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Stanford

Anyone here applying or currently Stanford Alumni?

What are the general requirements to study there? IMO its my dream school and its the only university that I am very drawn to (probably because I want to major in psych and there psych department is the best in the country) the general exterior is just stunning too.

I didn't do so well at GCSE, got a mix of B's and C's and I'm currently working towards AAA at AS. (I am academically able, I slacked off big time for GCSE and now working my ass off to compensate.) Also I am hopefully taking the IB from September. I think the extra year and new course at college will be particularly beneficial to me because I can get the equivalent of AAAAAAc with the IB alongside my AAA at AS, therefore outweighing my GCSE and also giving me another year to dedicate to EC's.

I'm really no good with EC's, I don't really know what to do, I'd take up a musical instrument but i can hardly specialize in it in 2 and a half years.

I'm currently;
On college council, hoping to be vice president or president by end of the year.
college magazine.
British Youth Council (Campaigner).
Getting work shadows with a Social worker, Occupational therapist, Mental health nurse and maybe a clinical psychologist.
Two hours a week working in a special needs school, should be hopefully getting more in various other fields.
A summer trip to India to help restore primary schools that I am going to try and solely organize because the original organizing student dropped out. (Will involve lots of fund raising.)

I'm new to this whole EC thing and I'm not really sure what else to do. I'm not good at sports though :/

What other schools could i apply too? I'm aware that HYP and other such Ivies are out of the question.

Reply 1

harryj0

no offence but take a look on some of the college forums the amount of ECs that Stanford applicants have. They all have at least 1 SKILL, they have at least 1 ORGANISATION, in which they have decent experience, they all have at least 1 SPORT at which they are at a decent level, and all have VOLUNTEERING experience. This is the bread and butter of your ECs, so I would suggest a vast widening of experiences. Entering a few essay/academic competitions wouldnt hurt either.

And by the way, I dont see the point of doing IB and AS personally - but then again, i wouldnt be willing to take a year out for that particular option. Your GCSEs are obviously well below the GPA of Stanford, but I suppose if you did pull off incredible AS and IB scores as you are describing, it might be cancelled out.

Good luck

EDIT: Oh and by the way, Im in lower 6th and also planning to apply to Stanford for my first choice

Reply 2

xfallenfaeriex

OP

harryj0

no offence but take a look on some of the college forums the amount of ECs that Stanford applicants have. They all have at least 1 SKILL, they have at least 1 ORGANISATION, in which they have decent experience, they all have at least 1 SPORT at which they are at a decent level, and all have VOLUNTEERING experience. This is the bread and butter of your ECs, so I would suggest a vast widening of experiences. Entering a few essay/academic competitions wouldnt hurt either.

I am aware of this and i was asking for ideas as I do not know what to do for EC, I've never done any EC untill about two weeks ago, what sort of things are you doing?.

Harryj0

And by the way, I dont see the point of doing IB and AS personally - but then again, i wouldnt be willing to take a year out for that particular option. Your GCSEs are obviously well below the GPA of Stanford, but I suppose if you did pull off incredible AS and IB scores as you are describing, it might be cancelled out.

Have they specified their GCSE requirements? I'm not doubting you in the slightest but I just wondered how you knew. If I got into the college it'd be three years since I'd completed my GCSES.

Also IB provides 150 hours of EC work from arts, sports to international projects etc and that alongside the fact it is more vast , it has appealed to me.

Thanks for the advice.

Also when are you sitting your SATS and do you know any good resources for revision?

Reply 3

r0x0r

4

xfallenfaeriex

Also IB provides 150 hours of EC work from arts, sports to international projects etc and that alongside the fact it is more vast , it has appealed to me.

Colleges really like to see I.B. because it's such a well-rounded program. I'm sure you'll find plenty of oportunities to fulfill your CAS hours as the program progresses. You don't necessarily need to have a 'skill', but you should show a lot of passion and dedication in what you do outside of school.

Also when are you sitting your SATS and do you know any good resources for revision?

