Hi Everyone!
Welcome back to this week’s newsletter! I hope everyone had an awesome Thanksgiving break!
Final exams are coming up and 2022 Summer Program Applications are opening!
College and high school students have 4 years of education and 3 important summers to make the most use of your education. The summer going into Sophomore, Junior and Senior years are the most crucial. I can not emphasise enough the significance and importance of Summer planning and preparations.
What is Summer planning?
Summer Planning means setting up solid academic and nonacademic plans over a 10-week summer vacation. For many high school school districts, it starts late May and ends in the 1st week of August. Walnut valley unified districts: May 26th 2022 to August 7th 2022 (10 weeks).
Why Summer planning?
The saying that “Eyes are windows to the soul” means that you can understand a person’s thoughts by looking into his or her eyes. In the same way, your 3 summers as a student are windows into which colleges get to understand your Talents & Abilities, your Characters & Personal qualities.
These factors are the most important non-quantifiable factors that colleges use in selecting their potential candidates! How you spend your summer vacations will stand you out and stand you apart from other applicants! Depending on your ability, the summer planning can vary quite a lot. Here are my recommendations for top students who want to challenge themselves (top 10% of high school and great GPA)
Incoming 10th/11th:
I recommend 3 main goals in addition to preparing for ACT or SAT exams.
Goal 1: Selective Summer Program (3-10weeks)
Goal 2: Summer Hands-on Project in STEM (30-50hrs)
Goal 3: PIG (Personality Interest Goal) Project
Incoming 12th:
I recommend 4 main goals in addition to College Application
Goal 1: Internship or Work
Goal 2: Research
Goal 3: Highly Selective Summer Program
Goal 4: Career-Related activity.
College Admission Data and Facts
Most of the top 30 colleges in the Nation (the 8 Ivies, Stanford, MIT are already 10 of the 30 colleges). The top 30 are really hard to get into. Most high schools will never get their students in these colleges. There are many awesome colleges that are better fit for many of the students than these top 30 colleges. So definitely look around when you apply for colleges.
With an overall admission rate between 5% to 15% and 30% enrolled applicants with 4.0 unweighted GPA, it is almost impossible to distinguish candidates based on GPA alone.
Summer programs, internship and research can add real rigor to your secondary school records as these programs are often harder and go beyond what is traditionally taught in high schools. A top summer program gives a student an opportunity to explore career options and further hone in his or her skills in a professional settings.
Good programs will put the student to the test;
Can the student learn to work and think critically and independently?
Does the student show intellectual promise? Or is his or her high school GPA inflated?
How do our students react to setbacks and how does he or she take initiative to problem solving?
Here are some top colleges and their admission factors:
In addition, watch out for money traps when applying for summer programs.
Expensive summer programs are NOT worthwhile. Third-party arranged summer programs do NOT have credibility in front of college admissions and attending a summer program does NOT guarantee admission into the college!
“An increasing number of selective colleges are beginning to scrutinize how applicants spend their summers during high school. Some parents, in response to this trend, have blown thousands of dollars on summer programs that may provide for an enriching experience, but do little to distinguish their child from the rest of the applicant pool. Today, the majority of competitive colleges offer at least one pre-college program inviting high school students to explore campus, visit with faculty, and even take courses during the summer months. Most summer programs are nothing more than “cash cows” and will accept any high school student able to pay the bill. Participation in these summer programs will be viewed by your prospective colleges as evidence of wealth, rather than evidence of any special ability—even if these programs happen to be offered on an Ivy League campus. As such, they do NOTHING to improve your admission prospects.” Rick, SAT Professionals counselor
I understand that NOT all students have perfect GPA, 10 AP scores and 1500+ SAT. There are worthwhile Summer programs for everyone, NOT just for the top students.
Each student is unique in his or her own way. The 10-week summer vacation should be planned the same way.
As parents, we should not force a rigorous program onto our child against his or her will.
As a student, you should really think about your own future and the value of a 4-year college education to you. Having a deep thought on your own at night. Think about why you need to attend a solid summer program and what you are hoping to learn from it.
