AggieDruggist89 said:

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double b said:

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Also, anyone thinking of MIT you will at least need one of these things for a STEM field, and the more you can accumulate, the better your odds are for admissions.

• University-level research
• Research Publication
• Summer Internship with a well-known company
• Super Selective Summer Research Program (RSI, Welch Scholars, Fermi Lab, etc.)
• National Academic Accomplishments (USACO, AIME/AMO, F=MA, Robotics, etc.)
• Start a non-profit

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And how should normal parents and students know this?

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1. They obviously aren't looking for normal students
2. If a kid has been in the smart kids class for 12 years, they are going to know what the other high achievers are doing, their advisors and teachers know it too.

double b said:

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Bonfire.1996 said:

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He's been an Aggie his whole life, so it's all good, but the most frustrating thing is my son learning how the USA works at age 17. Meritocracy is finished and I hope it hasn't influenced his drive for greatness.

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I certainly understand your frustration in this process and your son sounds like a phenomenal person. I am quite sure he will make an excellent citizen and will give back more to society than he takes.

However, he sounds like the classic case of a well-rounded student, and selective colleges want students to be "pointy" or "angular" in college applications. All of the schools you mentioned have an essay asking "why this major" question. More than likely, his response and his resume didn't match up well. I bet with a little bit of guidance and support, the results may been very different for Ga Tech and UMICH.

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Your son sounds as if he is incredibly driven, as is mine. I COMPLETELY understand your sentiment with regards to the understanding that we do not live in a meritocracy, and that with regards to institutions of higher learning (and initial employment) it is perfectly acceptable to discriminate against White and Asian kids based on race, and it is completely unacceptable to discuss it in an open and honest way.

With regards to schools wanting a "pointy" or "angular" application, I fell into the trap, given to me by a college counselor, of believing that colleges really wanted intellectual diversity on their campuses, not just what they brag about (their diversity of skin color). Unfortunately, the area where my son excels in, and devoted significant time to (becoming Chairman of our state's Teen Republicans, volunteering on multiple campaigns, participating in our city's Youth City Council, publishing an independent research paper about Gen Z's engagement in politics, etc.) did absolutely nothing for him in terms of gaining acceptance to one of multiple universities to which he applied. At least the counselor WAS smart enough to tell him to not include his participation in Pro-Life events on his resume, even to the "Catholic" universities to which he applied.

Another Doug said:

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1. They obviously aren't looking for normal students
2. If a kid has been in the smart kids class for 12 years, they are going to know what the other high achievers are doing, their advisors and teachers know it too.

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1. My kids are pretty normal though my son does compete in Rubik's cube competition. He does it in less than 10 seconds but I think it now requires sub 3 seconds.
2. I think my kids were in smart kids class but not sure what other high achievers were doing was blatantly obvious.

I don't know how much different the final outcome would've been for my daughter if we did it differently. Better undergrad with similar Law school for similar outcome but a larger student loan debt that includes undergrad? Son definitely did better with undergrad admissions but we shall see what happens with grad school. Will definitely follow up in 3-4 years.

Our (unfortunately white male son with two working college educated parents) is in his top choice grad school. Six percent of his graduate school classmates are white males. You need to be top 1-2% everything to compete if you don't have the demographics de jour. Even if you succeed, you will be hated for being a cold blooded soul crushing gunner because that is what it takes.

Bonfire.1996 said:

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double b said:

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Also, anyone thinking of MIT you will at least need one of these things for a STEM field, and the more you can accumulate, the better your odds are for admissions.

• University-level research
• Research Publication
• Summer Internship with a well-known company
• Super Selective Summer Research Program (RSI, Welch Scholars, Fermi Lab, etc.)
• National Academic Accomplishments (USACO, AIME/AMO, F=MA, Robotics, etc.)
• Start a non-profit

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Thanks for your kind words, it's fine, we are over it, and he will have a great time and a bright future at A&M.

That list is quite comical, though. I understand the "desire" aspect of getting a 14-17 year involved in the field they are choosing. It's stupid, but I understand it. Maybe they are trying to test the kid's commitment level, who knows?

But making those things the deciding factor amongst a class of elite students is dumb. In STEM fields, it is quite simple. The brightest, the most creative, and the most gifted students will go farther and faster than students who excelled at the "desire" aspect. MIT, and everyone for that matter, does NOTHING to identify the truly elite academic performers.

It's all BS though. MIT says on their freaking website that all their applicants are elite students and they feel it is their duty to diversify the elite. White males are absolutely excluded, period.

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Can always apply for grad school. Honestly it's probably a bit easier than under grad. Be active in engineering clubs, get good grades and good GRE score.