u/vnforg3ttable

I’m an international student applying to Harvard, Yale, Stanford, and other top U.S. universities this year, and I’ve been stressing about this a lot lately.

I have very strong academics, ECs, and several national/international honors that I’m genuinely proud of. However, I don’t have ISEF, IMO, or another award at that exact level, and looking at the profiles of international students who get into these schools makes it feel like almost everyone has some massive internationally recognized distinction.

The frustrating part is that the science fair in my country that selects students for ISEF is extremely corrupt/political, so getting that particular credential was never really a straightforward opportunity. I know admissions officers evaluate applicants within the context of the opportunities available to them, but I’m not sure how much that matters when the international applicant pool is so competitive.

I was feeling pretty good about my application, but seeing so many international admits with ISEF/IMO-level achievements has made me feel like lacking one might seriously hurt my chances.

Are there any international students here who got into Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, MIT, or similarly selective schools without ISEF, IMO, or another huge international competition award? I’d really appreciate hearing about your experiences.

I’m an international student applying to Stanford this year, and I’ve been spiraling a little over this.

I have very strong academics, ECs, and several national/international honors that I’m proud of. But I don’t have ISEF or IMO (or another award at that exact level), and looking at profiles of international Stanford admits makes it feel like practically everyone has some huge internationally recognizable distinction.

The frustrating part is that the science fair in my country that selects students for ISEF is extremely corrupt/political, so getting that particular credential was never really a straightforward opportunity. I know admissions officers supposedly evaluate applicants within their context, but I have no idea how much that actually helps international applicants when the pool is so insane.

I was feeling pretty good about my application until I started comparing myself to international admits with ISEF/IMO/etc., and now I genuinely feel like the lack of something at that level might have killed my chances.

Are there any international Stanford admits/current students here who got in without ISEF, IMO, or another massive international competition award? Or does anyone know people who did?

Hi! I’m working on my Common App personal statement and I have an idea/topic that I really like, but I’m struggling to figure out how to turn it into a cohesive essay with a meaningful growth arc.

I feel like the idea has potential, but I can’t seem to figure out the progression from the story itself → realization → how it changed me. I also really don’t want to force a generic life lesson onto it just for the sake of having one.

Would anyone be willing to hear my idea and help me brainstorm how I could structure it and what kind of growth arc could naturally come out of it? I’d really appreciate another perspective.

Feel free to comment or DM me! :)

Hi! I’m working on my Common App personal statement and I have an idea/topic that I really like, but I’m struggling to figure out how to turn it into a cohesive essay with a meaningful growth arc.

I feel like the idea has potential, but I can’t seem to figure out the progression from the story itself → realization → how it changed me. I also really don’t want to force a generic life lesson onto it just for the sake of having one.

Would anyone be willing to hear my idea and help me brainstorm how I could structure it and what kind of growth arc could naturally come out of it? I’d really appreciate another perspective.

Feel free to comment or DM me! :)

ADVICE NEEDED!
demographics: intl student from a small country, this year we had one kid get into stanford after being deferred from rea! not doing financial aid most prob (govt scholarship)

my ecs+stats+awards are quite personal, please dm me so i can privately send them to u!