Remember that you will NOT learn anything useful in these programs or in college without a solid plan of what you want out of it. Attending even the best college in the world does not guarantee success in career or happiness in life.
You have to develop the critical skills on your own regardless of the field you go into. College will only provide you that opportunity to learn. Attending a rewarding summer programs and internship gives you a heads up to learn these real-life skills that you will carry for life! Think about it.
So, when it comes to choosing your summer program, study the program’s curriculums and what it offers. Come up with a list of questions, thoughts, pros and cons? Many of these programs will be costly, so talk to your parents as well. There are also YouTube videos and testimonials online you can watch and get a better sense of the program. Finally, talk to our counselors at SAT Professionals, and then approach your Grade Level Coordinator and teachers at school. Conversations such as these are memorable and will definitely give your mentors a better insight into your personality and future aspirations. This is adulting and demonstrating maturity beyond high school level.
SAT Professionals will be holding essay and application workshops this Winter break holiday.
Starting in December, we will also be interviewing incoming 10th, 11th and 12th graders for our College Mentorship and Application programs. In addition, we will be offering the following for students who wish to build up their resume and activities list in 2022.
- hands-on project programs in Engineering,
- Writing Portfolio and
- Leadership Extracurricular Activities.
Here are two examples of very selective programs that our students have attended in the past:
Boston University RISE
Research in Science & Engineering Program (RISE)
https://www.bu.edu/summer/high-school-programs/rise-internship-practicum/how-to-apply/
Admission decisions take into consideration your high school grades, rigor of courses taken, standardized test scores (optional for summer 2022), essays, and two recommendations.
- Essays: When using the online application, you will be required to submit three essays on the following topics:
1) Why you selected your subject of interest (300 words)
2) Your academic achievements (250 words)
3) Why you want to attend the RISE program (200 words) - Internship applicants only: You must list three faculty members you are interested in working with this summer and explain how their research interests align with yours. Please consult the Internship page to learn more about the exciting research happening at BU and to find professors whose interests match your own. Note: We cannot guarantee that students accepted into the RISE Internship track will be placed in one of the laboratories listed on their application.
- Two recommendations: You will also be required to enter the email addresses for two people who will submit a recommendation on your behalf. One recommendation should be from a science or math teacher, and the other recommendation should be from a counselor, advisor, or teacher who knows you well. Once you submit your online application, instructions for submitting a recommendation will be emailed automatically to your recommenders.
- Application fee: A nonrefundable application fee, paid by credit card, is required at the time of submission of the online application form.
Leadership in the Business World, Wharton UPenn
https://globalyouth.wharton.upenn.edu/programs-courses/leadership-in-the-business-world/
Successful applicants typically demonstrate:
- Minimum 3.3 unweighted GPA, or equivalent (minimum 3.5 unweighted GPA preferred for Leadership in the Business World and the Management and Technology Summer Institute.)
- Thoughtful, well-written essays that express interest in the program content.
- Recommendations that convey academic performance and potential.
- An array of extracurricular activities and/or personal achievements that denote intellectual curiosity, ability to collaborate, initiative and ambition, or diversity of interests and ideas.
SAT Professionals Winter Break schedule.
Week 1: 12/20th-23rd
Week 2: 12/27th-30th
Summer 2022 program application workshop.
Admission Factors to many competitive summer programs.
- GPA,
- Rigor of courses taken at school especially in math and sciences
- Meaningful activities that you can discuss in your essay.
Teacher recommendations
One or Two teachers letter of recommendations depending on the program.
We suggest one of the letters from a STEM teacher who understands your intellectual capacity. Remember your intellectual capacity is not limited to getting an A in class.
Application Essays
This portion of the summer programs allows the admissions to get a glimpse of who you are as a teenager by looking at how you spend your time outside of the 40 years of school. So what you decide to do, how you like to spend your time matters to them.
Think about what makes you stand out as a strong candidate apart from all your school peers.
In the Summer Applications workshop, we will help you to discover who you are and hopefully find out something you’d like to do. We want you to discover your PIG, Personality, Interest and Goals. You will be able to discuss each of the following in your application essays.
