<p>Okay I should be more specific - Wharton in Upenn. Probably if by an unpredictable twist of fate, Stern’s in NYU?</p>
<p>I am not sure whether that is enough to get you into Penn - maybe NYU/Stern but Penn/Wharton seems more stringent than that from what I have observed.</p>
<p>Your poor A-levels shouldnt affect you too much if you get a very good SAT score. Just know how to package yourself and you will stand a chance.</p>
<p>ahhh… tough choice. hah</p>
<p>hi uuinus. u mentioned thay u went throught the CCC system. which means the calif community college right? do u know the gpa for transfer students into the UC or USC schools? and which CCC are u from =)</p>
<p>@speedglue: yes, california community college. The GPA differs, there isn’t really a fixed one but a 3.8 and above should get you into the better ones provided that you have solid EC’s, recs and essays. I attend a CCC in the south bay.</p>
<p>Hi all, </p>
<p>I am a student in a local polytechnic who is gunning to study in the US after my NS. I am trying to achieve and maintain a gpa of around 3.8/4.0</p>
<p>I am also thinking of retaking my O levels for better grades as my results are very average.</p>
<p>I am only in year 1 in poly. Going on year 2 this April. I pretty much still have some time, a couple of years to prepare for my application to uni.</p>
<p>What should I do to improve my chances of getting accepted into an Ivy like Cornell? (Very interested in Cornell).</p>
<p>Hi,</p>
<p>As there are many Singaporeans from top JCs competing with you for Ivies like Cornell, you have a tough journey. >< But, never give up!</p>
<p>1) Get a kickass SAT score. I would recommend at least 2250.
2) Juice up your CCA record. Since being in poly gives you much more flexibility and real-world experience when it comes to these things, it can really be your strength. Get good leadership positions, and take part in prominent events (international, national etc) especially those you think might appeal to U.S. colleges.
3) Write a very, very good essay. This is definitely your best hope, since everybody’s on even ground here. Don’t list your achievements; instead, pen something that is all about who you are as a person and what you can contribute to the university in terms of life experience, perspectives, values, hopes and dreams, personality, strengths and so on. A personal statement is meant to be personal (it’s in the name!), not just a laundry list. (:</p>
<p>Here’s wishing you all the best! I really do hope you get in 
I did all I could but I didn’t get in, so it’s always nice to see someone succeed where I have failed. Reflecting on my personal experience, this is the best advice I can give. ESSAY. VERY IMPORTANT. (I got an SAT score above 2300, did 5 CCAs in JC with leadership positions in all 5, participated in high profile academic events, did various internships at prestigious firms, worked my ass off for A’s, and still didn’t get in. I think I screwed up my essay )
Jiayou though! You can do it! Avenge me :P</p>
<p>@Eloriel</p>
<p>It seems that you have a really good academic profile! Sorry to hear that you didnt get accepted. Did you apply for Cornell? Which part of the essay in particular do you think you messed up in? Its unreal to hear that you were rejected! Did you only apply for one or two colleges?</p>
<p>Are you in NS now? You could always apply again.</p>
<p>I am thinking, since I have a few more years, what can I do to make myself more competitive among the applicants academically? Cos a poly education is not as holistic as the A level.</p>
<p>Yep, what I was referring to specifically was Cornell. I applied to other schools and mostly got in, and am studying in Berkeley now, which I love. I personally think Berkeley is a better school than Cornell academically, but Cornell gives international students full-ride scholarships, which was why it was my first choice.</p>
<p>I would suggest gunning for a 4.0 GPA. It’s not impossible, and it’s a good goal to have. Going to a poly where the system is GPA-based, U.S. admissions officers may subconsciously or even consciously link that to the U.S. high school system, which is also GPA-based. Given that many U.S. high school applicants that apply to ivy league schoosl - more or less your direct competition as well - have 4.0 or 4.3 weighted GPAs, 3.8 might not be good enough. Then again, I’m not an expert in the poly system, and I know that technically poly may be more advanced than the U.S. high school system, so you might want to take my words with a pinch of salt. What I’m saying is from my personal experience; almost everyone I’ve met here at Berkeley had a 4.0 GPA in high school. Then again, Berkeley is generally higher-ranked than Cornell… so I don’t know. Haha. I don’t know how I managed to get in here after getting rejected from Cornell, but oh well. I’m happy (:</p>
<p>What are you thinking of majoring in? That has a very large impact on your application strategy.</p>
<p>I think in general, I wasn’t articulate enough about my qualities… also, my writing may have been stilted and a little immature. It’s really hard to write about yourself, as I’ve realised. Haha.</p>
<p>Im planning to study Biology.</p>
<p>Are u under a scholarship now? I didnt know Cornell provides full-ride scholarships to international students o:</p>
<p>Thanks for your detailed responses :D</p>
