Rejected from all t10s except MIT

Applying to College Admission Stories
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okay so i got rejected from all the ivies plus stanford and jhu (i got into my safeties which is great). but somehow i bagged a spot at mit?? :skull: i just want to know if this is normal or what, so I’m going to list my stats below.

gpa (uw/w): 4.0/4.7
sat: 1600
act: 35

major: physics/math double major

female, wasian, middle class, not legacy, small college town in oregon

i took 15 aps total during high school (including ap stats and ap calc bc in freshman year which i thought would give me a boost)

ecs:
math club
math circle at my state uni
started a research writing club in sophomore year
high level piano for 10 years (won national awards + went on a radio show)
not too many volunteer hours, but i started a program giving recitals at nursing homes
nonprofit tutoring which raised a decent amount of money

research/internships/summer programs:

  • mites junior summer
  • super competitive nasa internship
  • promys math summer program
  • jhu cty program (i thought this would get me into hopkins :smiling_face_with_tear:)
  • physics research at university of oregon
  • physics research at a top20

awards (not too many)

  • usamo qualifier
  • national honor society
  • ap scholar

I had great LORs and essays. interviews went pretty okay (especially for princeton so i really thought i got in lol)

so yeah as you can see, decently impressive application (awards were pretty skimpy but i did a ton of research). i didn’t have super high hopes for an ivies or mit, but somehow i got into mit which seems crazy to me since i didn’t have a “hook.”

anyway thanks for reading this!

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I’m unclear what you’re trying to ascertain. You applied to multiple schools with very low acceptance rates. You got into one of them. It happens.

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Enjoy MIT is that is your decision. That’s a great accomplishment. I won’t comment on the others since it really doesn’t matter.

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This was posted in “admission stories.” I don’t think they are asking a question. I think they are just trying to share their story.

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MIT is really a different school from the other ones you named, and looking at your profile I am not surprised it saw you as a good fit.

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My take on this agrees with @NiceUnparticularMan. Top universities are looking for strong students that are a good fit for them. Reading your post, to me it sounds at least entirely possible that MIT could be a good fit for you.

Being accepted to one really top school might be relatively rare, but possible for a very strong student (which you are). For those who get accepted to a highly selective school, being accepted to one and rejected by several others is entirely normal. This has happened to a few people I know.

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Congrats on your acceptance. MITES was also a score for you and makes MIT understandable . Enjoy

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Congratulations on your MIT acceptance. I would suggest celebrating this wonderful admission and putting everything else in the rear view mirror.

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It is not normal. It is “normal” to be rejected by all of them based on the data.

Celebrate!!

You beat to odds and have an acceptance. You worked hard, just as hard as thousands of others.

Hopefully it is affordable for your family and is a viable option.

The key thing is to make the most of wherever you go. Take time for yourself this summer. You need a little down time before this next endeavor. The trajectory that had you taking calc in 9th grade must have been intense. Go enjoy senior year and be a kid this summer - no research needed :slight_smile:

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I agree. MITES attendees have about 30% chance of admission. Congratulations !

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Given this background, MIT is not a surprise.

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Closing thread since the OP misrepresented themselves, which is a violation Terms of Service.

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