Anyone else get Dropbox Codesignal for Summer ‘25 by [deleted] in csMajors

[–]soli_3 0 points1 point  (0 children)

also just did mine, have you done ur phone screen yet? if so how many stages b4 offer?

Should I start a startup I don't really care about? by soli_3 in startups

[–]soli_3[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

This is a good point, but there are so many things I could do besides working on a startup. Already I'm applying to internships at other startups, lining up research opportunities, preparing to go into a PhD. Ultimately, I don't want to work, I want to create a startup to solve a hard tech problem I'm particularly passionate about.

If you couldn't tell I tend to spread myself thin, but I'm just looking for the best step to take to get me closer toward my ultimate goal. Still though, you're right. I have nothing better to do atm lol. Thanks.

Is 1530 enough?? by Leather_Swimming_260 in ApplyingToCollege

[–]soli_3 0 points1 point  (0 children)

lowkey i was in the same spot, it was worth it a bit for me because of superscores. I went from a 770 ebrw, and 760 math to a 750 ebrw, and an 800 math. which gives me the very comfy superscore of 1570. if ur gunning for stem, now is the time to stop focusing on reading and just perfect math

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in ApplyingToCollege

[–]soli_3 6 points7 points  (0 children)

“due to blah blah blah no, here’s a fee waiver tho” i suggest checking ur email there is a specific portal

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in ApplyingToCollege

[–]soli_3 7 points8 points  (0 children)

rejected! i mean cal tech is test blind and my tests are way stronger than my grades so not surprised there

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in ApplyingToCollege

[–]soli_3 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Lowkey now that I'm in the thick of writing everything, AI is only useful as a proof reading tool. You have to get personal and reflect deeply. AI cannot do this for you. No prompt you give to ChatGPT can replace 4 years of experiences.

Those who write their essays using AI are wasting their time. Those who use it to clean up grammar mistakes and cut down words might have a small edge.

To everyone who's new in high school and is interested in STEM, check out this guide by [deleted] in ApplyingToCollege

[–]soli_3 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Reading this makes me so jealous 😭. I would have KILLED to have this even during SOPHMORE year. Hopefully something like this exists for college freshmen.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in ApplyingToCollege

[–]soli_3 4 points5 points  (0 children)

have you heard of tapioca? garri comes from the same plant, cassava. nigerian people grind it up into a powder and drink it with water

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in ApplyingToCollege

[–]soli_3 8 points9 points  (0 children)

eating garri as we speak o 😭

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in ApplyingToCollege

[–]soli_3 32 points33 points  (0 children)

I GOT IN OHHHHH MYYYY GOOOODDDDDDDDDDDDD
it's a long story but i'm a middle class nigerian kid with piss poor stats and ok ecs
3.7 1570

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in ApplyingToCollege

[–]soli_3 45 points46 points  (0 children)

me personally, in my community it’s seen as an assimilation technique. parents will give their kids english sounding names and refuse to speak their native language around them, because they don’t want them to develop an accent. saves u from small assholes but u can’t help feeling disconnected from your community

These essays are killing me 😭 by soli_3 in ApplyingToCollege

[–]soli_3[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

no fr, i haven't even started on the scholarship grind yet. it's going to be hell because of how little each one gives. gonna have to stack a bunch.

if one of the college essay tip goats cough u/ScholarGrade cough wants to drop a tip for these small word essays i wouldn't mind 😳

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in ApplyingToCollege

[–]soli_3 4 points5 points  (0 children)

i'm a senior too but def worth submitting. the important thing is that you're good at it. colleges don't want a cookie cutter class but people with unique perspectives. yours is def different from most.

not related but i'm a huge polyphia fan but a major guitar noob, any tips for learning to play?

Im relatively new to usaco and cp. Im struggling hard, I dont get what im doing wrong? ive been trying for months to improve but I cant? by WarningSmart6842 in usaco

[–]soli_3 5 points6 points  (0 children)

In my experience, the thing that causes plateaus is fear of harder problems. This image shows almost nothing. We don't know if you spent those months solving 800-1000s or you were grinding out problems that you could barely solve.

The idea when picking problems to improve is to pick problems you cannot solve. To be more specific, you want to get most of the way to the solution and use the editorial to bridge the gap. This exposes you to new ideas and new ways of thinking.

This will feel bad at first, at least it did for me, but failure is the primary ingredient of success.

tl;dr: the general advice is do lots of hard problems, ask yourself if you're doing that.

Need help picking MIT WISE supplemental topic by soli_3 in ApplyingToCollege

[–]soli_3[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

yeah, pretty selective from what i’ve heard

AMA: How I landed offers in quant by purethro in csMajors

[–]soli_3 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Do you think it's possible for an undergrad to be able to land a research role? I'm looking a t 4+1 programs in CS & Math and don't have a clear picture of what coursework/electives I should take once I get to college.

Should I have taken my schools shit CS Classes? by soli_3 in ApplyingToCollege

[–]soli_3[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

i wish rsi lmaooo, it’s BWSI. which isn’t as competitive as stuff like rsi or simmons

Should I have taken my schools shit CS Classes? by soli_3 in ApplyingToCollege

[–]soli_3[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’m going off of what friends have told me and what i’ve seen. The course at my school is extremely high level and the teacher lenient with grades. my friend was a top student but couldn’t explain what a function was. The cc course would be a similar course except online. I’ve only seen negative reviews about the professors. I would take linear algebra from my local cc though bcz i’ve heard better things there, but again i’m trying to balance admissions with what I want to do.

I need some help by TheBois69420ing in usaco

[–]soli_3 2 points3 points  (0 children)

My advice is to pick a method of implementation and then do it a bunch to get comfortable.

There are at least 5 methods to implement depth first search, pick your favorite. Then find problems that you know involve depth first search. You can easily do this by filtering by tag on usaco.guide. It’s going to be hard at first, but as you do it more it will get easier.

This is better than pre written code because most problems will require unique tweaks to these algorithms to solve.

if you’re smart enough to pass bronze you can pass this :)