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Pterodactylol · February 3, 2011, 9:14pm

Hello. I’m a current sophomore looking for some input as to whether I’m on the right track for certain colleges–more specifically:

MIT
Caltech
Stanford
Columbia
Cornell
UIUC
Berkeley
Northwestern
John’s Hopkins
UVA
VTech

Profile:

Ethnicity: Mixed (White/Indian)
Gender: Male

Academic Interests: Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Engineering, Business
Career Interest: Engineer
Highest Intended Degree: M.S., Ph.D.

Class Rank: N/A (top 5%)
Class Size: ~350
Weighted GPA: ~ 4.2
Unweighted GPA: ~ 3.85

PSAT:
Critical Reading – 66
Math – 72
Writing – 71
Total – 209

Classes:

Grade 7:
A – Algebra 1 Honors
Grade 8 (didn’t care):
B – Geometry Honors
B – Spanish 1
Grade 9 - Freshman:
A – Health/P.E.
A – Honors Biology
A – Honors English
A – Honors Algebra 2
A – Honors World History/Geography 2
A – Spanish 2
A – Computer Graphics
Grade 10 – Sophomore (Tentative):
A – Health/P.E./D.E.
A – Chemistry I Honors
A – English Honors
A – IB Math HL I
A – AP Government
(A-) – Spanish 3
A – Business Law/Management

Honors:

AMC10 School High Score – 9
Scored higher than my peers (including both freshmen and sophomores) on the American Math Competition 10B test.

4.0+ Honor Roll – 9, 10

Extracurricular Activities:

Class of 2013 Treasurer – 10
Organize class activities (events, fundraisers), and other class obligations (shirts, dances, etc.). (1-2 hours/week avg.)

Science Olympiad – 10
Work on events and eventually go to compete against other teams. (1-5 hours/week avg.)

Member of Mu Alpha Theta – 10
Tutor other students in math. Algebra (I and II), Geometry, Trigonometry, etc. (1 hour/week avg.)

Member of Future Business Leaders of America – 10
Business and leadership related activities/events. (1-2 hours/month)

Varsity Math Team – 10
Solve difficult mathematical problems competing against other schools. (1 hour/month, but a significant amount of time spent both in and out of class to prepare for these types of competitions)

AMC Participant – 9, 10
Mathematics Competition. Highest AMC10 score at J.E.B. Stuart HS in 9th grade competing against 9th and 10th graders.

Other Information: My GPA is slightly down because I screwed around in 8th grade, but stepped up as a Freshman. I will run for class office again this year and I’m planning on joining Spanish Honors Society and NHS. I have applied for an internship at a government lab and have a good chance at being accepted. Lastly, I will be working towards the IBMYP Certificate this year and the IB Diploma in my Junior and Senior years.

One question: Apparently my county is having issues with the budget, so during my senior year they may not provide Multivariable Calculus/Linear Algebra at my school. What are some of your experiences with taking community college classes while in high school? I’m specifically interested in the difficulty and convenience.

anotherparent · February 3, 2011, 9:45pm

Only 9th - 12th grade is generally considered, and sometimes even 9th grade grades are ignored.

The highest AMC score is not terribly impressive unless you qualified for AIME. Did you? Caltech and MIT are going to ask for your grades on the AMC/AIME.

You want to get your SAT scores up a lot from what your PSAT predicts.

But, you are looking good.

smwhtslghtlydzed · February 3, 2011, 10:11pm

you’re looking great so far; it’s a little early to chance you since you’re so young, but you seem like you’re on the right track for these schools. the one thing you’ll want to improve is your SAT scores; while a 2090 is a strong score, for your schools you should aim for a 2200+ when taking the actual SATs. good luck!! :)

Pterodactylol · February 3, 2011, 10:47pm

I didn’t study much for the PSAT besides the question of the day, some of direct hits, and maybe 3 or so practice tests that I took when I was bored (which I actually never went over) since my freshman PSAT, so I’m hoping I have some room for improvement. Plus I made a couple of dumb mistakes.

Unfortunately I didn’t qualify for AIME last year, but this year I think I have a decent shot with the AMC12. In class we’ve been going over similar problems and I’m confident I can get at LEAST 10 or 11 correct given the time restraints. I think I need at least 14-15 though in order to make it to the next round.

Pterodactylol · February 5, 2011, 2:16pm

** bump **

nemom · February 8, 2011, 3:50pm

Highest at your school for AMC/AIME is not important because that varies HUGELY. But keep track of the scores and send those.

isabelwhatx · February 8, 2011, 4:22pm

“Plus I made a couple of dumb mistakes.”

Ahh, stay away from depending on that. You make dumb mistakes in every SAT. Don’t count on it going all fine and dandy the day of your actual SAT.

Other than improving your SAT score, you should be pretty solid. Also, try to get involved in more varying extra curriculars. Congrats, you like math. Is there anything else? I’d suggest maybe taking up music or drama.

Good luck!!

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