How I got into Columbia (Interview 7)

Stats

SAT: 1530 (780 Math, 750 Reading)

ACT: 36 (35 English, 36 Math, 35 Reading, 36 Science)

GPA: 3.93

Rank in Class: 3

Size of Class: 276

Ap's Taken: AB Calculus, BC Calculus, Chemistry, Biology, Environmental Science, English Language, American History, European History, Macroeconomics, Microeconomics, Computer Science, Statistics, Physics Mechanics, Physics Electricity and Magnetism

Extracurriculars

• I was the Vice-President of my schools Green Action Team and served as president from my junior year until the end of my senior year

• I am an avid geologist intern in labs in universities throughout my four years in high school

• I was my class historian and served from my sophomore year until my senior year

Personal Story

"I think I was more shocked and relieved than excited. I don't know, I was fairly confident in my ability to get into an ivy League school, Cornell I had in the bag, Brown would be a toss up and everything else would be a reach, especially Princeton, Harvard, and Yale.

So when Ivy day rolled around I checked the ones I was sure about first, Cornell, check, Brown, check, Penn, rejected, sucks, but whatever, Harvard, rejected, expected that, Princeton, rejected, starts to sting now, but ok, Columbia rejec-no accepted?

Columbia accepted?? It took a couple minutes for be to register the fact that I was accepted into Columbia and that this wasn't just a joke, or some prank.

Once I did, I know this will sound bad, but I was so glad that I wouldn't be going to a state school with other people from my high school. It's not that I feel elitist than them, or that I'm better, but I knew that I put in more effort and it would suck getting the same result for it."

Useful Advice

"It's important to have the guts to apply to these schools. I think that half of the problem with applying to Ivy League schools is the mental gymnastics that comes from convincing yourself that you can actually get in and putting in the work to get there. If you have the grades and activities you'll probably get in, but to get there you have to be willing to take the change knowing that you could be rejected."

Columbia Undergraduate, Class of 2023

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