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It comes right around this time each year, but it doesn't really matter how you've behaved. Across the globe, members of our community are all hurriedly finalizing applications so that they can enroll in tertiary education in the coming year. Come celebrate and commiserate in this thread.
Oxford college, in the UK.
Don't be hesitant to post that you are going to Utopia Community and Technical College. Who knows, maybe there is someone else lurking the thread that is going/goes there as well! Also keep in mind that there is going to be significant bias of who posts in this thread. Don't let comparing yourself to others make you feel down on your college choice, because most of us that are talking about this online are already bragging a little bit already.
Past Threads:
2011
2012
2013
I made the thread now rather than in March because a lot of people out there already know where they are going due to early, rolling, and practically guaranteed admissions. Post if you want, and I encourage you to be honest! Tell me if there's anything important missing in the OP.
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thanks for making this!
Applied Yale + UVA early, will post my regulars later since it's still not completely set. Top choice reaches are cornell, caltech, williams.
Accept:
William and Mary
Swarthmore
Defer:
-
Reject:
Yale
UVA
Stats
Test scores:
SAT: 2360
SAT 2: 800 Math 2, 800 chem, 730 us history
ACT: 36 (31 essay with writing)
PSAT: 230 (national merit finalist)
AP: 7 (2 sophomore, 2 junior, 3 senior). So far 5s on chem, compsci, BC calc, APUSH
GPA: 4.16 (my school inflates a lot, that's a mid-range GPA)
School doesn't rank
Extracurriculars:
Relatively unusual primary interest (birds, for about 7 years) with relevant internship, summer programs, reports, started bird club at school, etc.
cello for 8 years, various orchestras, music supplement
40 hours of volunteering so far
Student admin for school's Linux lab
French National Honor Society
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r u me
Penis waving incoming
+ Show Spoiler +Applied to UChicago + MIT + Caltech early as reaches. Applied to Michigan + safeties as well, still waiting on them. Now that my reaches have decided they are too cool for me I am applying to some more schools like Harvard (the only ivy people from my school ever get in to), Duke, etc. Accept: (almost guaranteed Michigan ) + safeties (they have formulaic admission or I'm already in) Defer: MIT Caltech Chicago Reject: None yet SAT: 2360 (760 Math lolololol) Subjects Tests: 800 Math2, 800 Chem, 800 USH, 750 Span w/ listening ACT: 36 8 essay AP: 4 on art history, 5 chem, 5 USH, 5 Lang and Comp, 4 Statistics (self-studied, though) GPA: 4.0, which is shared by 4 others in a class of 340 Very difficult current schedule, in my opinion at least + Show Spoiler +AP Calc BC + AP BIO + AP Physics C + AP Comp Sci A + AP Spanish + AP Eng Lit Also studying Ochem + linear algebra on my own right now From a state that does not have too many applicants to top schools EC: Boy Scouts, eagle scout + crew leader Academic Team: was JV Captain, now varsity captain, lots of local tournament wins + national appearances Research Internship at local University, may get published Chem Club, Math Team, NHS, you get the picture Volunteering totals up to like 120 hr or something Significant Awards: USNCO after starting it up myself at my school, Eagle, possibly Intel STS semis Essays are usually somewhere between crap and good, in my opinion at least. I have a bad habit of waiting until the last minute with these, which I need to break. I feel like these are what are keeping me out right now.
You can tell how competitive admissions to the selective schools has become -.- BTW I'm white
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You guys scare me. I'm an B+/A- student :s..
Major: Computer Science maybe minor in psychology if allowed
Accepted:
SUNY Stony Brook University
Florida Institute of Technology
University of Connecticut
Purdue University
Waitlisted:
University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign
Applied/Applying to:
Tufts University
University of Michigan
University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign (Deferred QQ)
SUNY Stony Brook University
Georgia Tech
Virginia Tech
University of Connecticut
Florida Tech
Case Western Reserve University
Purdue University
2-3 Random CUNYs
SAT: 2110 (600 CR, 790 Math, 720 Writing)
Subject Test: 760 Math2
ACT: N/A
GPA: 3.5 (90.45) (Top 50% of grade..)
AP Exams: 5 on Stats, 3 on English Lit
Taking BC, Physics C and Comp Sci AB this year
Extracurricular:
I play Piano but nothing major.. A+ on NYSSMA Level 5 and that's pretty much it
Student volunteer at Buddhist temple and piano teacher (lol >_>)
JSA
Key Club
Volunteer in IT department at local hospital
I think I racked up a little over 200 hours give or take lol
No awards
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Don't feel bad, I have no life
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Can't believe its that time of year again, I'll be so glad once I'm done with my applications haha. Will update as results come out (hopefully in my favor!).
Major: Will be applying either computer engineering or business (school-dependent) since I like both.
Accepted:
WSU
Waiting On:
UW
USC
Santa Clara
Northeastern
Rice
Claremont McKenna
Carnegie Mellon
UPenn
Duke
Denied:
Stanford
SAT: 2220 (800 CR, 720 Math, 700 Writing)
Subject: 770 Math, 760 US History
AP: 5's (AP Euro, AP US, AP Lang & Comp), 4's (AP Comp Sci, AP AB Calc)
GPA: 3.798 (unweighted), class rank 16% (unweighted)
Current Schedule: AP Chem, AP Lit, AP BC Calc, Physics
Extracurriculars:
National Chess Master
JV Tennis (3 years, captain senior year)
2 year captain of school chess team
3rd Gup Tang-Soo-Do (1st in Weapons, 2nd in Forms in 2011 comp.)
DECA Member
NHS
Played piano for 10 years, but no notable accomplishments, its just fun to play
Volunteered around 50 hours
Awards:
National Merit Commended and there was this AP award thingy (not sure of the name haha)
Essay-wise, I've been writing stories & anecdotes from my life whenever I can, hopefully the admissions will like that.
Good Luck to everyone, I hope you guys get into your dream schools!
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@Chocolate, I'm assuming by the schools you're applying to that you're looking at doing something in the field of engineering or general STEM. If so, you should definitely give serious consideration to University of Michigan. I'm currently a sophomore in computer science, and I know we have some great programs in the engineering school, not to mention that the town and the campus in general are awesome. If you have any questions, you can always PM me. I'd be happy to help.
@Kenpachi as well, since you're applying there too. Umich is awesome, and we have room for everyone 
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people that go to college are NERDS
User was temp banned for this post.
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Just finished my final year of secondary school!
Got a pretty high mark and have decided to apply to the best university in my country (Melbourne University) and do biomedicine and hopefully lead into an MD.
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On December 20 2013 14:23 cam connor wrote:
people that go to college are NERDS
This is why we need the active modding on this site for inane comments that contribute no value like this.
On-topic: my college days are long behind me but good luck to everyone this year. You youngsters!
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GrandInquisitor
New York City13113 Posts
Good luck to all of you. College admissions is a really stressful time. If it's any consolation, + Show Spoiler +it doesn't really matter that much, since the difference between your dream school and safety school is probably far outweighed by your work ethic and luck
On December 19 2013 09:29 Kenpachi wrote:
You guys scare me. I'm an B+/A- student :s..
Remember that this is self-selecting! Only people who want to show off their numbers (or a slightly juiced version of their numbers) are posting here
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man this thread makes me feel old. anyhow i'll be checking back to see if CMU will be getting any new TL'ers. anyone applying to carnegie feel free to pm me if you have questions etc since i know a lot of ppl might not know anyone who's ever gone there.
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Ey yo wazzup michigan thanks for throwing a homie a bone.
When do they invite people to apply to the shipmen scholarship? Their website says that invites are based solely on GPA and scores, so I should qualify. It is the only merit scholarship that I qualify for when it comes to Michigan so it is kind of important that I get it, because it actually makes Michigan affordable with OOS tuition. Kinda boned though, since only 15 end up with it out of a huge freshman class. I also read somewhere that Michigan has a scholarship or something for people who do well on the AIME (anybody else heard of this?) so maybe I should spend the next three months becoming a straight up math hustla.
@Chocolate, I'm assuming by the schools you're applying to that you're looking at doing something in the field of engineering or general STEM. If so, you should definitely give serious consideration to University of Michigan. I'm currently a sophomore in computer science, and I know we have some great programs in the engineering school, not to mention that the town and the campus in general are awesome. If you have any questions, you can always PM me. I'd be happy to help.
I got in to the COE. I'll contact with you if I matriculate. I don't want to get too attached to Mich because it's pretty expensive OOS and I don't want to make my parents pay $53k/year straight up when I could net some money in-state instead.
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Wow, you guys really get answers for that kind of stuff really early !
