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On September 28 2008 20:04 Day[9] wrote: i'm old, i'm in grad school
went to harvey mudd
starcraft got me in
now i'm at USC studying video game design
for grad school, i also think starcraft got me in
hoooray oh awesome I got into the undergrad program but I couldn't afford it but I plan on applying for the grad program
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College currently attending: NYU (graduated) major/minor Film Year graduated high school: 2008 High School GPA (unweighted or weighted): Umm not sure, I'll just say B average in AP/Honors Classes Stats (SAT/ SAT II/ AP scores/etc): 19something/2400 Things that you think helped give you the "edge" in getting in: Applying to colleges that I'm guaranteed to get into  Things you wish you knew before college: I'm very happy I never did any work in high school and I'm having so much fun here. (And doing well academically. They are equally important 
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On September 29 2008 01:11 OneOther wrote:Show nested quote +On September 29 2008 00:43 caelym wrote:
Things you wish you knew before college: Appreciate the 8-10 hours of sleep you get in high school because sleep is really the only limit in college. College is also fucking huge, so learn how to approach random strangers. Shit, I was looking forward to sleeping more in college. Show nested quote +On September 29 2008 01:02 randomKo_Orean wrote: this is such a "brag about your academic achievement" thread It may be, but as someone worrying about and looking at colleges, more information/profiles never hurt
I sleep way more in college. Part of that is because I lived 30 minutes away from my high school so I had to get up really early, and also because my parents didn't pick me up from school until 6pm everyday and I didn't like to do homework at school so I'd have to start it when I got home at 8pm or so after having to wait for my parents to finish work. PROTIP: Load up your classes on tuesdays, wednesdays, and thursdays so you can have a 4 day weekend every week, you can use that for a job or extracurricular or study time or whatever (I use it to avoid missing as much class for debate).
If you are worried about colleges more info usually just makes you feel worse.
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College currently attending: Harvard major/minor Econonomics + Psychology Year graduated high school: 2006 High School GPA (unweighted or weighted): 4.00/4.50 Stats (SAT/ SAT II/ AP scores/etc): 2360 800/800/800 Math2C, Econ, Chem. a lot of aps, all 5 Things that you think helped give you the "edge" in getting in: Be really creative in your personal statement becase everyone has strong academic records nowadays. It also doesn't hurt to charm the shit out of your interviewer. Things you wish you knew before college: Probably should have worked on my study skills ahha
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On September 29 2008 01:41 Pyrrhuloxia wrote:Show nested quote +On September 29 2008 01:29 Cobalt wrote:On September 29 2008 01:23 Pyrrhuloxia wrote:On September 28 2008 16:51 Cobalt wrote: I'm applying to college as well, but I'm pretty worried.
Colleges applying to: MIT, Harvard, CalTech, Carnegie Mellon, others
Major: Computer Science
Year Graduating HS: 2009
HS GPA: 4.07 weighted, 3.97 unweighted.
Stats
SAT 1 - 770 CR/780 Math/740 Writing SAT II - 760 Math 1, 730 Math II. Still need to retake both of those as well as Physics
AP Calculus - 4
My schedule isn't nearly as challenging as it should be for a college-bound student, but not due to poor selection on my part. I've taken the most challenging classes my school has. We only have two AP courses, and I finished AP Calc last year. They had to invent a math class just for me. It really sucks knowing that my school is crap in terms of academics, and that I'm being stifled by it.
Also, to give some perspective on how crappy my school is. The Chemistry subject test for the SAT is supposed to test the knowledge of a general CP chemistry course. My honors class did about half the material on the test. I hope you have safety schools. What exactly is a "safety school"? Now I'm really worried. 4 on your only AP text seems problematic but I guess if you are underprivileged you will maybe be fine. Safety school would be like a state school or something less awesome than the 4 you listed I guess.
Oh, I know what you meant now. Yeah, I've got a couple "safety schools" lined up. And in terms of my AP Calc score, I think it helps that I'm the only person in my school to ever "pass" it (3+). Actually, I think I might be the only person in my school so far to ever pass any AP test.
