@rice 2019 could you please elaborate on some main reasons why your daughter made it to the mc dermott scholars program. my DD is currently a senior and is working on her college apps. any light on this topic is much appreciated
@rice 2019 could you please elaborate on some main reasons why your daughter made it to the mc dermott scholars program. my DD is currently a senior and is working on her college apps. any light on this topic is much appreciated
Question for everyone in this thread (esp current mcdermott scholars). I’m an OOS applicant to mcdermott. I really like the program, and I do have a 4.0uW and a 1570 SAT and ECs I care about a lot + essays/recs I think are strong, but I’ve only taken 5 aps (2 junior, 3 senior year). Kids in my school do take more (say top students around 8 total). Do I still have any shot in the program- every scholar seems to be a national ap scholar.
You may be an AP Scholar yourself by the time the scholarship is awarded. You only need to “receive scores of 3 or higher on three or more AP Exams.” The bios you are looking at were written after they graduated high school (August 20, 2018).
https://apscore.collegeboard.org/scores/ap-awards/ap-scholar-awards/
I’m a finalist 
- excited, it’s my first choice. Does anyone have any tips for the interview/ finalist weekend?
Congrats @harrypotter123 !!!
Be sincere, be prepared for any type question, even those that would normally be off limits like religion, learn as much as you can about the program to make sure it’s a good fit for you. Enjoy your weekend!
I just got an email and I’m a finalist. Yay!
It’s gonna be a looong flight to Dallas for me, however, as I live in Port Dickson, Malaysia, nearly 10,000 miles!
But still, I’m super excited to attend the finalist weekend.
Congrats to everybody who made finalist! Good luck to you all in making the final cut.
@voscra Congratulations on being selected!
Would you mind sharing your stats
Does anyone know if they send out rejection emails to those who didn’t make the cut.
Here’s a copy of my reddit post that I made a while ago on /r/chanceme
Stats:
Nationality - Bangladeshi
IB Student @ High School in Malaysia
GPA - 4.0
SAT - 1550 (770 - R | 780 - M)
IB Subjects:
Mathematics Higher Level | Predicted : 7
Computer Science Higher Level | Predicted : 7
Physics Higher Level | Predicted : 7
Business Management Standard Level | Predicted : 7
French Ab Initio | Predicted : 7
English Lit. Standard Level | Predicted : 6
Overall Predicted IB score (including bonus points) = 44/45
ECs:
Founder/Co-President of an organization that aids in the educationa and empowerment of indigenous Malaysian Youth (http://asli.voscra.com, just finished the website for it)
Math Club Leader | Teaching people my age and those younger than me on the beauty of math + school curriculum aid
Design Solutions Club Leader | Basically teaching kids to programme, have done this for 3 years now, and have successfully taught a bunch of kids HTML, CSS, Javascript and Python
Student Prefect Captain | kind of like a “master” hall monitor/student council president
Volunteering in a Refugee Center in Kuala Lumpur Malaysia and a Migrant Worker Center in Singapore.
TEDxSpringhill - lead organizer for tedx event at my school
Additional Details:
My whole graduating grade only has 8 people, so I’m technically #1 Rank + valedictorian
But that doesn’t mean that much considering last year HALF the class failed to graduate, and my school just has a lot of issues academically (thats partly why I tutor math, cause we barely have any math teachers)
I literally don’t have a college counselor, since most people barely pass high school here, and even those who do don’t really go to any colleges until several gap years later. So a college counselor hasn’t been in huge demand here, so I don’t have one thus I remain in a constant state of confusion regarding college apps that only google sometimes can resolve.
@voscra Wow !! What an amazing resume.
@harrypotter112 Congratulations to you too !
Wishing you both all the best for the finalist weekend !!
Hi everyone! I’m a current McDermott scholar and I just wanted to say HOW EXCITED all of us are to welcome you to campus for finalist’s weekend! I know it can be a very high-pressure situation, but my advice is to relax as much as possible and trust that if you’re meant to be in the program, you will be accepted.
Also, take advantage of your networking time as much as possible to try and genuinely get to know the other people there. If I could change one thing about my finalist’s weekend, I would try to view the other candidates as future friends instead of current competitors, because once you join our family we’ll actually be your friends (older scholars included) so you may as well get a head start!
I wish everyone all the best, no matter where you end up!
Thank you! I’m excited too
My DS has received an invite for McDermott. The weekend seems to be aimed at selling the school and at the same time picking the best students that suit the program. It makes perfect sense.
On the later point (selecting best students), I’ve following questions if knowledgeable folks can comment:
- One email vaguely suggested that there will be a "group interview" but I was not sure what that means. Is this a panel interview or some sort of group discussion with other students included.
- It seems last year they chose only 16 students compared to earlier years of having 20+. Is this a change due to availability of $ or just a fluke where they did not find enough qualified students who accepted.
- Is there a lot of judging of how students mingle, eat, talk etc. outside of formal interviews?
- Finally, what are some of the questions that were asked?
I’m asking a lot here for my first comment. So thank you in advance.
@111000, that’s a nice point you make about meeting other students who will be your future friends.
Thank you.
@go2univ sent you a pm
I am a finalist for McDermott and I am really excited and nervous for the finalist weekend.
I have a few questions about the weekend and I would greatly appreciate if someone can answer them.
- Like a few other people asked, how many students are offered the McDermott scholarship each year, as class of 2018 is only 16 people while class of 2015 is 25 people. Is there less funding for the program or did more people deny it to go to another college?
- What kind of interviews are there during the finalist weekend? I remember one of the emails saying group interview and parent panel, but I am not sure what is meant by either.
- How formal is the whole event?
- And how formally should the finalists be dressed?
- And, like some people already asked, is everything outside of the interviews judged?
I know I asked a lot, but I would be so thankful for advice and any tips for the weekend.
Thank you so much, and I look forward to meeting all of the finalists in just two weeks!
- no, the program is very well funded, 25 spots were offered but not all accepted (at least one picked a service academy, others picked other colleges, unlike past years if someone declinded no alternates were offered a spot to comply with rules about when you have to commit by, they may change this again, I don't know.
- there are two private interviews last year it was two interviewer and one finalist, the parent pannel is what the parents will be doing at the time, parents and students are keep apart most of the time, even during meals in the same room.
- business
- you will be given details on what to wear when
- yes, your parents too
@3scoutsmom Thank you very much!
@Ant123 try not to stress, have fun, use this as a fact finding mission and networking oppertunity. Ask lots of question (when appropriate) be yourself. If you don’t make McDermont remember UTD still wants you and will offer you a full scholarship (just not the extra perks or the extra responsibilities). My ds did not make the cut, he is at UTD and loving it. He interacts with many of the staff he met during the Finnalist weekend and other students that did and didn’t make the cut everyday.
Anyone want to give a review of this year’s McDermott Finalists weekend?