New scores, new me? new chances? new hopes? new jokes? new new? chit, just do me

Colleges & Universities Vanderbilt University
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<p>hey :)</p>

<p>well, I took my SAT’s again and got an alright score, so I want to know if that does anything to my chances (bear in mind that I had a little time to prepare due to my athletics and EC’s =( )</p>

<p>So, I’ve already posted my chances thread… which is:<br>
GPA: 4 (UW), 4.5 (W)
Rank: 4/400
SAT II’s: Math IIc: 710, Physics: 760, Bio: purrfect 800
SAT I: 1900… I am taking it again in, lets see, 12 hours… (~2100)
AP’s: Will graduate with about 10…
AP US HIstory: 5… AP BIology: 5</p>

<p>This is basically my academic resume… really typical, yes, but I do this all while;</p>

<p>-Captain, 1st singles (Top Varsity) of my Tennis team (lettered multiple times)… Strong regional rankings
-Varsity Track (had to quit bec/ of my commitment to tennis…)
-Co-captain of Academic Quiz bowl team
-Rep. for School’s Student advisory Board…
-Vice President of National Honor Society…
-and other minor chit… Asian Club
Interact Club
Juggernauts (academic quiz bowl)
Student Advisory Board
Waklsman Students Scholar program
Elementry tutoring
Math tutoring (I tutor science and other subjects out of my own time aswell)
Math Club
Ecology Club
Tennis (varsity; first singles)
Track & Field
Model UN
National Honor Society (and SHS, it isnt organized yet for spring)
Science Research (completed 2 physics project in my own time since I do not have the class)</p>

<p>I also work heavily:
Tennis instructor…
Library…
Religous Place…
Supervisor of Local Clubhouse (I kinda own in… party xD)</p>

<p>I will have great essays:
Major one is about our society’s shift from being a coherent one to an incoherent one… how in today’s society, relevance is irrelevant… should be very insightful…</p>

<p>Reccomendations are effin great:
US AP History Teacher: haha, she will focus on how I was a “robber barron,” and how I recieved the highest grade in class with the least effort; how I won all the Jeopardies… and how i managed the course with other chitloads to do (wasnt bad)
Tennis coach…(eh…)
I also have an excellent recommendation from the Chair of Applied Physics and Department Head of Material Science at Rutgers University :wink: !!! He will write about how impressed he was during my intense faculty level work-study/research (he really was…) He will talk about how my research results were the best in 10+ years and will compare me to undergrads he has worked with…</p>

<p>Awards:
Regional placement (2nd) for two consecutive years … Science fair, Category Physics…
Distinction of National US Physics talent…
other crap to do with science (gifted and talented program …)
…
…
and now what i most treasure: faculty level research at rutgers (400+hrs.) NO words to describe that intense experience… and wont attempt to…it changed my life</p>

<p>WAKE UP!!!
okay okay, finally, phew…</p>

<p>My supplement will include abstracts for 2 original research project…
-One has intense practical appoication and will change our insulations we use at home :wink:
-Other, through rutgers (my own tho), is a way to shape memory and extensive memory storage in nano-checkerboards… yessir…</p>

<p>****BUt now, I dont have a SAT score of 1900… it is 2080…
Math: 800!, Writing: 700, Reading: 580 =(</p>

<p>will reading be my downfall? </p>

<p>I’ve already applied EA to UChicago, and Vandy is my second choice… after I get my decisiuon from Chicago mid-december; I will accordingly apply ED II to vandy =)
so pls help, for tis you I need most</p>

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<p>Vandy and UChicago are pretty much opposites, so that connection confuses me.</p>

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<p>^^^My son’s final two choices were U Chicago and Vanderbilt. I agree, it is not a common set of choices, but they are not “opposites”. </p>

<p>phph1, congrats on the new scores. Now just concentrate on getting the apps done.</p>

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<p>yea, i will try hard on portrayin myself good =)</p>

<p>ehh, my new score depresses me lol, only the CR portion… and I dont want to take it another time and break my composite</p>

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<p>@ DSC… yep, they’re two separate schools, but I’ve had someone in my family go to both, and I’ve done careful research and visited… so I actually love both places; So yea, like midmo said, it is not a common set… but I’m not a common person after all ;-)</p>

<p>which school did ur son attend midmo?!</p>

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<p>^^^He is at Vanderbilt. For his primary major, there is better opportunity for hands-on research. There is also a way better scholarship.</p>

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<p>vanderbilt has amazing merit scholarships. depending on what type of college experience YOU are interested in, those two schools can be vastly different. or they can be very similar.</p>

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<p>Midmo, can you tell us more about the specific strengths and opportunities in computer science / computer engineering at Vanderbilt? My ds is interested, although he’s still a couple of years away from applying.</p>

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<p>lgreen, I’m definitely no expert on the topic, and my son is just a freshman. As far as I can tell, computer engineering and computer science do not much overlap, at least as far as my son is concerned. The computer science faculty have been very successful in recent years at landing external research grants. The web page for the VUSE (V. School of engineering) claims that they brought in the most external research funds of any department at Vanderbilt last year. </p>

<p>However, there does not appear to be as wide a variety of research programs in cs, as one will find at bigger engineering schools. A student with very specific research interests will want to investigate exactly what sort of grants have been awarded, and to whom. Check the web site for some details. If your son has an interest in defense-related research, there is work available. There are other areas as well, including artificial intelligence.</p>

<p>The engineering school is far more liberal with advanced standing credits than the A&S school at VU, and than many other engineering schools. A student entering with AP scores of 5 in a lot of subjects (and high grades) may be able to move into substantive courses pretty quickly. The big advantage of VU for my son, so far, has been the extreme flexibility he has been given to set his program. The ability to start out with advanced math courses is allowing him to take some interesting cs courses normally not available to underclassmen. (That is one of the things he looked into before deciding to attend.) </p>

<p>My son has found the faculty to be amazingly approachable, interested in students, and welcoming to them. My son has gotten to know his advisor very well already, and is working with him on a research project (well, he is trying to learn enough basics at this point to be a contributor in the future!).</p>

<p>I asked some deans and dept chairs–at a parents gathering–about research opportunities for undergraduates. I was told that all students have the opportunity if they want it by junior year, many by sophomore year, and some of the more advanced freshman as well. So, while there is no organized UROP program such as that found at MIT and other great schools, there is nonetheless an opportunity for all who are interested.</p>

<p>In general, I have been very impressed with the attitude of faculty and administrators. It appears that the program will work very well for my son.</p>

<p>One more thing: the Dean at VUSE has said that he considers it a selling point of their engineering program that students are encouraged to take classes, even double major, outside of engineering. The director of undergraduate studies, a full prof, is very upfront that he likes to see engineers with outside interests.</p>

<p>Please feel free to PM me if you have any more questions. I am no computer scientist, to put it mildly, and my son is a very independent guy, so I have to drag information out of him, but I will try to honestly pass on those tidbits I have picked up.</p>

<p>The point about the merit scholarships is a very good one. 12 or 13 incoming freshman at VUSE this year are on full tuition/fees merit scholarships (more were offered, that is the number who took them up). Qualifications are stringent, but this is the hook that got my son to investigate them fully.</p>