re not intelligent. Your SAT score isn’t something to brag too much about either, especially because those scores are not perfect, and schools like Princeton normally accept students who’ve received 2200+ on the SATs. You haven’t listed any E.C.s, and you’re also an international applicant. Sorry, but it’s not that easy to get into a top school in America.</p>

7

<p>lol the OP’s hubris is literally dripping. I wonder what will happen when his homeschooled ass gets rejected from the top schools he applies to. This kind of arrogance really irks me.</p>

<p>I imagine you think you’re fairly intelligent which is why you are shooting for places like Harvard and Princeton as an international applicant. But honestly, do you have any sort of reference or ways in which you can actually scope your academia as compared to all other applicants? </p>

<p>It seems like you’ve dabbled in a little bit of everything, and you may think you are quite advanced in certain areas, but in reality you may very well not be. Saying you’ve studied all these subjects may not necessarily mean you’ve actually mastered them. Your randomness and lack of focus in languages is just one example. The rest of your studies also seem to be highly sporadic</p>

<p>Your SAT score is very weak. Maybe you should make fun of how easy the testing is when you can pull off a 2300+. Wrote it quickly and slightly off topic? lol. And even if you had gotten a 0 on the essay, you must have also missed quite a few questions in CR or Writing. I don’t know exactly what you mean by ‘English’, do you mean writing?</p>

<p>And of course you have no extracurriculars. I guarantee you that even if you had an amazing background in academia and testing, you would still be probably rejected simply for having no ECs. This is what will typically set an applicant apart from others. Having unique or impressive ECs is almost necessary to have a shot for schools like Harvard or Princeton.</p>

<p>I think you should be shooting for some much safer college choices</p>

<p>P.S. I hope this is not a ■■■■■</p>

8

<p>lol ■■■■■ is ■■■■■</p>

<p>“near perfect scores on math” even though in advanced calc III and beyond-level math, maybe should recheck yo fundamentals</p>

<p>gets 2000 on SAT rofl</p>

<p>idk give a low chance of HYP</p>

9

<p>■■■■■? hahahaha</p>

<p>2000 isn’t even in range for princeton, I don’t think, and no EC’s given= no way anyone can say anything else.</p>