Upcoming non-MIT deadlines by Matt McGann '00
Other forthcoming deadlines.
Please note: these deadlines were from 2005-2006. This year’s deadlines are almost certainly different.
So many deadlines! It’s easy to forget everything that’s going on, and sometimes you’re not even aware of what’s out there. In that spirit, here are some deadline for some programs that MIT applicants are often interested in:
- Gates Millennium Scholarship: January 13
- Davidson Fellows: January 13/March 15
- Clay Research Academy: February 4
- All-USA High School Academic Team: mid-February
Also, I should make the juniors (and, for some of these programs, other students) out there aware of the deadlines for a subset of recommended summer programs (a much more complete entry on summer programs is forthcoming):
- State Governor’s Schools: deadlines & processes vary
- AwesomeMath: April 30 (early: January 31)
- RSI (Research Science Institute): February 1
- WTP (Women’s Technology Program): February 1
- MITES (Minority Introduction to Engineering & Science): February 3
- SSP (Summer Science Program): March 24 (early: February 24)
- Canada/USA Mathcamp: late April
Hey Matt,
Just a quick question. When I print preview the MIT application online (Part 2), my name doesn’t appear on the two signature lines which are on the 4th page and the last page to verify that everything is “true and accurate, etc.” On the Common Application, for example my full name appears typed there and it reads something like “By typing my name here I agree that…etc.”
I submitted already, so would it have let me submit if somewhere were wrong? Do I need to print out that page, sign it, and mail it in? Thanks Matt! Happy Holidays!
hey, do you recommend any programs seniors could do in the summer?
Can seniors also try for the SSP. I am asking this because I remember there being some international kids in RSI 2005, who were seniors and I believe that RSI is also strictly for juniors. In any case can you suggest some summmer programs for seniors (where international participation is allowed). Thanks for providing all the earlier information.
Hey matt i sent my evaluation forms a and b on second of december , the b form has reached but the a form is still not shown on the application tracking. should i again get the teacher evaluation forms and resend them. my toefl scores which i have been told were dispatched by 6/12 have not yet reached, so should i ask them to send the scores again
Hi,
I was wondering how much each part of the application is worth for the “overall picture”. e.g SAT scores are worth 30%, extracurriculars are worth 20%, etc. I’m not really looking for actual numbers just a general idea.
Hey Matt,
Many “top” schools contact applicants *if* they require further information regarding one’s application. Is MIT among those? If not, do you contact Guidance Counselors?
Happy Holidays!
Jonas
Hi,
Please help me!!!
When submitted the Part1 of the form, I have asked for the fee waiver however there is no Guidance Councelor or someone like that in my country’s system to help me. This is really complicated. Is there anyway that I can now submit the application fee instead. 60$ may be a large sum for my family but MIT is my only choice and I have spend 65$ for SAT II, 160$ for Toelf. Now it will be really ridiculous if I cannot submit my form.
Well, I have no experience. Applying to a college in US is far more complicated than whatI expected. I used to think that 3 weeks is too enough. So terrible!!! Where I live, I was spending only 1 day doing that.
Thanks so much.
I left Bryan Nance a question in a comment about the MITES application…I hope he sees it and answers soon!
Hey Matt,
Remember me?
For those who don’t know, I’m an undergraduate sophomore at Caltech, but Matt and I have had contact with other off and on MIT. Matt’s cool. I also happen to like MIT, despite my West Coast affiliation. No tech school libel or trashtalk here.
Concerning my choice (I did choose Caltech between Caltech and MIT) I believe that I could not have made a wrong decision. I love Caltech, but I love MIT. Please – people who have to choose – often times THERE IS NOT A WRONG DECISION as to which college to choose. Both schools are tops in academia, and both have much to offer outside of academics. That being said, I won’t blame anyone I know for choosing MIT. =]
Mind if I borrow some questions? (I remember when I was applying to colleges, admissions was a faceless black box, and I really appreciate what the MIT admissions office is doing here to unshround some of the mystery and personalize the process. Looking back as an undergraduate, it’s a little less mysterious.)
=> hey, do you recommend any programs seniors could do in the summer?
*
The best thing you can do with your summer is enjoy it before you head to college. Having said that, being productive is good too. I can’t recommend any specific programs (Matt probably can), but here’s my take:
Any summer research fellowship at a local state university or institute would be excellent – it’s never too early to do research. The best way to get plugged into that is to seek out individual professors or scientists and email/phone them and ask if they have space in their lab. It’s like applying for a job, but most labs in the summer are fairly relaxed and happy to take motivated and knowledgeable students, no matter the age.
