[juni0r]

For undergraduate admissions, it's really your GPA/course load that carries the bulk, as well as essay(s). All extracurriculars help, don't get me wrong, but say you declare your major as something in engineering, winning a state-level robotics competition would mean more for admissions than winning a state-level piano competition, simply because it shows more 'passion' and is more applicable.

 

[Oistrakh]

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).

first of all, I'm planning to go to UNDERGRAD first, not medical school. So playing in a orchestra would help if you're applying to 4 year university. Second of all, I volunteer at hospital for 4 hours each sunday, and I do research at labs (volunteer) so I'm ok...

 

[kyrie]

What's important is not where you are, but what you do. If attending an Ivy will help you towards your life goals then great, but if not then there's no point. Students nowadays tend to stress out about getting into good schools, but the main purpose of college IMO is to figure out what you want to do with your life, and going to an Ivy certainly won't help you any more in that regard than any other decent college. And oftentimes, going to an Ivy will result in nothing more than a cocky attitude.

 

[Oistrakh]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kyrie And oftentimes, going to an Ivy will result in nothing more than a cocky attitude.

thats why most people apply to ivies!

 

[Teerawit]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oistrakh thats why most people apply to ivies!

These values are misplaced, IMO.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kyrie If attending an Ivy will help you towards your life goals then great, but if not then there's no point. ... but the main purpose of college IMO is to figure out what you want to do with your life

Going to an Ivy will certainly help my particular advancement in the medical field. But I chose to go to my state school for undergrad because I knew going to an Ivy wouldn't matter much for progression to medical school. If you fervently know you already want to be a doctor, then all the better. If you're still undecided, then this won't apply to you. Staying at my state school definitely kept me grounded, and hindsight is 20/20. However I would like to ditch the Clark Kent groundedness and fly to the stars like Superman in medical school

 

[juni0r]

Oistrakh, you might have misunderstood me. What I mean about the orchestra thing is that if you played an instrument for tons of years prior to college and you include this on your application, sure, it's nice, but it's not gonna guarantee you entrance. The way they view it is as such: if you're really SO good at an instrument, you should be applying to a music school, not applying pre-med or anything like that. So, one of the biggest things you can do for yourself on your app, aside from academics, is to do stuff that's unique and different from the typical mold AND that represents your true passions (and, even though this may be non-PC, to do stuff that doesn't represent the stereotypical application of your particular ethnic group, i.e. I am Asian-American and a large amount of Asian-Americans play piano or violin, so me playing either wouldn't really set me apart from my Asian-American peers and yes, like it or not, they will compare you to other people in your ethnic group when making a decision). However, if you are truly interested in your instrument, it's up to you to demonstrate that and prove that you aren't like everyone else who's just doing it to put it on their college app

.

 

[SennFan]

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)..

So, wait--you went to Harvard and Vermont?

 

[dhp]

Quote:

Originally Posted by juni0r Oistrakh, you might have misunderstood me. What I mean about the orchestra thing is that if you played an instrument for tons of years prior to college and you include this on your application, sure, it's nice, but it's not gonna guarantee you entrance. The way they view it is as such: if you're really SO good at an instrument, you should be applying to a music school, not applying pre-med or anything like that.

umm, nothing guarantees you for an acceptance. And excelling in something like music is always a good thing, it shows that you're dedicated and passionate about something.

 

[eric343]

So for the record, everyone around Cambridge I've talked to that was affiliated with Harvard said that it's "hard to get in, but easy to stay in." Professors are strongly discouraged from giving C's or less... like the Harvard TA I was talking to at a subway stop.

W00t, my first drunken post...!

 

[eric343]

Quote:

Originally Posted by juni0r For undergraduate admissions, it's really your GPA/course load that carries the bulk, as well as essay(s). All extracurriculars help, don't get me wrong, but say you declare your major as something in engineering, winning a state-level robotics competition would mean more for admissions than winning a state-level piano competition, simply because it shows more 'passion' and is more applicable.

GPA/courseload? Well, for some people. But my GPA was 3.5, and math/science were consistently my WORST classes.

My extracurriculars were decent, though, and my mom thinks I write really nice, so that must count for something. (for my essays, http://blogs.mit.edu/cs/blogs/eric%5Fschmiedl/ )

And don't bloody well laugh! I'm damned drunk while posting this, don't make me regret it.

 

[juni0r]

DieInAFire, my comments are mainly because I have friends who have become very well at playing a particular instrument yet they have no interest in it and pretty much only did it because their parents have an illusion that playing an instrument is necessary to get into. Sure, the discipline's there, but the passion isn't, and that's a shame. I love it when people play an instrument and love what they do, but its all too unfortunate whenever I see a friend practice hour after hour at something to make their parents happy, not themselves.

eric, your business and your technical abilities MORE than speak for themselves. My comments were pretty much only applicable for the 'average' applicant, not someone with your unique skill set and resume

.

 

[Teerawit]

If you play a musical instrument, go to Julliard if you can get in

much better than Hahhhhhvad if you want to come out as a professional.

 

[Oistrakh]

Quote:

Originally Posted by eric343 GPA/courseload? Well, for some people. But my GPA was 3.5, and math/science were consistently my WORST classes. My extracurriculars were decent, though, and my mom thinks I write really nice, so that must count for something. (for my essays, http://blogs.mit.edu/cs/blogs/eric%5Fschmiedl/ ) And don't bloody well laugh! I'm damned drunk while posting this, don't make me regret it.

wow, getting into MIT must not be that difficult if they allow people with GPA of 3.5 I thought you had to have GPA of 3.9 or 4 ro get in...

 

[saint.panda]

Regarding the college GPA requirements, do AP courses get a 0.5 bonus or was that just a thing at my school?

 

[yellafella321]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oistrakh wow, getting into MIT must not be that difficult if they allow people with GPA of 3.5 I thought you had to have GPA of 3.9 or 4 ro get in...

its not just your gpa. I know 13 ppl who had 4.0's who got rejected from mit.