We get our results mid-June (for our equivalent of college) and late July/early august (for ~graduate school) (well I got mine last year so I just watch people brag in here )
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Good luck to everyone going through the college process! If you end up coming to Rutgers NB or NJIT, let me know ^^
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On December 21 2013 07:05 Chocolate wrote:Ey yo wazzup michigan thanks for throwing a homie a bone. When do they invite people to apply to the shipmen scholarship? Their website says that invites are based solely on GPA and scores, so I should qualify. It is the only merit scholarship that I qualify for when it comes to Michigan so it is kind of important that I get it, because it actually makes Michigan affordable with OOS tuition. Kinda boned though, since only 15 end up with it out of a huge freshman class. I also read somewhere that Michigan has a scholarship or something for people who do well on the AIME (anybody else heard of this?) so maybe I should spend the next three months becoming a straight up math hustla. Show nested quote +@Chocolate, I'm assuming by the schools you're applying to that you're looking at doing something in the field of engineering or general STEM. If so, you should definitely give serious consideration to University of Michigan. I'm currently a sophomore in computer science, and I know we have some great programs in the engineering school, not to mention that the town and the campus in general are awesome. If you have any questions, you can always PM me. I'd be happy to help. I got in to the COE. I'll contact with you if I matriculate. I don't want to get too attached to Mich because it's pretty expensive OOS and I don't want to make my parents pay $53k/year straight up when I could net some money in-state instead.
I actually know a ton of the shipman scholars (although I am not one myself) they're good friends of mine, and I'll ask when they get their decisions. That said they're a pretty small group (surprised you even heard of them tbh. Im pretty sure their process is also based on essays as well, because I outscored a few of them on the ACT.
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On December 21 2013 01:34 GrandInquisitor wrote:Good luck to all of you. College admissions is a really stressful time. If it's any consolation, + Show Spoiler +it doesn't really matter that much, since the difference between your dream school and safety school is probably far outweighed by your work ethic and luck Show nested quote +On December 19 2013 09:29 Kenpachi wrote:
You guys scare me. I'm an B+/A- student :s.. Remember that this is self-selecting! Only people who want to show off their numbers (or a slightly juiced version of their numbers) are posting here
lol I hope I inspire others like me to share so we all don't feel so overwhelmed
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zzz a lot of pressure from parents after being rejected early. Apparently I'm switching out my Common App essay from one I really love to another that I also like but apparently sells me better.
Also forgot to mention my intended major—chemistry, also interested in compsci!
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Feel free to pm me if you have any questions about UC Santa Barbara.
It's better than all of the schools listed so far (;
Applying to grad schools myself for physics
Stanford
UM College Park
UC Boulder
U Washington
U Oregon
U Mich Ann Arbor
Mich State
Stony Brook
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Ahhh I wish UCSB (or any UCs, for that matter) were an option for me. California's public school system seems so much nicer than mine.
Are you applying for a specific subfield of physics?
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Pretty much finalized regular decision schools:
Caltech
Carnegie Mellon
Cornell
Dartmouth
Davidson
Harvey Mudd
Rice
Swarthmore
William and Mary
Williams
Stanford
Some of them added to my list by parents. -_-
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Which ones did they add? Also, being independent from your parents on this search can be kind of important. You're the one that's going to be spending the next 4 years there.
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you should come to cmu its a good school
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My older brother went to CMU. He had lots of fun and learned a lot too, he got a well paying job in NYC to boot.
The bad: $$$$$$$ Tuition is really high there. If he hadn't gotten a job as soon as he did who knows what could've happened.
The unique: I now am one of the proud owners of an iKiltie t-shirt. 
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I applied to some schools for OR and CS Theory PhD's
Brown
Columbia
UPenn
UMich
Rutgers
Duke
NYU
I can't stand the waiting -.-
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I remember reading that a lot of posters on TL went to Princeton (maybe not presently, but in the past). If any of you are reading this and could offer some insight into admissions or just talk about the school, I'd really appreciate if you would PM me. The more I read about the school the more I wish that I had applied there early. I've also visited and the students seemed pretty chill though I thought it was funny how you could pretty much tell if someone was an athlete.
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wait I didn't get an 800 on us history, i got a 730. wat am i saying
My dad added stanford. Rice, HMC and davidson also made it onto the list in large part thanks to my parents. I like most of the schools on my list though.
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If you guys could also post your location, it would be a huge help to juniors (like myself) who are looking to maybe see what schools people are getting into with what kind of grades and extracurricular. And if you feel comfortable posting it, it would help if you guys added your ethnicity.
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If I posted my location you could probably figure out my identity. I don't know about anybody else, but I don't want my actual person linked to what I spew forth on the internet. I am white, though.
From what I've been able to ascertain in my last minute binge on admissions videos that show actual officers making decisions, selective schools really look at your essays to see a lot of things about you including how interested you are in the school, if you had any extenuating circumstances that may have affected your life (parental problems, poverty), and to try to understand your personality (or at least an aspect of your personality that you are able to communicate through an essay, which could be patently false). So, in these last 2.5 days of frantic application writing, I'm putting a lot of effort into these goddamn essays.
On December 31 2013 01:05 catplanetcatplanet wrote:
wait I didn't get an 800 on us history, i got a 730. wat am i saying
My dad added stanford. Rice, HMC and davidson also made it onto the list in large part thanks to my parents. I like most of the schools on my list though.
Ha, those are all nice schools, though! My dad is kind of funny about colleges too. If he hears that I get in to any school he first congratulates me, then he checks the school's ranking on US News, and then he gives me his "actual" congratulations.
I'm thinking about just telling Stanford that I don't want to send them every single ACT sitting that I've taken. Seriously, ACT and SAT are milking me dry as is and I don't want to pay $24 extra bucks just to send my scores from first semesters of sophomore and junior years. And Stanford's application fee is outrageous, to boot.
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Mhmm, yes, drawing near to the January 1 deadline. Spending all day today writing a myriad of application essays.
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On December 31 2013 01:24 MtlGuitarist97 wrote:
If you guys could also post your location, it would be a huge help to juniors (like myself) who are looking to maybe see what schools people are getting into with what kind of grades and extracurricular. And if you feel comfortable posting it, it would help if you guys added your ethnicity.
I'm in northern VA
On December 31 2013 06:58 Chocolate wrote:
From what I've been able to ascertain in my last minute binge on admissions videos that show actual officers making decisions, selective schools really look at your essays to see a lot of things about you including how interested you are in the school, if you had any extenuating circumstances that may have affected your life (parental problems, poverty), and to try to understand your personality (or at least an aspect of your personality that you are able to communicate through an essay, which could be patently false).
pls yes, i want caltech to like me
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On December 31 2013 06:58 Chocolate wrote:
If I posted my location you could probably figure out my identity. I don't know about anybody else, but I don't want my actual person linked to what I spew forth on the internet. I am white, though.
Fair enough. I have no intentions of trying to find out where you guys live, but certain areas tend to be somewhat biased against in terms of college acceptances. For instance I know Asians in the Bay Area tend to have a harder time because (and I hate to sound like I'm generalizing) but there's a lot of them and they all do relatively well. It can be the same with rich Catholics/Jews from Long Island (where I'm from).
Thanks for the info though, I appreciate it. Trying to at least get a somewhat reasonable idea of what colleges people are getting into and applying to. Good luck to all of you though.
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United States10328 Posts
lol, I've been helping my brother with his college essays for my entire break :|
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On December 31 2013 09:58 ]343[ wrote:
lol, I've been helping my brother with his college essays for my entire break :|
I wrote my brothers' college essays.
And yes, brothers' is possessive and plural.
+ Show Spoiler +Both of my brothers got into their first choice schools ::flexes::
On December 27 2013 14:31 n.DieJokes wrote:
I applied to some schools for OR and CS Theory PhD's
Brown
Columbia
UPenn
UMich
Rutgers
Duke
NYU
I can't stand the waiting -.-
R. U. Rah Rah
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Applied to
Early Action:
Rutgers
UNC Chapel Hill
Regular Decision:
UC Berkeley
USC
Rice
Carnegie Mellon
all for Computer Science
Rutgers said yes, nobody else has said a word so far.
I'll probably go to Rutgers unless someone else gives me a nice pile of merit pay.
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Finally submitted everything, WOOOOOO. Happy new years and good luck to all.
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United States10328 Posts
On December 31 2013 11:08 DarkPlasmaBall wrote:Show nested quote +On December 31 2013 09:58 ]343[ wrote:
lol, I've been helping my brother with his college essays for my entire break :| I wrote my brothers' college essays. And yes, brothers' is possessive and plural. + Show Spoiler +Both of my brothers got into their first choice schools ::flexes::
I prefer to think of my brother as capable of doing his own work
of course, he still has like 4 or 5 apps left so... ...
