college applications.

[retemeris]

got into university of michigan, rutgers pharmacy, and my first choice, columbia (ed)

[jeepster]

^^ congratz

so essay=very important?

do they actually read that though? cause 9999999999999 people applying

essay is the most important part of your application save for your SAT's or test scores. essay is what they judge you on the most, because regardless of grades and academics and all that bs, they can see if you really put in the time and effort to properly craft an essay prove your worth as a student.

my counselor gave my essay to my principal... he took me aside in between classes and told me it was one of the best he ever read. gave me some hope

[fg0d]

no offense jeepster but you sound like a mega-nerd.

[///mzeasy]

essay is the most important part of your application save for your SAT's or test scores.

It varies greatly by school. I'm very firm in the belief that chicago places a good deal more weight on the essay than many other schools. I recall someone having upper 2300's on SAT with a good GPA being deferred on early action. My scores aren't perfect (not bad by any means) but I'm not going to let the essay fuck me over.

And congrats retemeris, Columbia is easily the highest reach on my list, but, who knows.

[retemeris]

i didn't have excellent scores. but showing passion for the things you do/whatever in your essays will definitely make you stand out at different schools, depends where you apply.

nowadays high sat scores are a dime a dozen for applicants to top schools....leadership and essays, more than ever i think, are a huge focus for admissions. besides at schools that admit you via formula (i think some UC schools are like this?) either way, a great, creative essay will definitely push you over the edge at some schools.

chicago is definitely one of the schools that puts heavy weight on essays... the whole "uncommon app" thing makes it very obvious. they'd rather have interesting people than booksmart nerds..

[Larry!]

got into university of michigan, rutgers pharmacy, and my first choice, columbia (ed)

Columbia?! No one gets into Columbia! Congratulations!

I got into George Washington ED. Very excited.

I also completely slacked off second quarter right after my ED app went in, and I never did any apps for any other schools, so if I didn't get into GW, I would've been majorly screwed.

[jeepster]

no offense jeepster but you sound like a mega-nerd.

none taken, cause i probably am

minus doing well in school.

it makes sense considering i watched the entire directors cut DVDbox set of LOTR on christmas instead of doing college apps.

[m1sterko]

i fucked up bad. (junior year.. how ironic.. the most important year)

junior college for the next two years.

and honestly, i know im being biased and all but i think the SAT's do NOT reflect the person. so many ppl cheat and stuff, but i have to defend myself when i say SAT's mean practically nothing.

i got a mofugging 1550. *and took it only once* the dimwits at my school got 1400's.

the secret to the SAT is how much you spend time studying on the logic of how the test works. too bad i never studied for it.

but yes im one bitter mofo for my stupidity in not realizing how important education is. UGh

[poly800rock]

no offense jeepster but you sound like a mega-nerd.

for competitive (non-state schools) schools it's true. believe it. first hand advice here. essay sometimes can outweigh an SAT score or GPA. I know this as FACT.

[m1sterko]

yeahh for like UC they put you on a scale

the higher your sat / gpa better shit for youuuu

then they focus on your rigidness of schedule / ap classes/ essay / special needs.

gahh

high schools lame.

[diewhitegirls]

I can guarantee that unless you are going to a very prestigious school where they need to maintain near perfect SAT scores to keep the place "mysterious", your essay and volunteer experience/leadership skills are the single most important thing on your application. How do I know this? Well, I've been around the block a few times. I never went to high school, got my GED, never took the SAT's and got into UW-Madison. UW is considered to be one of the 30 public ivies (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_Ivy), a very difficult school to get into. So how the hell did I manage to do it? Well, my essay blew the doors off and I made sure to have plenty of leadership activities under my belt.

Now, none of you may be impressed by UW, so I'll drop the knowledge that I got accepted to Columbia when I was younger, using the same technique. Columbia was technically easier to get into, since they have Columbia College, which is the alternative path into that place. I recommend it for anyone that is a bit older and has had an intense experience growing up, because they love diversity in that program. Basically, you get the same degree as everyone else, but you're in a different program for the first year or two.

In summary, make sure that your essay is rock solid. I don't mean acceptable...when you read that shit, I want you to glow with pride. Then get it proofread by at least 3 people who are qualified to proofread and then get some volunteering done.

[alterion]

I think the american system is kind of whack in that respect compared to the UK system, here its all about your academic level, volunteer work, sport achievement ect ect is nice, but it means fuck all compared to your academic performance, its your grades and your Personal statement, LNAT/UKCAT/BMAT/HNAT/whatever (and interview for oxbridge), that make the difference here.

[alterion]

arent your schools free?

not free, but cheap compared to yours, nearly all are £3070 a year and you get a loan at the rate on inflation to cover the cost while you're a student

[mackelface]

Well, I'm finishing up my 'real' applications for the upcoming deadlines. Had a bit of a disaster with my first choice essay as I realized how incompatible it really was with the topic about three weeks ago. I feel really good about the latest copy, and I see after the early action decisions how important the essay is at uchicago in comparison with many other top schools. But so far, I've gotten into all of my safeties (Tulane, DePaul, and Michigan) with a nice scholarship at two of the three.

I ended up rewriting my essay 4 times, every time I told myself it was perfect and there was really no improving it. My english AP teacher was actually the least helpful in critiquing it, she just looked it over and said "wow, this is awesome!" DePaul's a better school than you think, I applied to Northwestern ED and didn't get accepted (ED is complete bullshit at that school, and I didn't find out until it was too late) so I picked DePaul (mainly because it's free for me). It's not shitty, but I'm transferring to NU after a year here. Word.

