What should I be doing

Colleges & Universities Yale University
1

<p>hi guise, im a junior, and ive gotten more and more interested in yale recently, especially its liberal arts curriculum, and the fact that emma watson might be going there :p</p>

<p>i consider myself the average well-rounded person, though I may have some unique math/science ec’s. here’s some of my stats-</p>

<p>2260 freshman year, 2290 superscore, 34 act, rank 1, 4.0UW, hardest courseload, 2 college classes, 800 math iic, 750 worldhistory, NMSF, school academic awards, csf, etc.
math/science- AIME qualifier, AMC 12 school winner, JETS TEAMS national finalist + regional 1st place, robotics competition, etc.
AP’s- world 5, calc bc 5, stats 5, taking bio, apush, physics c (both), spanish comp, english comp, next year- micro/macro econ, gov, lit, chem, enviro, psych
leadership- math club prez, jets teams captain, robotics captain, elected Associated Student Body School Council Member (2 years), captain of xc, captain of track
sports- varsity xc, varsity track (3 years each)
special- COSMOS summer program '07, attending SSP '09, doing math research project with professor, will take 5 college classes by the end of high school</p>

<p>also I’m low income (less than 60K). what do you guise think my approximate chances are, given that I write very well-done, thorough, passionate essays, have good teacher recs overall, and maybe win some big awards in my research, which im really passionate about? </p>

<p>of course, its impossible to say if I will get in or not, and for these colleges, there really is no one who is “guaranteed”, but what do you guise think? also, im asian. so…yea, what are your guises opinions? advice/hints/tips for the process? </p>

<p>and just curious, what are the yale supplements, essays about?
Thanks!! any general, or specific info about yale would be awesome! i love you CC</p>

2

<p>In your position a few months ago, I thought I would never get in based on the stats profiles of so many people on this forum. :stuck_out_tongue: But luckily I did.</p>

<p>My scores were very similar to yours. The only slight snag there might be the SAT II, maybe take another test and try to get an 800. Taking the hardest courses is always good. Right now, I’m actually taking the courses you are planning to take next year.</p>

<p>Extracurricular-wise, again, fairly similar. I had leadership positions in a club and an academic team, but I gave up track to focus more on those two activities. But I wouldn’t recommend that for you at this point. :stuck_out_tongue: I was headed into a research project (having written a proposal already), but gave it up because of family circumstances.</p>

<p>Awards-wise, again similar. I eventually became a NMF, but at the time of application, I was still a semi. Had medals and awards from competitions.</p>

<p>I would say my teacher recommendations were very good; both were very personal and beyond the class. Make sure you choose the right teachers, especially if you come from a large school. I’ve seen teachers give the exact same recommendation to multiple students, or just fill out a “form letter”. </p>

<p>Spend a lot of time mulling over your essay topics, develop your themes, and get some good punchlines :p. I submitted two essays through my common app, one of which I wrote during junior year, and another right before the deadline. I would say the earlier one was much more developed and improved as time passed. Show growth and maturity in your essays.</p>

<p>As for interviews…I sent my application late so I did not have one. Make sure you send it early and don’t procrastinate like me. :p</p>

<p>On the application (essays as well as Yale short answers), be brave and give answers that are outside the box. Safe answers, I would expect to be generic. Generic answers don’t hurt you, but they don’t help as much. Revealing the deeper parts of yourself might be difficult, but that’s what the application is about.</p>

<p>So, bottom line, quantitatively, I would say you’re set. Qualitatively, just make sure you show yourself.</p>

3

<p>Wow thank you! you submitted two essays into the CommonApp? I thought they only let you submit 1.
Yea, it’s so difficult to delve into myself and reveal the deeper parts in an essay…you know? There are so many possibilities, so many topics I could talk about…and so much to say…I just don’t know what is worth saying and what is trivial.
What is your advice on how to start approaching the essays and thinking of topics, stories, how I should write it, etc. ?
And I’m asian…so would writing about math/science and my love for it, etc. be too generic? </p>

<p>Also, what do you, personally, like about Yale? Cultural,social life aside, would it be appropriate for someone like me to double major in math and something else (physics? chinese? bio?) there?</p>

4

<p>I sent one for the personal statement, and a second one through the Additional info section.</p>

<p>I think that it is especially important for an Asian (I’m Chinese) to distinguish himself/herself from the typical math/science applicant. It’s pretty easy to see what you are interested in through your activities. So unless you can tell a very personal story about math/science that cannot be determined by reading about your accomplishments, don’t do it. You have to show your personality somehow, and make them like you as a person.</p>

5

<p>hmm any tips on how I can “show my personality” ? the thing is, I haven’t really had any experiences in my life that I could write about that could show my personality and way of thinking</p>

6

<p>Well, I can’t really tell you what to write. First think of the traits that define you and then think about experiences that can prove those qualities. Even the most trivial experiences could be revealing about your character. You just have to be resourceful, and be able to blend in an experience with a personal statement. </p>

<p>At this point, you have plenty of time. Just experiment with it, and have others read it.</p>