i live in shanghai family’s from a small town in another province. my skl is ranked 1 out of 200 or so (private) but my passport is from hongkong
8th grade rn, im going to 9th, if i cant get in ill redo the year
i swim competitively. idk abt my scores tho they r sorta above average not that high not that low. first in my family to get to good edu(parents are meh, below average colleges, but not as much in english, erm idkkkk).
grades/current school
we dont have gpa in our school but my grades are all a/a+ this quater. i was in an international and rly american school for a while. chinese is my first language but im not that good at it bc of the amount of influence from the couple years i spent there. but it was alright i suppose. the skl i attend right now is really competitive, we do 90% tests and more like 2% projects and 3% essays/written stuff. so its not subjective or anything
a lot of pressure. i do have mental health problems. well im asian. wut do they expect. but im not including that in anything
ssat: ranked 92 percentile overall. most people in china either buys the scores or gets into an academy that they stay at 70 hours a week on holidays and stuff so yea i did this by myself.
grades etc
*our skl does not offer honors or anything of that sort. we do ib and im doing mostly igcse prep for now
English: a+ 98
Math: a we r a combination of algebra 2 and 1. i am expected to finish 2 this sumer
Science: we use the cambridge stuff and its physics and chem for english bio. chinese 92 eng 91 both are As
History and social studies: 91 (a) in eng and 96 (a+) in chi.
chinese: my only b… it is technically my native language but im taking it as my second language prob in highskl
Visual or performing arts: drama 98a+
everything else is an a/a+ had a couple bs in 7th grade but i was struggling with chinese so i have a reason igs lol
Awards
speech and debate:
well, speech was a pretty long time ago. i ranked 3rd out of 200,000 participants in china, won all regionals and state. a semi finalist in another major national. won all regionals and state and qualifying too. for debate i won a round robin asian championships, oxford schools and some other smaller ones.
medals for swimming in my league and a lot of ribbons.
i do have an award given to students each month in our skl around 10/150 is given each year.
Extracurriculars
swim team captain
volunteered at library assisted librarians, volunteered for local kg, where i helped adhd and language disabilities (total volunteering 80+)
bikes as a hobby i also watercolor
am self studying ap bio and world his
Essays/interviews/rec letters
personally i think i did fine on my essays. i am going to visit campus later this year or early next year. but i have attended events offered in shanghai.
seriously i have no idea how well the recs were written. all of my teachers just got to know me and my math teacher turned the form in 30 minutes after i sent it. but our skl does send very well written ones.
Schools
reach: emma
meh: dana hall, mercersburg, miss porters, george
safety: none!
im begging for chances plz. give me advice i take anything. i know im prob a weak candidate compared to the other people but still just gimme anything.
General advice: try to get in the habit of using standard American English in posts and not textspeak.
Based on your online persona, you are capable of being witty and personable in person, which should help in interviews. American schools do emphasize fit, so being able to carry on a conversation helps your application. (Better than boring to annoying arrogant.)
You have a very reasonable list of schools.
If you are full pay, you have a reasonable chance.
P.S. I am concerned about your aside about “mental health issues”. I of course have no idea whether you are experiencing normal teenage angst (which still sucks) or something more worrisome. If you are currently under treatment/medication for your mental health issues, this really has to be a concern when considering boarding schools.
I am so sorry for the language, I do realize that it is a large part of my application but I was in a hurry and I did this in a very short notice. But thank you for the advice.
On mental health, I do have bipolar disorder but I do not use medication or get treatment of any sort. I do not think it is of much problem in the future.
You seem like a very smart, talented young person. Do you see a doctor for your mental health condition? I can tell you from personal experience that bipolar IS a serious matter. Two of my three children have it (one has schizophrenia in addition). They are fine until they aren’t. The consequences can be quite severe if you have a break, especially if you’re away at school. Can you ask your parents or a teacher for help? Ignoring this and hoping for the best are not good strategies. Your mental health is much more important than your education at this point. Your life could literally be in danger if you’re not treated. I lost a nephew, so believe me, it happens.
I will be thinking of you - please keep us posted!
Thank you so much for your concern, I do realize that it may effect daily life in the future, and that boarding school is a risk in these terms. I have a therapist who helps me with my diagnosis and I am improving overall. I have also discussed this with her, she does see it as extremely problematic but considering my recent improvements, we are gaining confidence. I also have access to multiple emergency contacts around New York if anything serious does happen. A major cause I am considering the states is because of the amount of toxicity and negative effect on my mental health in my current school. It does pose an even larger threat on my mental health, I wish to find somewhere less competitive and more inclusive. As I mentioned, my school is ranked first in Forbes China and our high school is extremely well known, but I do not want to spend my time where I am constantly looked down at by my peers and disrespected by my teachers just because I don’t rank 99% on the SSATs and get 130s on AMC 12.
I am extremely sorry for your loss and I wish you all the best!
Hi, current Emma Willard School Senior here. You’re going to get in, especially if you’re paying full tuition. I had about the same grades as you as an eighth grader, and they accepted me with open arms. Please reach out if you have any questions. I also had mental health issues before coming to Emma, but Emma saved me, I’m forever grateful for everything it gave me. I believe in you, keep your head up!
Hi, you need to be careful with your mental health. I was diagnosed with anxiety and depression before I went to BS. I had been meeting with a psychiatrist and therapist for years, and I was stable and doing ok. But going abroad to school was just a big change I didn’t think would mess up my health so much. But it did. I came back with an ADHD diagnosis, a BPD diagnosis, PTSD, and my generalized anxiety disorder had been moved up to Acute Anxiety attacks with psychotic features (I was experiencing paranoia and hallucinations). In addition, I also gained 30lbs (around 14kg) in under a month and then lost another 15lbs (7kg) within a week.
4 or so years later, and after returning to my LPS, I’m currently living away from home at a top 20 Liberal Arts College in the US. I honestly couldn’t be happier. Sometimes you need an extra few years.