[dwchin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oistrakh But isn't Penn a state school, and aren't most state schools not that great compared to like elite private schools (Harvard for example....) Thats expecially true if you're talking about UMASS

As others have pointed out, just because a school is state-funded does not mean it sucks. On the contrary, there are a ton of state schools that are fantastic. And, as I said before, Cornell is Ivy and half of it is state-funded, aka "state school" just like SUNY. I would try and avoid placing schools into the good or bad category based on where they get some of their money from. In many cases, it's extremely advantageous to attend a great state-funded school so you can pay the cheaper tuition. This is especially true if you're planning on med school (or any graduate study), which can/will put you in serious debt by the time you're finished. You really don't want to be 45 and still paying off your college loans, if you can avoid it.

 

[granodemostasa]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Teerawit It IS legendary! But did something happen to it for real?

nothing, just that no one was paying any attention to it.
and yes, stanford is suppose to be harder than harvard to get into for undergrad, and it's suppose to be very good.

 

[crazyfrenchman27]

You guys need to differentiate between undergrad and graduate school rankings.

You are applying for undergraduate programs, not graduate programs.

Just because you go to Harvard for your undergraduate degree does not mean that you will be able to stay there for grad school...nor does heading to a "lower ranked" undergrad school prevent you from attending Harvard medical school, if you have the GPA and MCAT scores.

I am of the opinion that where you head for undergrad has very little influence on grad school admissions committees...A 3.8 GPA from a "no-name" school is still going to mean a heck of a lot more than a 3.2 GPA from a Harvard undergrad.

In the grand scheme of things, where you go for undergrad has very little influence on your career, so long as you do well there and excel in standarized testing.

-Matt

 

[Whorehay]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DieInAFire yeah, im taking the SAT too this April 1st, but honestly, it's not like you need to go to a private/ivy league school... state schools are just fine for me, and they're cheaper too. And how big is your class?

yeah... just what i have always dreamed of i guess! mainly yale. ~560 in my junior class.

 

[Teerawit]

My advice: undergraduate colleges look for more than just GPA and SAT scores. A 4.0 and a 1560 SAT (out of 1600 back then) did not get me into Harvard.

Natalie Portman got into Harvard undergrad with a 1350.

Schools want to see how you are unique and excel at a few traits, rather than be decent at many.

 

[Teerawit]

Quote:

Originally Posted by granodemostasa and yes, stanford is suppose to be harder than harvard to get into for undergrad

Not necessarily. My friends got into Stanford but not Harvard.

 

[Oistrakh]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Teerawit My advice: undergraduate colleges look for more than just GPA and SAT scores. A 4.0 and a 1560 SAT (out of 1600 back then) did not get me into Harvard. Natalie Portman got into Harvard undergrad with a 1350. Schools want to see how you are unique and excel at a few traits, rather than be decent at many.

I have a question. Were you the type of high school student who spent every minute of your life thinking about school and don't do anything about school? Since if you got a 4 GPA and 1560 SAT, you could have gotten in if you had outstanding extracurriculars as well. So you didn't do any extracurriculars?

Natalie Portman probably got into Harvard Undergrad because she is famous and is a movie star...

 

[Oistrakh]

Quote:

Originally Posted by crazyfrenchman27 A 3.8 GPA from a "no-name" school is still going to mean a heck of a lot more than a 3.2 GPA from a Harvard undergrad.

Yeah it does. Harvard has really hard academics and takes a lot of work, where no-name schools have really easy academics and you don't have to work as hard. (take university of vermont...) And if you were able to go to Harvard Undergrad, that shows you have to potential to be work hard and be smart (Since you got into an extremely tough school that accepts less than 1 out of ten applicants)..

 

[fante7]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oistrakh I have a question. Were you the type of high school student who spent every minute of your life thinking about school and don't do anything about school? Since if you got a 4 GPA and 1560 SAT, you could have gotten in if you had outstanding extracurriculars as well. So you didn't do any extracurriculars?

What kind of authority on college admissions do you think you are?

Quote:

Yeah it does. Harvard has really hard academics and takes a lot of work, where no-name schools have really easy academics and you don't have to work as hard. (take university of vermont...) And if you were able to go to Harvard Undergrad, that shows you have to potential to be work hard and be smart (Since you got into an extremely tough school that accepts less than 1 out of ten applicants)..

 

[Teerawit]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oistrakh I have a question. Were you the type of high school student who spent every minute of your life thinking about school and don't do anything about school?

No.
Quote:

Since if you got a 4 GPA and 1560 SAT, you could have gotten in if you had outstanding extracurriculars as well. So you didn't do any extracurriculars?

I had plenty of ECs. Thanks for NOT giving me the benefit of the doubt.

Quote:

Natalie Portman probably got into Harvard Undergrad because she is famous and is a movie star...

You're illustrating my point. Harvard wants people who excel at a particular thing and focus their energy on it, rather than try to be good at every single thing. That and they like people with power.

Quote:

Yeah it does. Harvard has really hard academics and takes a lot of work, where no-name schools have really easy academics and you don't have to work as hard. (take university of vermont...)

You really need to do your research and realign your values. Harvard's academics are easy because they inflate their grades. In fact they've been scorned in these recent years for being so easy. State schools could care less about your grades, so they won't grade-inflate. You're just but 1 out of several tens of thousands of students. Whereas at Harvard they will change your diaper for you.

Quote:

And if you were able to go to Harvard Undergrad, that shows you have to potential to be work hard and be smart (Since you got into an extremely tough school that accepts less than 1 out of ten applicants)..

You're setting yourself up for disappointment by believing such fallacies. "Extremely selective" does not equate with "extremely tough." Plenty of people get into Harvard w/o working hard.

Also note that plenty of people with 3.9+ college GPAs and 40+ MCAT scores (that's 99.999999th percentile) get rejected from the top medical schools. It's not all about numbers.

 

[crazyfrenchman27]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oistrakh Yeah it does. Harvard has really hard academics and takes a lot of work, where no-name schools have really easy academics and you don't have to work as hard. (take university of vermont...) And if you were able to go to Harvard Undergrad, that shows you have to potential to be work hard and be smart (Since you got into an extremely tough school that accepts less than 1 out of ten applicants)..

Actually, Harvard and the other Ivies notorious for inflating GPAs, compared to the national average.

If you possess a strong GPA and score well on the MCAT/LSAT at a no-name school, you will get to go where you want to go for grad school.

I could provide more than a few examples, if you disagree.

-Matt

 

[Teerawit]

Quote:

Originally Posted by crazyfrenchman27 If you possess a strong GPA and score well on the MCAT/LSAT at a no-name school, you will get to go where you want to go for grad school. I could provide more than a few examples, if you disagree.

I hope this will be true for me so I can be one of your examples

I'm fighting all odds here.

 

[juni0r]

If you really wanted to get into an Ivy, your app would have to be filled with stuff that you really are interested in. If you plan on becoming a doctor, volunteering at the library and playing in the state orchestra isn't going to help you much and colleges know that (I didn't read your plans or anything, hypothetical).

 

[dhp]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Teerawit I hope this will be true for me so I can be one of your examples I'm fighting all odds here.

it is true... a very high MCAT score will speak volumes about your ability to grad schools... i think. Haven't reached that stage yet

 

[dhp]

Quote:

Originally Posted by juni0r If you really wanted to get into an Ivy, your app would have to be filled with stuff that you really are interested in. If you plan on becoming a doctor, volunteering at the library and playing in the state orchestra isn't going to help you much and colleges know that (I didn't read your plans or anything, hypothetical).

mm... why wouldn't it help? it's undergraduate stuff, really...