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On September 29 2008 01:11 OneOther wrote:Show nested quote +On September 29 2008 00:43 caelym wrote:
Things you wish you knew before college: Appreciate the 8-10 hours of sleep you get in high school because sleep is really the only limit in college. College is also fucking huge, so learn how to approach random strangers. Shit, I was looking forward to sleeping more in college. Show nested quote +On September 29 2008 01:02 randomKo_Orean wrote: this is such a "brag about your academic achievement" thread It may be, but as someone worrying about and looking at colleges, more information/profiles never hurt
I sleep wayyy more in college than I did in high school, in high school I would have to wake up at 7 every morning. In college my earliest class is at 10, so I can sleep as much as I want.
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16950 Posts
College currently attending:
Duke
Major/minor
No clue
Year graduated high school:
2008
High School GPA (unweighted or weighted):
Our school didn't rank, but I took 13 AP classes throughout high school and the rest were either Honors or the highest level French offered. I also took Orchestra. Managed an A/B closer to A average without much effort, though I went to a public school.
Stats (SAT/ SAT II/ AP scores/etc):
SAT - took it once, November of Junior year and got 760/800/800 with 760 in math (rofl) SAT II Math "higher" level - 800 SAT II Chemistry - 770 SAT II U.S. Hist - 780. I took these three the May of my Junior year. AP Scores - All fives (all three histories, calc BC, etc.) except fours in Chemistry (wtf) and Macro. Also I didn't take the AP test for Computer Science because I sucked ass at that class.
Things that you think helped give you the "edge" in getting in:
Massive amounts of piano, placing in random concerto competitions (Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Carmel, etc.) and other various state/national competitions. I didn't bother listing the local competitions on my application.
Principal viola for the longest time until Senior year (utter bullshit, honestly) in the highest orchestra in the best high school orchestra in the state. The best part was that I didn't actually own a viola and had to borrow a school viola which I never took home.
Four years of Science Olympiad with random medals. President of the Chess Team. Two years of varsity Track/Field at one of the best schools in the country for sports (according to Sports Illustrated lists), though admittedly, our Track team isn't one of our bests.
Started a charity which gave free music lessons to underprivileged youth in inner city Indianapolis.
Things you wish you knew before college:
Didn't expect quite this much drinking. Going out on a Tuesday night? Holy crap :/...Thursday through Saturday night I can see, but random days like Monday/Sunday/Wednesday etc. are just crazy. Also, college is much more competitive than high school, and in large classes like econ or math lectures, you're competing on a curve with very smart people.
Random advice:
Don't just apply to a school because of its "name" or "reputation". One of my parents got super pissed at me because I didn't apply to Yale/Princeton/etc. but honestly I probably would've hated it there because it's such a cold/super competitive/I wouldn't fit in because holy crap, trust fund babies abound environment. Apply to schools which YOU personally have an interest in. I only applied to two state schools and Duke because I knew I wanted to go there.
Also, don't fall for college tours and stuff. They present such a glitzy, glamorized version of the campus/college that frankly, most of the time it just isn't very realistic. I'd advise you to talk to some friends at colleges you're looking at, and arrange a few nights with them to stay in their room. Don't tell admissions you're going. Obviously, when they go around to your school, find out basics like financial aid, acceptance, etc., but you really need a feel for student life. Oh, and be sure you stay over for at least a few classes and a weekend night.
Good luck on your college search!
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16950 Posts
On September 29 2008 02:07 Rotodyne wrote:Show nested quote +On September 29 2008 01:11 OneOther wrote:On September 29 2008 00:43 caelym wrote:
Things you wish you knew before college: Appreciate the 8-10 hours of sleep you get in high school because sleep is really the only limit in college. College is also fucking huge, so learn how to approach random strangers. Shit, I was looking forward to sleeping more in college. On September 29 2008 01:02 randomKo_Orean wrote: this is such a "brag about your academic achievement" thread It may be, but as someone worrying about and looking at colleges, more information/profiles never hurt I sleep wayyy more in college than I did in high school, in high school I would have to wake up at 7 every morning. In college my earliest class is at 10, so I can sleep as much as I want.
Same, although I have a really bad habit of being narcoleptic in my physics and math classes...which is bad because I absolutely suck at them and need to get better grades.