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Missed the passing of midnight because my dad was lecturing me on how my interests aren't as diverse as his were at my age. >_> happy new year everyone
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On January 01 2014 14:34 catplanetcatplanet wrote:
Missed the passing of midnight because my dad was lecturing me on how my interests aren't as diverse as his were at my age. >_> happy new year everyone
you should tell your dad to give it a rest. The apple often falls a good ways from the tree.
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On December 31 2013 11:08 DarkPlasmaBall wrote: R. U. Rah Rah
:D I really hope I get in to Rutgers. Its not my top choice but I've taken classes with like half the grad committee, it'd really sting to get rejected ><
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So glad i'm done with applying to undergrad. Went through it last year. The whole process is shit and you have to be so lucky.
Good luck to all of you.
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On January 01 2014 14:32 ]343[ wrote:Show nested quote +On December 31 2013 11:08 DarkPlasmaBall wrote:On December 31 2013 09:58 ]343[ wrote:
lol, I've been helping my brother with his college essays for my entire break :| I wrote my brothers' college essays. And yes, brothers' is possessive and plural. + Show Spoiler +Both of my brothers got into their first choice schools ::flexes:: I prefer to think of my brother as capable of doing his own work of course, he still has like 4 or 5 apps left so... ...
Heh, well best of luck to him!
On January 02 2014 08:48 n.DieJokes wrote:Show nested quote +On December 31 2013 11:08 DarkPlasmaBall wrote: On December 27 2013 14:31 n.DieJokes wrote:
R. U. Rah Rah :D I really hope I get in to Rutgers. Its not my top choice but I've taken classes with like half the grad committee, it'd really sting to get rejected ><
I hope you get in too!
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Anybody else attending Mount Royal?
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Just got a full ride to Rutgers!
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On January 10 2014 12:26 [UoN]Sentinel wrote:
Just got a full ride to Rutgers!
Congrats! If you decide to come be sure to opt for Brett for housing!
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That's pretty sick. It must be tempting to go to a school like Rutgers for essentially nothing, especially considering how expensive college is nowadays. I don't know what your intended major is and if you plan on going on to do some kind of graduate work, but if you do having almost no debt undergraduate would be amazing.
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On January 11 2014 22:41 MtlGuitarist97 wrote:
That's pretty sick. It must be tempting to go to a school like Rutgers for essentially nothing, especially considering how expensive college is nowadays. I don't know what your intended major is and if you plan on going on to do some kind of graduate work, but if you do having almost no debt undergraduate would be amazing.
That's my plan! I'm majoring in comp sci, and shooting for a master degree. So hopefully I'll be able to put some money away for future grad school loans over the next four years, find an internship of some sort, and see what happens
And I'll try my best to opt for Brett. I'll get as many of my friends to do it as I can as well.
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Hi all.
I will contribute!
Canadian studying in America (SoCal), applying as international to U.S. schools. I am Southeast Asian ethnicity.
Not applying for financial aid so I won't be screwed that much for applying as international.
I have actually relatively very low interest in which college I go to, so I'm pretty happy with whatever I get into.
Applying into some sort of biology / biological engineering / biochem for all of them.
Applied to: Stanford REA, Cal Berkeley, UCLA, Pomona College, Rice, WUSTL, Brown, Columbia, McGill.
Accepted: McGill, UCLA
Rejected: Stanford, Pomona, Brown, Columbia.
Waitlisted: WUSTL, Rice, Cal.
Edit: Will most likely attend UCLA unless waitlists accept me!
Stats:
+ Show Spoiler +International Baccalaureate Diploma Candidate
SAT: 2250 (740CR/770M/740W), only taken once.
Did not take ACT.
SAT2: 800Math2, 790BioE, 800Chem
AP: 5Bio, 5Chem, 5CalcAB, 5Psych
IB: 6ChemSL, 5HistSL
GPA: 3.88 (9-11), 3.91 (10-11), 4.4 (9-11 weighted)
Ranked top 7%, class size ~800, moderately competitive school.
EC:
+ Show Spoiler +Varsity Football Captain, Hall of Fame + Ironman Award, Scholar Athlete. Varsity 3 years, Frosh 1 year.
Varsity Track and Field Captain, Scholar Athlete. Varsity 2 years, F/S 1 year.
NHS Cabinet. 2 years.
Math Club, German Club, etc.
200+ hrs volunteering at temple / chinese school.
Dragonboat team, won a few random medals and stuff.
No internship, no job. Didn't really have time with sports.
Uhh main essay and uc essay were pretty alright I think. Most supplement essays were pretty bad or alright because I didn't really put much effort into them.
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Rejected from UVA, damn
if I can't get into my state school that doesn't bode well for most non-safeties on my list.
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update:
Got into SUNY Stony Brook and Florida Institute of Technology (eh)
Got Waitlisted from University of Illinois (FML) after being deferred.. (srs...)
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Got waitlisted at Columbia ieor phd. I feel like I'm having ptsd from when I applied to undegrad >.< Anyone else miserable?
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I'm miserable from waiting. I predict that I will get waitlisted to at least three schools, calling it now.
I wouldn't give up, though. PhD programs are usually small (this one is, right?) so just one person deciding not to enroll might be enough to bump you in. Meanwhile, UG waitlists are nothing more than empty consolation prizes that are even more of a lottery than UG admission in general.
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Hang in there guys. I'm sure you'll find somewhere awesome to go.
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United States23455 Posts
On January 10 2014 12:26 [UoN]Sentinel wrote:
Just got a full ride to Rutgers!
If you end up going to Rutgers I know a pretty awesome TLer who goes there you guys should hang.
Also are any of you crazy kids going to Temple University?
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I'm glad we'll be getting closure within a month. Still trying to send out updates, etc. but the worst is over.
also caltech comes out on pi day :o
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Have you gotten in yet anywhere? Usually it's nice to have an "at least I'm going to college" option.
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You still send updates? I haven't sent any updates since mid year report. Are updates viewed as helpful?
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Whooo got in to UMich IOE! I can't believe it actually paid off, jesus I'm so relieved
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On March 06 2014 13:31 n.DieJokes wrote:
Whooo got in to UMich IOE! I can't believe it actually paid off, jesus I'm so relieved
Umich is an awesome place. If you have any questions about the engineering school or life in general, PM me, I'd be happy to answer them. Go Blue!
Edit: phones are hard
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On March 06 2014 14:16 packrat386 wrote:Show nested quote +On March 06 2014 13:31 n.DieJokes wrote:
Whooo got in to UMich IOE! I can't believe it actually paid off, jesus I'm so relieved Umich is an awesome place. If you have any questions about the engineering school or life in general, PM me, I'd be happy to answer them. Go Blue! Edit: phones are hard
I love this school, my grand parents met here :D But as like a kinda general question, whats with IOEasy? I come from math so I didn't pick up this prejudice and frankly I'm kinda surprised. Even undergraduate OR is some somewhat hard stuff, stochastic processes and linear/integer/convex optimization are like real math classes >.>
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I know some ppl who call ie imaginary engineering
People that say that are greasy buttnerds though so don't take it to heart
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On March 06 2014 15:32 n.DieJokes wrote:Show nested quote +On March 06 2014 14:16 packrat386 wrote:On March 06 2014 13:31 n.DieJokes wrote:
Whooo got in to UMich IOE! I can't believe it actually paid off, jesus I'm so relieved Umich is an awesome place. If you have any questions about the engineering school or life in general, PM me, I'd be happy to answer them. Go Blue! Edit: phones are hard I love this school, my grand parents met here :D But as like a kinda general question, whats with IOEasy? I come from math so I didn't pick up this prejudice and frankly I'm kinda surprised. Even undergraduate OR is some somewhat hard stuff, stochastic processes and linear/integer/convex optimization are like real math classes >.>
lol, IOEasy. Yeah, people do call it that here sometimes. I think that the classes are kind of known for not having as high a workload as some of the other engineering disciplines. That said, we're apparently a pretty good school for it, and there are always tons of companies looking for IOE interns and the like. I would say there is a little bit of truth to it, but mostly its just different types of engineering poking fun at each other.
I have a friend in the IOE program if you have any specific questions about the curriculum or something. He's got an internship with some financial company in NYC this summer, so I'd say he knows how to get the most out of the program.
One last thing about Umich, don't be afraid to go to a big school. I came from a small private school and everyone assured me that I would hate going anywhere with more than 5000 students. They were wrong. Michigan is awesome because there are so many people (and a lot of funding floating around) that no matter what you're interested in, you can find a group of people doing it.
Anyway, if you have any other questions I'd be happy to answer them. Hopefully you'll join us :D
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awesome man! Umich is definitely top choice but not sure if I'll even get in :c
So far I got into all of my rolling admission schools lol.
Uconn accepted me with a generous scholarship and admitted me into their honors program which is really cool.
Purdue just accepted me last night
I feel the next bunch of schools will be harder on accepting me lol.
