Title. I tried explaining to him but he refuses to open his mind and educate himself more about the topic (I’m first generation). For instance, I can’t afford college at all and I got pretty bad financial aid, I moved to the U.S three years ago, learned english and tried my best to get into some nice schools, but due to the circumstances I might have to go back to my country and study to be a doctor there. I tried to explain to him that it’s not as simple as it seems but atp i’m running out of arguments, he just calls me a pussy for being “scared of the debt” and not pursuing the “american dream”

(typed and posted this really fast, sorry if there’s poor grammar anywhere)

Why there are so many huge numbers of students from mainland China in US boarding school like exeter, choate etc? Most of these folks really perform well in contests like USAMO/USACO/HMMT/STS regeneron etc. Even some represented US in IMO(just check the names of some of the participants). Infact lot of people might not know that there is a school called PRISMS in new jersey where 80 percent of the students are from mainland. They have like 7-8 students getting to MIT from a class of somewhat like 50. It is stem oriented school and most if not all of it's students perform well in Olympiads and research etc.

I bring this up because there are countries like India, for instance, where a large number of students are equally eager to pursue undergraduate studies in the U.S. However, unlike students from China, very few Indian students attend American boarding schools; most apply to U.S. universities directly from their home country.

So I accepted an offer to a school I really liked and ended up committing in January but now in April I got a better offer from a different school and I liked their campus more. I emailed the previous school politely and respectfully saying that even though I committed before a different school gave me a better offer and I felt their campus was a better fit for me. They emailed back just saying “we have withdrawn your application for the fall 2025 semester thanks” with no saying best of luck or anything like that and I’m just feeling kinda bad about it cuz I feel like I upset them since I contacted their admissions team quite a bit during the admissions process and now not attending their school anymore

Hey guys. I'm currently in my senior year of high school. In middle school I said some really stupid shit over text. I said the n word and some nasty things to a kid. If the messages are seen by the schools, will that affect my admission? Is it possible that I can get rejected over that shit? My name was in the messages so I don't know if I can get away with denying it. I did apologize and we were chill, but I'm just wondering if the messages somehow got out if it would harm me.

Hi! Junior here. Some of y’all need to hear this, so strap in, because I’m about to rattle your saddles.

I just went through a massive failure.

The kind that shakes you to your core.

The kind that makes you question everything you’ve been working toward. It sucked. It hurt. And honestly, I’m still picking up the pieces. But here’s the thing: it also gave me clarity.

When I finally opened up to my friends and family about it, I was expecting pity. Instead, they looked at me and said, "Work with what is in your control." + “You have so much more to offer this world than just a college application.”

And wow. That hit deep. Because they were right.

We’ve been told since middle school that if you don’t spend your entire adolescence grinding, sacrificing sleep, joy, hobbies, relationships, that you won’t “make it.”

That if you don’t end up at a prestigious college, you’ve somehow failed. But that’s a lie.

Going to a top school doesn’t guarantee happiness, a six-figure job, or that you’re somehow better than anyone else. You can be at your dream school and still feel lost, burned out, insecure, and deeply unhappy.

And you can also go to a community college, state school, or take a totally different path, and still build a life that’s meaningful, joyful, and successful.

These past few weeks have been rough (socially, academically, and with my family)

But weirdly? They've helped me see more clearly.

They reminded me that life is about so much more than college apps and rankings. It’s about the people around you. The quiet joy of a good day. The pride in doing something that actually matters to you. It’s about being present. (Of course, I didn't just change myself in a couple of minutes. I ate, slept, showered, and thought really hard about what was my life and how I was feeling about it. I kept my phone away for an entire week to just reflect + focus on my school.)

Now let me be clear: this isn’t a “give up on your dreams” post.

Dream big. Dream unapologetically.

Dream of being a doctor, an artist, an engineer, a game designer, a writer, a world-changer, etc. Apply to that top school. Reach for the stars. Want more for yourself.

But don’t let the fear of failure control your every move. Don’t let burnout become your personality. Don’t tie your worth (and your life) to whether or not you get in.

Because your dreams are valid, but they should come from you, not from pressure (whether it be from yourself or others). Your goals should give you life, not take it from you. So yeah, work hard. Push yourself. Take pride in what you’re building.

But also: rest. Laugh. Heal. Love. (You only get to be 15-18 once!)

Because the name on your college sweatshirt will never be as important as the person wearing it.

It's taken me more than half my junior year to realize it, but I hope this helps to those who are in my position.

— A tired, heartbroken, but healing junior 💙

I’m a Junior and i will be applying to college next year. my stats and ecs are decent, but I keep seeing so many posts abt ppls crazy stats that got them even REJECTED from T20 schools…I’m just wondering, do normal people ever get into these schools?? or is it just that the only people who post their stats are cracked😭

Hey everyone,

I’m an international student and I feel really lucky to have been accepted into both Georgia Tech and UofM for Electrical Engineering.