Buy a book (e.g., Princeton Review), read how the exam is scored, and do practice tests. It's not a difficult test; I've read (and believe) that the SAT only tests how well you take the SAT. :p:

It'd probably be a good idea to take the SAT (and any SAT IIs you may need) starting in the spring before the fall when you're applying - that way, you don't do as well as you'd like, you can retest in autumn.

Reply 4

queenofdiamonds

1

Just be prepaired for the cost if you choose to go to Stanford. Palo Alto is one of the most expensive areas in California to live.

Reply 5

theorangecab

The thing with EC activities isn't how many you do/have on your resume, but the level of commitment and achievement. I'd really dedicate time to a few causes/activities that you value - Stanford would also look favourably on sports since they're a very athletic school.

It's important to be well rounded - great grades are a GIVEN - the EC activities, sports, volunteering are definitely necessary if you want to be competitive. Also, strong SAT scores are also a key factor - I'd be aiming for 2100-2200+. Princeton Review has a great book for SAT prep - it's a matter of practice.

I know Stanford students, and I have friends who were extremely strong applicants who were rejected from Stanford as well but ended up at top tier schools. The thing is there's no real "formula" to getting into Stanford - do EC activities that you genuinely enjoy, not only because they look good on a resume. When it comes time to write your application essays, you'll likely be drawing from those experiences.

Palo Alto is a great place to be, gorgeous but expensive. Not to mention Stanford's tuition is expensive, and financial aid for international students is nearly non-existent - I'd plan how to fund it carefully.

I wouldn't rule Harvard/Yale/Princeton out of question. To be honest, while Stanford isn't an Ivy League school, merely because it's West Coast and founded much later, it's considered equal to the Ivy League schools. If your heart is set on Stanford, and you think you have a legitimate shot, why not go for the other Ivies too - you have nothing to lose. Of course, Dartmouth/Cornell/UPenn/Columbia are viewed by some as "easier" to get into than HYP, but that's subjective.

Sorry if i wasn't much help - I can elaborate if you have more questions :smile:

Reply 6

ILIGAN

9

xfallenfaeriex

Anyone here applying or currently Stanford Alumni?

What are the general requirements to study there? IMO its my dream school and its the only university that I am very drawn to (probably because I want to major in psych and there psych department is the best in the country) the general exterior is just stunning too.

I didn't do so well at GCSE, got a mix of B's and C's and I'm currently working towards AAA at AS. (I am academically able, I slacked off big time for GCSE and now working my ass off to compensate.) Also I am hopefully taking the IB from September. I think the extra year and new course at college will be particularly beneficial to me because I can get the equivalent of AAAAAAc with the IB alongside my AAA at AS, therefore outweighing my GCSE and also giving me another year to dedicate to EC's.

I'm really no good with EC's, I don't really know what to do, I'd take up a musical instrument but i can hardly specialize in it in 2 and a half years.

I'm currently;
On college council, hoping to be vice president or president by end of the year.
college magazine.
British Youth Council (Campaigner).
Getting work shadows with a Social worker, Occupational therapist, Mental health nurse and maybe a clinical psychologist.
Two hours a week working in a special needs school, should be hopefully getting more in various other fields.
A summer trip to India to help restore primary schools that I am going to try and solely organize because the original organizing student dropped out. (Will involve lots of fund raising.)

I'm new to this whole EC thing and I'm not really sure what else to do. I'm not good at sports though :/

What other schools could i apply too? I'm aware that HYP and other such Ivies are out of the question.

Unfortunately, this whole EC thing is very important for Stanford's admissions. Remember that everyone at Stanford was a star at his high school. Everyone has a GPA of 4.3 or higher. Everyone has a SAT score higher than his peers. Everyone is an achiever. What Stanford is looking for is someone who's a born leader or someone who's involved in doing great things or activities that have an impact to its environment or the society as a whole. The requirements may be different at MIT or Princeton, but at Stanford, ECs are considered important. You may even get into Stanford with a less stellar high school GPA but with a great EC.

