Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just go for it. DC, English major, was accepted early to one of the HYP. Public HS. Essays were very good. As a rising senior, now is the time to begin reflecting and brainstorming.

I saw a lot of his friends get into T20s this year. Just normal, bright kids who were busy doing what they liked to do.

Congrats!! Did your child have national awards or programs?

Yes, his profile was very creative writing heavy with awards and well known programs. He also submitted a writing portfolio which (they say) is reviewed by faculty.

BUT his friends into T20s had more well-rounded, bright kid profiles. They did really well! We're not at a school with crazy families who plan every step of the admissions process. Kids are getting in... let that be an encouragement to you all. In fact, DC was having a conversation with a classmate (who is also headed to HYP) and how they had two Bs in an AP class but had a 5 and how annoyed that the teacher made the class ridiculously difficult. The Bs didn't keep them out of HYP, and this is a public HS.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You guys are missing that they said engineering is the other major. If it were Physics, it would be fine to apply in English and just take Physics classes. But in most universities, applying to Engineering is a whole different school and required courses begin freshman year. I think you need to list engineering as the first major (English is fine to list as second but they won't pay a lot of attention to it.). If you apply as English first, you'd need to do an internal trnasfer into engineering once at the university and that might mean doing 'catch up' for freshman level engineering courses.

OP just said “STEM.” The engineering major was a class of 26 student reporting results.

This is correct, she is not applying for engineering, it will probably be Physics and English.

Is there a specific area of Physics and a specific area of English?

Northwestern, Brown, Yale, and Amherst love kids like this. Does your kid want an open curriculum or not? Study your HS data to see which school might be most advantageous for you early.

At Brown, you pick 2 concentrations in the application (so Physics and English (or Literary Arts, Brown's separate creative writing concentration). Even better she could design an independent concentration like Physics and Narrative - to really stand out in the pool).

Yale typically needs some "standout" element in the app - something uncommon or high achievement. Not sure Scholastic meets that bar.
If they do, see how she might tie both subjects together (note you list 3 academic areas of interest in the Yale app),:
https://humanities.yale.edu/
https://frankeprogram.yale.edu/about-us

In terms of strengthening her profile:

Your DD should embody the combination of both subjects (rather than just saying she wants to study both).
Examples might include:
- a sustained science-writing project, like a Substack, column, or similar that translates real physics (ideally tied to actual research she's done or coursework) into a compelling narrative;
- a creative collection: essays, short fiction, or poetry built around physics concepts (like Alan Lightman's Einstein's Dreams, note: Lightman is literally a physicist-novelist, so if she doesn't know his work, she should);
or
- a teaching project where she uses storytelling to make physics intuitive for younger students, with real materials and real audiences.

She needs to start on something concrete now, though.

Agree with all of this. And if its too hard to do, just lean into the English and ignore the Physics until you get there. Go deep into an area of English (Shakespeare, Poetry, British Literary Traditions, The Bible as Literature, Afam Lit, Horror fiction/novels, etc). There's SOOO much out there....go deep and specific.

Example: this class would have been a DREAM for me as an undergrad:

English 200 Literary Histories: All the Single Ladies: Spinsters, Wives and Madwomen from 1800 to the Present (Historical Breadth Post 1830)
Course Description: Following Beyoncé’s iconic call to action, this course takes a look at a number of “single ladies” - and a few who managed to “put a ring on it” - in literature, film and TV from the last two hundred years. Together, we will investigate archetypal figures of femininity, from the spinster to the madwoman to today’s “girlboss.” How do our literary and popular media construct and deconstruct these categories at different moments in history? Pairing feminist theory with primary texts, we’ll ask: how does marriage function to resolve class tensions? How does it construct and enforce constructions of race and gender? And how, according to these texts, can women find social, emotional and financial independence? Texts may include selections from Jane Eyre, The Wonderful Adventures of Mrs. Seacole in Many Lands, A Room of One’s Own, Conversations with Friends, Sex and the City, and The Bachelor.

Teaching Method: Seminar discussion, short lectures

Evaluation Method: Participation, analytical essays and a final project

Texts including ISBNs: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (ISBN 9780141441146), Wonderful Adventures of Mrs. Seacole in Many Lands by Mary Seacole (ISBN 0140439021), A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf ( ISBN 0156787334), Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney (ISBN 0156787334), Bridget Jones's Diary dir. Sharon Maguire (2001), selections from Sex and the City created by Darren Star (1998-2004) and The Bachelor created by Mike Fleiss (2002-2024)

Anonymous wrote:I have a well rounded similar kid. He wants to go to Penn. he is excellent in every way. However, he has no national or international awards. Not sure if he will ED to Penn.

Our well regarded public sends a few kids to ivies and if you are at the top 10%, which my son is, they get into T20 schools and UVA. Penn will be a reach but I think he will get in somewhere decent whether it is T10 or T30.

I would create a new post with his activities and interests. The major matters at Penn CAS, even if they say it doesn't..... it's how they read the entire completed application.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You guys are missing that they said engineering is the other major. If it were Physics, it would be fine to apply in English and just take Physics classes. But in most universities, applying to Engineering is a whole different school and required courses begin freshman year. I think you need to list engineering as the first major (English is fine to list as second but they won't pay a lot of attention to it.). If you apply as English first, you'd need to do an internal trnasfer into engineering once at the university and that might mean doing 'catch up' for freshman level engineering courses.

OP just said “STEM.” The engineering major was a class of 26 student reporting results.

This is correct, she is not applying for engineering, it will probably be Physics and English.

Is there a specific area of Physics and a specific area of English?

Northwestern, Brown, Yale, and Amherst love kids like this. Does your kid want an open curriculum or not? Study your HS data to see which school might be most advantageous for you early.

At Brown, you pick 2 concentrations in the application (so Physics and English (or Literary Arts, Brown's separate creative writing concentration). Even better she could design an independent concentration like Physics and Narrative - to really stand out in the pool).

Yale typically needs some "standout" element in the app - something uncommon or high achievement. Not sure Scholastic meets that bar.
If they do, see how she might tie both subjects together (note you list 3 academic areas of interest in the Yale app),:
https://humanities.yale.edu/
https://frankeprogram.yale.edu/about-us

In terms of strengthening her profile:

Your DD should embody the combination of both subjects (rather than just saying she wants to study both).
Examples might include:
- a sustained science-writing project, like a Substack, column, or similar that translates real physics (ideally tied to actual research she's done or coursework) into a compelling narrative;
- a creative collection: essays, short fiction, or poetry built around physics concepts (like Alan Lightman's Einstein's Dreams, note: Lightman is literally a physicist-novelist, so if she doesn't know his work, she should);
or
- a teaching project where she uses storytelling to make physics intuitive for younger students, with real materials and real audiences.

She needs to start on something concrete now, though.

I really appreciate you posting such a detailed response with stuff she can actually do, i will pass it on to my daughter. Thank you so much.

Happy to help. I have 2 kids at the 4 schools I mentioned, so I know the schools well! GL. Post back if you have questions.