VTech
GA Tech
Tufts
UMich
Case Western
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Hey guys, I was wondering if I could get some advice since lots of smart people at TL, and I'm sure lots of you have done lots of research on universities, however my question is about a Masters program, which seems like is the minority of the people posting in this thread, but doesn't hurt to try.
I am wanting to go to MIT for one form of mechanical engineering or another, and do a Masters(and possibly PhD) there. I am not one of those people that simply dream about how cool it'd be, I am one of those people who feels they have a legitimate shot.
Currently I am doing a Mechanical Engineering undergrad at a Top 10 engineering university in Canada (yeah yeah =/ ). Mechanical engineering has the highest second GPA entry requirement after first year, and out of all those people I am Top 1% when it comes to GPA. At the same time I am finishing a second degree simultaneously (Economics), and my economics performance has been so high I've been offered to have my entire degree paid for by the department if I take full-time study in economics instead of Mechanical Engineering.
I am extremely passionate about engineering, it is so cool and I love every bit of it, even the content the enthusiastic profs consider dry. I have two years left to complete my degrees, and while my academic performance may be outstanding, I feel that I lack in other areas. I have had experience in management and supervising positions during employment (not engineering related), and I feel that that in the workplace I do very well... But I have not done any research, haven't been involved in many clubs (especially school clubs). I spend time with my girlfriend, go skiing on the weekend, and study. How should I budget my time in my last two years to allow me to have a chance to take a masters at MIT? Is it even possible with hard work?
To be clear, to me, if I don't get into MIT, I will be happy with my career and going to work and working my way up the ladder. However a school like MIT to me is like the olympics... I want to go for the experience, I want to learn from the best, I want to prove to myself that I have the diligence and hardwork to be one of the best. I want to be the best engineer I can be... if there is one thing I wish to be good at, this is it.
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FiWiFaKi,
First, I'll just tell you a few things I've learned about MIT from students there that I've met while going to grad school recruitment weekends. MIT is understandably an intense program; they have a history of accepting more grad students than they want, and then disposing of the weakest each year (you have to take regular exams to stay in the program). For masters it might not be such a bad process since you're only there 2 years, but for PhD most students would prefer going to Stanford, Yale, Cornell, etc. Big schools with excellent programs that don't make you quite as miserable. This is what I've heard from physics students; the mechanical engineering atmosphere might be different. Maybe someone else here will know more?
Moral of the story, there are several top notch universities to consider for engineering, especially if you stay for a PhD, you want to be in an environment where you can do good work without being too unhappy. You have a couple years, explore your options.
As far as things you should do to make your application standout: internships every summer, research, publish papers, get lots of programming experience, perfect grades, perfect GRE scores, excellent subject GRE scores if you have time to prepare for them. The year you apply, begin researching professors you want to work for; you go to a grad school for the professor, not for the school. Find 2-3 professors at MIT you would like to do your masters with, email them asking if they'll be accepting students the year you plan to apply, talk to them about their research. If a professor at MIT wants you in their group, you'll have a better chance at being accepted to the school. Best of luck!
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However a school like MIT to me is like the olympics... I want to go for the experience, I want to learn from the best, I want to prove to myself that I have the diligence and hardwork to be one of the best. I want to be the best engineer I can be... if there is one thing I wish to be good at, this is it.
This sounds like a nice thing to put in your application when the time comes.
I just got a full tuition scholarship to Vanderbilt, probably going to go there now
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Wow congrats Chocolate. That's absolutely sick.
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that's incredible! Props and congrats!
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On March 07 2014 16:00 FiWiFaKi wrote:+ Show Spoiler +Hey guys, I was wondering if I could get some advice since lots of smart people at TL, and I'm sure lots of you have done lots of research on universities, however my question is about a Masters program, which seems like is the minority of the people posting in this thread, but doesn't hurt to try.
I am wanting to go to MIT for one form of mechanical engineering or another, and do a Masters(and possibly PhD) there. I am not one of those people that simply dream about how cool it'd be, I am one of those people who feels they have a legitimate shot.
Currently I am doing a Mechanical Engineering undergrad at a Top 10 engineering university in Canada (yeah yeah =/ ). Mechanical engineering has the highest second GPA entry requirement after first year, and out of all those people I am Top 1% when it comes to GPA. At the same time I am finishing a second degree simultaneously (Economics), and my economics performance has been so high I've been offered to have my entire degree paid for by the department if I take full-time study in economics instead of Mechanical Engineering.
I am extremely passionate about engineering, it is so cool and I love every bit of it, even the content the enthusiastic profs consider dry. I have two years left to complete my degrees, and while my academic performance may be outstanding, I feel that I lack in other areas. I have had experience in management and supervising positions during employment (not engineering related), and I feel that that in the workplace I do very well... But I have not done any research, haven't been involved in many clubs (especially school clubs). I spend time with my girlfriend, go skiing on the weekend, and study. How should I budget my time in my last two years to allow me to have a chance to take a masters at MIT? Is it even possible with hard work?
To be clear, to me, if I don't get into MIT, I will be happy with my career and going to work and working my way up the ladder. However a school like MIT to me is like the olympics... I want to go for the experience, I want to learn from the best, I want to prove to myself that I have the diligence and hardwork to be one of the best. I want to be the best engineer I can be... if there is one thing I wish to be good at, this is it.
Well, that's kinda the worst reason to go to MIT. At least for PhD, that might fly for masters. You should go because you're interested in a certain sub field and you want to work with a specific person or group in that sub field. Your personal statement, really one of the big pillars of your application, is going to be about the research you've done and the research you want to do at MIT.
So first you have to do research, as much as you can. Really any research in the beginning, talk to some of your mechE prof's you had good relationships with an try and join their labs.You're a little too late for REU's this summer so find research at your home institution, then next summer apply for REU's. That's most important, after that start taking grad classes. As many as you can, skip over the pre-reqs whenever you can. Obviously do well in those, taking some higher math wouldn't hurt either. Your LoR's will come from the people you do research with so make sure you have a good relationship with them. And that's it, try and get as many publications and awards as you can get. GL
Warning: Grad School may be hazardous to your relationships :/
Edit: Yay Chocolate!
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On March 08 2014 07:47 Chocolate wrote:
I just got a full tuition scholarship to Vanderbilt, probably going to go there now
Congrats!! That's one of my graduate school options, I'm going to visit the campus in a couple of weeks. I've heard great things about the school, best of luck there!
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On March 10 2014 10:55 Ideal26 wrote:Show nested quote +On March 08 2014 07:47 Chocolate wrote:
I just got a full tuition scholarship to Vanderbilt, probably going to go there now Congrats!! That's one of my graduate school options, I'm going to visit the campus in a couple of weeks. I've heard great things about the school, best of luck there!
Thanks! Yeah, the campus is just wonderful, as is the city. Some people say the social scene can be a bit elitist (more for UG than grad school, obviously) but I don't think it will be so bad. Maybe I'll be doing research with the same prof as you, even.I am going to get involved in it ASAP.
Thanks to everyone else too! Good luck to you all and just remember: it's just a game with lots of rules and plenty of tricks.
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Funny how time flies I applied to CS PhD programs:
Stanford - Accepted
CMU (CS and HCI) - Accepted
University of Washington - Accepted
UC Berkeley - Denied
MIT - Denied
University of Illinois Urbana - Haven't heard back yet.
I was the creator of the 2011 thread if you want to look at my undergrad results (2011 Results).
Good luck all!
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Holy shit, congrats on Stanford. That's so awesome. If you choose to go there, I hope you love it
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On March 12 2014 06:36 b3h47pte wrote:Funny how time flies I applied to CS PhD programs: Stanford - Accepted CMU (CS and HCI) - Accepted University of Washington - Accepted UC Berkeley - Denied MIT - Denied University of Illinois Urbana - Haven't heard back yet. I was the creator of the 2011 thread if you want to look at my undergrad results ( 2011 Results). Good luck all!
grats on stanford! second time's the charm :D
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On March 12 2014 06:36 b3h47pte wrote:Funny how time flies I applied to CS PhD programs: Stanford - Accepted CMU (CS and HCI) - Accepted University of Washington - Accepted UC Berkeley - Denied MIT - Denied University of Illinois Urbana - Haven't heard back yet. I was the creator of the 2011 thread if you want to look at my undergrad results ( 2011 Results). Good luck all!
Congrats! Whats your focus?
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On March 13 2014 05:34 n.DieJokes wrote:Show nested quote +On March 12 2014 06:36 b3h47pte wrote:Funny how time flies I applied to CS PhD programs: Stanford - Accepted CMU (CS and HCI) - Accepted University of Washington - Accepted UC Berkeley - Denied MIT - Denied University of Illinois Urbana - Haven't heard back yet. I was the creator of the 2011 thread if you want to look at my undergrad results ( 2011 Results). Good luck all! Congrats! Whats your focus?
