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Hi, could you all please comment on my chances for Stanford Single Choice Early Action?

Legacy (Father is alumnus)

Test scores:
SAT: Maths 790, Verbal 570 (eckk)
SAT II: Maths 2C 790, Physics 790, Writing 680
ACT: 31 (pulled down by the english mark)
TOEFL: 280

ECs
Academic:
-won quite a lot of academic awards and book awards.
-1st place in Chemistry Olympiad, and participated in several mathematics Olympiads (Grade 9-12)
-did a chemistry research and was invited to Intel Science competition (Grade 11)
-EPGY Calculus course (Grade 9)

Sports:
-100m 200m sprinter
-locally ranked 2nd in my age group in cross-country

Music:
-playing violin (since 5), viola (since 14), piano (since 5)
-violinist and principal violist in school symphony orchestra
-won in local music competitions
-performed in town halls, city halls locally and in other countries
-Licentiate to Trinity College of London (=2nd year of undergrad music study) in violin and viola
-will be sending CD to Stanford

Leadership:
-global young leaders conference
-president of community service club, president of zonta z club, president of music group
-school prefect
-house captain
-leader of youth group
-committee of maths team, etc....

Community Services:
-500+ hours at elderly homes, physically handicapped, mentally handicapped, etc.
-organized many community services and projects for my schoolmates
-awarded the outstanding community service award

I have a lot more in my resume, but these are mainly the important ones. Also, I think I will write some really good essays, have good recommendations from teachers.

What are my chances for Stanford?

By Siavash8p (Siavash8p) on Monday, October 04, 2004 - 01:22 pm: Edit

What is your first language? How long have you been speaking English?

By Nngmm (Nngmm) on Monday, October 04, 2004 - 03:31 pm: Edit

Unless you are new in this country, the verbal score might hurt your chances.

By Cren (Cren) on Tuesday, October 05, 2004 - 09:17 am: Edit

english isn't my first language, and i am not from the states. i don't speak english at home neither.

By Nngmm (Nngmm) on Tuesday, October 05, 2004 - 02:33 pm: Edit

Where are you from? How long have you been here? 680 writing score is pretty good for non-native speaker. Make sure to write good essays with your own voice coming through.

By Cren (Cren) on Wednesday, October 06, 2004 - 07:24 am: Edit

nngmm, how do you write essays with your own voice coming through? My essays, like the one I wrote for the SAT writing, are so analytical. When I read it, I seldom read anything that's personal.

How do you write an essay which can reveal to others who you are and what have you done? I mean, how do you incorporate the experiences you want to share into the essay without making it sounds like a story/biography?

By Nngmm (Nngmm) on Wednesday, October 06, 2004 - 11:58 am: Edit

There is an excellent book "On Writing the College Application Essay : The Key to Acceptance and the College of your Choice" by Harry Bauld. It is fun to read, and gives a very good idea what makes a good essay, as well as some practical advice. You can get it on Amazon.com if you can't find it in a store near you.

By Nngmm (Nngmm) on Wednesday, October 06, 2004 - 12:01 pm: Edit

You may also want to send in an audition tape - there are forms and directions on the web site.

By Cren (Cren) on Saturday, October 09, 2004 - 12:14 pm: Edit

Do you know if they have any requirements for the audition tape, Nngmm?

By Nngmm (Nngmm) on Sunday, October 10, 2004 - 04:08 pm: Edit

http://admission.stanford.edu/

Click on "Fine Arts Submissions" and download the forms. They will have all the directions.