<p>Hey guys!
I was just wondering what weighted most in our apps for Brown.
Personal Statement, Brown long answer, brown two short answers, SAT/ACTs, gpa, extracurriculars…</p>
<p>I’m actually more interested in the essays we wrote, so personal statement, the two brown short answers and the long answer…because I think my app’s really good except for my brown long answer that i kinda messed up…like does my personal statement weigh more than the brown long answer?</p>
<p>sorry this is so jumbled up but any help will be appreciated! kinda starting to freak out now…D:</p>
<p>how about between the personal statement and brown long answer question?</p>
<p>Honestly, I don’t think you can simplify an application down to what “weighs” the most. It’s a lot more complex than that. It’s really about all the pieces of you that come together in the application to create what the admissions people see.</p>
<p>Well, last fall I went to a Brown University Seminar/Meeting thing where you talk to current Brown students and representitives, and such.
The admissions officer said they look at your transcript first, essay + application, teacher rec. counselor rec. (in that order)
so transcript is most important.
hope that helped</p>
<p>I met an admissions officer for Brown and he told me that most of the time, what really wins him over is the essay. He said of course grades are important, but there are more applicants with straight A’s in all advanced classes than Brown could take, so individuality is what really plays to your advantage.</p>
<p>thankyousomuch guys!!
so i guess transcript is the most important which i guess is a safe call.</p>
<p>but how about between our personal statement/commonapp essay vs brown supplement (preferably long answer question)?
do you guys have an ideas about that? (:</p>
<p>Brown’s applications are considered by humans, not machines. That makes creating an office-wide policy about what ‘weights’ to assign to different factors rather difficult.</p>
<p>Discussions like this only produce uninformative speculation and (worse) the relaying of useless information from individual admissions officers about what they care about.</p>
<p>You could write the most amazing essay in the world, but if you have a weak transcript, that won’t get you in.</p>
<p>First, your transcript has to pass muster. Your test scores have to be strong. Moving essays, outstanding recs, good ECs – they won’t make up for low grades and easy classes. (Being a recruited athlete or a large financial donor or exceptional in one area (like, being an Olympic athlete) will make up for a weak transcript, but that’s about it.)</p>
<p>Honestly, all portions of your application should be strong. Simply having good grades and test scores won’t get you in. Likewise, stellar essays and recs won’t make up for subpar test scores and grades. If you have the academic prowess (as seen through transcript/scores) and the individuality (as seen through essays and recs) to succeed at Brown, then your chances of admission are greater.</p>
<p>To your question as to whether the personal statement or Brown supplemental essay is more important in the admissions process, my answer is both. Both should showcase your personality and writing abilities, just in different styles with different prompts.</p>
<p>Of course, I’m no expert, and all of this insight is speculation on my part.</p>