Thanks all!
My plan is to see how I can make video games that can aid in society/science (i.e doing science like EteRNA/FoldIt) though I hope to make games that are more inline with mainstream games and abstracting the science away from the majority of players. I think this kind of counts as HCI?
Though failing that, my plan is to do graphics (probably something to do with real time rendering) or graphics architecture.
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Early admittance to W&M last week, and swarthmore today!
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^ Congrats, those are both awesome! Swarthmore in particular is really interesting to me, and I regret not looking into it more
Today is Ivy doomsday... GL to all
Harvard's email still hasn't gone out yet and their site is down, sigh...
Princeton - Rejection
Harvard - Waiting List. I actually expected this because from what I know about Harvard's admission process I was pretty much guaranteed to make it to the committee, and from there about a third get accepted/WL/rejected afaik
Faaaaaaak
Got in to Duke
Still holding out for Stanford because I wrote at least one really good essay for them
I wish I had got just fucking Semifinalist in that Intel STS thing, would have made everything so much better
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oh yeah i have to update
Accept:
CORNELL!!
Davidson
Case Western
Reject:
Harvey Mudd
Caltech (same day as swarthmore, kinda killed the mood  )
Rice
Waitlisted:
Williams
Carnegie Mellon (priority)
Dartmouth
Waiting: Stanford
Got into my second choice :D was my dream school since middle school (before visiting Caltech). Incredibly surprised and excited!
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your Country52797 Posts
Accepted
NC State*
Waitlisted
Cornell
Carnegie Mellon*
University of Chicago
Columbia**
Rejected
Brown*
Duke*
MIT**
CalTech
Northwestern
Harvard
Princeton
Pending
Johns Hopkins*
UNC*
*Schools that I was very confident about getting into
**Schools that I was very confident I'd get rejected
Extremely surprised about Duke, Brown and Columbia in particular.
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applying to all those schools can't have been cheap
hope u both get into cmu
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Why were you very confident about getting into Carnegie Mellon and Brown? Those schools are both selective enough that its really hard to tell if you're going to get it, no matter how good your resume is.
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United States23455 Posts
On March 28 2014 09:11 The_Templar wrote:
Accepted
NC State*
Waitlisted
Cornell
Carnegie Mellon*
University of Chicago
Columbia**
Rejected
Brown*
Duke*
MIT**
CalTech
Northwestern
Harvard
Princeton
Pending
Johns Hopkins*
UNC*
*Schools that I was very confident about getting into
**Schools that I was very confident I'd get rejected
Extremely surprised about Duke, Brown and Columbia in particular.
I got waitlisted by Uchicago and Columbia too last year. NC State is a very good school though.
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On March 28 2014 14:20 packrat386 wrote:
Why were you very confident about getting into Carnegie Mellon and Brown? Those schools are both selective enough that its really hard to tell if you're going to get it, no matter how good your resume is.
Maybe for grad?
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On March 29 2014 03:23 n.DieJokes wrote:Show nested quote +On March 28 2014 14:20 packrat386 wrote:
Why were you very confident about getting into Carnegie Mellon and Brown? Those schools are both selective enough that its really hard to tell if you're going to get it, no matter how good your resume is. Maybe for grad?
I happen to know that the_templar is not old enough to be looking at grad.
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denied by stanford. whoooo done! except for waitlists
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Rejected from UC Berkeley
Waitlisted to CMU as comp sci major
This actually made me celebrate, now I can finally apply to Rutgers honors program and join my friends for free without any second thoughts
Which dorm to apply to?
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United States97276 Posts
You should have applied to Georgia Tech, Templar (if you were going for engineering). We have lots of NC people here. Good school and not that expensive compared to a lot of places.
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United States23455 Posts
On March 29 2014 12:22 [UoN]Sentinel wrote:Rejected from UC Berkeley Waitlisted to CMU as comp sci major This actually made me celebrate, now I can finally apply to Rutgers honors program and join my friends for free without any second thoughts Which dorm to apply to?
PM Yorkie and bother him teeheehee
Also someone come to Temple University TT
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Bretttttttt, a million times Brett
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Rejected:
MIT
Caltech
Waitlisted:
Washington and Lee
Accepted:
Michigan State
Michigan Tech
Michigan College of Engineering.
My dad went to Michigan and my brother is there now so that has been basically my plan all along. I got a 34 on the ACT which was much higher than I expected and I had a 4.0 GPA so I decided to go through the process of applying to MIT and CalTech and I managed to get GPA/ACT/SAT I/SAT II all in their middle 50% but I didn't get in. There was no way I would be able to afford those anyways but I think it was a good experience to try. IDK maybe It came down to my lack of extra curriculars since I basically only do NHS and quizbowl.
Anyways Michigan is a top 10 engineering school and the instate tuition is an absolute steal so GO BLUE!
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your Country52797 Posts
On March 29 2014 12:26 Shellshock wrote:
You should have applied to Georgia Tech, Templar (if you were going for engineering). We have lots of NC people here. Good school and not that expensive compared to a lot of places.
Actually, I'm more of a math guy. Engineering seemed interesting though.
Also got accepted into UNC and rejected from John Hopkins
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United States10328 Posts
On April 08 2014 06:06 The_Templar wrote:Show nested quote +On March 29 2014 12:26 Shellshock wrote:
You should have applied to Georgia Tech, Templar (if you were going for engineering). We have lots of NC people here. Good school and not that expensive compared to a lot of places. Actually, I'm more of a math guy. Engineering seemed interesting though. Also got accepted into UNC and rejected from John Hopkins
ooh I see
well, UNC has some pretty good math profs I think; take a look at math department websites and see if there are professors you want to work with (if you want to go to grad school, it'd be good to have some undergraduate research)
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On April 08 2014 06:01 Luepert wrote:
Rejected:
MIT
Caltech
Waitlisted:
Washington and Lee
Accepted:
Michigan State
Michigan Tech
Michigan College of Engineering.
My dad went to Michigan and my brother is there now so that has been basically my plan all along. I got a 34 on the ACT which was much higher than I expected and I had a 4.0 GPA so I decided to go through the process of applying to MIT and CalTech and I managed to get GPA/ACT/SAT I/SAT II all in their middle 50% but I didn't get in. There was no way I would be able to afford those anyways but I think it was a good experience to try. IDK maybe It came down to my lack of extra curriculars since I basically only do NHS and quizbowl.
Anyways Michigan is a top 10 engineering school and the instate tuition is an absolute steal so GO BLUE!
Go Blue indeed! School here is a ton of fun. If there is anything you want to know about the CoE, I can probably answer any questions you might have. I do Computer Science myself, but I know people in almost all the departments.
Can't wait to have you here next fall!
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On April 08 2014 15:24 packrat386 wrote:Show nested quote +On April 08 2014 06:01 Luepert wrote:
Rejected:
MIT
Caltech
Waitlisted:
Washington and Lee
Accepted:
Michigan State
Michigan Tech
Michigan College of Engineering.
My dad went to Michigan and my brother is there now so that has been basically my plan all along. I got a 34 on the ACT which was much higher than I expected and I had a 4.0 GPA so I decided to go through the process of applying to MIT and CalTech and I managed to get GPA/ACT/SAT I/SAT II all in their middle 50% but I didn't get in. There was no way I would be able to afford those anyways but I think it was a good experience to try. IDK maybe It came down to my lack of extra curriculars since I basically only do NHS and quizbowl.
Anyways Michigan is a top 10 engineering school and the instate tuition is an absolute steal so GO BLUE! Go Blue indeed! School here is a ton of fun. If there is anything you want to know about the CoE, I can probably answer any questions you might have. I do Computer Science myself, but I know people in almost all the departments. Can't wait to have you here next fall!
My brother is a sophomore CS major there now! Here's a question, do you know much about the UROPs or what people who have done them say? They sound like a good experience. BTW I'm planning on doing material science but really I could change to anything.
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On April 09 2014 04:29 Luepert wrote:Show nested quote +On April 08 2014 15:24 packrat386 wrote:On April 08 2014 06:01 Luepert wrote:
Rejected:
MIT
Caltech
Waitlisted:
Washington and Lee
Accepted:
Michigan State
Michigan Tech
Michigan College of Engineering.
My dad went to Michigan and my brother is there now so that has been basically my plan all along. I got a 34 on the ACT which was much higher than I expected and I had a 4.0 GPA so I decided to go through the process of applying to MIT and CalTech and I managed to get GPA/ACT/SAT I/SAT II all in their middle 50% but I didn't get in. There was no way I would be able to afford those anyways but I think it was a good experience to try. IDK maybe It came down to my lack of extra curriculars since I basically only do NHS and quizbowl.