Here are some relevant questions we may go over in the workshop
- Important academic or life experiences in STEM (science, technology, engineering, math)
- Extracurricular activities that have influenced you in a positive way (include skills you deem valuable for an academic team research setting)
- Your current academic path and career plans
- How your experience in this program will impact your plans for the future
- Why do you want to spend your summer attending our program?
Most importantly, when it comes to writing personal essays about yourself, here is what I think you should do.
- Be nerdy, eccentric and different. Think about all the odd things that you do. Don’t worry how others think of you. You can talk about them in the essay.
- Make sure the essay is personal. If you are writing about working as a volunteer, think about the hundreds of high school students who also worked as volunteers. You’ve got to have a personal reason for volunteering that can differentiate you! If you have been bullied (physically or on social media) and you are starting a brazilian jiu jitsu self-defense club to stand up against bullies, your activity suddenly has meaning!
- Be lopsided, not well-rounded. Don’t try to write everything you’ve done. Focus on 1 or 2 meaningful activities. So be lopsided. Well-rounded students who do a bit of everything are not the way to write an essay or plan for college.
- Think creatively about your activity and your essay. Again, think of the hundreds of students in Diamond Bar, Walnut, Troy, Sunny Hills, just to name a few high schools. Think about your ethnicity and demographics. Whatever others are doing, don’t do it the same way!
Look at Mr. Beast and Mark Rober, making a difference in our world in their own ways through social media! You can do the same!
Mr. Beast Ocean clean up
Video 1: https://youtu.be/tLcnJEMnlTs
Video 2: https://youtu.be/cV2gBU6hKfY
Oil companies, lobbyists and interest groups are extremely powerful in our society and economy. I feel very disheartened to hear their empty promises over and over again on protecting our environment. Here is what Arnold Schwarzenegger had to say (our Terminator and past California Governor). It is shocking!
Arnold Schwarzenegge shocking revelations on the Big Oil
