Weighted HS GPA: 4.75 (+1.0 for subjects with scaling >5 - ATAR system)
Class Rank: Top 5/213 (unspecified where in top 5)
SAT Score: 1540 (790M, 750E)
List your HS coursework
Total of 30 units of study across 8 subjects (extremely rigorous, no one ever does more than 7), approximately the converted rigour of 14-15AP Subjects
In-School Course Load:
Year 11 VCE Grades
Mathematical Methods (44SS, scales to 48.6 A+, hard)
UniMelb Extension Mathematics - Linear Algebra, Calculus 4.0/5.0 (extremely hard)
Total aggregate: ~209-211 = 99.90/99,95 (highest ATAR)
*For Conversion Purposes:
Study Score
Approx. Percentile of Victoria Students
50
Top 0.3%
49
Top 0.7%
48
Top 1.0%
47
Top 1.3%
46
Top 2%
45
Top 2.5%
44
Top 3.2%
43
Top 4%
42
Top 5%
41
Top 6.5%
40
Top 8%, A+ Cutoff
*Self-Studying:
Delf B2 French Diploma
A-level Biology (A)
AP Statistics (TBC)
AP Biology (TBC)
AP Macroeconomics (test 2026)
AP Microeconomics (test 2026)
AP Environmental Science (test 2026)
AP Psychology (test 2026)
Awards
Australian Biology Olympiad (Gold + National Qualifier)
DaVinci National Academic Decathlon 3rd in Aus
Big International Music Competitions 2x1st
DAV Debating “Swannie” award (highest average speaker score in Victoria, largest English speaking competition in the world)
Diplomas (AMusA in Piano and Oboe (w/ Distinction))
Science Talent Search High Distinction
Bunch of big science competition HDs
Extracurriculars
School Prefect, House Captain
Rotary Club Vice-President - Largest and most active student-run club, raised 25K over the past two years for international charities
Music - 2 Diplomas in piano and oboe, participated in the Australian Youth Orchestra (very selective) as principal oboist
Cadets (JROTC), 4 years - I hold the most senior position of Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM) within the unit, leading a team of 150 cadets
External:
Co-Founder, Youth Orchestras: Started during Victoria lockdowns hosting online concerts to improve mental wellbeing of teenagers, now created 3 youth orchestras (ages 4–20); concerts at major venues drew >1000 attendees each; performed with guest artists. Total audience reach ~6000
Director/Founder, Int’l Music Tours: Organised overseas tours (Europe, China, America), giving out one free spot each trip to someone financially disadvantaged via application process
Founder, Aged Care Music NPO: 60+ student musicians perform interactive concerts at aged-care homes each school holiday; Melbourne-based. Reach ~500 aged care residents
Founder, Nat’l Mental Health Essay Comp: Annual writing comp destigmatising mental illness; 100 submissions reached over 4 years, finalists published; team expanded in 2024, sponsored by large mental health organisations in Australia
Debating: Swannie Award (highest avg score in state), national-level finalist (Evatt, MUN); adjudicator + mentor for younger students.
Chem Research: Co-authored paper with a Cambridge Uni graduate, proposing safer school lab method; arXiv pending, submitting to peer-reviewed journal, reviewed by school and as a result, experiments at school were adjusted accordingly
Essays/LORs/Other
About my journey with mental health dealing with very nearly suicidal friends, and how I have used music to bring people together and form a path to dealing with mental health
Recs 9/10 from principal, 9/10 from two other teachers
Schools
*Since I am international, I will be applying to Oxford University as well, and I won’t have many safety or match colleges that I’m applying for since I would take UniMelb over them
It’s just about impossible to chance an international student for the long list of reach school you have in the United States. You have a chance…but the admission rates for international students are very very low.
Why do you want to come to college in the United States? If you really do, I think you need to look more carefully at other options.
Are you hoping to apply to medical schools in the future?