[cchen]

Now, none of you may be impressed by UW, so I'll drop the knowledge that I got accepted to Columbia when I was younger, using the same technique. Columbia was technically easier to get into, since they have Columbia College, which is the alternative path into that place. I recommend it for anyone that is a bit older and has had an intense experience growing up, because they love diversity in that program. Basically, you get the same degree as everyone else, but you're in a different program for the first year or two.

I believe you're referring to General Studies, not Columbia College. Columbia College is the liberal arts part of Columbia while General Studies is for older people who have taken time off since high school.

[ddohnggo]

Well, I'm finishing up my 'real' applications for the upcoming deadlines. Had a bit of a disaster with my first choice essay as I realized how incompatible it really was with the topic about three weeks ago. I feel really good about the latest copy, and I see after the early action decisions how important the essay is at uchicago in comparison with many other top schools. But so far, I've gotten into all of my safeties (Tulane, DePaul, and Michigan) with a nice scholarship at two of the three.

i hope you didn't apply to uchicago unless you hate your life or have a boner for finance.

[chronoaug]

University of Florida uses formulas i think to consider applicants. Something that combines weighted gpa, unweighted gpa, class difficulty, and then they use essay, community service, clubs/sports and stuff to determine who gets in from the people who are on the bubble. My friend's brother with a 1300sat, 3.7unweighted gpa (4.1-2 weighted i think), captain of the golf team senior year, national honor society and didn't get into UF. So i don't even know anymore.

College applications definitely suck though. I might try to get a quick master's of education next year just so i can have a "master's" and so i can bum around teaching until i find a better job. Gotta apply to that grad program soon.

[///mzeasy]

i hope you didn't apply to uchicago unless you hate your life or have a boner for finance.

Well, I did the summer quarter and so I've witnessed firsthand the 'death of fun' that is famed to occur at chicago. I can say with confidence that I'm one of those nerds that enjoys writing papers as opposed to say, I don't know, sleep.

[Juice925]

I got into George Washington University ED1 as well. Shit, I don't even know if I want to go to the school, but I guess i'm legally bound...fuck

[Larry!]

I got into George Washington University ED1 as well. Shit, I don't even know if I want to go to the school, but I guess i'm legally bound...fuck

Yo, we could totally meet up and like, splooge over Lavins at the Barney's Coop store in Georgetown.

[jackierose]

i'm surprised more americans don't come to school in canada.

really great schools, super cheap.

[calvin1663]

apps are due in 3 days and i haven't mailed them...shiiiit gotta get on that fedex

[ilovefriedchicken]

apps are due in 3 days and i haven't mailed them...shiiiit gotta get on that fedex

very previous level. why didnt you use online applications. im sure they look down on these send ins.

just kidding jump on that fedex

[retemeris]

Columbia was technically easier to get into, since they have Columbia College, which is the alternative path into that place.

I think you mean the school of general studies- columbia college actually has the lowest admissions rate of the three schools within the university i think?

[///mzeasy]

i'm surprised more americans don't come to school in canada.

really great schools, super cheap.

I applied to McGill; its interesting how different the application process was between the Canadian school and the American ones. McGill essentially says that they only care about test scores and gpa. They ask for no essay, extracurriculars, or recommendations. It was nice to do an app in less than ten minutes though. I don't know that I would be able to afford going though.

[calvin1663]

very previous level. why didnt you use online applications. im sure they look down on these send ins.

just kidding jump on that fedex

of course i used online applications, you'd have to be retarded to not do that if you're applying to more than one school. some stuff, however, like the ED agreement has to be signed in ink and physically mailed.

[Juice925]

Yo, we could totally meet up and like, splooge over Lavins at the Barney's Coop store in Georgetown.

Do you have AIM? I am still trying to convince myself that GWU is worth the $50k a year tuition lol. Last thing I want is to be bombarded with loans for the rest of my life, without any hope of paying them off.

Anything you can tell me to convince me this is the school for me?

I also got accepted to University of San Francisco, so the real question I guess is, do I like East Coast (GWU) or West Coast (SF). GWU is only about 3 hours away from NYC right?

[///mzeasy]

I also got accepted to University of San Francisco, so the real question I guess is, do I like East Coast (GWU) or West Coast (SF). GWU is only about 3 hours away from NYC right?

You don't really have much of a choice if you applied ED to GW; you signed yourself into it and if you back out now you will entirely burn your bridge there and possibly other places. The only exception that I know of is if you can show that you legitimately can't afford GW after financial aid. Don't flip out, you got into a good school.

[DEPHT]

i hope you didn't apply to uchicago unless you have a boner for finance.

Not even. Hard as hell to make grades.You need an MBA if you want to get into finance and for grad school GPA is really important. I'd say going to any other top 20 school and doing well will pretty much give you the same opportunities except it'll probably be easier and definitely will be a lot more fun.

As for admissions for top schools a high gpa is mandatory. SAT scores are used to weed out the "book smart" kids and set a standard and extracurriculars/essays are used to narrow the pool down.

[diewhitegirls]

I believe you're referring to General Studies, not Columbia College. Columbia College is the liberal arts part of Columbia while General Studies is for older people who have taken time off since high school.

Yeah, but doesn't your degree come from Columbia College?