hey guys! i just got accepted to the bootcamp and i legitimately have no science experience. my mom pushed me to apply even though all my interests are in the humanities. my best essay was my proudest goal (reading 100 books each year) while the others were really generic things about science/climate change (i do admire science but i had few personal feelings involved, and i rushed it). i have no awards, only (humanities) activities. honestly, i wasn’t expecting to get in especially since they said 1500+ applications were received. i’m not sure whether this was because i stood out or bc it’s uncompetitive, though i thought the course looked pretty thorough. in the end, i already have a shorter program so i’m not doing ssi, plus i didn’t apply for fin aid (though i definitely would need it). just keep this in mind bc i feel like it’s a little suspicious :-/
That’s what they said, but I feel like that’s a lie. I think the fact I have minimum comp sci experience is why I didn’t get in for the research project part and only the bootcamp and masterclass.
@Nano1337 Does anyone know why she decided to not participate in the program?
EDIT: Got accepted to the bootcamp program without the research mentorship. I’m still waiting for the financial aid e-mail. Super excited!
I wished they gave financial aid for international students, iRI seems like a really good program.
SSI is getting roasted over on A2C
@sdtkd03 what is A2C? Can you send the link?
@Highachiever189 I agree… especially because a lot of the projects the founders of the program completed in high school had nothing to do with data science and were heavily guided by mentors. Just because someone placed at ISEF or went to RSI does not mean they are qualified to teach a data science course and sell it for 6k. Also, we know nothing about the founder’s achievements in college… we only know about some awards they got in high school. It really sounds like this is made by kids who peaked in high school and want to hold onto that success and make money.
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Wow!!! Thank you soo much for letting everyone know and saving my money. How would you recommend us to start a self-sufficient research program of our own?
This is nothing more than a cash-grab created by two undergrads
@CanadaEH7 @quwhoa I emailed them about fin aid after the 3-day deadline and they said I could still apply. just check with them if it’s ok and submit your documents if you still want to. 
generally, programs are accommodating with stuff like this, they just don’t want everybody doing it.
Got into the bootcamp program with a full scholarship.
I’m an international rising sophomore from Mexico.
Hi, I got accepted into the masterclass and boot camp. I was very excited when I received the handbook since it was very planned out and organized but then I received an update email with more information about the program. It said “Joshua Chiang, a Harvard student and social media influencer with 115k+ followers, will be leading daily social events and weekend challenges.” I looked him up on Instagram and he only had 1.6K followers. They are making misleading claims which makes me doubt how legit this program is.
@kvpoeny8 he has 115k+ followers on his tiktok
This doesn’t particularly relate to SSI, but I have a serious question regarding Dr. Serena McCalla’s iResearch Institute: Does anyone have any concerns regarding the program’s legitimacy? From what I’ve seen, nobody on CC has gotten rejected from iResearch, but there have been multiple rejections to the SSI research program (with only 1 rejection to the bootcamp from what I’ve seen). I know that the population on CC is not very accurate in terms of acceptances and rejections, but I want to make sure that iResearch isn’t accepting most/all applicants.
In total, I want to make sure that this program is not a money grab and takes time in reading and reviewing applications. I’ve heard of some horror stories regarding SSI and about it being a money grab; I hope that this isn’t the same. Dr. McCalla’s involvement with iResearch does improve its reputation, however.
I’m a new member and posted this on the ‘iResearch vs. SSI’ thread, but haven’t received any replies yet, hence the post here. Any insight would be greatly appreciated!
^i’m wondering the same thing. I asked them for the acceptance rate and they didn’t tell me which is odd
Do you think colleges will see that we did this program and look at us as overly priveleged? or do you think they will think it’s a good, distinguished program? Is it something you guys would put on common app?
who have committed to SSI?
guys who’s for sure doing SSI???