I think berkeley and ucla are probably the only public schools i’d apply for, i was thinking applying to upenn in psych and then trying for the wharton dual degree third year, post graduation i kind of have my mind on either following med or doing a startup in the science field or maybe even VC into bioethics. I’m not too familiar with the public schools in the states, do you have some suggestions? Is it easy to get a job with a degree from like berkeley or ucla?
well i see 3 main advantages first one is obviously the college experience and i know ppl say theres some of that at like melbourne uni or whatever but honestly it would be completely different. post covid universities in australia have had such a terrible campus culture and campus life. second one is meeting amazing people and people with more vision because i feel like people in australia dont really have vision, especially with the ATAR system the only thing anyone cares about is the ranking and studies and there’s no weight carried in ECs unlike the US. third one is that the US offers so many more career options than australia and also the pay is much better lol… the thing is everyone that im surrounded by are only interested in med or investment banking or quant trading like that would make up 90% of my friends and it feels a bit limiting to not be able to find some more interesting jobs out there and career pathways or even create a business which I think is a lot more supported in the US than here.
I was thinking about applying to Cornell Weill Med school in Qatar, i know brown medical school is just as competitive as the HYPSM so to be honest if I want to really set my heart on med I would probably just study it in australia. the issue is its so competitive to do med here because everyone sees it as the dream job and so many people are going for med just because its becoming a social norm and it’s just becoming a terribly competitive career and university life now.
Do you suggest any other schools that might be slightly easier for international students? How good is the job market for degrees from like vandy rice cmu nyu etc?
To get a job from any school, you’ll need an employer to sponsor you for a work visa. This isn’t easy (especially in fields like psychology that have no shortage of well qualified US citizen/PR applicants), and it’s getting harder overall as the number of entry level jobs shrink.
You should be prepared to return to your home country upon graduation.
You need a sponsoring employer regardless of field. Your student visa allows you to work for a year upon graduation (or 3 if it’s a STEM degree), but after that you need sponsorship to stay on.
By VC, do you mean to say you want to become a venture capitalist, or work in a VC firm?
Getting into med school as an international student is challenging. I’ll defer to others with direct experience to comment further.
Getting accepted to medical school is a challenge for international students…but it’s also a challenge to get a residency and sponsorship for a job here. Are you interested in doing primary care in a rural area of the United States? Do you want to be a doctor in the United States? Is that your goal? @WayOutWestMom can comment further on your chances of medical school acceptance here.
Oh…and you will be expected to be full pay for medical school to the tune of over $100,000 a year should you get there. Who will be paying that? And will they be able to show their ability to pay for all four years of medical school?
are there any outside of my picks with good STEM programs and business programs that you could suggest? i haven’t really thought about which ones i would or wouldnt take over melbourne university or maybe a university in the UK
As noted above by another poster…IF you attend college in the U.S., you should be planning to return to your country after graduation. There is no guarantee you will be able to stay here once your student visa expires.
But back to your chances…if you are happy with your sure things for undergrad, apply to reaches if you want to.
I would just very strongly suggest that you not come here for college thinking that’s a pathway to getting to stay here for employment.
Getting a job in the US involves a different visa process than getting a student visa. Given current US government hostility against immigrants (including legal ones), the chances of getting the needed visas for study and later job are lower than before.
Psychology and biology at the bachelor’s degree level are well supplied with US domestic college graduates, so employers are unlikely to want to sponsor work visas for bachelor’s graduates in those areas. Work visas are more likely to be sponsored for those with higher degrees in more in-demand subjects.
There is nothing wrong with what is currently listed in terms of application things. Are you graduating HS in December 2025, with hopes of enrolling in college fall 2026?
You have an impressive academic record; kudos to you. Unfortunately, every top 20 school on your list turns away around 10 high-stat, extremely qualified students like you for every one they accept. If you want to come to the US you need to apply to some less selective schools where your admission chances are higher. The good news is that there are many top 50 schools where you would get an excellent education - in many cases on par with the more “elite” schools.
Have you been to the US and had an opportuity to visit any of the schools on your list? I realize that you are on the other side of the world and making a special trip to visit US schools before applying is unrealistic. If you do get accepted to some US schools on your list I recommend visiting them before making a decision.