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On September 29 2008 02:13 Empyrean wrote:Show nested quote +On September 29 2008 02:07 Rotodyne wrote:On September 29 2008 01:11 OneOther wrote:On September 29 2008 00:43 caelym wrote:
Things you wish you knew before college: Appreciate the 8-10 hours of sleep you get in high school because sleep is really the only limit in college. College is also fucking huge, so learn how to approach random strangers. Shit, I was looking forward to sleeping more in college. On September 29 2008 01:02 randomKo_Orean wrote: this is such a "brag about your academic achievement" thread It may be, but as someone worrying about and looking at colleges, more information/profiles never hurt I sleep wayyy more in college than I did in high school, in high school I would have to wake up at 7 every morning. In college my earliest class is at 10, so I can sleep as much as I want. Same, although I have a really bad habit of being narcoleptic in my physics and math classes...which is bad because I absolutely suck at them and need to get better grades.
Haha yeah I couldn't keep awake in Calc 2 or 3.
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College currently attending: Royal Military College of Canada
major/minor: er, majoring in Aeronautical Engineering I guess.
Year graduated high school: 2008
High School GPA (unweighted or weighted): My school didn't do GPAs, but I had an ~89% average.
Stats (SAT/ SAT II/ AP scores/etc): I live in the land of the ice and snow, so I didn't have to do any of this shit.
Things that you think helped give you the "edge" in getting in: Being active in the community, physical fitness doesn't hurt either :p
Things you wish you knew before college: How to study. I never studied for anything in high school and I`m scared it`s going to come and bite me in the ass.
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College currently attending: Will be attending MJC/CSU Stanislaus next fall Major/Minor: likely visual arts. though i could easily see myself making a transition into english and writing. Year graduated high school: 2008 High School GPA (unweighted or weighted): ~2.65 UW Stats (SAT/ SAT II/ AP scores/etc): ~1650. didn't have a calculator because me being me, I didn't check to see if i had fresh batteries in my calculator beforehand and I didn't bring any spares. also, did terrible on writing (480) because i'm the type that likes to let the information soak in for a bit and let it saturate before I start writing. really hurt me here. I'm a pretty good writer outside of the fact that I like to sit and think about it a bit much. :s
Things that you think helped give you the "edge" in getting in: not much. could get into any of the two without having anything really special. ;__;
oh, right. and 4 AP Eng. Language, 2 AP Physics, 1 (siiiigh lol) AP Calculus, 3 AP US History.
Things you wish you knew before college: ah, I don't have too many regrets. spent pretty much all of my class time relaxing, drawing/painting even in calc and physics (pissed teachers off to no end), and being an overall BS student. had a 4.5 at one point until I was all 'hey, what the fuck's the point? I don't have the money or motivation to go to an upscale university, and i'm just not the type to do so!'
my advice is to just do what feels right. it's your life now, don't get your parents get all up in your grill about it. and have fun with it! but hey, that's just my approach. I know for some people, despite the intense mental fatigue and stress that comes with it, there's a certain bit of pleasure in going all-out in your studies. kinda like mental self-mutilation. or some shit.
whatever man, enjoy it.
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On September 29 2008 02:39 ailouros wrote: College currently attending: Will be attending MJC/CSU Stanislaus next fall Major/Minor: likely visual arts. though i could easily see myself making a transition into english and writing. Year graduated high school: 2008 High School GPA (unweighted or weighted): ~2.65 UW Stats (SAT/ SAT II/ AP scores/etc): ~1650. didn't have a calculator because me being me, I didn't check to see if i had fresh batteries in my calculator beforehand and I didn't bring any spares. also, did terrible on writing (480) because i'm the type that likes to let the information soak in for a bit and let it saturate before I start writing. really hurt me here. I'm a pretty good writer outside of the fact that I like to sit and think about it a bit much. :s
Things that you think helped give you the "edge" in getting in: not much. could get into any of the two without having anything really special. ;__;
oh, right. and 4 AP Eng. Language, 2 AP Physics, 1 (siiiigh lol) AP Calculus, 3 AP US History.
Things you wish you knew before college: ah, I don't have too many regrets. spent pretty much all of my class time relaxing, drawing/painting even in calc and physics (pissed teachers off to no end), and being an overall BS student. had a 4.5 at one point until I was all 'hey, what the fuck's the point? I don't have the money or motivation to go to an upscale university, and i'm just not the type to do so!'
my advice is to just do what feels right. it's your life now, don't get your parents get all up in your grill about it. and have fun with it! but hey, that's just my approach. I know for some people, despite the intense mental fatigue and stress that comes with it, there's a certain bit of pleasure in going all-out in your studies. kinda like mental self-mutilation. or some shit.
whatever man, enjoy it.