Anyways Michigan is a top 10 engineering school and the instate tuition is an absolute steal so GO BLUE! Go Blue indeed! School here is a ton of fun. If there is anything you want to know about the CoE, I can probably answer any questions you might have. I do Computer Science myself, but I know people in almost all the departments. Can't wait to have you here next fall! My brother is a sophomore CS major there now! Here's a question, do you know much about the UROPs or what people who have done them say? They sound like a good experience. BTW I'm planning on doing material science but really I could change to anything.
Lol, PM me your brothers name? I'm also a sophomore
The general opinion of UROP is that its certainly better than not doing research, but you're way better off talking to a professor and trying to find a research assignment by yourself. UROP is useful if you can't do that, but they make you jump through a lot of hoops, and you end up doing a lot of paperwork/busywork on top of the research.
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I know a few people applied, is anyone going to Rice?
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Hey guys, I've decided that I'm going to enroll in Stony Brook University. It ended up being the most well rounded in terms of cost, location, reputation, etc. of the schools that I got into. I'm still going to reapply to UMich with my counselor's help next year cause he said he could get me good aid if I do get in
But for now, Stony Brook University Class of 2018!
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n.DieJokes or any other Rutgers person: Can you get out of the foreign language requirement for the Honors program if you prove to them that you're already fluent in a foreign language?
Can you also do this for the placement test, or is that strictly for whatever language you studied in school?
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Still no new architecture student prospects SAD PANDA
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the only employed architects are the stars of romantic comedies
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Sadly that is true, unless you're awesome.
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I got into Columbia!
Also, I'm pretty sure you take a placement test and if you score high enough that waves the requirement
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On April 15 2014 03:59 n.DieJokes wrote:
I got into Columbia!
Also, I'm pretty sure you take a placement test and if you score high enough that waves the requirement
Wow, congrats! Is this for grad school?
Edit: Just read through the thread. That's really cool to go there for a PhD. What are you studying?
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On April 12 2014 07:27 cam connor wrote:
the only employed architects are the stars of romantic comedies
I know employed architects in their 50's. One lost his job during 2008 and got a new job in 2011, but he was quite the disorganized and lazy chucklefuck, and if you knew him you would know why he had trouble finding a job. I only know of (brother of an acquaintance) one other architect and I don't think he has a job yet, but I think he just graduated 
So I'm officially going to Vanderbilt unless a miracle happens and I get off the Harvard waitlist. Hype
Message me if you are going to Vandy as well or have tips to offer a CS + Math student. I'm coming in with 62 credit hours (mostly free electives / gen eds), provided I do adequately on AP exams, so I'm thinking of adding something else, but I'm not exactly sure yet.
One thing I'm considering is economics, but I don't know if I could sit through the boring qualitative stuff that basically everyone in the school takes. I really only want to take econometrics-type stuff
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what's your eventual goal with the cs+math?
you could do perfectly in quantitative finance afterwards
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On April 15 2014 09:55 cam connor wrote:
what's your eventual goal with the cs+math?
you could do perfectly in quantitative finance afterwards
I'm hoping quantitative finance but the thing is that finance is very hard to enter outside of a few select target recruiting schools, and although Vandy is good it doesn't normally send too many (in a given year) to the top firms. So I'm also considering just generic software, though I suppose I will probably specialize a bit more in the coming years
I'm guessing there aren't many quants on TL
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a lot of the banks in ny and prop firms in chicago are going straight to undergrad recruiting since they can pay them less than masters students (at least for trading positions)
many of my classmates going for trading found themselves competing with undergrads (to be fair though, my buddies usually won over the undergrads, even the one from big name schools like chicago)
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and if you want a more quant role than trading, you'll probably need a masters degree
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On April 15 2014 10:09 cam connor wrote:
a lot of the banks in ny and prop firms in chicago are going straight to undergrad recruiting since they can pay them less than masters students (at least for trading positions)
many of my classmates going for trading found themselves competing with undergrads (to be fair though, my buddies usually won over the undergrads, even the one from big name schools like chicago)
Ahh, well (like everyone else, probably) I'd really like to get into a bulge bracket Investment Banking Division , since that's where the money and exit opportunities are. I think I need to read up more about what the difference is between being hired as a trader vs. a quant because it was my impression that the two were a bit flexible and that there were a lot of traders with strong quantitative backgrounds these days, and that the good-old-boys'-ivy-league-lacrosse recruiting strategy was becoming less prevalent.
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well best of luck! and consider cmu if you decide to do a masters
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Good luck at Vandy, Chocolate! I loved the school and the people when I went their for the recruitment weekend. In the end, I decided their physics phd program is just a little too unstable at the moment and decided on Rice instead. Guaranteed funding for the research that is exactly what you want to do is something you just don't pass up.
Sooo if anyone is at/going to Rice, I'll be there in a couple months!
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Do any of you guys know how hard it is for a foreigner to get a a scholarship to study at a good american university?
I am just finishing my industrial engineering degree this summer, but I am taking the risk and starting to study mathematics instead of starting to work. My school grades and engineering grades have always been prettty good, but obviously there where always some people who were better than me.
I got a company to sponsor me throughout my engineering degree and I actually spend a few months working for them in the US last summer, the experience was amazing. I am not sure if that means anything given that the situation in the US might be drastically different.
I would love to spend some part of my studies in the US, preferably at a prestigious University and obviously it would be a tremendous help to have a sponsor / scholarship.
Oh by the way I studied in Germany and lived in Germany for 22 years so dont think about me as a third world student.
Any opinions / advise?
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On April 08 2014 10:53 stormtemplar wrote:
Accepted:
University of Richmond (My choice)
Dickinson College
Gettysburg College
Wait list
Franklin and Marshall
Rejected
Lafayette College
Haverford College
I had about a 3.6 GPA and a 2160 on the SAT, (800 in english, which is also my main interest major wise)
Seems most people are doing a big university here, but maybe there are some other small school people hereabouts.
I go to F&M and am frankly surprised you weren't immediately accepted. Your stats fit in very well with the kids on campus. Sucks, because I haven't seen anyone else on here even apply to F&M besides me.
Conversely, I applied to Richmond last year and thought I was a shoe-in, but ended up getting waitlisted. :D
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On April 12 2014 05:08 [UoN]Sentinel wrote:
n.DieJokes or any other Rutgers person: Can you get out of the foreign language requirement for the Honors program if you prove to them that you're already fluent in a foreign language?
Can you also do this for the placement test, or is that strictly for whatever language you studied in school?
My AP Spanish got me out of 1 of the 2 required foreign language semesters. Had to still take one at Rutgers too. (I'm not fluent.)
Who's going to Rutgers NB for sure? :D
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Definitely going. I still have to see which dorm they stick me in.
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The honors dorms are really nice, as are a few of the regular freshman dorms.
What are you going to major in, Sentinel?
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GRAND OLD AMERICA16375 Posts
Good luck to all of you guys, and if you're going to Purdue, Boiler up!
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I had 2 choices. I either go to Loyola in Chicago aiming for a medical degree, or I go to Indiana and aim for a business degree.
I eventually chose IU, mainly because I'm more familiar with the campus and its programs, so I can't wait until fall!!!
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On April 15 2014 23:32 DarkPlasmaBall wrote:
The honors dorms are really nice, as are a few of the regular freshman dorms.
What are you going to major in, Sentinel?
Computer science with minor in math, financial track
I wouldn't mind any dorm that isn't on Busch if the honors dorms get filled up. I've been going to the Werblin Center for the last 10 years for swim practice, and I'd love to spend most of my Rutgers experience as far as possible from it.
Kinda sucks that nearly all the math/science buildings on Busch are a stone's throw from the Werblin.
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On April 18 2014 03:59 [UoN]Sentinel wrote:Show nested quote +On April 15 2014 23:32 DarkPlasmaBall wrote:
The honors dorms are really nice, as are a few of the regular freshman dorms.
What are you going to major in, Sentinel? Computer science with minor in math, financial track .
Another future quant among us? Very exciting
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On April 18 2014 03:59 [UoN]Sentinel wrote:Show nested quote +On April 15 2014 23:32 DarkPlasmaBall wrote:
The honors dorms are really nice, as are a few of the regular freshman dorms.
What are you going to major in, Sentinel? Computer science with minor in math, financial track I wouldn't mind any dorm that isn't on Busch if the honors dorms get filled up. I've been going to the Werblin Center for the last 10 years for swim practice, and I'd love to spend most of my Rutgers experience as far as possible from it. Kinda sucks that nearly all the math/science buildings on Busch are a stone's throw from the Werblin.
Yeah, but it's really convenient if you end up living on Busch ^^ I majored in math at Rutgers, and I'm taking my last math class ever in the fall.
Unfortunately, with the math department, the names of the professors teaching each course/ section are rarely released early, making a lot of the classes you choose luck-based in regards to a good professor.
Werblin was where I played racquetball all the time, and I'd host ultimate frisbee games on Werblin's front lawn ^^ good times.
