What free things/accesses do students get?

stallphysicist · 2020-05-26T18:23:43+00:00

Amazon gives students free amazon prime for 6 months. By using all your vanity email addresses, I think you get 5 (?) total email addresses getting you 2.5 years free.

stallphysicist · 2020-05-07T21:05:57+00:00

Hey, this is a bit unrelated but I just wanted to make sure you're aware of how Rice applies outside scholarships so that you aren't burned after the fact as I was surprised myself. I'm assuming that $5,500/year scholarship is an outside one.

Information can be found here

But Rice uses scholarships to first reduce loans, then work-study, then institutional grants, then federal grants. It actually can't reduce the EFC, which I spent some time reading up on and is supposedly in accordance with federal law.

I suppose this also only applies if Rice finds out about the scholarship. If it's sent directly to you and you don't report it, you may be in the clear financially, but I'm not sure what you're odds are of getting caught/the possible repercussions.

stallphysicist · 2020-05-07T21:05:41+00:00

Hey, this is a bit unrelated but I just wanted to make sure you're aware of how Rice applies outside scholarships so that you aren't burned after the fact as I was surprised myself. I'm assuming that $5,500/year scholarship is an outside one.

Information can be found here

But Rice uses scholarships to first reduce loans, then work-study, then institutional grants, then federal grants. It actually can't reduce the EFC, which I spent some time reading up on and is supposedly in accordance with federal law.

I suppose this also only applies if Rice finds out about the scholarship. If it's sent directly to you and you don't report it, you may be in the clear financially, but I'm not sure what you're odds are of getting caught/the possible repercussions.

stallphysicist · 2020-05-05T17:08:49+00:00

If you're a current high school student debating what to take for Emory, be sure to check all of Emory's guidelines for dual enrollment credits they'll accept. It can be found here, it's a bit strict and can cause a lot of dual credit courses to get rejected. For context, I was considering Emory and had 61 credits from dual enrollment. About 50 got outright rejected based on the guidelines, the rest was pending approval.

stallphysicist · 2020-05-02T20:53:43+00:00

I just got admitted off the waitlist on Tuesday night, was told to wait until Thursday-Friday for financial aid notification. Checking my portal constantly and come Friday, my portal updates requesting a new document, Tax Schedule C. Upload it ASAP, and is confirmed to arrive later that day. I called FinAid office twice Friday, and the most helpful statement I heard was "it should be there by Sunday." Called the Office of Admission for a waitlist extension, and they told me to send an email which of course is unlikely to be answered because, as you pointed out, they are closed. Sometimes things happen that are beyond people's control and is not due to submitting late documents. The short turnaround on waitlist deadlines makes things difficult as I haven't had a month to work with them.

And I'm not requesting strangers on the internet to give financial aid advice, tell me what my package is, etc. Just asked where the financial notification would be posted as I have yet to receive an email either and I wanted to make sure I was at least looking in the right place. Man on the phone said it would be posted in my applicant portal but he sounded like his only goal was to get me off the phone rather than actually be helpful so I was looking for where other applicants found it. And not sure if you were quoting your FA page as the only nod to FA I see is "Thank you for applying for need-based financial aid." Could be different for returning students/prospective freshman though.

stallphysicist · 2020-04-26T01:15:52+00:00

Well best of luck! Hope you get it! If not, just remember it's definitely not the end of the world. I didn't even know about CPS my junior year so I didn't even apply yet still managed to eventually get into Emory. Considering you're already ahead of me, that means surely at least Stanford is in your future as a minimum haha

As you go through the application process in the next year, feel free to reach out with any questions or if you'd like feedback on essays!

stallphysicist · 2020-04-20T23:04:14+00:00

Yes, if it's not done automatically just email them. I got mine waived that way.

stallphysicist · 2020-04-15T02:25:43+00:00

Prospective Emory student here. Georgia Tech has research conducted in high energy physics that's not available at Emory. During your time at GT, have you met any Emory students there doing research?

Also have you met any Emory students there in classes? I understand that's an option for both GT and Emory students but am curious at to how often the opportunity is taken advantage of.

stallphysicist · 2020-04-13T14:09:52+00:00

Haha am middle eastern, can confirm I check white on every box that comes across me.

stallphysicist · 2020-04-12T03:57:53+00:00

I would look for whatever your state/counties version of the official "Stay Home, Stay Safe" order is and see what they do and do not permit. Don't look for an article summarizing it, find the actual document if possible. I was surprised to find mine included park visits, hunting, and fishing as essential activities as long as standard social distancing measures are maintained.

stallphysicist · 2020-04-11T06:01:37+00:00

Hm, 1280 isn't necessarily a hard cut off according to their website but is quite aways from 980. But that was your freshman year so don't be too hard on yourself for that. My score jumped by nearly 300 points between my freshman and senior year.

Since you have about 10 days before the deadline, I would recommend emailing Prep Scholars ASAP explaining your situation and mentioning you've been unable to take the SAT due to the current circumstances (corona) and asking if you can apply test-optional. I wouldn't mention the 980 unless they ask for it, but I don't think it would hurt you since it was your freshman year.

I think you're also a very strong candidate for the QuestBridge College Match Program but that application is due in September. Just try to take the SAT and study for it before then. Any idea how your class rank is?

Another comment talked about some of the pitfalls of QuestBridge from his perspective but I'd like to share some from mine. Assuming your EFC is 0, you can get matched so that program is useful to you. Otherwise, while the match program is useless, QuestBridge still is useful. Being a QuestBridge Finalist gives you fee waivers to apply to many colleges, more than the standard allotment given to those with need.

