Rising Asian NJ Senior - chances, advice, SCEA or regular?

Colleges & Universities Stanford University
1

<p>Its about that time when rising seniors think about college, and since application season is coming soon, I’ve been thinking about whether or not I should SCEA Stanford or EA MIT + Caltech + UChicago. I appreciate any advice and input from the CC community. Here’s a bit about myself, in the typical format:</p>

<p>Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2280 (800M / 680 CR / 800 W)
ACT: Taking in September
SAT II: 800 Chem, 800 Math IIC, 790 Phys, 740 WH
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.96
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 10% is my best estimate. I am using my school’s college profile to estimate this.</p>

<p><a href=“http://bcts.bergen.org/images/stories/BCTS/pdf/AASTprofile.pdf[/url]”>http://bcts.bergen.org/images/stories/BCTS/pdf/AASTprofile.pdf&lt;/a&gt;. </p>

<p>AP (place score in parenthesis): 5 Calc BC (sophomore year), 5 Chemistry (junior), 5 Statistics (junior, self-study), 4 World History (junior, self-study)
IB (place score in parenthesis): Taking IB History HL; the test comes in senior year for me.
Course Load:
Junior year:
Core: Adv. Topics in math (a combination of complex analysis, linear algebra, and multivariable calculus), IB History, Spanish 5 Honors, World Lit 1 Honors, Adv. Biology, Adv. Chemistry, Adv. Physics, Gym
Electives: Organic Chemistry 1, combinatorics / geometry, chemistry research, string ensemble, nanoscale material sciences, orchestra, math self-study elective</p>

<p>Senior year:
Core: Topics in Adv. Math (continuation of Adv. Topics in math), IB History, World Lit 2, AP Microeconomics, AP Psychology, Gym
Electives: math team elective, chemistry research</p>

<p>Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
AMC 10 national winner (sophomore)
3x qualified for AIME (freshman - junior)
2x qualified for USAMO (sophomore, junior)
USAMTS silver medalist (junior)
1st place team Stanford math tournament, 1st place team Lehigh math contest (junior)
ARML Individual finalist (junior)
Top 10 in NACLO Invitational, alternate for US ILO team (junior)
Qualified for US National Chem Olympiad (junior)
Fencing team MVP (junior)</p>

<p>Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Math team (2x assistant director of BCA math competition), 4 years of music involvement with violin (pit orchestra, orchestra, string ensemble, choir accompaniment orchestra, and a paid instrumental ensemble out of school), 11 years of piano, fencing (squad captain), church (small group leader) and youth group on Friday nights, chemistry research at the school</p>

<p>Job/Work Experience: Teacher at my high school’s summer math camp for middle school students, paid instrumental performances with ensemble
Volunteer/Community service: public library stuff in freshman year and three weeks during three summers doing missions work with church group
Summer Activities:
Freshman year: Trip to beijing with family, missions
Sophomore year: missions, awesome math camp for 3 weeks, teaching at BCA math camp for 2 weeks
Junior year: missions, teaching at BCA math camp for 4 weeks, 1 week of fencing camp</p>

<p>Other
State (if domestic applicant): NJ
School Type: [Welcome</a> to Bergen County Technical Schools and Special Services](<a href=“http://www.bergen.org%5DWelcome”>http://www.bergen.org)
It’s a public magnet high school.
Ethnicity: Asian (chinese)
Gender: M
Income Bracket: middle class, not applying for financial aid
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none</p>

<p>I am not sure if I should early Stanford or early apply for multiple, slightly less selective schools. From my school stanford has accepted 22% early, and 13% regular, but the sample sizes are small, and the average GPA admit for regular is 3.91, but for early its 3.96. Is it a boost to apply early from the northeast? Or will regular be equivalent? Any input is much appreciated.
Edit: intended double major with math + chem/econ.</p>

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<p>I would say to apply MIT + Caltech early, and regular to Stanford. Looks like to me that you are more interested in MIT than Stanford. Make sure in your essay to show why you want to come to Stanford, instead of MIT.</p>

3

<p>Thanks for your advice ewho. I’m actually more interested in Stanford, but I’m going to early MIT and regular apply Stanford. I think I can present a better case for myself if I have another two months, and Stanford is more selective than MIT or Caltech or UChicago.</p>

4

<p>The admit rate for next year could be below 7% for your class at Stanford. </p>

<p>Once you get in MIT, Stanford could see you being accepted at MIT, and Stanford/MIT don’t have many cross-admits, as compared to other HYPSM. That is bad thing to apply regular to Stanford. You are from NJ, 10 miles away from me, it is difficult to show your intention/interests for attending Stanford.</p>

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<p>ewho, do you have a source for that? I didn’t realize that was the case. I am one of those cross-admits, and I know quite a few others as well. Thank you.</p>

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<p>@ewho: What did you mean in post 4 when you said that Stanford could see my MIT acceptance if I got in? Do the EA colleges let other colleges know who got into their school?</p>

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<p>@zenkoan: check those about 200 HYPSM cross-admits in the past three years, and you will see.</p>

<p>@WL_silver: when my son got in Yale SCEA, he could login on their site and see every admit. If he could tell who got in, I am sure that the other HYPSM could see the list too. They would wage the fight of getting the cross-admits.</p>

<p>Actually I have the list of "numbers of Yale SCEA admits from each state " for class of 2012.</p>

<p>If Stanford is your first choice, you may have to apply early. Stanford does need people like you to fill their math/econ/cs majors, but if they don’t think that you would come, then they would give it a second thought. Apply early would show that you favor Stanford over MIT, especially you are from east coast.</p>

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<p>I’m sorry, but I don’t know what source you are referring to. Can you point me to what you’re talking about? Thanks.</p>

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<p>I will PM you, since CC does not allow me to refer to another link.</p>

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<p>“AMC 10 national winner (sophomore)”
LOLOLOLOLOLOLOL 200+ way tie and not telling the whole truth ftw</p>

<p>I would say you’re in at caltech and uchicago (unless you get waitlisted for being too good to protect yields), 90% in at MIT, and Stanford is a little less predictable.</p>

11

<p>Messiah, thank you for the compliment but I wouldn’t call myself “too good” for caltech or uchicago. And AMC 10 National winner is still a valid title even though it was a huge tie, just like one twelfth of the IMO participants are “gold medalists”.</p>