I personally recommend finding a good volunteer job, of which there are several local and national organizations. Job experience in any field will help you find one, if you know where to look. Another option is to offer your assistance in a summer program you’ve already participated in. Chances are, they could use counselors or volunteers, clerks, etc. and will enjoy taking alumni. Act quickly, however – I think positions will close by about February-March.
Good luck, whatever you choose over the summer.
=> Hi,
I was wondering how much each part of the application is worth for the “overall picture”. e.g SAT scores are worth 30%, extracurriculars are worth 20%, etc. I’m not really looking for actual numbers just a general idea.
*
Scott,
Generally, at most schools, all these portions of the “overall picture” is considered:
-academic coursework strength (transcript),
-diversity and commitment to extra-curricular activities (general app),
-personal strengths and skills (essay),
-standardized test performance (general app),
-demonstrated interest and ability in science (all of the app),
-abilities as a student/learner (recommendations).
At some schools, some aspects of your application may carry more weight then others, but usually the elite colleges look for a balanced student with strength in ALL areas. That’s right, it’s 16.67% for all of those. That’s what makes them elite. Science schools (MIT, CIT, etc.) will *probably (i don’t know for sure) consider demonstrated interest in science to be a tad more important than the rest. But not much more. If I had to put percents, I’d say that for MIT, I’d guess it’s 20% science interest/ability, 16% the rest. (Funny how the .67%s add up, huh?)
=> Hi,
Please help me!!!
When submitted the Part1 of the form, I have asked for the fee waiver however there is no Guidance Councelor or someone like that in my country’s system to help me. This is really complicated. Is there anyway that I can now submit the application fee instead. 60$ may be a large sum for my family but MIT is my only choice and I have spend 65$ for SAT II, 160$ for Toelf. Now it will be really ridiculous if I cannot submit my form.
Well, I have no experience. Applying to a college in US is far more complicated than whatI expected. I used to think that 3 weeks is too enough. So terrible!!! Where I live, I was spending only 1 day doing that.
Thanks so much.
*
Minh,
I’m sorry to hear your difficulties in applying to MIT. The best approach, if you haven’t done so already, is to DIRECTLY contact the financial aid and admissions office, either by e-mail or phone, ASAP. Matt McGann and Daniel Barkowitz would be good places to start (both blogs are around MITspace), but Matt should be able to tell you a little bit more than I can.
=> I scored an 800 on math level 2, but only in the low 700s on my other two subject tests (in physics and chem). I understand that math level 1 is not required since I took level 2, but if I could get an 800 on that (or a score significantly higher than the score in the low 700s I got on the sciences), would it make sense to take it?
*
Jason,
This is a personal choice rather than ainformed, admissions based decision for me, but I would say definitely not.
Admissions officers are not calculators that add up your SAT scores and admit you if(sum(SATs)>4600).
Rather, they understand the SAT and scores students achieve on the SAT – and can interpret their meaning. Having two SAT II perfect scores is meaningless if the scores are redundant, which Math level 1 and Math level 2 are.
=> Can seniors also try for the SSP. I am asking this because I remember there being some international kids in RSI 2005, who were seniors and I believe that RSI is also strictly for juniors. In any case can you suggest some summmer programs for seniors (where international participation is allowed). Thanks for providing all the earlier information.
*
Ashish,
It appears from the website at http://www.summerscience.org/admissions/index.php
that the program *officially* admits only high school sophomores and juniors. However, since you are clearly
(a) an international student and
(b) very very interested
I would encourage you to get in touch with someone at SSP and this question. Matt might also know – but chances are you’ll eventually have to talk to someone at SSP anyway, so why not now?
[email protected]
(Personally, I was surprised to learn Caltech sponsors this program. Mentioning other summer programs, Caltech and MIT will probably take graduating HS seniors as research interns – if they demonstrate ample scientific interest and ability.) =]
=> Hey matt i sent my evaluation forms a and b on second of december , the b form has reached but the a form is still not shown on the application tracking. should i again get the teacher evaluation forms and resend them. my toefl scores which i have been told were dispatched by 6/12 have not yet reached, so should i ask them to send the scores again
*
Aditya,
If it is within your means, I highly suggest you do at least one of the following…
(a) call via phone the MIT admissions office, your teacher, and the TOEFL offices and confirm that these forms were indeed sent and received. I’ve had experiences where faxes did not go, mails were very very late, etc., and for various reasons (internet difficulties, bad fax, etc.) communication was lost. It never hurts to call.
(b) get ready to resend the necessary forms, or resend the forms if you have them available.
(c) don’t panic. actually, don’t do this anyway. In my experience the MIT admissions staff are accommodating to extenuating circumstances such as lost scores, recommendations, etc.
Good luck with your application.
=> Hey Matt,
Many “top” schools contact applicants *if* they require further information regarding one’s application. Is MIT among those? If not, do you contact Guidance Counselors?
