EPTI was going to post my story when I hit somewhere around 1k, but I have the urge to let it out right now.
Yes. My GPA is not MIT standard. My ACT is average. My extra curricular is good, if not great. But who cares? My GPA is low...
Or is that so?
High school is where students die a little. Not physically, but mentally. Those who want to succeed study everyday, changing their habits just so that you can make it into Harvard/Yale/MIT.
I happened to perform worse than my peers, and I had a harder time going through high school. I won't post the exact details, but some of them were pretty nasty: I've lost half of my friends due to my actions.
But now, I'm fine. Everything's in the past, and it's all over for now.
Why did I say this? Because some of my former friends still talk down on me because I have lower GPA than them.
Yes. That's true.
So it naturally means that I shouldn't apply to MIT, the school that I really want to go to, right?
This was the biggest question that I had for several weeks. My parents were worried that I would be in severe depression if I didn't get in there. One counselor (outside of school) told me not to waste time on MIT. Verdict: It's nearly impossible for me to end up at MIT as undergraduate freshmen.
Does that really mean that I should not try?
Let me quote from my previous post:
Here's a better question.
You have 0.000000000000001% of succeeding, and you really want to succeed.
Do you take the chance, if you're not going to regret it later? Or just don't try at all?
You're denying the truth yourself by listening 100% to what your parents say. I'm denying the truth because I'm not backing down without a fight.
And last time I've checked, 0 < 0.000000000000001
Sure, parents raised you up. Blah blah blah. But this is the stage where you have to make your own decision. Are you going to stop because people tell you that you don't have the potential?
Maybe it is the truth. For both of us. No one knows the answer until everything's over.
Are you going to back down and be scared just because your parents told you that you suck?
You have 0.000000000000001% of succeeding, and you really want to succeed.
Do you take the chance, if you're not going to regret it later? Or just don't try at all?
You're denying the truth yourself by listening 100% to what your parents say. I'm denying the truth because I'm not backing down without a fight.
And last time I've checked, 0 < 0.000000000000001
Sure, parents raised you up. Blah blah blah. But this is the stage where you have to make your own decision. Are you going to stop because people tell you that you don't have the potential?
Maybe it is the truth. For both of us. No one knows the answer until everything's over.
Are you going to back down and be scared just because your parents told you that you suck?
At first, I didn't believe this statement either when my guidance counselors told me not to worry. My paper records were far below other people, and I knew I was going to perform under many other students. It's the 'fact' that many people believe in: Low GPA, end up in regular community college (no offense to anyone who attends them; our school has very high standards).
Here's a story that I would like to share.
8th grade. Top of the class. Best math student in the grade, possibly the whole school. Yay.
Then I enter hell. I applied to a magnet school, and I was accepted.
Everyone's getting 3.8+ GPA, while I'm falling behind by a long shot. But hey, at least I still have my strongest area: Math.
Wrong.
I joined the AAST Math Team because I loved math, and I wanted to succeed in the team so that I would get recognized, while also having fun.
This was not the case.
First competition that I took was PUMaC. I took it unofficially while some of my friends took it officially. This indicated that I was performing poorly compared to my friends.
Okay. Just one incident... calm down.
AMC. This is where it hit me really hard.
90% of my friends (freshmen at the time) passed AMC 10. Me? 30 points below the passing grade. A whooping 30 points. I knew at this point that I was a failure. I was underperforming, my friends were already qualifying for AIME. At ARML, I was on the third last team, Freshmen B. All of my friends were on Freshmen A, and they were performing well. 10% of the freshmen who didn't qualify for AMC persuaded me to quit Math Team, saying that it was waste of my life. I, however, persuaded myself to wait for one more year.
Angered by the last year's performance, I went to my close friend to help me out on the AMC/AIME practice. Although I didn't do well in competitions, I did pass AMC in my sophomore year. Great, right? No. I choked on AIME, and got 1 question. Others were getting 5 and 6's, while I had a 1. Even a pre-frosh beat me. Thus, I was placed into third lowest team for ARML - basically filled with seniors who don't care about Math Team but wanted a day off from school.
For the first two years, I stayed at the bottom of the math team. My friends were moving up, yet I was moving down. It seemed like the end for me. I heard friends speak of my stupidity when it came to math, both directly and indirectly. I wasn't going to succeed.
I didn't give up however. I wasn't going to quit something I love that easily.
Junior year came, and I was given more chances, including Duke and Stanford. However, I completely failed those two tests. Seemed like a repeat again from previous years. Yet, I just kept on trying. 2 on AIME? I just thought to myself that I'm just bad at AIME. Eventually, after competing at small competitions like NYSML, I ended up on second highest team for ARML from our school.
Although I didn't achieve significant results, I was proud. I started out as a no-namer who couldn't do math in Math Team. Many people suggested that I should quit and devote the time into doing other things. Yet, I never gave up. If there was a slim chance for me to succeed, then I would take it. No matter how hard or rough the road might be, I'm willing to work towards success.
Where am I right now? I'm one of the five AAST Math Team Captains who runs the whole team (each person with different role). As Mu C member, our team placed 10th at Duke University competition and will be competing as Mu B at this Saturday's PUMaC. One of the other captains, who helps out organize teams, stated that if I worked harder this year, I might end up on the A team for ARML.
Why did I brag about my success? Because it was real, and it happened. I never believed that taking slim chances are worth the time. And sometimes, it's not worth the time if you fail. But, many people have a misconception: slim chance does not mean that you will fail; it's just harder to succeed. And believe me. You'll learn a lot of things on your journey to success, even if you end up failing.
Back onto my original argument, if you have a slim chance at succeeding, and if it's on something that you love, go for it. It worked out for me, and I'm pretty sure it worked out for many Starcraft players.
What others are telling you might be true. But always remember, that no matter what they say, no matter how much they discourage you, only you can determine the outcome. If you're clouded by their messages, then you will end up failing. But if you learn to ignore their messages and focus on your own goal, you will succeed.
Do I believe that I have a chance of getting into MIT? With 3.519 GPA and 34 superscore ACT? Slim, even with good extracurriculars and recommendations.
If I fail to get in, will I be depressed? No. It means that I wasn't good enough this time around. Never implies that I can't apply to MIT through transfer/graduate. Wherever I end up, I will make the most out of it.
Am I not going to apply to MIT simply because others are telling me that I will fail no matter what?
Hell no.
Go for your dream. Because if you fail along the way, you can always say, 'Well, at least I tried.'
I like the attitude.