Mental self-mutilation? Some people prefer to work hard because we want to achieve a higher goal than just enjoying life all the time by hanging out with friends and getting piss drunk all the time. I like you, believe in low stress, but at the same time I believe that I would never be satisfied with life if I just hung out with my friends all the time and never did anything productive. I'll work hard, but I'll never put it to the point that I hate what I'm doing. Mental Self-Mutilation for me would be not doing anything and getting shitty grades and not putting myself to a higher standard. Don't generalize about people you know nothing about just because they aren't like you.
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College currently attending: UCLA Major: Philosophy Year graduated high school: 2006 High School GPA (unweighted or weighted): 3.9 (weighted, I think) Stats (SAT/ SAT II/ AP scores/etc): 1890/2400, AP Calc 5, AP Gov't 4, AP English Language 3 Things that you think helped give you the "edge" in getting in: Not really sure how I got into UCLA with such mediocre stats. I went to a really bad high school and they probably took that into acount when they looked at my information. For example, during my senior year, my HS almost lost its accreditation. Things you wish you knew before college: Trying harder in the community college classes I was taking during HS. For UC's at least, when you transfer your community college grades over, you only get credit for it (no grades) so it doesn't affect GPA. But if you're applying for grad or law school, the grades for those community college courses will be taken into account.
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On September 29 2008 02:52 StarN wrote:Show nested quote +On September 29 2008 02:39 ailouros wrote: College currently attending: Will be attending MJC/CSU Stanislaus next fall Major/Minor: likely visual arts. though i could easily see myself making a transition into english and writing. Year graduated high school: 2008 High School GPA (unweighted or weighted): ~2.65 UW Stats (SAT/ SAT II/ AP scores/etc): ~1650. didn't have a calculator because me being me, I didn't check to see if i had fresh batteries in my calculator beforehand and I didn't bring any spares. also, did terrible on writing (480) because i'm the type that likes to let the information soak in for a bit and let it saturate before I start writing. really hurt me here. I'm a pretty good writer outside of the fact that I like to sit and think about it a bit much. :s
Things that you think helped give you the "edge" in getting in: not much. could get into any of the two without having anything really special. ;__;
oh, right. and 4 AP Eng. Language, 2 AP Physics, 1 (siiiigh lol) AP Calculus, 3 AP US History.
Things you wish you knew before college: ah, I don't have too many regrets. spent pretty much all of my class time relaxing, drawing/painting even in calc and physics (pissed teachers off to no end), and being an overall BS student. had a 4.5 at one point until I was all 'hey, what the fuck's the point? I don't have the money or motivation to go to an upscale university, and i'm just not the type to do so!'
my advice is to just do what feels right. it's your life now, don't get your parents get all up in your grill about it. and have fun with it! but hey, that's just my approach. I know for some people, despite the intense mental fatigue and stress that comes with it, there's a certain bit of pleasure in going all-out in your studies. kinda like mental self-mutilation. or some shit.
whatever man, enjoy it.
Mental self-mutilation? Some people prefer to work hard because we want to achieve a higher goal than just enjoying life all the time by hanging out with friends and getting piss drunk all the time. I like you, believe in low stress, but at the same time I believe that I would never be satisfied with life if I just hung out with my friends all the time and never did anything productive. I'll work hard, but I'll never put it to the point that I hate what I'm doing. Mental Self-Mutilation for me would be not doing anything and getting shitty grades and not putting myself to a higher standard. Don't generalize about people you know nothing about just because they aren't like you. ah dude, I didn't say everyone. i've talked to many people that said that they have a tendency to put themselves in high-tension and very stressful situations that most would find a bit odd! and there's something about it that they like! and i myself have been a bit guilty of it. that's all. didn't mean to offend.
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College currently attending: Caltech (California Institute of Technology) major/minor: Computation and Neural Systems (Bioengineering) Year graduated high school: 2006 High School GPA (unweighted or weighted): 4.0 unweighted, 4.3 weighted Stats (SAT/ SAT II/ AP scores/etc): 1600 (I took the old SAT) a bunch of 800's on SAT II (Math, Physics, Biology etc.) a bunch of 5's on AP (Calculus, Physics, Chemistry, Biology etc.) Things that you think helped give you the "edge" in getting in: Test scores certainly helped, plus the fact that I was in a lot of clubs and held several leadership positions. I guess the fact that I was 15 when I applied to college helped too. Things you wish you knew before college: College at Caltech is really difficult. Don't come here expecting a 4.0 GPA and an easy time. I rarely sleep before 2 am due to homework. On the other hand, the academic environment is really nice, and the people are really cool. Caltech is good if you like studying a lot and doing research. And the weather in Southern California is awesome.