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Not really the exact right place for it, but I figured that this is probably the best place to post about visiting schools.
Just came back from a 2 day trip to Baltimore and DC. I saw University of Delaware, University of Maryland at College Park, Johns Hopkins University, and GWU. I actually liked UD/UMD much more than the last two to be completely honest. I've wanted to go to Johns Hopkins for a while now, but when I actually visited it I felt very underwhelmed. The actual information session was awful and the tour itself was ok, just not as great as a lot of the other schools. I feel like they almost rely on their reputation to attract people there. GWU was the most nondescript urban school I've ever seen. Felt like a more conservative NYU with less liberal arts majors and more of a sciences/political science emphasis. It's not bad, but I would rather go to NYU for the price of GW since I'm not a huge fan of D.C. to begin with.
University of Delaware and UMD were both pretty nice, and they're schools that I can safely say I'm sure I'll get into. Makes me feel way more comfortable to have two schools that I'll apply to that I'd be happy to go to. They had much more relaxed and friendly campus feels than JHU did, even though they're nowhere near as good of schools as Johns Hopkins is. Just doesn't seem good to go to a school where no one seemed happy (no one was really socializing or anything, everyone was kind of just sitting by themselves or maybe one other friend) for 4 years.
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On April 23 2014 20:46 MtlGuitarist97 wrote:
Not really the exact right place for it, but I figured that this is probably the best place to post about visiting schools.
Just came back from a 2 day trip to Baltimore and DC. I saw University of Delaware, University of Maryland at College Park, Johns Hopkins University, and GWU. I actually liked UD/UMD much more than the last two to be completely honest. I've wanted to go to Johns Hopkins for a while now, but when I actually visited it I felt very underwhelmed. The actual information session was awful and the tour itself was ok, just not as great as a lot of the other schools. I feel like they almost rely on their reputation to attract people there. GWU was the most nondescript urban school I've ever seen. Felt like a more conservative NYU with less liberal arts majors and more of a sciences/political science emphasis. It's not bad, but I would rather go to NYU for the price of GW since I'm not a huge fan of D.C. to begin with.
University of Delaware and UMD were both pretty nice, and they're schools that I can safely say I'm sure I'll get into. Makes me feel way more comfortable to have two schools that I'll apply to that I'd be happy to go to. They had much more relaxed and friendly campus feels than JHU did, even though they're nowhere near as good of schools as Johns Hopkins is. Just doesn't seem good to go to a school where no one seemed happy (no one was really socializing or anything, everyone was kind of just sitting by themselves or maybe one other friend) for 4 years.
I work for a professor who has a joint appointment at Princeton and Texas A&M. Two very good, but very different schools. I love the advice he gives high school students: For undegrad, go to a school you will enjoy. I don't know anything about UD, but I've heard great things about UMD. I'm sure at either place you will get an excellent education and you'll get to enjoy your time in college. If you decide to go to graduate school, that is the time to chose somewhere like Johns Hopkins, MIT, Princeton, etc. They're research/graduate focused schools, and tend to be very cold and rough on undergrads (in his opinion). He's witnessed it firsthand and that's why he's mainly rooted at A&M now, because everyone is happier and friendlier and he gets to interact with more students.
I totally get the underwhelming feeling. I've been visiting graduate schools for a few months and some of the big name schools were just absolutely unimpressive. Not what I expected. Visiting was a great call on your part, definitely go with those gut feelings. College is rough, don't put yourself in an environment that will make you miserable.
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GrandInquisitor
New York City13113 Posts
On April 18 2014 03:59 [UoN]Sentinel wrote:
I wouldn't mind any dorm that isn't on Busch if the honors dorms get filled up. I've been going to the Werblin Center for the last 10 years for swim practice, and I'd love to spend most of my Rutgers experience as far as possible from it.
Kinda sucks that nearly all the math/science buildings on Busch are a stone's throw from the Werblin.
WTF do you have against Busch? Maybe the campus has changed a lot in the six years since I've left but the only reason I left McCormick was because of Brett honors singles.
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On April 23 2014 22:15 Ideal26 wrote:Show nested quote +On April 23 2014 20:46 MtlGuitarist97 wrote:
Not really the exact right place for it, but I figured that this is probably the best place to post about visiting schools.
Just came back from a 2 day trip to Baltimore and DC. I saw University of Delaware, University of Maryland at College Park, Johns Hopkins University, and GWU. I actually liked UD/UMD much more than the last two to be completely honest. I've wanted to go to Johns Hopkins for a while now, but when I actually visited it I felt very underwhelmed. The actual information session was awful and the tour itself was ok, just not as great as a lot of the other schools. I feel like they almost rely on their reputation to attract people there. GWU was the most nondescript urban school I've ever seen. Felt like a more conservative NYU with less liberal arts majors and more of a sciences/political science emphasis. It's not bad, but I would rather go to NYU for the price of GW since I'm not a huge fan of D.C. to begin with.
University of Delaware and UMD were both pretty nice, and they're schools that I can safely say I'm sure I'll get into. Makes me feel way more comfortable to have two schools that I'll apply to that I'd be happy to go to. They had much more relaxed and friendly campus feels than JHU did, even though they're nowhere near as good of schools as Johns Hopkins is. Just doesn't seem good to go to a school where no one seemed happy (no one was really socializing or anything, everyone was kind of just sitting by themselves or maybe one other friend) for 4 years. I work for a professor who has a joint appointment at Princeton and Texas A&M. Two very good, but very different schools. I love the advice he gives high school students: For undegrad, go to a school you will enjoy. I don't know anything about UD, but I've heard great things about UMD. I'm sure at either place you will get an excellent education and you'll get to enjoy your time in college. If you decide to go to graduate school, that is the time to chose somewhere like Johns Hopkins, MIT, Princeton, etc. They're research/graduate focused schools, and tend to be very cold and rough on undergrads (in his opinion). He's witnessed it firsthand and that's why he's mainly rooted at A&M now, because everyone is happier and friendlier and he gets to interact with more students. I totally get the underwhelming feeling. I've been visiting graduate schools for a few months and some of the big name schools were just absolutely unimpressive. Not what I expected. Visiting was a great call on your part, definitely go with those gut feelings. College is rough, don't put yourself in an environment that will make you miserable.
That basically sums up my feelings exactly. Glad to know a professor that you respect has the same view I have. It doesn't seem worth it to sacrifice 4 years of your life for a school that is (relatively) unimportant once you go to graduate school. I'm planning on doing some kind of biomedical engineering or biochem, so I'm basically sure that I want to go to grad school.
Thanks for the solid advice though, and good luck with graduate school!
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On April 23 2014 23:55 GrandInquisitor wrote:Show nested quote +On April 18 2014 03:59 [UoN]Sentinel wrote:
I wouldn't mind any dorm that isn't on Busch if the honors dorms get filled up. I've been going to the Werblin Center for the last 10 years for swim practice, and I'd love to spend most of my Rutgers experience as far as possible from it.
Kinda sucks that nearly all the math/science buildings on Busch are a stone's throw from the Werblin. WTF do you have against Busch? Maybe the campus has changed a lot in the six years since I've left but the only reason I left McCormick was because of Brett honors singles.
I've spent too much time in Busch. I wouldn't mind a bit of variety
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Accepted: UC Merced, ASU
Waitlisted: UCLA, UCSD, UCD, UCI
Rejected: UCB, Northwestern, All Ivies, UIUC, WUSTL, many more.
Feels like death
+ Show Spoiler [stats] +
3.9UW, 4.8W GPA
800/800/800/12 SAT 1
800 SAT 2 on Math, Chem, Bio, Phys, and US History
2 AP Sophomore year (one 4, one 5), 10 AP junior year (all 5's)
USAMO/PhO/BO/ChO qualifier
Taking CC classes b/c I exhausted high school math/science curriculum
S&D, sports, music
summer travel to third world country to support underprivileged communities
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On April 25 2014 12:36 Release wrote:Accepted: UC Merced, ASU Waitlisted: UCLA, UCSD, UCD, UCI Rejected: UCB, Northwestern, All Ivies, UIUC, WUSTL, many more. Feels like death + Show Spoiler [stats] +
3.9UW, 4.8W GPA
800/800/800/12 SAT 1
800 SAT 2 on Math, Chem, Bio, Phys, and US History
2 AP Sophomore year (one 4, one 5), 10 AP junior year (all 5's)
USAMO/PhO/BO/ChO qualifier
Taking CC classes b/c I exhausted high school math/science curriculum
S&D, sports, music
summer travel to third world country to support underprivileged communities
10 AP's junior year? Fuck, now I'm not even mad I got rejected to Berkeley. Based on your schools I take it you're from California?
Also what are you majoring in?
