<p>After getting rejected from Cornell (and UMich coe deferral…), I opted for my second choice.
GPA: 92.77/100 UW (should be a little higher if not for the non-academic subjects)
SAT: 2240 (710/770/760 CR-M-W)
AP: 4 World history, 4 Computer science, 5 USH
Senior courseload: senior math team, AP Japanese, government, AP physics B, british literature, software development, AP calc AB, Phys ed 12 </p>
<p>-Asian
-Highly ranked public school in New York
-AIME for past 2 yrs (124.5 on AMC10, 94.5 on 12)
-Math team 4 yrs
-Robotics Team 3 yrs (Co-captain of engineering this year)
-Red Cross club 4 yrs (volunteering)
-Translator of Japanese shows into English 2 July 2012~ (ProjectSUB48)
-first in nation 2 years in a row on National Japanese exam</p>
<p>I feel like my extracurriculars and course rigor are really lacking…=/
(my school has strict gpa requirements on the # of ap courses you can take a year- 93 for 3, 95 for 4)
Any insight?</p>
<p>I hope they let you in (you look very qualified. According to your scores, you should have gotten into Cornell but maybe they weren’t impressed with the other stuff or something. Okay, well you probably applied to engineering which is a different ball game. They likely expected you to already have AP calc. and a physics B or C credit). I think they (Emory) would definitely want you, especially in an ED round. What do you plan to do at Emory? Are you considering the 3/2 engineering program. Your record seems to indicate so. I mean you could do pre-med with that talent, but that’s boring (unless you do like math, physics, or chemistry with it. A person with your talent doesn’t belong exclusively to the biology or NBB dept). As for course rigor, it’s good. You took a reasonable AP load and so far have showed promise on the exams (again send exam scores if you haven’t already). Your interest in learning or participating in a language to that degree displays interest for the liberal arts (you aren’t Japanese are you?), so that helps even more. By the way, when you get to Emory, please don’t take Japanese as your foreign language. You’ll be wasting time (though it is a very rigorous program and a good community, I still don’t think it’s worth the time for someone with that much experience). Try something different, maybe even cool like Tibetan, Arabic or something. And as normal, I advise talented students in math and science to skip out of as many parts of the intro. sequences as possible (especially since you may be pre-engineering). Skip CS 170 and Calc. 111 (take calc. 112-Z if offered). Also, take some cool history and political science courses (go straight to 2-300 level special topics courses) since it seems you like that sort of thing (use them to enjoy Emory and fullfill GERs. Maybe even consider voluntary core as these faculty members are top notch: <a href=“Voluntary Core Curriculum Program”>Voluntary Core Curriculum Program). I know you wanted to go straight into an engineering school, but Emory’s 3/2 program may be a good fit for you especially if you excel in a diverse set of interests and would like to continue entertaining the non-science interests. Good luck, you have a good chance!</p>
<p>Yeah! I definitely want to do the 3-2 program, while doing an international studies major at Emory (though I didn’t say a thing about the 3-2 on my supplement essay - would that be bad?) Would studying abroad for a year be feasible while trying to fulfill the requirements for the 3-2 program? (I have a really strong reason for wanting to go to Kwansei Gakuin University in Japan)
Actually I’m Chinese, and I believe my Japanese ability is beyond what I can learn in university anyway, but maybe I’ll try a course or two to see.
Thank you for your advice and help!</p>
<p>It’ll be okay (would be nice if you mentioned it). No, seriously, like don’t take Japanese at Emory (or start immediately at the highest levels). Also, it could be possible as long as you’re willing to take a fairly rigorous math and science load from the get-go. I think it’s crucial that you get a 4/5 on AB so that you can perhaps do multi, diff. eq, or linear by spring. It’s also possible that you can kind of do a 4-2 sort of thing (if you can’t complete your major by junior year). I had a friend who did chemE at Tech do this. He took 4 years to complete his chem major and then transitioned into chemE over there (it was smart because he had done most of the theoretical chemistry courses). </p>
<p>You’ll probably need to do something like (a slash = fall/spring): Chem 141/142, math 112-Z/(intermediate or advanced course), and then jump on any polsci/international studies reqs. that freshmen can take for about 2 courses (each semester maybe) on top of any freshman GERs (English and frosh seminar). This will amount to 4-5 courses a semester which is now a standard courseload. You can start physics and the remaining math requirements (and maybe cross-enroll in matlab, which is over at Georgia Tech) sometime sophomore year while going deeper into the IS major. </p>
<p>Tech dual degree requirements: [Transfer</a> Admissions Guidelines | The College of Engineering at Georgia Tech](<a href=“http://www.coe.gatech.edu/content/transfer-admissions-guidelines#requiredCourses]Transfer”>http://www.coe.gatech.edu/content/transfer-admissions-guidelines#requiredCourses)</p>
<p>International studies requirements:
[International</a> Studies Major (Undergraduate)](<a href=“http://polisci.emory.edu/home/undergraduate/majors/international.html]International”>http://polisci.emory.edu/home/undergraduate/majors/international.html)</p>
<p>As a parent of an applicant I hope all you exceptional kids observe some notes that I thought might help. I doubt any of you will accumalate as many hours as I have with a degree in Pharmacy and Medicine and uncountable hours of residency and felllowship in Cardiology, with a few graduate courses and CMEs thrown in. My son is currently applying #1 in his class but a couple of Cs freshman year. The irony is I almost applied to the Emory Internal Medicine residency years ago but was told they had already rejected many of their own graduates, so probably futile endeavor. It is a beautiful campus and respected school.
Some of the assumptions made by former admissions members are a little crazy. If you score 790/800 on chemistry and your teacher gave you a C there are a thousand possible reasons, the least likely of which is laziness. Some teachers just have very odd grading systems that reflect nothing. Teachers can make the same human errors as you or I.
Two points worth noting during these neurotic days for kids and their parents;
- Almost all of you would have been easily admitted when I was young. Things have really changed. If your GPA is less than 4 it is more likely a reflection on your school or eccentric teachers than your IQ or willingness to work hard.
- Ask anyone who has been blessed with a good career and they will tell you the same thing. Getting into post graduate work is the most important thing, so go wherever but make As. And amidst the sacrimonious and all knowing critics of your accomplishments are many who had less impressive credentials. Most important of all, based on the credentials I have seen, almost all of you will do very well in the working world, which is totally unrelated to the academic.
In my lifetime there has always been at least one rational person who understands the real world and helped with their support. Cross country runners and talented musicians are not lazy, they are just caught up in the random world we live in. Hopefully you will have some understanding and reasonable people evaluating your applications.</p>
<p>Yeah, I always think similar things, but the admissions process is ridiculous. And then it ultimately reduces the undergraduate experience is then again reduced to the sport of “making As” as you say. This often means that, unless you’re really, really good, you must avoid taking challenging courses with peers who are at your level in a field, and you have to pretty much do HS all over again. Undergraduate experiences for many will basically be almost exclusively a social experience as you really aren’t allowed to get but so much out of your coursework (you have to “fake it until you make it with this” and only choose “interesting” courses that you can make an A in because it’s rarely worth it to take a risk and choose a course out of the comfort zone) unless you are near perfect.</p>