**Decision: Accepted **
To any future applicants reading this, don’t freak out!!! I spent hours on collegeconfidential (which is unhealthy!!) and dug myself into an emotional hole, but things work out.
OBJECTIVE
ACT: 35C (36E, 33M, 36R, 35S)
SAT II: 760 Math 2, 740 Bio E, 690 World
Unweighted GPA: 3.76 (weighted 4.22)
AP: World (5), Bio (4), US (5), Psychology (5), Lang (5), Spanish Lang (5)
Senior Year Course Load: AP Gov/Macro, AP Lit, AP Calc AB, We the People/Competition Civics (weighted), Ceramics
Major Awards: AP Scholar with Distinction, various Key Club awards (regional, state, and international levels), Mock Trial award, President’s Service Award (Gold, 250+ hours), California State Legislature Award (i forgot to add it on my app oops)
SUBJECTIVE
Extracurriculars:
- Key Club (leadership at club, regional, and tri-state level: one of three main figureheads for 40,000+ members, tracked 950,000+ service hours, fundraised $230k+ for charities, planned events with 9k+ attendees, train 600+ club secretaries and 80+ executive officers)
- We the People (my high school’s team is very well respected, almost always makes it to top 5 teams nationwide)
- Mock Trial (expert witness)
- Kids Against Hunger
- Liberty in North Korea
- Model UN
Job/Work Experience: small Asian food chain, approx 10hrs/wk throughout junior & senior year
Volunteer/Community service: local museum, soup kitchen at low-income senior center, animal shelter, Key Club (total service hours junior year ~400, currently ~100 senior year)
Summer Activities: 2 college courses that aligned with my intended major (A- at UC Berkeley, B at community college which doesn’t make sense lmaoooo)
Essays:
- Common App: 9/10 – talked about how the death of my mother propelled me to become an active servant leader and step up as a leader in Key Club. Might have been a little simple, but I really spoke from the heart, and several friends cried reading it.
- Supplement: 10/10 – HILARIOUS, talked about what I plan to study and how I plan to take advantage of resources at Cornell, overall a very intellectual and witty essay.
RECOMMENDATIONS
(provided very detailed activity descriptions to them all, even though they know me pretty well)
Teacher Rec #1: 8/10 APUSH teacher – Mock Trial advisor. I wasn’t a star student (APUSH is hard lmaoo), but I did reach out to her when I was dealing with some family problems. Knows I’m in WTP, works closely w/ them, surely thinks highly of me.
Teacher Rec #2: 7/10 WHAP teacher – had a few good convos with him, but I wouldn’t say we’re BFFs. Same as APUSH teacher about WTP.
Counselor Rec: 10/10 – I’m very very close w/ my counselor; I’ve spent quality time with her throughout all of high school and she recognizes my academic & extracurricular achievement despite problems at home.
Additional Rec: 9/10 Museum Director of Operations – I had only worked with her for a year but she and I have grown close and I’m positive she thinks highly of me.
Additional Rec: 10/10 Key Club Advisor — knows me very well, has worked closely with me for years and listed several Key Club accomplishments, if anything further highlights my remarkable achievements in Key Club
OTHER:
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major and College: Classics CAS
State: CA
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: ~$100k
Hook: none
REFLECTION
Strengths: extracurriculars, essays, test scores!
Weaknesses: low GPA but understandable because of family turmoil