Any advice for getting higher chances on MiT?Answered
Currently my dream school is MiT and I’ve in-putted my information into the calculator and it’s currently saying that I have a 16% chance of acceptance.
-I’m currently in my Sophomore Year
-Wanting to go for a Degree in Computer Science/Engineering
-Am Hispanic/Latino
- I currently have a Unweighted 4.0 GPA, with place holder SAT/ACT at 1520/34
-I’m going to take 12 AP classes and 2 Duel Credit by the time i’m a senior
- With extra curricular being that i’m going to be an Eagle Scout in BSA, Have researched and studied the inner workings of a computer and have personally edited my computer using linux.
-Also have 30+ hours of community service from helping a local park create a trail to helping to host a bike rodeo at a local police station. I’m also looking into summer programs for coding.
-I’ve demonstrated leadership both in BSA and in real life by hosting a city council project for my Eagle and I’ve created and am the current president of a club at my school.
Basically right now i’m just looking for recommendations on what I should do more in terms of extracurricular activities and categories where I could improve.
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5 answers
16% is better than most however if want to make it closer to 25%-30%+ I would recommend doing the following:
-The middle of the road SAT/ACT for MIT is like a 1550/35 so try to improve your test scores prior to applying which you certainly have time for. Remember that as of next cycle test scores are no longer optional at MIT but required so that means that you are going to have to meet that threshold. Historically 90% of admits have a 99%+ percentile SAT or ACT test score.
-Many MIT admits have advanced STEM coursework beyond the standard AP or IB curricula e. So if you have access to Calc 3 or other advanced math's like Differential Equations, Real Analysis, Multivariable Calc, or Stochastic Processes, Martingales, etc, you can take them as online courses. Keep in mind that both MIT and Caltech do not give you college credit for most of your STEM AP tests regardless of the test score outcome, so don't bank on that because most freshman have to take Math, Physics, and some CS programming if they are CS majors (which is track 6-3 at MIT)
https://www.eecs.mit.edu/download/2632/
-Your ECs are not impressive for MIT admits. Why? Because many of them have been involved in the following 3 things:
-Summer enrichment scholarship programs like the MIT summer programs
-Some science or math Olympiads as winners or finalists
-Various science fairs as winners or finalists (e.g. Intel Science fair)
https://mitadmissions.org/apply/prepare/enrichment/
If you have limited time, I would reconsider the type of volunteering you are doing and focus on something more to do with your spike activity of coding. I think its great you are passionate about becoming an Eagle scout. But keep in mind that depending on who reads your application file, the sentiment about scouting has mixed opinions, especially at more liberal institutions who look down on the lack of controls/leadership at the BSA that led to the 92,000 sexual abuse claims in recent history. Make sure you don't focus your narrative too much on that.
Good luck.
Read the applying sideways to MIT essay. You can google it.
um. to be honest if you want to apply for MIT CS... you'd need much much more in terms of CS. have you tried USACO yet? try to get a really good score on that (preferably Gold or Platinum). and try to have some more research done in CS over the summer and maybe publish something (this summer or next summer). if you could, try to take the AMC (American Mathematics Competition) and qualify for the next round since math+CS is an awesome combination for MIT students. notice how I'm mainly focusing on your ECs since a lot has to be done. anyways you still have time though, so good luck!!
You are on the right track to be a competitive applicant! I only see a few areas where you could improve:
1. Make sure that you take as many AP STEM classes as possible. Try to reach the highest level of each subject, e.g. AP Calculus BC.
2. Retake the SAT/ACT until you receive a perfect score. You are close!
3. You should add a few more extracurriculars to your list that could be classified as Tier 1 or 2. In other words, you want to do activities which have a large tangible impact, ideally on the state, national, and international level. It would be even better if these activities related to your long-term goal.
4. Speaking of a long-term goal, you should make one that ties your interests in computer science and community service together. This will help you find extracurriculars and write your essays. To develop your goal, hone in on a niche area of computer science that you are interested in. Explain the "why" behind your interest with a personal story. Then connect your interest to a specific career goal and vision for making the world a better place.
Hope this helps!
Honestly, I think you're doing great! There isn't much to improve on- if you're concerned about your chances of getting into MIT, know that it's a very very popular school, and they can only take on so many new students. Most people would have a low chance of getting in,even some of the best.
I advise keeping your good GPA and maybe retaking the ACT/SAT and trying to get a perfect score on either one, preferably the ACT. Your score is great, but I perfect score will look even better.
Also try to find "official" extracurricular activities you can do relating to computer science. If some colleges near you have summer camps for that, try one of those. If there are computer science college courses you could take, try that. Show you're really passionate about your planned career.
Also practice writing an application essay. The more you practice, the better you'll get, so you should be able to submit an exemplary application essay when the time comes to do so.
Hope you find this helpful.
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Thanks for the advice, I certainly agree that my EC’s need work. About taking more rigorous STEM work, I don’t believe my school does anything above AP Calculus. Anything I can do to help that?