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On September 29 2008 03:14 ailouros wrote:Show nested quote +On September 29 2008 02:52 StarN wrote:On September 29 2008 02:39 ailouros wrote: College currently attending: Will be attending MJC/CSU Stanislaus next fall Major/Minor: likely visual arts. though i could easily see myself making a transition into english and writing. Year graduated high school: 2008 High School GPA (unweighted or weighted): ~2.65 UW Stats (SAT/ SAT II/ AP scores/etc): ~1650. didn't have a calculator because me being me, I didn't check to see if i had fresh batteries in my calculator beforehand and I didn't bring any spares. also, did terrible on writing (480) because i'm the type that likes to let the information soak in for a bit and let it saturate before I start writing. really hurt me here. I'm a pretty good writer outside of the fact that I like to sit and think about it a bit much. :s
Things that you think helped give you the "edge" in getting in: not much. could get into any of the two without having anything really special. ;__;
oh, right. and 4 AP Eng. Language, 2 AP Physics, 1 (siiiigh lol) AP Calculus, 3 AP US History.
Things you wish you knew before college: ah, I don't have too many regrets. spent pretty much all of my class time relaxing, drawing/painting even in calc and physics (pissed teachers off to no end), and being an overall BS student. had a 4.5 at one point until I was all 'hey, what the fuck's the point? I don't have the money or motivation to go to an upscale university, and i'm just not the type to do so!'
my advice is to just do what feels right. it's your life now, don't get your parents get all up in your grill about it. and have fun with it! but hey, that's just my approach. I know for some people, despite the intense mental fatigue and stress that comes with it, there's a certain bit of pleasure in going all-out in your studies. kinda like mental self-mutilation. or some shit.
whatever man, enjoy it.
Mental self-mutilation? Some people prefer to work hard because we want to achieve a higher goal than just enjoying life all the time by hanging out with friends and getting piss drunk all the time. I like you, believe in low stress, but at the same time I believe that I would never be satisfied with life if I just hung out with my friends all the time and never did anything productive. I'll work hard, but I'll never put it to the point that I hate what I'm doing. Mental Self-Mutilation for me would be not doing anything and getting shitty grades and not putting myself to a higher standard. Don't generalize about people you know nothing about just because they aren't like you. ah dude, I didn't say everyone. i've talked to many people that said that they have a tendency to put themselves in high-tension and very stressful situations that most would find a bit odd! and there's something about it that they like! and i myself have been a bit guilty of it. that's all. didn't mean to offend. Oh okay I get what you're saying now. I feel sad for people who only work and don't find the time to spend with people. But if they like it then what say do I have in how they control their lives.
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College currently attending: UMass Amherst major/minor: premed route, undeclared Year graduated high school: 2008 High School GPA (unweighted or weighted): 3.8 weighted Stats (SAT/ SAT II/ AP scores/etc): SAT: 1640 Things that you think helped give you the "edge" in getting in: Jacking off everynight Things you wish you knew before college: How to funnel beers and do keg stands.
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United States10774 Posts
On September 29 2008 03:17 tredmasta wrote: College currently attending: Caltech (California Institute of Technology) major/minor: Computation and Neural Systems (Bioengineering) Year graduated high school: 2006 High School GPA (unweighted or weighted): 4.0 unweighted, 4.3 weighted Stats (SAT/ SAT II/ AP scores/etc): 1600 (I took the old SAT) a bunch of 800's on SAT II (Math, Physics, Biology etc.) a bunch of 5's on AP (Calculus, Physics, Chemistry, Biology etc.) Things that you think helped give you the "edge" in getting in: Test scores certainly helped, plus the fact that I was in a lot of clubs and held several leadership positions. I guess the fact that I was 15 when I applied to college helped too. Things you wish you knew before college: College at Caltech is really difficult. Don't come here expecting a 4.0 GPA and an easy time. I rarely sleep before 2 am due to homework. On the other hand, the academic environment is really nice, and the people are really cool. Caltech is good if you like studying a lot and doing research. And the weather in Southern California is awesome. 15?! Wow.
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