Chance me as a gap year intl student EFC $15k environmental engineering

Chance Me / Match Me
1

Demographics

  • International student; speak Russian (native), English, and Italian
  • State/Location of residency: originally from Russia, now living in Italy
  • Type of high school: public, top-500 school in Russia (yeah yeah i know). Had no opportunities at school - found everything on my own
  • No special factors

Cost Constraints / Budget
EFC $15k

Intended Major(s)
Environmental/chemical engineering, minor in public health/education/science communication

GPA, Rank, and Test Scores

  • Unweighted HS GPA: 4.0
  • Weighted HS GPA: n/a
  • Class Rank: n/a but actually ~2-3 out of 94
  • ACT/SAT Scores: SAT first attempt 1470, gonna retake, aim for 1520+. Also IELTS 8.0

List your HS coursework

unfortunately only local curriculum, but i had chemistry, physics, and biology at an advanced level

Awards

  1. Winner, HSE Uni’s research comp. “Visshiy Pilotazh”, regional stage. Reg. representative at the conference in Moscow (top 2% nationally) – National, 11th grade

  2. Gold medal for Success in Education (senior year), Secondary School Diploma with honors (sophomore year): Russia’s top 10% best students – National, 10th and 12th grade

  3. Prize-winner, regional stage, All-Russian School Olympiad in Chemistry & Biology (top 0.5% nationally every year) – Regional/State; 9th, 10th, and 12th grade

  4. Semi-finalist, ClimateScience Environmental Olympiad (top ~4%) – International, 12 grade and Gap year

  5. Winner, Volgatech Research Conference with a school research in chemistry (100+ participants from 9 to 12 grades) – Regional/State, 9th grade

Extracurriculars

  1. Research – Researcher, Data Analyst, Project Representative.
    Shelangersky Chemical Plant SAIVER JSC & Kazan National Research Technological University.
    3-month study on replacing chromate pigments with less toxic manganese to improve production efficiency & safety; guided by Dr. Ziganshina at KNRTU. 11th grade

  2. Science/Math – Student of the Advanced Physical Chemistry Program.
    Lyceum Baumansky & Mari State University, program for high-achieving students led by Dr. Pavlov.
    Studied the first-year physical chemistry & energy science uni curriculum & 150+ olympiad problems and experiments; collaborated on 2 projects w/ other students. 9th – 12th grades

  3. Debate/Speech – Club Founder and Leader; Biodebate Team Member.
    Lyceum Baumansky & Biology Debate Club (45+ members).
    Discussed 25+ open-ended complex biology & ecology problems, participated in 9 school- to state-level competitions, won prizes; tutored teams of 9-11 graders. 9th – 12th grades

  4. Community Service (Volunteer) – Farm Volunteer, Group of 8 Coordinator & Scheduler.
    School Farm.
    Managed 4 greenhouses; monitored automated irrigation systems & created a project on their operation, promoted ecological volunteering among students. 11th grade

  5. Environmental – Sustainable Cities Summer Camp Participant.
    Dieter Schwarz Foundation & UWC Robert Bosch College.
    Selected for a fully funded international program focused on sustainable urban development. Will join peers from around the world to explore climate justice, circular economy, and inclusive city planning. Gap year (it will take place in July – August 2025)

  6. Community service (volunteer) – Club Co-Founder, Peer Tutor for Biology.
    Lyceum Baumansky & School Tutoring Club (6+ tutors, 30+ students as members).
    Mentored 15+ students with tailored learning plans, helped to improve grades. Led sustainability & environment workshops in 5+ city schools and online conferences. 11th grade – continue

  7. Community service (Volunteer) – Certified Nursing Assistant; Lead Mentor.
    Children’s Republican Clinical Hospital in Yoshkar-Ola.
    Prepped 50+ patients for surgery & assisted with post-op recovery, organized 2 Children’s Day events, introduced & oriented 20+ new volunteers. 10th grade – continue

  8. Academic – Course Taker. Key Essentials: The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, Sustainable Development, and the Law.
    Selected for a fully funded international short course offered by the University of Cambridge’s DemEd Global programme. Will engage in six modules on children’s rights, legal frameworks, and sustainable development, with live sessions and expert-led instruction. Gap year (it will take place in June 2025)

  9. Athletic, rhythmic gymnastics – Gymnast, Group of 6 Captain, Regional Team Member.
    Municipal Institution of Additional Education "Sports School “Olymp”, Yoshkar-Ola.
    Competed for 11 yrs., won 50+ medals (1st-3rd place) in city to intl. competitions, organized 4 charity events raising $1.2K for city orphanages. 9th – 12th grades

