haha you really don't need perfect stats, but i can appreciate the hypocrisy haha. a lot of my friends who got into top colleges had stats that were lower than mine, and friends whose stats were higher than mine were rejected so it really doesn't have that much bearing on the outcome.

I SWEAR TO GOD IF I SEE ANOTHER ONE OF THESE COMMENTS

@@ZoeSimon so you can say that there are other white women with higher scores across the board and better essays that were rejected to schools that you were accepted?

@@ZoeSimon but you got 1 out of 250 tho?

@@ZoeSimon u are a pathetic hypocrite who studied for 12 hours a day and tells people that stats don't matter.

Me too I am enrolled in 7 IB classes, but still she made feel like nothing as well. 😌

@@sofaniasdesta4601 I have 6 classes and u make me feel bad.

sammeeee

pretty hard lol

Zoe Simon well I hope you’re able to enjoy college and maybe work (a liiiiiitttle) less hard 😂💕

@@JohnDoe-ig4zh and that’s okay! what colleges want to see is that you made the most of the opportunities that you were given, and every school is different. my high school doesn’t offer nearly as many AP’s as OP said :)

Really… around 8-9? This sucks. I am only taking TWO AP CLASSES. My school doesn’t offer that many, and honestly most are math (which i haven’t excelled in either).

@@angelesskies If your school doesn't offer many APs, yet you take what you can then you're good (most schools review applicants through a holistic process, meaning they'll soldier everything like your access to APs or opportunities etc.). If you really and truly want to get in an elite college (because of the better opportunities, amazing ppl you'll meet, renowned faculty, better financial aid, even just the prestige if you want), then do your best to stand out. And the best way to stand out is through extracurriculars. Join clubs that will actually add value to your application (so not like anime club, but some research club or a club that writes articles and seeks to help others idk), and perhaps make a one of your own. Because GPA and SAT are just a kind of filter. Once your stats are past that filter, what now sets you apart is extracurriculars, letters of recommendation, and essays (which btw, the last two depend on your extracurriculars). If you want apply for ivies, many people don't think and *only* apply for those, and end up not getting in bc it's mega competitive (for Cornell, the least competitive, around 60,000 applied, and only 2,200 ish got in). So be smart and also apply to hidden ivies that are less competitive like WashU or Rice. And about math, you can literally achieve anything you put your mind to. More often than not people feel like math is too confusing because the math you learn on different grades adds to one another, so if you didn't pay attention in 6th grade math, you won't understand 7th grade math well. You won't be able to understand any calculus if you don't have your algebra basics down. Same with algebra if you don't know how to like add or graph. So you can hop on Khan academy and work on algebra 2 and after practice problems you can do great in math. You watching this video tells me that you have an interest in succeeding, but I hope you merge that interest with improving the world too. Have a mission to improve lives through anything, whether through stem education or whatever **your** career is, reflect that through you activities and essays, and you'll achieve your goals. Make your life have more meaning. There's plenty of resources out there read like prep scholar and that stuff for more stuff on how to get into good colleges. Sorry for making it too long lol.

ratio

Dude. Not all schools offer APs you’d like.

SAME!!!

uhh me too

yeah same

SAME

lol noooo that was not my intention at all

Aww thank you! Go Bears 🐻

Oh my gosh please tell me how you got in

Emma Clare I’ll definitely consider making a video about that! Thanks for your comment :)

ooh I'll definitely consider making a video about that! thx for the suggestion :)

Andrew Stamps awww thank you!

aww thank you!

Thank you so much!!

How do you start non profit?

thanks so much!

Azam Lalani that’s awesome! thanks so much :)

aww thank you!

thank you!

Glad it was helpful!

Aww thanks Loren! Miss you too ❤️

i believe in you! you got this!

i'll definitely consider making one about STEAM On!

how many AP’s you take does not correlate with how smart you are!! it just shows how much of a workload you’re willing to take on :)

Tough competition these days man...

Some videos i saw yake rejected him but harcard columbia nd brown took him in...so it random😞

Believe me, for every amazing student like her, Harvard and Stanford have at least 3 more applications just like her… after that it’s pretty random tbh

I think Harvard likes to see 4 years of a high school language, but she took 2 and replaced them with Ap's, which is not bad cause am doing the same thing

love that idea! thanks for reaching out. good luck with PhD applications!

I needed to see this comment. My child is American but we live in the UK. He wants to be able to attend university back in America but it seems an almost impossible task since the English system DOES NOT have space for all this stuff!!! I mean, GCSEs and A Levels take up soooooo much time already!!!