From personal experience, Stanford tries to have a holistic academic milieu thus it tries to attract students that are not only extremely bright but well-rounded as well.

Reply 7

devil09

7

theorangecab

The thing with EC activities isn't how many you do/have on your resume, but the level of commitment and achievement. I'd really dedicate time to a few causes/activities that you value - Stanford would also look favourably on sports since they're a very athletic school.

Exactly. I work in Duke's admissions office rather than Stanford's, but the admissions officers here are looking for "well lopsided" applicants rather than well-rounded applicants. In other words, showing clear passion, talent, and potential in one area can be at least as effective as spreading yourself among several activities.

Contrary to what harryj0 implied, Stanford doesn't require certain extracurricular activities. Does he have any idea how BORING it gets reading applications when all applicants have similar activities? :rolleyes:

True, many accepted applicants have X, Y, and Z activities. That doesn't mean you *need* X, Y, and Z activities to be admitted. Playing a sport is certainly not required for any college, except perhaps the military academies. It shows dedication and possibly leadership, but these can be demonstrated by other activities as well.

^ I second Devil09

wow, i always assumed from looking at the profiles of those accepted that you NEEDed the ECs

Reply 10

WhoNeedsIvyLeague

Well you do need some...but there's no formula regarding how many and which ones. Be creative. Go save some endangered species or something :wink:

Reply 11

Mike_P

1

Regarding GPA, what is really the max score, seeing as Iligan mentioned 4.3 earlier? I thought it was 4.0?

Reply 12

ILIGAN

9

Some schools do superscore especially the more exclusive ones

Reply 13

Agneisse

1

Mike_P

Regarding GPA, what is really the max score, seeing as Iligan mentioned 4.3 earlier? I thought it was 4.0?

Lots of schools give bonus credit for AP/Honours classes.

Reply 14

IrunNewYork

i would personally apply for the prestigious ivy league, clearly the likes of HYPC are better known to employers

Reply 15

DrAtomic

1

Apply for the schools that are good for your subject. Don't lump schools together, each one is different...

The schools that have been ranked in the top 10 for psychology by the NRC are:
1 Stanford
2 Michigan
3 Yale
4 UCLA
5 Illinois
6 Harvard
7 Minnesota
8 Penn
9 Berkeley
10 UC San Diego

Reply 16

IrunNewYork

DrAtomic

Apply for the schools that are good for your subject. Don't lump schools together, each one is different...

The schools that have been ranked in the top 10 for psychology by the NRC are:
1 Stanford
2 Michigan
3 Yale
4 UCLA
5 Illinois
6 Harvard
7 Minnesota
8 Penn
9 Berkeley
10 UC San Diego

Employers go on the overall rep, who would you choose a hypc grad or a stanford, duke, unc grad?

Reply 17

DrAtomic

1

Who would I choose for what?

I'm giving objective information, not making subjective comments...

Reply 18

xfallenfaeriex

OP

IrunNewYork

i would personally apply for the prestigious ivy league, clearly the likes of HYPC are better known to employers

But I only got B's and C's in my GCSES and I have no idea what EC to do apart from lots of volunteering :/ I mean i believe if i apply myself I can get all A's from now on and a good SAT score. But my GCSES are not in my favor and I don't really want to elaborate in my interviews why I didn't do as well. However I personally would think doing not so well in my GCSES and extremely well from then onwards could work in my favour, because it shows that It doesn't necessarily come easy to me and I've worked (and am willing to work) extremely hard.

I don't know, I've been led to believe because of my GCSE scores that I won't get into ivy league, so I'm just gunna try Duke, Stanford, Michigan etc. :smile:

Reply 19

WhoNeedsIvyLeague

IrunNewYork

Employers go on the overall rep, who would you choose a hypc grad or a stanford, duke, unc grad?

You're absolutely incorrect in generalizing all employers like that. If you're applying for a job in your field then going to a university strong in that field is more important than going to an overall prestigious university. An employer is likely to hire a Georgia Tech engineer over a Harvard engineer because the latter is not known for engineering!

Stanford

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