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They would've excepted you if you played varsity =)
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On April 25 2014 12:36 Release wrote:Accepted: UC Merced, ASU Waitlisted: UCLA, UCSD, UCD, UCI Rejected: UCB, Northwestern, All Ivies, UIUC, WUSTL, many more. Feels like death + Show Spoiler [stats] +
3.9UW, 4.8W GPA
800/800/800/12 SAT 1
800 SAT 2 on Math, Chem, Bio, Phys, and US History
2 AP Sophomore year (one 4, one 5), 10 AP junior year (all 5's)
USAMO/PhO/BO/ChO qualifier
Taking CC classes b/c I exhausted high school math/science curriculum
S&D, sports, music
summer travel to third world country to support underprivileged communities
how did you get rejected from UIUC when I got waitlisted o.o
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Anyone here went to Rutgers Day?
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On April 25 2014 12:36 Release wrote:Accepted: UC Merced, ASU Waitlisted: UCLA, UCSD, UCD, UCI Rejected: UCB, Northwestern, All Ivies, UIUC, WUSTL, many more. Feels like death + Show Spoiler [stats] +
3.9UW, 4.8W GPA
800/800/800/12 SAT 1
800 SAT 2 on Math, Chem, Bio, Phys, and US History
2 AP Sophomore year (one 4, one 5), 10 AP junior year (all 5's)
USAMO/PhO/BO/ChO qualifier
Taking CC classes b/c I exhausted high school math/science curriculum
S&D, sports, music
summer travel to third world country to support underprivileged communities
Holy shit dude, wtf. No justice
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On April 25 2014 12:36 Release wrote:Accepted: UC Merced, ASU Waitlisted: UCLA, UCSD, UCD, UCI Rejected: UCB, Northwestern, All Ivies, UIUC, WUSTL, many more. Feels like death + Show Spoiler [stats] +
3.9UW, 4.8W GPA
800/800/800/12 SAT 1
800 SAT 2 on Math, Chem, Bio, Phys, and US History
2 AP Sophomore year (one 4, one 5), 10 AP junior year (all 5's)
USAMO/PhO/BO/ChO qualifier
Taking CC classes b/c I exhausted high school math/science curriculum
S&D, sports, music
summer travel to third world country to support underprivileged communities
Wow, that just sucks. Only thing I can think of is that they thought you were too good to be true
You're obviously really smart though, so I'm sure you'll get into a top grad school if you elect to follow that path
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On April 25 2014 12:36 Release wrote:Accepted: UC Merced, ASU Waitlisted: UCLA, UCSD, UCD, UCI Rejected: UCB, Northwestern, All Ivies, UIUC, WUSTL, many more. Feels like death + Show Spoiler [stats] +
3.9UW, 4.8W GPA
800/800/800/12 SAT 1
800 SAT 2 on Math, Chem, Bio, Phys, and US History
2 AP Sophomore year (one 4, one 5), 10 AP junior year (all 5's)
USAMO/PhO/BO/ChO qualifier
Taking CC classes b/c I exhausted high school math/science curriculum
S&D, sports, music
summer travel to third world country to support underprivileged communities
Holy shit. What do you have like 6 felonies or something?
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Right? I seriously can't fathom someone with those numbers not getting in everywhere... What was your essay about?
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your Country52797 Posts
I'm wondering the same thing as n.DieJokes. How good was your essay/what was it about?
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On April 27 2014 05:24 [UoN]Sentinel wrote:
Anyone here went to Rutgers Day?
I did not :/ No time ^^;;
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Swarthmore 2018 for me! They gave by far the most financial aid—it was cheaper to go there than W&M (instate). I was (and am to some degree) really crushed because Cornell was my dream school (from 7th grade until I visited Caltech), but I'm getting more excited about it by the day.
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On May 08 2014 13:28 catplanetcatplanet wrote:
Swarthmore 2018 for me! They gave by far the most financial aid—it was cheaper to go there than W&M (instate). I was (and am to some degree) really crushed because Cornell was my dream school (from 7th grade until I visited Caltech), but I'm getting more excited about it by the day.
Enjoy! College is what you make of it, so you can have a wonderful time at nearly any university or an awful time
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I'm with DarkPlasmaBall. Just make sure that you do your best to have some fun ^-^
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So is nobody else going to Vanderbilt? x.x
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I got a letter from RPI yesterday saying that I have earned special Candidate's Choice application; does this mean anything? I've heard people say that it's easier to apply to RPI via Candidate's Choice, but do they just give that to everyone and make it sound special to attract attention? I never really considered RPI so I guess it did its job, but I'm pretty sure that from the light reading I've done it means nothing.
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If I recall correctly, Candidate's Choice is kind of just a gimmick to get you to apply. I think the only important thing about it is that the application is shorter.
Prepare to get a lot of stuff like that in the future. The college board sells addresses to colleges based on your score threshold (colleges can purchase mailing info for everyone that scores above, say, 2000) and demographic information, if you checked the box that says "Send me information about scholarships, etc."
In general I wouldn't let college spam affect the logical planning you should be doing on your own.
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Now that all's said and done, any helpful insights or tips from TLers that have been/are going through college?
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United States10328 Posts
Meet new people; have fun; sleep well, eat well, and exercise.
If you're actually looking to learn and get a good job as well...
Take advantage of office hours.
Take advantage of university resources (if you're at a big and/or rich school, there's seriously a lot of stuff the university has that can help you do things like... get a job, travel abroad, etc etc)
Get to know some of your professors well (well enough that they can write a rec.) You can do this by doing research with them, going to office hours a lot, or just participating a lot in class.
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ya have 2 or 3 buddy profs if you plan on getting into grad school
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On May 27 2014 12:44 catplanetcatplanet wrote:
Now that all's said and done, any helpful insights or tips from TLers that have been/are going through college?
Get to know your professors, particularly those that teach you classes within your major. This was seriously the best decision I made in college. All of my professors loved me because I put a lot of effort into their classes, and it showed. If I ever got stuck on any problem, especially at the beginning of the semester, I would go to them before I'd go to some external source just so I could make sure they knew who I was and that I was taking their class seriously. They appreciate that so much. If they like you, they'll help you get jobs/internships/research positions, or will help you find someone who can help you with those things.
If you're in the STEM fields, get into a lab as soon as you can. You learn sooo much and it'll look good on your CV when you start looking for summer internships and jobs.
Have fun, make lots of friends because you'll meet so many different people. I grew up in a small town and coming to college was the best eye-opener ever. Try new things. Have a few crazy nights. But study hard, get good grades, and get a lot of research experience so you can land a good job after college.
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How important is a job freshman year? I'm going on a full ride so any work I do is either for grad school or my resume. I'm definitely looking at summer comp sci-related internships for next summer and stepping up my current job as a lifeguard right now for this summer, and I don't know if I want to be looking at work, work-study programs, or internships, or something else for the coming year.
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On May 28 2014 03:47 [UoN]Sentinel wrote:
How important is a job freshman year? I'm going on a full ride so any work I do is either for grad school or my resume. I'm definitely looking at summer comp sci-related internships for next summer and stepping up my current job as a lifeguard right now for this summer, and I don't know if I want to be looking at work, work-study programs, or internships, or something else for the coming year.
Finding a job or internship related to your major or future career goals can be a fantastic way to network with important and relevant people, and get your foot in the door for when you need to look for jobs after you graduate (or at least a letter of recommendation). The earlier you get involved with your eventual career, the better.
On a more peripheral note, it's obviously nice to have some spend money for college too
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I absolutely recommend looking into co-op/internship/research programs while you are at school. I just graduated from college and have been on the job hunt and I can tell you that almost every position I've seen that is looking for entry level employees is looking for them to have some sort of relevant work experience while they are at school. Also basically every interview I've had has been largely (easily 70%+) focused on the work that I did while I was on co-ops. I guess I should mention that I was a Chemical Engineering major and that this may be different depending on what you're going for.
As for general school tips...really get out there freshman year and meet people and join school organisations/clubs. I never really did this until my sophomore year as freshman year I was too heavily focused on gaming, and after I did my enjoyment of school increased 10 fold. Joining clubs freshman year is also a good way to get an officer position your junior/senior year which again is normally a pretty good thing to be able to talk about once you start looking for a job.
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What organizations/clubs did you all enjoy the most? (Not to limit my options, but give me an idea of some things to try out)
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I was pretty active in AICHE (Chemical Eng Organization), a Poker club, and intramural ultimate frisbee
Edit: Also the outing club, where we did things like hiking/canoeing/rafting
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how's college treating all of you other new frosh?
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your Country52797 Posts
I'm doing ok thanks for asking. Pretty similar to home except I have to be near people my age and the food is the same every day.
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EPT![[image loading]](http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Travel/Pix/pictures/2009/4/16/1239891921573/Keble-College-Oxford-001.jpg)