The world’s most powerful entrepreneur and visioneer Elon Musk
“I don’t consider going to college evidence of exceptional ability,” Musk said.
Elon Musk View on College Education.
Please don’t take this out of context, Elon is basically saying that without critical thinking and real understanding of the underlying principles in learning, learning would not be meaningful. Attending a college is simply not a necessary condition for learning useful career skills.
So if you care about something, get on your feet, get your friends together and do something about it. You will build real skills trying to get something done. The learning experience will be memorable and what you learned will carry with you for life.
Planning only gets you ⅓ of the way. Commitment and hard work always pay off.
I hope you can connect your interests to your leadership skills through Summer Programs and activities.
Thank you for reading! See you next time!
Mr. Daniel
嗨，大家好！
歡迎回到本週的時事通訊！我希望每個人都有一個很棒的感恩節假期！
期末考試即將到來，2022 年暑期課程申請即將開放！
大學生和高中生有 4 年的教育和 3 個重要的暑假，可以充分利用你的學習時間。進入高二、高三和高四的夏天是最關鍵的。強調暑期計劃和準備的重要性是極為重要的。
什麼是暑期計劃？
暑期計劃意味著在 10 週的暑假中製定可靠的學術和非學術計劃。對於許多高中學區，它從 5 月下旬開始，到 8 月的第一周結束。核桃谷學區：2022 年 5 月 26 日至 2022 年 8 月 7 日（10 週）。
為什麼要製定暑期計劃？
俗話說“眼睛是心靈的窗戶”，意思是你可以通過觀察一個人的眼睛來了解他或她的想法。同樣，作為學生的 3 個暑假是大學了解你的才能和能力、性格和個人品質的窗口。
這些因素是大學在選擇潛在候選人時最重要的不可量化因素！你如何度過你的暑假會讓你脫穎而出，讓你與其他申請者區別開來！根據你的能力，暑期計劃可能會有很大差異。以下是我對想要挑戰自我的頂尖學生的建議（高中前 10% 和課業表現優異）
升10/11年級：
除了準備 ACT 或 SAT 考試之外，我還推薦了3 個主要目標。
目標 1：暑期選修課程（3-10 週）
目標 2：夏季 STEM 實踐項目（30-50 小時）
目標 3：PIG（個人興趣目標）項目
升12年級：
除了大學申請，我還推薦了4 個主要目標
目標 1：實習或工作
目標 2：研究
目標 3：高強度暑期選修課程
目標 4：職業相關活動。
大學錄取數據和事實
全國排名前 30 的大學中（8 所常春藤大學、斯坦福大學、麻省理工學院已經是 30 所大學中的 10 所）。前30名真的很難進入。大多數高中永遠不會有學生進入這些大學。有許多很棒的大學比這 30 所大學更適合許多學生。所以當你申請大學時一定要環顧四周。
總體錄取率在 5% 到 15% ，未加權 GPA 為 4.0 的申請人高達30%，僅根據 GPA 幾乎不可能區分候選人。
暑期課程、實習和研究可以為你的中學記錄增加真正的嚴謹性，因為這些課程通常更難，並且超出了高中傳統教學的範圍。高級暑期課程讓學生有機會探索職業選擇，並在專業環境中進一步磨練自己的技能。
好的課程會讓學生接受考驗；
學生能否學會批判性和獨立地工作和思考？
學生是否表現出智力上的擔當？還是他或她的高中 GPA 被誇大了？
我們的學生如何應對挫折以及他們如何主動解決問題？
以下是一些頂尖大學及其錄取因素：
此外，在申請暑期課程時要注意金錢陷阱。
昂貴的暑期課程不值得。第三方安排的暑期課程在大學招生面前沒有可信度，參加暑期課程並不能保證被大學錄取！
“越來越多的精英大學開始審視申請者在高中期間如何度過暑假。為應對這一趨勢，一些家長在暑期課程上花費了數千美元，這些課程可能會提供豐富的體驗，但在將他們的孩子與其他申請者群體區分開來的方面卻做得很少。今天，大多數有競爭力的大學至少提供一個大學預科課程，邀請高中生探索校園、拜訪教職員工，甚至在夏季參加課程。大多數暑期課程只不過是“搖錢樹”，會接受任何有能力支付賬單的高中生。參加這些暑期課程將被你未來的大學視為財富的證明，而不是任何特殊能力的證明——即使這些課程恰好在常春藤盟校開設。因此，他們對提高你的錄取前景毫無幫助。” Rick，SAT 專業顧問
