Yep I go to a top public magnet school and although we get a "boost" for almost every T20, there's no such thing for MIT. One of the most natural environments to be ranked in is a competition. We combine world-class admissions counselors with our data-driven, proprietary admissions strategies. The picture of every undergrad goes on the departmental wall. I think its fair to say and I dont think anyone can deny that MIT does have a higher proportion of science freaks and people who rather not see another literary analysis prompt for the rest of their life compared to most leading universities that are not engineering and science-focused. Starting your MIT application? Some get anxious from the pressure, whereas others just don't do well on tests, even if they're brilliant at STEM. Consider competitions for speech, debate, writing, essays, and so forth. In reality, admitting applicants based only on academics leads to an uninteresting community. These students might instead be found writing their own computer programs for months at a time or working on a science experiment for weeks. If you want, you can also initiate your own language-study trip since theres a ton of external organizations that conduct those as well. Tell us about something you do simply for the pleasure of it. We are fun and quirky, elite but not elitist, inventive and artistic, obsessed with numbers, and welcoming to talented people regardless of where they come from.". In our modern world, specialization is the key to success. Yet a 33 still puts about 1% of the high school population above you. Here's a sample AMC 12 Problem. Get a score in the 95th percentile or higher on your SAT or ACT. Stanford cares about extracurriculars, too, and doing well in just one area of school (or even all of school) isn't enough. We've overseen thousands of students get into their top choice schools, from state colleges to the Ivy League. We've overseen thousands of students get into their top choice schools, from state colleges to the Ivy League. Then check out our college admissions and test-prep guide designed specially for students like you! If this sounds like you, then the prestigious competition you should consider for your spike on your Stanford application is the Regeneron ISEF (formerly Intel ISEF). Your MIT essays will help your application stand out. I'll also explain which admissions strategies are false and could seriously impact your chances of getting accepted if you follow them. When you say a school is "good in the humanities," you still can't take every single class that the school offers. Many students want to get into Stanford, one of the most prestigious undergraduate institutions in the United States. Needless to say, he'll fit right in at MIT next year. AP US History was not enough to quench my insatiable thirst for history I did AP Euro History and AP World History via self-study and proceeded to get 5s in all three subjects. What SAT Target Score Should You Be Aiming For? Tell us about a significant challenge youve faced (that you feel comfortable sharing) or something that didnt go according to plan. The 5 Strategies You Must Be Using to Improve 4+ ACT Points, How to Get a Perfect 36 ACT, by a Perfect Scorer. On the other hand, Physics and Informatics have a lot of hands-on sections that require a ton of resourcefulness and novel problem solving. Besides highlighting how remote sensing is an effective way to fill the gaps in the agriculture industry during COVID-19, especially when farmers and scouts cannot be on the ground to measure local crop environments, Lillians project also stands to reassure the next generation of young scientists that research doesnt always have to be done in a lab, but can be done from home. If you purchase an item through one of our links, PrepScholar may receive a commission. Show that your academic curiosity intersects with your passions. MIT considers it as a Social Science so it fits in with our HASS requirement (humanities, arts, and social science). There are lots of writers out there giving admissions advice without any personal experience. What is the probability that the chosen numbers are the side lengths of a triangle with positive area? Applicants are notified of their status in mid-December. Learn more about PrepScholar Admissions to maximize your chance of getting in. After you're above the 50th percentile, get to work on overcoming the first myth (which claims that grades are everything). Get good grades in high school, and make sure you're in at least the 50th percentile (for Stanford or whatever school you're applying to) on the SAT/ACT. Let's call him Kevin. (let's face it - as "great" as Harvard is, you can't possibly take 1,000+ of their stellar humanities classes in 8 semesters. MIT wants students who will succeed on their campusyou need to demonstrate that you're up to MIT's academic challenge. In fact, I myself during my early years of high school believed in this horrible assumption, even though I'd already done hundreds of hours of research at that point. One difference between Stanford (and Cornell and UC Berkeley) and some of the other top-10 colleges is that Stanford is not a pure liberal arts college; instead, Stanford is a liberal arts college with a significant STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) tilt. If you're fast and have good hand-eye coordination, consider baseball. Stanford is the top choice of many students whose focuses coincide with what Stanford offers (e.g., a West Coast life or a large research institution with a slight engineering lean). Answer (1 of 4): If your application is super-strong, you will get in. To recap, do the USAMO series if you do really well on math tests such as SAT/ACT Math. We know what kinds of students colleges want to admit. Sometimes I say yes, and other times I say no. sounding like an old man) in my entries soon. One of the most important parts of your MIT application is your high school coursework. To me, Stanford was one of the top two schools I was interested in, so I took the application very seriously. Studying satellite images and data from theDescartes Labs, Lillian successfully forecasted 2020 crop yields for every country within Africa. And, no, these rules are not as simple as "focus all your time on academics" or "be as well rounded as possible." Stanford cares about far more than just academics, so try to squeeze in some good extracurriculars and volunteer experience. Thanks and great post! Many people have asked me why afterwards and whether I seriously thought that MIT was the best choice for me (they love to say, disdainfully, isnt MIT a school for nerds?). I think one thing that cannot be overstated is kindness. But all these schools follow the same pattern of being highly ranked and having a slight engineering tiltand all have a common admissions pattern. But the truth is that being too well rounded makes you look the same as others who are just as well rounded as you; it also makes you look like someone without any direction. A moderately good score in your English class will do. Part of this, however, is a self-fulfilling prophecy: because good engineering-type undergrads come here, it becomes an ideal place for similarly minded students. In this article, we'll break down exactly how to get into MIT, from the test scores you need to the tips and tricks that'll help your application stand out. I disagree with ISEF/USAMO/IMO being necessary. 