  10. Other Club/Activity – Hiker, camper; eco-traveling journal.
    Youth hikes organized by TravelLine, self-organized trips; Telegra.ph blogging platform by Telegram.
    Take part in/organize ~4 hiking/rafting trips yearly, blog about them. Hiked Mt. Kilimanjaro (19,340 ft) in August 2023 and posted a 9,000-word diary. 9th grade – continue

Additional info:

Honors clarifications

  1. For ClimateScience Olympiad: wrote a 1,000-word proposal on the causes and mitigation strategies for increased vulnerability to air- and waterborne diseases in Indonesia, with a focus on geography and climate change. Received an A.

  2. For VolgaTech research: project title was “Reasons Why the Flesh of Apples Darkens When Exposed to Air”. Selected to represent my school at a research conference.

Also, in 2022, awarded Candidate Master of Sports title in rhythmic gymnastics, second-highest athletic ranking in Russia. Puts me in top 5% of athletes nationally in my discipline.

Extracurriculars clarifications

  1. Got the CNA title in 2022 through 256 study hours at a local medical university with the right to work.

  2. Also worked as a coach of ~40 kids in 2022-2024.

Essays/LORs/Other
pretty good essays and recs i think, personal statement ties my Kilimanjaro summit experience to my “mission” around climate science and education.

Schools
top research universities, not gonna apply to LACs i think.
ED I: UChicago (major: molecular engineering (chemical engineering track) + minor in sustainable energy and water or immunoengineering)
ED II: Johns Hopkins (major: environmental eng, minor: earth & planetary sciences)

Listen, i know that my profile vs my ambitions look really unbalanced right now. In fact, im still deciding wether i should even apply this cycle (two reasons basically: first - Italy is already a pretty much great place for me to live and study, second - the situation in the US is unstable). I know i still have a lot of work to do just to have the smallest chance of getting into any of the top unis on my list. So that’s why im here, to hear your thoughts and suggestions. Just please don’t think I’m the kind of person who wears rose-colored glasses and assumes that getting into a top US university is easy.

Thanks so much for taking the time to read this. I really appreciate it.

1 Like
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I’m confused. Have you completed high school already?

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It’s understandable that your strategy vis-a-vis US colleges is to “shoot the moon” with highly-competitive schools. While there are a number of schools that could be a good fit academically and would have much higher odds of admission (one example that came to mind immediately was SUNY ESF, which offers more environmentally-oriented ChemE than most), there probably isn’t a path to affordability at any of these, with a $15K/year budget, as this won’t cover indirect costs at most US schools, so even a full-tuition merit scholarship won’t get you to your budget.

Getting a fully-funded acceptance is going to be a long shot, as only a tiny handful of US schools admit and fund international undergrads on a need-blind basis, and those that offer engineering are an even smaller subset. (MIT, Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Dartmouth, and newly added to this list, Notre Dame and Brown.) Your two stated targets, UChicago and JHU, are need-aware for international students; so while applying ED improves your odds, needing significant aid works against you. There are more schools in this financial category if you want more suggestions.

You’re a great candidate; it’s just a steep road to an acceptance with the kind of aid you need.

Also, as you say, it’s a fraught time to be pinning your hopes on studying in the US. Look what’s happening to international students who have put all their eggs into Harvard’s basket, right now. It was one of the “brass ring” schools for top international students who need financial aid, but now that’s at risk of being snatched away from them.

Overall, I would think that basing your studies in Italy, and aiming to spend a semester or a year abroad in the US, may be your best option. But it certainly doesn’t hurt to apply to some top US schools and see how things unfold. Best of luck!

4 Likes
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Yes, in 2024

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So you will have taken two gap years between high school and college. What you did during that time will be important as part of your college application process.

I agree with looking for options in Italy. You like it there! That’s important too!

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At this time, I just can’t see someone with an EFC of 15,000 (which means they aren’t made of money) and good options in Europe, choosing to come to the US to study.

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Fair enough, and that’s exactly why my list is the way it is. Either I’m going to the US for a top 20, or I’m not going at all. But I still have at least five months to see how things develop and make a final decision. Thanks for sharing your opinion.

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Yes, I know that, and I’m working on improving my resume right now. Thanks for sharing your opinion!

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I think you are right. Thank you!

1 Like