@jmhmom Thank you for your words! This program was really life-changing for me, so I want to help in anyway I can to help more students enjoy what SAMS has to offer.
As I previously stated, there is a $100 optional deposit. You can decide to pay this when the First Pass email arrives or not at all. If you decided not to pay, either you or your daughter can email them to say that you will not be paying the deposit and that you will still accept the offer. They will waive the fee. Also, I as said, I would recommend bringing $200-$400 as spending money. You also need to get stuff for their dorm (comforters for your bed, toiletries, etc) as well as supplies such as notebooks, writing utensils, calculator, etc. All in all, everything will cost around $300 - $600, not including a flight to CMU for those who don’t live within a good driving distance of Pittsburgh. For those who are worried about flight costs to CMU, they have limited funds for students who live far enough away. You have to contact them ASAP though.
Also, I still happen to have the textbook info from last year and it’s likely that they won’t change the edition of the textbook themselves. Depending on what classes your daughter decides to take, I can send her a link to the textbooks I downloaded for them. Have her PM me and I can give it to her. I actually made a lot of friends by sharing the link with everyone in my Physics class. :))
Congrats to your daughter as well!! Hope she enjoys her time in Pittsburgh in July.
@JustBlur15 No, exactly. They will review you for your first choice, SAMS, and if they do not accept you, the AI program, your second choice, will add you to their list of those to review after those who put it down as their first choice.
I see my name on the online directory and it says I am affiliated with the Summer Pre-College program but I have not received an email … should I still assume I am in?
@vielre Yes, it means you got into either your first or second choice, most likely first. Congrats!!! Which programs were your first and second choice?
Hello, I was accepted into the SAMS program at Carnegie and I was wondering how long after your initial acceptance e-mail did you receive your first pass e-mail and what college are you going to attend this year and do you think this program helped you a lot with your application?Thanks
For those that submitted everything exactly on the due date last year(March 1st for app and March 15th for documents), how long did it take to get your decision?
And did anyone submit their stuff on the due dates this year, and did you get accepted? Thanks
@Bello20 I believe I received my First Pass email a week following my initial acceptance email. It’ll come sooner or later. Also, I’m still receiving offers, but I may decide to go to one of my safeties/matches if I do not get into any of my reaches (CMU and Carleton) with a decent scholarship. CMU is a really good school, but super expensive as well for those with a medium income (between $70K - $120K). I believe that the program gives you a great push in terms of college admissions and is a pretty great indicator, if an applicant wants to get into a top school. They select excellent students to begin with. Like @FreePariah once said, SAMS accepts applicants who show an indication that they would prosper at a top school, like CMU. Many of us have been receiving acceptances from almost every Ivy League/Top 20 school so far. I literally congratulate my SAMS friends almost everyday because they keep getting into amazing schools and programs. However, not all SAMS kids will end up at a “top” school, and that is okay as well. I’ve heard students in the past having used their connections from SAMS to earn internships and other exclusive opportunities. So, in my opinion, SAMS selects applicants who they believe show promise to do big things, period.
In addition, to be honest, my GPA was fairly low, while my SAT score was considered “above average”. I personally did not believe I was a good applicant, but SAMS thought otherwise, enough to accept me. I believe what they most liked about me was my previous work with NASA (which explains my profile pic). I actually learned that two other SAMS accepted students last year did similar NASA work. So, if anything, they definitely like to look for those with great potential. My essays were pretty good as I laid out my plans to work/intern with NASA through and after college, eventually working with SpaceX in the early 2030’s. Who knows? Maybe I’ll help actually put humans on Mars.
@zanabou I know two people who submitted on the last day and still got in. Also, a girl who submitted much earlier than the deadline last year and waited until around mid-April for an acceptance, which she did get. Either way, I wouldn’t lose hope just yet.
oof. I submitted on the last day and haven’t heard anything yet. Its probably going to be a couple weeks till I hear anything. The suspense is killing me.
I’m a mostly lurking mom, just FYI my son got everything in the day before the deadline on 3/1 and I know his letter of rec. came in a few days later; I just called and his application was still being considered. So there’s still hope! The woman who answered said we should hear this week. She was very kind and said to feel free to keep calling and if they had a decision they could tell us right then.
Yup. Regular app was due on March 1st. Essay, letter of recommendation, activities resume, transcript, and any unofficial test reports were due March 15th.
If you submitted a Letter of Recommendation as you were filling the app, do you need to submit your recommendation as a supporting document because I think that is the reason why I didn’t hear back from them?
