patent pending 2014. max your app how to increase your chances of earning admission to a u.s. grad...

Patent pending 2014.

Max Your App

How to Increase Your Chances ofEarning Admission to a U.S. Grad

Program of Your Choice


Sing Your Own True Song . . .

. . . In Your Own True Voice

You may have heard this before.

I cannot tell you how important this is.

Two primary app documents

Statement of purpose (SP) essay Sometimes called Personal Statement

For example, by Harvard

Letters of recommendation These are more important than

your GPA, or your TOEFL and GRE scores.

High GPA + TOEFL + GRE . . .

. . . are merely your ticket into the Admissions Office, into the game.

They are crucial, of course. But: they do not differentiate you

from all other applicants who have similar scores. Scores as competitive as yours!

What will differentiate you?

Letters of recommendation SP Extracurricular activities:

Research Internships Student gov’t/union Clubs, etc.


So! Write a Brilliant Essay

Do not be selfish: Do not write “Me, me, me! I, I, I!” Do not – repeat, not – boast.

Do not praise yourself.

Solve problems. Add value To the campus community To your program Place yourself in a wide context.


Advice from Stanford:

http://studentaffairs.stanford.edu/gradadmissions/faq-transcripts

http://www.stanford.edu/dept/uga/basics/selection/evaluate.html

Or: go to saved docs

Stanford UQ: What should I write in my statement of purpose?

A: The statement of purpose should describe succinctly your reasons for applying to the proposed program at Stanford, your preparation for this field of study, study and research interests, future career plans, and other aspects of your background and interests which may aid the admissions committee in evaluating your aptitude and motivation for graduate study.



Advice from Harvard:

Open Harvard Docs or Links:http://www.gsas.harvard.edu/

prospective_students/admissions_overview.php

http://www.extension.harvard.edu/prospective-students

http://www.extension.harvard.edu/sites/default/files/ext_carc_per.pdf

Harvard Grad School of A&S

Admissions Overview The Graduate School invites applications from students whose

breadth of academic experience and fitness for the specific field of study suggest the potential for scholarly achievement. We require online submission of the application.

In general, only applicants holding the BA or equivalent, with distinguished undergraduate records, are admitted. Faculty recommendations and the applicant’s statement of purpose are carefully weighed. Research papers, publications, and other original works may also be considered by the admissions committees during their evaluations.


Berkeley Advice:

Access website or access documents

https://career.berkeley.edu/Grad/GradStatement.stm#1

Closer look (read): Q. What makes a competitive candidate for a top-

notch graduate school? Many factors go into admission to graduate school. Grades,

especially in the proposed area of graduate study, are very important. The GRE counts but not as much as letters of recommendation from those who have taught you, and better yet, from those with whom you have done research. A PhD program usually looks for research and scholarly potential. Talk to professors in the area you're interested in with whom you might want to work and see what they have to say. Admission to graduate school is based on a broader range of factors than just grades and test scores.

The word “holistic” again comes to mind! This info is from this link: https://career.berkeley.edu/Article/011102b.stm

Closer look (if enough time): SP DO Be objective, yet self-revelatory. Write directly and in a

straightforward manner that tells about your experience and what it means to you. Do not use "academese."

Form conclusions that explain the value and meaning of your experience, such as what you learned about yourself and your field and your future goals. Draw your conclusions from the evidence your life provides.

Be specific. Document your conclusions with specific instances. See below a list of general words and phrases to avoid using without explanation.

Get to the point early on and catch the attention of the reader. Limit its length to two pages or less. In some instances it may be

longer, depending on the school's instructions.


Closer look (if enough time): SP DON'T Use the "what I did with my life" approach. Use the "I've always wanted to be a _____" approach. Use a catalog of achievements. This is only a list of what

you have done, and tells nothing about you as a person. Lecture the reader. For example, you should not write a

statement such as "Communication skills are important in this field." Any graduate admissions committee member knows that.


Red = Me, me, me! I, I, I!

Letters of recommendation

Open Berkeley web

https://career.berkeley.edu/Article/020315b.stm, then

https://career.berkeley.edu/Grad/GradLetter.stm

Letters of recommendation https://career.berkeley.edu/Article/020315b.stm

Stand out from the crowd! What makes you different from every other student? Make it known. Show your letter writers your unique qualities and they will write you unique letters! Remind them of any special projects, experiences, or awards you've previously discussed.

(My note: Red = extracurricular activities: research, internships, etc.)