I know this comment is kind of old, but I'll still reply to your question This is something I stand for and believe *Only do the extracurriculars that are fun for you and you're passionate about* When you join an extracurricular like that, you are 10 times more likely to enjoy it and you'll make lots of friends in the extracurricular to have fun with so you'll be energized and it won't drain you the same way school may do You'll stop focusing on whether you have time to hang out with friends outside since you'll be hanging out with friends in extracurriculars doing things you enjoy Like joining Key Club which is literally just a big club full of people doing public service and going places and having fun Or joining debate and speech if you love public speaking Athletics if you're good at it Theater if you enjoy it Not only will you be less stressed while doing more extracurriculars, it'll look better on your college app because something people don't understand is *colleges want someone who is smart and will contribute to their campus and/or society* so if you just do extracurriculars you think colleges are expecting and don't showcase yourself and your passion, *it's not as appealing* Hope that helps!

No problem with that, man :)

It’s ok

Community college anyone?

Parul Yadav I’ll be coming out with an essay video soon! I can do an interview tips one too :)

i don't think one component of your app can "make up" for any other part, but if you can get high test scores and explain low grades, you could have a solid shot. glad this was helpful!

Armita H I was just thinking of doing that! I’ll make one reading my stanford essays for sure!

Zoe Simon thank you!! I’ll be looking forward to that

Elizabeth Gardner almost all were offered by my school (in-house). I just took one independent study AP (comp gov).

Wow. Is this a public hs? My D goes to a smaller public hs and they can only afford 3 AP classes in-house. Again congratulations on all your success. You deserve it you worked hard.

Depends on how important the extracurriculars are. If you have ECs you couldn’t fit in the activities section that are very important to you and very meaningful, put them in the additional info section. If not, don’t add them.

Zoe Simon ok thanks so much!

Absolutely! That’s a fantastic GPA

khaled hasan dm me on Instagram @zoesimonnn and I’ll get back to you

Yes

Lauren Mendez absolutely!

i started the common app the day it opened (august 1) but started drafting my activities list and common app essay in june. i started my princeton application in mid december (around dec 19) because it was due jan 1, but procrastinated my other RD schools (wrote some essays the day of ngl)

video will be out tomorrow morning at 12:30 ET so subscribe and turn on notifications to stay tuned :)

nope! your ECs should just showcase your passion and dedication. you should show that you committed yourself to causes/involvements/orgs that matter to you. ECs definitely don't have to align with your major. i know mine really didn't lol

either electrical engineering, CS, or computer engineering!

@@ZoeSimon wow. I would've thought economics, sociology, pre-law. That seems to be where your heart is. How did you connect your STEM major with the extracurriculars you're most passionate about?

Saaame

Not at all! Like I said in the video colleges look at the opportunities you’ve had in the context of your school so if your school has no APs, they don’t expect you to take APs

@@ZoeSimon Thank you so much for answering my question.

Same

​@@tavonyawilliams2441 Like I said in the video colleges look at the opportunities you’ve had in the context of your school so if your school has no APs, they don’t expect you to take APs

Lol same

I wanna know the same thing. Although I’m taking ap world as a freshman

You certainly have a shot at great schools even if you’re not taking the most rigorous possible courses. Just be sure that you are challenging yourself in the areas/subjects where it counts (the areas related to your intended major)

@@ZoeSimon Good advice, thank you!

Same cause my school has a lot of AP’s so if I don’t take most of them I am afraid I won’t get into UPenn or other top colleges… I am a freshman rn taking 4 honors classes and AP U.S History. I wanna take 2 or 3 APs my sophomore year and 4 or 3 APs Junior year and 3 or 4 APs Senior but idk

That’s totally fine! Just show colleges that you pursued a rigorous course load, especially one that aligns with your interests

Zoe Simon thank you!

lol they were SO LOUD while i was filming

honors classes are great! just make sure that you are pursuing a rigorous courseload and doing things/classes that you really like.

It's not a big deal if your school doesn't have AP classes. Just make sure that you are taking the most rigorous course load that your school offers (especially in classes that relate to your intended major).

Catherine Ching Idaho digital learning academy

we don't do very high-level tutoring, so i already knew the content i tutored other people about

Hanan Sharif extemp!

through a teacher at my school

Judging Pageantry start a club and volunteer in your community!

start an activity/club or pursue a passion project!

i qualified in pf, extemp, and ld (separate years)

Vivian Ye electrical engineering!

@@ZoeSimon Thank you for letting me know! My main question is that does your "spike" or outstanding point have to be in what you major in? As your extras did not seem to have to do w your major?

My school caps gap’s at 4.5

i might be making a scholarships video soon so stay tuned for that ;)

Ngọc Hoàng depends on the school, but either CS, computer engineering, or electrical engineering

Ana Keren Hernandez I’ll make a video about how I prepared for standardized tests. it’ll be out in a week or two :)

Zoe Simon, thank you!

i was just kidding lol. also, i was not a legacy at any of the schools i applied to.

Depends on what state you live in. The minimum range is about 1450 to 1500.

Zoe Simon thank you and congrats on your many accomplishments! Just did some research and looks like where I live , Massachusetts, is the hardest to get in! I’m going to try but I doubt I’ll become a scholar. Best of luck and I’d definitely recommend MIT! Great school where I was taking SAT prep classes until corona canceled them. Good luck in your future!

@@jennyfindspennys2044 thanks so much! good luck to you as well :)