<p>Oh, I see. Bio can be tough, especially at a scienc-y school like Cornell. Many Singaporeans might also have the same major aspirations. =/</p>
<p>I’m not on a scholarship, and when I applied as far as I know Cornell does offer substantial financial aid to internationals, and given my economic condition, I would have gotten a full ride. It’s need-based. I’m not sure if it’s the same now, though. Berkeley does offer a small amount of aid to internationals, so it was a viable section option.</p>
<p>For now, the schools that offer money to internationals are probably HYPMD(artmouth). </p>
<p>No problem! (:</p>
<p>Hey Eloriel. I wanted to apply to UC Berkeley but could not due to some unforseen circumstances and I had to travel and had no time to fill in the application. </p>
<p>So, is it possible to go to a university this Fall and apply for a transfer to Cal for Fall 2012? And in that case would I still be required to submit my O’Level and A’Level results, or only my first year college results? </p>
<p>Thank you very much! :)</p>
<p>As far as I know, Cal accepts only junior transfers. So you’ll have to spend two years at the university that you applied to as a placeholder first. Competition is also fierce amongst junior transfers, so do consider that. The different in academic difficulty levels in Cal and at other universities is also important, so it’s best to apply and go to a decent university so get used to the college life and environment there to prevent “college-shock”, haha.</p>
<p>I think in that case, they will still require your A Level results (O levels, not so much). However, emphasis will be placed on your college results - at least a 3.7-3.8 would be a good estimate. UCB is extremely picky about out-of-state transfer students, since it is required by law to give preference to californian residents studying at californian community colleges (which make up like, 99% of transfer students haha). So the main route is to go to a community college, then transfer as a junior. You might want to try that. </p>
<p>Personal opinion is that if you get into another good school (UMich, UIUC, UNC, Duke, Emory) you shouldn’t try to transfer. To be honest, chances are reallllly low. They’ve only been known to accept out-of-state transfers from mainly Ivies. And if you get into an ivy, why transfer?? (Unless you have good major-related reasons, like wanting to do engineering or business here. But if that’s your reason then good luck to you, they take like 0.1% of engin/business transfers haha).</p>
<p>Hope this helps!</p>
<p>Thanks for your reply Eloriel! (BTW, were you at last year’s UCB booth at Suntec cause I might have met you, or I might be confusing you with someone else I met) </p>
<p>Anyways, I actually plan on attending a school like UIUC, GTech, UMich or UT where I have received my acceptances already! So, based on your advice I don’t know if I should really try a transfer! And these are actually excellent engineering schools similar to UCB’s stature so I guess I will receive a good engineering education in all these schools! </p>
<p>But then again are you sure that their acceptance rate for students from Good Schools (UM, UIUC, etc.) is really that low?</p>
<p>Hey,</p>
<p>Yeah I was at UCB’s booth at Suntec last year Cool! </p>
<p>Congratulations on your acceptances, all those schools are excellent schools! So yeah, I don’t think you should try for a transfer. Although Berkeley’s engineering is better, it will be reallllly hard to transfer into engineering here. It’s such a waste, because judging by your string of acceptances you have a good chance of getting to Berkeley engineering as a freshman admit. It’s just that transferring is almost impossible. There are also a lot of pre-reqs that you have to complete in your initial college in order to transfer into the UC system, and you might not be able to do that in two years. Unless you’ve done outstanding research or won some international competition…</p>
<p>I’m sure it’s very low, because they don’t see a reason why you need to transfer from a good public school to another good public school. If it’s private it could be because of finances, if it’s a lousy public school it could be because of the better academics at Berkeley, but if it’s a good public school then essentially you don’t have a compelling reason to transfer.</p>
<p>Haha just be happy (: Congrats!</p>
<p>Okay. </p>
<p>Thanks for all of your advice! I guess I can always try for UC Berkeley for Graduate Studies!! :)</p>
<p>Not forgetting, thank you for your guidance last year at UCB booth as well! I was really into Berkeley after information I received there!</p>
<p>No problem! All the best for your college studies, I’m sure you’ll enjoy it haha. You should totally come here for grad school, all of Berkeley’s grad departments are ranked within the top 10 nationally.</p>
<p>I’m glad I was able to help! It’s a pity you missed the deadline, I would have looked forward to having juniors like you Aww.</p>
<p>*Cough. HYPMD & A(mherst)</p>
<p>I didn’t think Cornell gave aid to Singaporeans at all given the huge amounts of Sgers who apply and who can pay. You probably got rejected because of your need.</p>
<p>Hi!
Singaporean here! Been California for a year. Currently enroll in a CC and transfering to a 4-year uni this Fall. Hope I can get into CUSLB! :)</p>
<p>Nice to meet you guys!</p>