31131211131221. Don't strive for above average at a lot of thingsbe excellent at one. But if you're already focusing on a STEM area and plan on continuing to do so, skip on ahead to the section after for my most helpful tips. hbspt.cta._relativeUrls=true;hbspt.cta.load(360031, 'c8b8e502-c285-4182-9589-5f8ae230e78a', {"useNewLoader":"true","region":"na1"}); Hayley Milliman is a former teacher turned writer who blogs about education, history, and technology. Below are my top four tips for getting into Stanford if you're strong in STEM. It's very difficult to get into MIT, but it's not impossible. After all, Stanford is engineering tilted! You should put a lot of effort into every one of the five MIT essays. The MIT regular admission deadline is January 5. Stanford is also by far the top US News-ranked school west of the Mississippi (the second is Caltech, which attracts a very different crowd). But this entry cleared things up so much! Just curious, but how many APs did you take in high school? Check out our top-rated graduate blogs here: PrepScholar 2013-2018. Todays availability of open-source tutorials, software and datasets opens the doors for anyone to learn at their own pace. Lilian worked on her project at her own desk and says others can do the same. The second reason is the understanding that many top colleges, including Stanford, are looking for students who can have a significant and positive impact on the world. There are many more STEM competitions besides the two above. Many schools, as explained above, also require SAT and ACT scores, as well as letters of recommendation, application essays, and interviews. In fact, the SAT/ACT Math sections are designed to test only the most basic common-denominator areas covered in high school math classes across the United States. I appreciate your ~4 hours of work on this entry. You could discover a new protein with significance to medical research; there wouldn't necessarily be a competition for the discovery, but if the discovery is qualitatively stunning enough, it can count. The first ones are relatively well known, but the final ones are less common knowledge and will help you get that extra boost in your application! Now, what if you're good at tests and competitionsbut not math? This does, of course, entail the catch that just slapping on humanities classes because you figure it'll look good. Cultivate relationships with your teachers. The most naive and prevalent myth is that getting into Stanford is all about academics. haha. hbspt.cta.load(360031, '4efd5fbd-40d7-4b12-8674-6c4f312edd05', {}); Have any questions about this article or other topics? You should also be taking the most difficult STEM courses offered at your school. Why? But the school offers a wide range of other programs as well, ranging from business and humanities to public policy and gender studies. Being interesting is the name of the ISEF game. The 25th percentile SAT/ACT score of admitted students is as high as 1420 on the SAT or 32 on the ACT. Besides that I also do quiz bowl, track, theater production, and assorted math/cs competitions. IAP Germany is open to students without any knowledge in German since you take German 1 there, and I think thats it for foreign language IAP trips. If this sounds like you, read on to learn how the Regeneron ISEF could be a great choice for your STEM spike. As a result, math-related classes and extracurriculars are not the only things that matter when applying to Stanford. I dont understand he..he.. Non-native English speakers are encouraged (but not required) to submit scores from an English proficiency exam. Equally, my other true love is History. You should have a strong plan for studying for the SAT or ACT so that you achieve the best score possible. Learn more about PrepScholar Admissions to maximize your chance of getting in. is it easier to get into mit for humanities. Academic competitions were second nature to him and he was a truly passionate STEM student. I would find things that I really enjoyed; its like killing two birds with one stone if youre doing something that you enjoy, youre more likely to put your whole heart into it, and if you put your whole heart into something, youre more likely to outperform yourself and be awesome. Every school requires an application with the bare essentials - high school transcript and GPA, application form, and other core information. From many personal surveys, I have found that even well-researched students and parents fall prey to this myth. He was super involved in everything and seemed like the kind of person that either had more hours in the day to do everything or had incredible time management skills. Just another site is it easier to get into mit for humanities . Now, obviously, the more recognized the competition, the better. Want to get into Harvard or your personal top choice college? 21L also receives some of the highest course evaluation scores at MIT, if youre curious. 13112221. I am not a de jure international student since I hold a US passport. (minus tax). Don't expect your humanities classes to be easy either: there is plenty of reading, writing, and research in the upper-level courses to keep you occupied. Edit: You also need a 700+ math sat and 650+ English or else its basically a guaranteed rejection. Think top-100 football player in California, or top-1,000 math competition student in the United States. Back in high school, I used to get by by memorizing patterns, tricks, and shortcuts to pass all my exams and assignments. With only a 7.3% acceptance rate, the bar is unsurprisingly set quite high. When a friend that I know at UPenn is struggling really hard to even get a basic research position in a biology lab there, this kind of access to research jobs at MIT is almost unbelievable. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. Wondering what your chances of getting into an Ivy Leave or Ivy League caliber school is? You might want to skim this section, but do pay attention to the differences between the application processes at Harvard and Stanford. Currently, MIT's acceptance rate is 4.1%, which means it only accepts around 4 applicants for every 100 people that apply. MIT students don't fit into any particular profile, except that they're all highly, highly talented. The Math Olympiad is special because it's the most competitive, with the highest number of people doing the first round. And if MIT is boring you can enjoy in Boston, Although Im not a humanities person per se, I am one of those people that loves lit and history almost as much as math and science and I know that I definitely want to keep exploring history and especially lit on the side even though Ill probably major in something science-y.