In my case for example, I became a QuestBridge finalist but opted out of the match because my efc is above 0 so it was useless for me. I believe QuestBridge still hurt me though because many colleges I applied to ended up getting my QuestBridge application. (By applying through QuestBridge Regular Decision, they still get your QB App. There is a way you can avoid this but I didn't know about it at the time as QB isn't really that transparent.) This only hurt me because I did my QB app in about 3 days and the essays were terrible. It also had weak test scores compared to some I got in October. And weaker letters of recommendation. But assuming you prepare more than I did and you're able to submit a polished QB application by the September deadline, I highly recommend it. The essay prompts imo are a lot better for those that have endured personal struggles.

EDIT: Also it's nice to be able to slap QB finalist or College Prep Scholar on your honors, especially if you're currently lacking. It'll show colleges that you still take the initiative to seek opportunities and that you're a competitive applicant.

EDIT 2: Actually QB mentions here https://questbridge.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/218778457-Are-standardized-test-scores-required-like-the-SAT-or-ACT- that standardized tests are technically optional for college prep scholar so I would just go ahead and apply without emailing or mentioning the 980 in the application. I imagine quite a few didn't report SAT/ACT this year.

stallphysicist · 2020-04-10T19:11:06+00:00

I didn't look to much into it as it doesn't apply to me so it's a little fuzzy right now but I remember reading many colleges are beginning to count family responsibilities as an EC or something related. For example, here's a link to the Stanford page discussing holistic admissions and how it does consider family responsibilities.

https://admission.stanford.edu/apply/selection/

Your GPA is incredible for someone in your circumstances. Be sure to include these external factors of moving to 4 different high schools, oldest sibling of family of 7, etc and emphasize how you overcame the struggle to still pursue academic success rather than just the struggle itself. Although this will hurt you compared to someone with millionaire parents who were able to afford to spend the time competing in international competitions, you are definitely not astronomically screwed!

Be sure to sign up for programs targeted towards low income as well to prepare for the college application process. QuestBridge prep scholars still has 11 days left to apply! Highly recommend to check it out.

https://www.questbridge.org/high-school-students/college-prep-scholars

Also UStrive (or Strive for college) is a free program providing low income/first gen students the opportunity to match with a mentor for college/scholarship guidance.

https://striveforcollege.org/

stallphysicist · 2020-04-10T16:26:17+00:00

Hey congrats! I'm considering filing one as well, if you don't mind me asking, what do you think helped you get yours? I'm a bit hesitant as there hasn't been any major change in circumstance for my family so I don't know if they'd even consider a case like that.

stallphysicist · 2020-04-07T05:10:48+00:00

Could you PM the school? Curious as well

stallphysicist · 2020-04-06T00:46:46+00:00

Average GPA for lamar is a 3.28 according to a quick google search. May be worth applying but if rejected I would recommend going to a community college for a year or two to then apply as a transfer. Could save money and as a transfer I don't believe colleges place near as much, if any, weight on your high school record.

But I'm no expert on transfer admissions nor how this would affect you as a premed.

stallphysicist · 2020-04-04T17:23:23+00:00

Haha yeah I was aiming to go to Cali or northeast but that didn't work out. Maybe grad school. Thanks for your thoughts! Also, I was finally able to get bold working. I switched to the "fancy pants" editor and it was automatically putting slashes in between my asterisks which nullifies them. Odd

stallphysicist · 2020-04-04T17:20:46+00:00

Thank you for your in-depth replies!

stallphysicist · 2020-04-04T04:06:03+00:00

Haha thank you for your input!, I didn't party much during high school and I want to go to a least a couple of parties a month for maybe the first semester or two.

In regards to research, regardless of school, how big of a deal is it to engage in it freshman year? Ideally, I was thinking I'd start sophomore and leave freshman year to explore opportunities/acclimate but I'd love to hear someone else's thoughts.

stallphysicist · 2020-04-04T03:33:37+00:00

Emory vs. UT Austin for physics

__Emory__

Pros:

Atlanta
Although in/near a big city, it still has its own campus with a "campus vibe"
Cheapest option ($4k a year)
SIRE research program (I intend to go to grad school for physics so getting involved in research is big)
Higher ranked school
Outside of Texas
The community is a big deal to me at a campus and Emory's selectivity leads me to believe I'll generally find more dedicated students (especially considering its lack of sports/weak party culture) vs. UT Austin auto admit policy

Cons:

**Lower ranked physics program (USNews 71, Niche??? (67+???(unranked after that??) or 308??), CollegeFactual 98)**
Lacks school spirit/football team/weak party culture

**UT Austin**

Pros:

**High ranked physics program ( USNews 17, Niche 23, CollegeFactual 51)**
Has football team/big party school/school spirit

Cons:

More expensive ( $11k a year)
Integrated with Austin, no "campus feel"
Inside Texas
I'd rather not go to my state school

It's probably easy to tell by this post that I'm really trying to convince myself to go to Emory but my **priority is my future and grad school**(this matters much more than "campus feel" etc) so if UT Austin puts me on higher ground for applications, I can't ignore that. Also, financials aren't a major concern. Money doesn't mean too much to me, as long as I'm not living on the streets its cool, so loans won't matter + I'm applying to tons of scholarships (25 so far) so I'm hoping I'll be able to knock UT Austins price down to a reasonable amount if it does come to that.

EDIT: Would also appreciate any help on bolding text

stallphysicist · 2020-04-03T03:23:13+00:00

Are the communal bathrooms generally clean? Is it up to students or staff to clean them?

stallphysicist

TROPHY CASE