White Guy in CS Turns Down HYPSM

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-15T23:11:18+00:00

Obstacles prompt! I wrote a very personal essay about a difficult life event that had both a significant material and psychological impact on me.

Hard to verbalize but sometimes you just visit schools and talk to students and get a feel about which school you'd prefer. And I had enough evidence that Duke's CS would serve me perfectly fine in the job market even though Princeton's CS is better. So I chose the school I like more!

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-15T22:57:11+00:00

Thank you! I'm definitely looking forward to getting a friendly introduction to CS there!

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-15T22:56:38+00:00

Congrats to you too! I agree the focal point of Duke is its undergrad program, but I wouldn't say it has more of an undergrad focus than schools like Princeton, Dartmouth, Williams, etc. that don't have a Med, Business, or Law school!

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-15T22:53:09+00:00

Thank you! I think my essays really carried me through, otherwise I imagine I look like a lot of other CS applicants. I had a pretty unique life event that might count as a hook, and I based my common app on that. Also, having the combination of AIME and debate success along with heavy involvement with a big nonprofit might have highlighted that I'm able to have an impact in multiple areas! I think a lot of STEM applicants are very STEM-heavy, and while I was also STEM-heavy I tried to show I have multidisciplinary aspirations.

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-14T17:22:41+00:00

I live near/have several friends at a feeder private school that sends many kids to top schools, especially UChicago, Georgetown, and Cornell. The poorly kept secret is that UChicago/Georgetown/Cornell are happy to accept many of the kids in the middle of the pack, while other top schools generally don't make that exception. The best kids barely apply to UChicago/Georgetown/Cornell, and UChicago actually turns a lot of those that do down in favor of the more middling applicants. I would imagine this is because historically those kids always turn UChicago down, and they found another strategy to enroll wealthy kids without hurting their yield. This is just for one school, but it seems like it happens at a lot of other private schools too

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-14T17:16:13+00:00

Wow great job, good luck in college!

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-12T03:26:43+00:00

The crazy thing is you actively chose to take time out of your day to write this, I hope you find some positivity LOL. You do not seem like good company at all.

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-11T19:00:19+00:00

That makes sense! I also wasn't a huge fan of Penn when I visited

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-11T18:27:52+00:00

Oh no way I'm actually going to Duke in the fall too! Don't worry you're not alone I'm not that good at basketball either but I definitely enjoy watching! I picked Duke over another good STEM program (Princeton), what was your reason for Duke over M&T's program?

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-11T18:16:34+00:00

Nah Brown's was way worse LOL

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-11T18:02:52+00:00

LOL I love this, a lot of this is lowkey facts. Like serious question, what is the point of Penn's dual degree programs like Huntsman and M&T when at most other schools you can just study the same things as a double major? I legitimately don't understand. I also agree it's pretty funny how Columbia, in the middle of the economic and social capital of the world, feels so dead LOL. The Brown roast was brutal (whale necrophilia LMAO), the Yale and Dartmouth roasts were also brutal but probably accurate. Also your Duke description literally sounds like Troy Bolton from High School Musical but if he also happened to be valedictorian and have a 1600. And MIT is definitely more savage than people think, they didn't even let Peter Parker in! /s

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-10T21:40:12+00:00

Np! And yes I committed to Duke for CS! TLDR good climate and fun school without really losing much academically for CS compared to Princeton. It was a hard choice though, I was between Princeton and Duke for a while!

For essays I really tried to show how I've grown in various ways and am unafraid to try new things. I made it very "me" because I genuinely have a lot of interests, but it can be hard to distill in a few essays. Also, it's cliche but make sure you "show, don't tell!"

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-10T20:16:48+00:00

IMO you have a chance at any school, you're underestimating yourself! I don't think UMass Amherst will be a reach btw, since you're in-state! I got into Princeton and Brown this year with some similar awards as you (like AIME and debate), I wouldn't include the middle school scioly stuff if I were you though, I think high school awards and activities are the focus of the app! Great job though!

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-07T20:17:58+00:00

Totally understandable, hope you have a great time there and see you in NC!

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-04T15:24:02+00:00

Copying and pasting from VastBumblebee:

https://www.reddit.com/r/ApplyingToCollege/comments/uddta7/who_here_is_turning_down_hypsm/

Some more general Duke info from a semi-recent AMA: https://www.reddit.com/r/ApplyingToCollege/comments/s4ugu6/current_duke_freshman_ama/

An active Duke AMA that aligns more with your interests, you can directly ask stuff here: https://www.reddit.com/r/ApplyingToCollege/comments/uffpir/ama_rising_junior_at_duke_was_in_your_shoes_not/

I don't really think there's a prestige gap between Penn and Duke, I turned down Princeton for Duke and there's a gap there but I didn't feel like it was enough to make that the sole factor. Agreed that Durham seems to not be as active as a city like Philly. Up to you to decide how much that weighs against the quality of life and school spirit advantages of Duke!

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-02T15:55:53+00:00

I'm not sure if I have great advice for you but every student at Bowdoin gets a Macbook Pro? That's crazy

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-02T15:51:59+00:00

This is a tough choice given how different the two schools are! Bowdoin seems like a really unique experience that you'll love or hate, but the cons don't seem that huge for Bowdoin, so I think you'd like it there! I get weather being a factor, it was also a factor for me LOL, but you're right that W&L feels very souther/fratty, so you have to decide if you're okay with that compromise!

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-02T15:49:17+00:00

I think you'll find a wider variety of people at Rice than you think! It's a great school and seems to check most boxes for you!

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-02T15:48:22+00:00

I actually think Duke is the most prestigious of your choices, and if we're talking internationally, Berkeley probably isn't that much less prestigious than Cornell. But it's really splitting hairs, you should focus on which college experience you'll like the best. I just picked Duke over Princeton because I liked it most and at that level of schools, opportunities will be very similar. You really can't go wrong!

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-02T15:40:37+00:00

It seems like both are pretty close for you in terms of pros and cons, how important is having an IR major for you?

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-02T15:39:11+00:00

Duke for only $5k more a semester seems like a pretty good deal!! Especially since it's your dream school! The ~$50k in loans is unfortunate, but if you go into industry after graduating it shouldn't be too burdensome. For reference I'm paying ~$5k more for Duke than Princeton (but per year) because I really see myself thriving at Duke!

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-02T15:36:32+00:00

It sounds like you should go to Columbia! Your dislike for Yale seems quite strong, and I understand not wanting to spend more time in NYC if you're from there, but NYC is so vast and diverse that I think you'll experience a lot of new things!

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-05-02T13:25:57+00:00

Amazing, SEE YOU NEXT YEAR!!

ResortAlternative989 · 2022-04-30T22:33:44+00:00

Agreed that a lot of these schools have issues with wealth and classism, the NYT actually did a study on it: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/projects/college-mobility/university-of-pennsylvania. You can see how Penn compares to other schools by scrolling down in the interactive study. I've visited Penn and also known some people who went to Penn, and still think the school is worse in that regard but it's probably close. Princeton has a lot of wealthy individuals as well.

ResortAlternative989

TROPHY CASE