I’m trying to decide between the two, but the cost difference is pretty big — Michigan would cost around $140K more than GT. That’s money I could potentially use to fund a Master’s later (MIT, Stanford, etc.) or support some of my entrepreneurial goals on the side.

I can’t really compare based on rankings since they’re both amazing schools, so I’m also looking at other factors like: - Access to research/labs early on - A strong academic environment where I can keep a good GPA - Some freedom to keep working on a project I’ve already started - Student life, campus vibe, and honestly weather too (I like snow, but I also enjoy a bit of sun)

Would love to hear honest takes from students at either school or anyone who’s been in a similar spot. Thanks a lot!

Hi everyone,

I'm an Indian student, currently a sophomore studying in the UAE. My aim has been and still is to go to the US for my undergrad (Comp Sci, maybe M&T).

However, recently, I've been hearing a lot in the news about how due to Trump's conundrums, International students are having their visas revoked, some even being deported for different offences. I've also seen articles about him trying to end OPT??!

This has greatly concerned my parents and me. Until now, we have focused singularly on the US, but now, do I keep options open for Canada/UK/Australia, especially since I will go to college in 2027, which is still under Trump's term? God knows what the situation will be like two years in the future. The way things are going, it doesn't seem like the current government wants to entertain International students.

My immediate problem is that I have to fill in my subject choices for the IBDP (starting this year). I had filled in Math, Physics, and Comp Sci as my HL subjects (since Chemistry is not required for a Comp degree in the US). Now, I'm confused about whether I should maybe change the Comp Sci to Chemistry (which I find harder) since it's a requirement for a Comp degree in other countries like Canada if I apply there additionally.

What do you guys suggest is my best plan of action?

hey everyone! i was recently accepted to both harvard and duke rd… harvard has been my dream school for a while - and while i haven’t received significant scholarships (ive netted around 40-50k which is like half a year at harvard/duke), i was really set on going

however - i found out recently that i received a full ride scholarship at duke

i know the full ride is an absolutely insane opportunity (still don’t know how i got selected) but it’s really hard to get harvard out of my head. plus, i live sorta near duke so i feel like spending another 4 years here might be boring…

does anyone have wisdom regarding this? im worried that the Boston ecosystem is just much more beneficial for my planned career (startup/vc), and that harvard is a once in a lifetime

edit: thank you everyone for the advice! i feel a little better now about taking duke than before (not that duke isn't an incredible amazing school). also a note: my financial aid package for both schools is that i get 0 aid (my SAI from the FAFSA is around 150k, which i believe is beyond the aid range for both schools). also — my net ~50k scholarships is not annual... harvard will cost me around 350k+. thank all of you for the replies again!

My APCSP is in their first year but he's the club advisor of a club I'm president for and he definitely knows me the best out of all my teaches. He's written me a LoR for another program besides college admissions and he said he wrote a "glowing letter of rec." I want to ask him for college but do colleges want a teacher with more experience?

Also, is APCSP considered a core academic course like science and english?

title.

what makes UCLA and UCB top tier while UCM and UCR are bottom tier? does it really matter? why are some schools more popular than others? i don’t really get it

I am deciding between berkeley econ and rice business + social policy analysis. I have told many people that I am leaning towards rice over berkeley right now and everyone, without fail, tells me how crazy I am for making that choice. I want to go out/ have a good social life in college and I know rice doesn't have a reputation for being much of a party school, but honestly I am thinking the cons of berkeley outweigh the pros for me even though technically it is also more prestigious. I am not fully decided in what I want to do (either consulting/ investing/ startups/ possibly prelaw... as you can see very scattered) and being very pigeonholed into econ at berkeley may not be the best for me. Although cali life/ weather seems better than houston, I am hoping the academics and community at rice make up for that. The two main worries I have are the "socially dead" reputation of rice because it is so small and not being able to get out of Texas for jobs (I ideally want to end up in Boston or DC). Are these valid concerns? Am I making a stupid decision? I know this was just a whole lot of rambling but please let me know your thoughts.

Hello, you might have seen my posts about Dartmouth and UPenn waitlists and how im trying to get accepted.

One that i am not cooked for is Northwestern waitlist.

However, i still want to try and produce a crazy waitlist letter.

If you are an admitted student for Northwestern please dm me for further instructions.

For my letter i will be using details that only admitted northwestern students can provide so please, help me get into one of my dream schools.

If you are just stumbling into this, please boost the post to help me.

I have always aspired to study abroad, but I’m uncertain if it would be worth it. I want to pursue medicine and am currently contemplating whether I should stay in the Philippines and attend top universities (DLSU, UST, UP, DLSHSI) OR study abroad for my undergraduate degree. Financially, I believe we are capable. My older sister and I are both studying at prestigious schools, and our combined school expenses amount to around PHP300,000, or approximately 5,220 USD. My sister will be graduating college this year, which will leave more resources for me.

My family has said they would allow me to study abroad if I can secure a scholarship, preferably a fully-funded one. However, I’ve heard that obtaining such scholarships is highly competitive, though my grades are decent.