Synergy Educational Services LLC

Clients admitted to:Carnegie Mellon University #23Clark University #75Columbia University #4 (Li Lingrui; USST)Stanford University #5Cornell University #16 (Jin Ye; USST)Georgia Tech #36Harvard University #2Northwestern University #12 (Xu Dan; USST)University of Chicago #5University of Michigan #28University of Pennsylvania #7 University of Rochester #32 (He Wenlin; USST)USC #23 (Xu Dan; USST)Virginia Tech #69 (Haoran Niu; USST) other schools haven’t replied yetWashington University St. Louis #14. . . and other Top 100 schools+ Cambridge U #2, Imperial College, King’s College #3 in England+ McGill U, U of Toronto, UBC #1, #2, #3 in Canada

Synergy Educational Services LLCIn 2013-2014, clients admitted to:Cornell University #16Duke University #7Georgia Tech #36PENN #7 (U of Pennsylvania)Rice University #18Texas A&M #69University of Chicago #5University of Michigan #20UC Berkeley #20UCLA #23USC #23Virginia Tech #69+ many other schools, including McGill, Toronto, UBC


Jin Ye; USST grad June 2013 Of course you can use my name! I

don't think that Cornell would have given me this offer without your advice. I will be very glad if more students can be your clients and go to good schools with your help!



Sing your own true song in your own true voice.

www.synergyedu-usa.com



In other words Don’t copy other applicants’ ideas Don’t believe anything you read on Mandarin or

English chat-sites Do you know these people personally?

If you do not, how can you trust them? Do you have guanxi going back years? Most students on chat-sites just don’t know

the reality of admissions, applications So! Go directly to the school websites for info.

They will tell you everything you need to know


The Basic Truth

Truth #1: Your GPA is merely – and only -- your ante into the poker game called Admissions.

Truth #2: Your best approach to grad applications should involve Differentiation, Customization, and Personalization.

Copyright © 2012 by Synergy Educational Services LLC. Patent pending.

All rights reserved. Go to synergyedu-usa.com.


Ante

From Latin: “before”

A small portion of a bet contributed by each player before the game even begins. Each round of bets requires the ante into the game.

Copyright © 2012 by Synergy Educational Services LLC. All rights reserved. Go to synergyedu-usa.com


Ante

That’s all your GPA is: A small portion of a bet, but

crucial: it gets you into the game; allows

you to compete against other applicants


Your GPA . . . by itself

Means nothing Zip Zilch Nada

Copyright © 2013 by Synergy Educational Services LLC. All rights reserved. Go to synergyedu-usa.com.


Unless . . .

You have outstanding Extracurricular activities and/or research projects,

internships GRE score TOEFL scores Essays or Statements of Purpose Recommendations



Differentiation is Crucial GPA or GRE do not differentiate you

All students applying to any given school will have approximately the same scores

What can differentiate you? Extracurricular activities Statements of Purpose Letters of recommendation



Shanghai American School, September 2008

Presentations by admissions reps from: Brown University University of Pennsylvania

The reps said: “We look at the entire package.” PENN rep “We look at each candidate holistically.”

Brown rep

Copyright © 2012 by Synergy Educational Services LLC. Patent pending. All rights reserved. Go to synergyedu-usa.com.


Holistic = entire package Holistic:

of or relating to the medical consideration of the complete person, physically and psychologically, in the treatment of a disease

Pronunciation: /hō-ˈlis-tik/ Function: adj 1 : of or relating to holism 2 : relating to or concerned with wholes or with complete systems rather than with the analysis of, treatment of, or dissection into parts < holistic medicine attempts to treat both the mind and the body>

Source: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/holistic



The entire, holistic package means:

GPA plus: Extracurricular activities (research or

internships) GRE score TOEFL scores Statements of Purpose Recommendations



A thought experiment

Imagine you are a senior admissions rep at a good school.

Two applications land on your desk.

One is from a young lady at USST. So, too, is the other.



Thought experiment (cont’d) Student #1:

Highest GPA in her class Outstanding GRE TOEFL: 118 Fine SP Letters of rec:

1 all about GPA; 1 about excellent English No extracurriculars listed



Thought experiment (cont’d) Student #2:

GPA in Top 3 her class Outstanding GRE TOEFL: 118 Fine SP At least one outstanding letter of rec

That letter of rec (which the author of this document wrote) emphasized equally both academics and a wide variety of extracurriculars Go to synergyedu-usa.com to read rec letter



Thought experiment (cont’d)

Which candidate would you choose?

Remember: You are judging “the whole package”--“holistically”.

Which candidate represents the more complete “package”?



Thought experiment (cont’d)

This is based on two of the author’s former students. Student #1 applied to Cornell Student #2 applied to PENN

Student #1 was turned down Student #2 was accepted



What went wrong? Student #1, Apple Lin (name

changed), came into my office. She was in tears. I asked her why she was crying.