Happy Holidays!
Jonas
*
Jonas,
I don’t know… if further information is part of the application or not.
If they’re missing part of your application, then they’ll probably get back in touch with you.
If they’re curious as to what the name of the pet hamster was that you’ve miraculously kept alive since you were 10, or what the name of that wonderful violin piece you referenced in your essay, they’ll probably stay curious – until you get into MIT and tell them.
*Please don’t take that to mean you’ll definitely get into MIT.
I hope I’ve done a good job informing and not misinforming anyone here. If Matt has a beef with me for anything I’ve written here, he’ll take it outside.
I scored an 800 on math level 2, but only in the low 700s on my other two subject tests (in physics and chem). I understand that math level 1 is not required since I took level 2, but if I could get an 800 on that (or a score significantly higher than the score in the low 700s I got on the sciences), would it make sense to take it?
Hey Jason–I know Ben has said that Math IC is considered a separate exam from Math IIC, and that MIT really only considers your top three SAT II scores/ “the scores that put you in the best light.” If I were you, I’d go for it; there’s not much to lose. (At the same time, I’ve heard MIT people say that a 7xx doesn’t show a significant difference in competence from an 800.)
To Vinayak–I noticed the same thing on my app, and I ended up printing just that page out, signing it, and mailing it in. I have since been informed that your signature actually isn’t supposed to show up in the pdf anyway. Don’t know how accurate this is.
And Scott–Bryan Nance favoured us with a very clear-cut answer (I mean, a clear-cut qualitative answer, if that makes sense) to that question. If you scroll down among the comments to an October entry (http://nance.mitblogs.com/archives/2005/10/open_forum_mond.html) then you will see this:
“…Allow me to give a few rules that [I believe] many admission committees live by:
First, subjective information is a great lens for us to view objective information. Both sets of information are complementary and often very intertwined. Instead of dividing each application into subjective and objective, (two parts) we think of applicant much as a four legged table.
The four legs (roughly) consist of:
1. Grades & what those grades mean;
2. Fit and Match for the Institute and/or desired field of study;
3. Standardized exams e.g. SAT
Hi Matt,
I have somewhat of a dilemma. As MIT is my first choice, and Cal Tech isn
Wow..Jonas! that was amazing!! I’ve always wanted to take the time and try to answer questions but i keep finding the thread to be extremely long by the the time i get down to the last question! This time, I was going to answer people’s questions but you did an excellent job in my opinion!! Thank you for your help, even if I didn’t ask a question, I’m sure everyone appreciates it!
Jason….I’m not even joking on this one do NOT take that Math level 1 test it makes no sense whatsoever…you’ve already displayed competence in the higher-level test so basically you’d be “showing off” if you took the lower level one and it doesn’t really test your academic abilities…Trust me, two sciences and a math level 2 is perfectly fine…I’m not an admissions officer but I’ve read enough replies and used common sense on this answer ;P…Oh and don’t fret about you “only low 700” scores…an MIT application is not just about scores…your scores are fine in my opinion, at least they’re much higher than mine :/ … and you have the rest of your application to vouch for you…not every 2400 scorer will get into MIT I know that for sure…applications are the “well-rounded” comprehensive view of an individual based on countless factors..it is the full picture that college admissions officers look for…I hope I’ve quelled your concerns!
Seasons Greetings to all!
Abdulaziz (Aziz) Albahar
OOPS!! I meant John Shen not Jonas on the above post ;P he was the guy answering all the questions!! hehe..sorry my mistake!
Abdulaziz (Aziz) Albahar
Hay, Matt,
Are you going to visit the annual HMMT on 2/25/06 at Harvard? Or may be even give a talk to the contestants? About 700 some students (most of then juniors and seniors) registered.
Donna (a parent of a participating sophomore)
Jason,
If you’re concerned with playing the system so that you’ll degrade yourself and take a lower level test so you can get a perfect score, you have bigger problems to worry about. Please use your brilliant mind to conduct research instead of fretting about SAT II scores.
Hope this clears your concerns,
Steve
greetings from Argentina! (the beef really IS better here) o_O
I would agree that taking the Math1 just to get a higher score doesn’t make much sense, but I can’t be sure what goes through any admssion officer’s mind…
too bad NASA SHARP isn’t being funded anymore =[
i believe that two persons having the same score of let’s say 750 on both math I and math II means a lot since the mean score for math II is a lot higher than that of math I. (i believe a high 700s for math II versus a mid 600s for math I)
I know it’s off topic, but.. Happy New Year everyone!
Hi Matt,
I contacted the people at the Clay Mathematics Institute, and they say that they are not holding the Clay Research Academy this year (the deadlines on the page were for last year, so I checked with them). Just thought I should let you know.
Happy New Year!
– Raksha