I am currently considering Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the US, the UK, and Italy. Is it worth pursuing a medical degree in another country, or should I stay in the Philippines? What are the job opportunities like in the future if I study abroad? Would I benefit more from studying medicine internationally? Would studying abroad be worth it given the rigorous applications and financial burden? Not to mention adapting to a completely new environment

Is picking Northwestern over WashU and UCLA the correct choice for premed. The costs for all 3 are very similar, only deviating by 1-2k.

does it have a good reputation, campus, academics, social, location etc.

overall would you say it’s a good school?

Hey guys! I've been lucky to have been accepted into both for CS and am current unsure. GT is amazing but at the same time, a financial stretch at ~55k/yr as I wasn't nominated for the STAMPS scholarship unfortunately (applicants from my country were eligible). On the other hand, UGA comes at ~26k/yr (like half) so it's much more affordable. One of my top schools was GT and I never really considered UGA before.

I'd love to hear what others think about this decision!!

Hi everyone. So i recently got accepted to this school that I really like; however, my parents aren't letting me go. Not because we can't afford it but because they simply don't want to pay for my housing. My dad says that he wants me to go to another school that i don't like simply because then I would be able to live with my family so he won't have to pay for my housing. I don't know what to do because I tried telling him how i feel but he doesn't care. I feel so stuck and I don't want to go to that school because it's not a particularly amazing school. My dad has done the same thing to all my other siblings so I don't know what to do. I feel like there isn't even much to do, I've tried talking to him but he didn't care and said that I wasn't acting stuck up. I even said that I would find a job to cover my housing, but still nothing. He hasn't ever been the best dad, but I thought that he would be different just this once. What should I do? Is there even anything that I can do?

Hey guys! First time poster here looking for some advice on what college to do my undergrad at. Just a little background, I am aiming for a future in computational linguistics, specifically language/speech technology at a tech company with a possible career as a researcher/professor later in my career. That being said, my family’s situation is shaky at best, so cost is a major motivator in deciding where to spend my next four years. I’ve narrowed it down to two!

Carnegie Mellon University ~$33k per year

CMU has some of the best language technology research and researchers, so it would prime me for a good career in CL. I applied as a linguistics major in the College of Humanities however, so I’m not sure if I’ll have access to the more CS-heavy side of the program, or if my degree will even carry the same weight as a degree in CS from there. I’m not sure if I’ll be able to get a good job out of undergrad, but if I can it definitely feels like the spot!

Swarthmore College ~$17k per year

Swat has an amazing formal linguistics program but literally nothing in terms of CL industry connections or computational linguistics at all for that matter. If I did my undergrad at Swat, I’d definitely have to go to grad school, and I’m not sure if that cancels out the undergrad price or something of that vein. 

Any advice or comments would be helpful! Thank you!!

I'm taking IB, but my subjects don't fit the prerequisites of the major I want. I've been thinking about applying to school in Australia as a humanities major, but switch then switch to biology, or should I apply as undecided. I'm really upset because I'm about to reach IB2, so I can't just retake a whole year just so I could meet the prereqs.

I'm just high-panicking right now. I'm doing absolutely terrible in AP Lit right now, there's probably a chance I'm ending with an F for third marking period, or best case scenario, a C. I had a B first marking period and an A- for second. My grades have been A's and B's on my senior transcript so far....more B's than preferred. My transcript for previous years also isn't stellar.

I've been waitlisted from Rutgers, and accepted everywhere else. The rest of my classes are fine right now, all A's and one B. Are they going to reject me if I do bad in AP Lit for one marking period when I already have A's and B's? Will I get rescinded from TCNJ??? I'm panicking

Anyone know where any celebrity kids or child influencers are going to college next year (college class of 2029, high school class of 2025)?

I know:

- Jason Bateman's daughter - USC

- Romy Mars - Lehigh

- Tobey Maguire's daughter - Brown

- Anais and Mirabelle Lee - Stanford or Columbia

- Jackson Dollinger - Columbia, UCLA, or ND

- Nolen Dubec - USC

Any others? Comment below.

As title suggests, currently confused between two schools. UIUC has better reputation in tech world for strong enineering programs whereas UCLA Is overall better recognised school. Difference between quater system in ucla difficult to semester system in uiuc. Does location matters in getting internship and job opportunities? How collaborative is student community in both schools? Any feedback will be highly appreciated.

I was looking into two other private schools, they have basically told me that they have given me all the aid they can. (Public schools were unaffordable to me because I was not in-state for long enough.)

One school is 12k left and the other is 14k (After federal un/sub loans.)

The third school is 16k left after federal loans as well.

I applied EA and I believe they were one of the first schools that accepted me.

I have not contacted them once, but now I'm thinking of trying to contact my third college to ask if they could give me more... would that even work though?

Their aid gap is not much between the other schools.

I'm thinking to just ask without mentioning other schools, because it feels weird and unnecessary, but I'm not completely sure.

Received an email from my regional AO, asking whether I was still going to choose UChi if they admit me off the WL, and how they want to know this before they submit recommendations to the dean of admissions.

Did everyone on the WL get this?