“Mr. Ned, I didn’t get into Cornell.” I was stunned; asked her to show me

her copies of her application documents.



What went wrong? #1

Her letters of rec were misguided: One emphasized GPA, “fine student” The other emphasized her excellent English



What went wrong? #2

Both letters of recommendation were misguided:

Approximately 90% of all applicants to U.S. schools are native speakers of English Thus, English does not truly differentiate a student Remember: All students who apply to a specific

school or grad program will have similar (competitive) GPA’s and GRE’s

GPA and GRE’s will not differentiate a student applying to a specific school from all the other students applying to that school who have similar qualifications.


What went wrong? #3

She did not list any of her many extracurriculars The emphasis solely on GPA, English was just

silly


What went right?

Student #2, Orange Zhang (name changed), admitted to PENN The Wharton School -- !!

After rejections from other Ivies, Apple Lin was admitted to her backup choice, the University of Michigan



So!

If you do not have impressive extracurriculars, don’t even think of applying to top U.S. schools.

If you don’t have lots of extracurriculars, start now



Start your own extracurriculars

Publish papers or articles in your major field of study

Do internships at top firms Do research with top professors Invent a device, patent it Solve a problem Copyright © 2012 by Synergy Educational Services LLC. All rights reserved. Go to synergyedu-usa.com.


Special note 1 re: SP and Recs Your Statements of Purpose and letters of rec will

“make or break” an application Importance of the SP and recs cannot be

emphasized enough Generally, Chinese students do not do a good job on

the SP: Me, me, me! I, I, I! GPA! + imitation Instead, you should demonstrate how you will add

value to the campus community Teamwork + organizational skills + leadership

You must differentiate yourself Read SP’s that worked at various schools



Special note 2 re: Customization Ask your teachers to customize your letters of recommendation

as much as possible Include the entire school address, beginning with

Office of Admissions or Admissions Department or Admissions Office Get this right; different schools will use different terms

Go to the schools’ websites for complete details Use “Dear Madame or Sir”

Not “To Whom It May Concern” (impersonal) Or address the Dean or Director of Admissions by title

or name This shows you are doing research, are interested Again, go to the schools’ websites to find addresses,

names and titles



Special note 2 re: Personalization Letters of rec:

Ask your teachers to include the word “you” at least once

Writers of recs should tell how the applicant will add value to the campus community For ex., “You may rest assured that (name) will

bring his/her fire and energy to campus.” or “You may rest assured that (name) will add value

to your campus through his/her commitment to excellence and the environment.”



Recommendation letters In 2009, the school where the author taught

brought in an American consultant to speak about recommendation letters. She had been an Admissions Rep and Director at top

U.S. schools (UConn, Yale) She used the author’s recommendation letters

as handouts. He writes the best, most powerful letters of

recommendation in the known universe. Go to www.synergyedu-usa.com to read samples.



Above all (this is Truth #3) Do not imitate or model your SP or essays

on someone else’s. Speak/write with your own voice in your own

words; tell your own story. Admissions reps will know the difference;

they’ve heard and seen all the major “models” on the various websites and chat sites where Chinese students swap info and tips.

And don’t let your teachers copy a standard or form letter of recommendation.



Case history: The author heard the following on a

flight back from New York:

An American official at the embassy in Beijing had spent a great deal of time listening to visa requests from students who wanted to go to college or grad school in the U.S.



Case History (cont’d):

He had heard all the usual nonsense about “Contributing to international understanding” and “cross-cultural exchange.”

He also knew most of the stories that were copied from Web chat sites where students swapped successful visa requests.


Case Study (cont’d):

He grew quite bored and weary, and did not give visas to students who copied their reasons from the Web.

One Friday, a young Chinese student came in who wanted go to MIT or Caltech or some other top school.



Case History (cont’d): The visa officer asked the student why he

wanted to go to school in the U.S. The student’s reply went something like

this: “My mother was in a car accident when she was very young. Since then, she has never walked without pain. I want to invent a device that will enable her to walk without pain.”



Case Study (cont’d): The visa officer was very impressed

with the student’s reply, and stamped the visa.

But: The next Monday, all the students who came to request a visa told him the same or a similar story.



Case Study (cont’d): Do not do this type of thing. Copying or imitating someone else’s

voice will only hurt you. Visa officers surf many of the major

chat sites, thus they are familiar with the major trends in students’ thoughts. And they know the reasons for successful visa applications.



Remember:

Sing your own song inyour own voice.

协同配合 = 1 + 1 》 2


Best wishes & best success

Thank you

Questions? (changing majors?)

协同配合 = 1 + 1 》 2

Go to synergyedu-usa.com

patent pending 2014. max your app how to increase your chances of earning admission to a u.s. grad...

Documents