我知道並不是所有的學生都有完美的 GPA、10 個 AP 分數和 1500+ SAT。每個人都可以申請有價值的暑期課程，而不僅僅是頂尖學生。
每個學生都有自己獨特的特色。10 週的暑假應該以同樣的方式計劃。
作為父母，我們不應該違背孩子的意願強加嚴格的計劃。
作為一名學生，你應該真正考慮自己的未來以及 4 年大學教育對你的價值。深夜獨自思考。想想為什麼你需要參加一個紮實的暑期課程，以及你希望從中學到什麼。
請記住，如果沒有關於你想要的內容的可靠計劃，你將無法在這些課程或大學中學到任何有用的東西。即使上世界上最好的大學，也不能保證事業成功或生活幸福。
無論你進入哪個領域，你都必須自己培養關鍵技能。大學只會為你提供學習的機會。參加有意義的暑期課程和實習讓你提前學習這些你將終生掌握的現實生活技能！想想看。
因此，在選擇暑期課程時，請研究該課程的課程及其提供的內容。列出問題、想法、利弊？其中許多項目的費用都很高，所以也要和你的父母談談。還有 YouTube 視頻和在線推薦，你可以觀看並更好地了解該計劃。最後，與我們在 SAT Professionals 的輔導員交談，然後與你的年級counselor和學校老師聯繫。諸如此類的對話令人難忘，肯定會讓你的導師更好地了解你的個性和未來的抱負。這是成人和展示超越高中水平的成熟。
SAT 丹尼爾學院將在這個寒假假期舉辦論文和應用實作坊。
從 12 月開始，我們還將面試即將入學的 10 年級、11 年級和 12 年級學生，參加我們的大學指導和申請項目。此外，我們將為希望在 2022 年建立簡歷和活動清單的學生提供以下服務。
- 工程實踐項目計劃
- 寫作作品集和
- 領導力課外活動
以下是我們的學生過去參加的非常有意義的暑期選修課程的兩個例子：
波士頓大學 RISE
科學與工程研究計劃 (RISE)
https://www.bu.edu/summer/high-school-programs/rise-internship-practicum/how-to-apply/
錄取決定會考慮你的高中成績、所修課程的難易程度、標準化考試成績（2022 年夏季非必要）、論文和兩封推薦信。
- 論文：使用在線申請時，你需要提交關於以下主題的三篇論文：
1）為什麼選擇你感興趣的學科（300 字）
2）你的學術成就（250 字）
3）你為什麼想參加RISE 計劃（200 字） - 僅限實習申請者：你必須列出今年夏天你有興趣與之合作的三位教職員工，並說明他們的研究興趣與你的研究興趣有何一致。請查閱實習頁面以了解有關 BU 正在進行的激動人心的研究的更多信息，並找到與你的興趣相匹配的教授。注意：我們不能保證被 RISE Internship 錄取的學生將被安排在他們申請中列出的實驗室之一。
- 兩個推薦：你還需要輸入代表你提交推薦的兩個人的電子郵件地址。一個推薦應該來自科學或數學老師，另一個推薦應該來自熟悉你的輔導員、顧問或老師。提交在線申請後，提交推薦的說明將通過電子郵件自動發送給你的推薦人。
- 申請費: 提交在線申請表時，需要通過信用卡支付不可退還的申請費。
商業世界的領導力，賓州大學沃頓商學院
https://globalyouth.wharton.upenn.edu/programs-courses/leadership-in-the-business-world/
成功的申請者：
- 最低3 未加權 GPA，或同等學歷（最低 3.5 未加權 GPA 首選商業世界領導力和管理與技術暑期學院。）
- 表達對課程內容的興趣的周到、寫得很好的文章。
- 傳達學業成績和潛力的建議。
- 一系列課外活動和/或個人成就，表明求知欲、協作能力、主動性和雄心，或興趣和想法的多樣性。
SATProfessionals丹尼爾學院寒假時間表
第 1 週：12/20-23 日
第 2 週：12/27-30 日
2022 年暑期課程申請實作坊
許多競爭激烈的暑期課程的錄取因素
- GPA
- 學校課程的嚴謹性，尤其是數學和科學
- 可以在論文中討論的有意義的活動。
老師推薦信
一封或兩封教師推薦信，具體取決於課程。
我們建議選擇一位了解你的 STEM 老師。請記住，你的智力不僅限於在課堂上獲得 A。
應用論文
暑期課程的這一部分允許招生人員通過查看你在 4 年的學校之外如何度過自己的時間來了解你作為青少年的身份。所以你決定做什麼，你喜歡如何度過你的時間對他們來說很重要。
想一想是什麼讓你在所有學校同齡人中脫穎而出，成為強有力的候選人。
在暑期申請實作坊中，我們將幫助你發現你是誰，並希望找到你想做的事情。我們希望你發現自己的 PIG 、個性、興趣和目標。你將能夠在你的申請論文中討論以下每一項。
以下是我們可能會在研討會中討論的一些相關問題
- STEM （科學、技術、工程、數學）方面的重要學術或生活經驗
- 對你產生積極影響的課外活動（包括你認為對學術團隊研究環境有價值的技能）
- 你目前的學術道路和職業規劃
- 你在這個項目中的經歷將如何影響你未來的計劃
- 你為什麼想在暑假裡參加我們的課程？
最重要的是，在撰寫關於自己的個人文章時，我認為你應該這樣做。
- 當個書呆子，古怪的異類。想想所有的奇怪的事情，你做的。不要擔心別人怎麼看你。你可以在文章談論它們。
- 確保文章是個人的。如果你正在撰寫有關作為志願者工作的文章，請考慮數百名同時擔任志願者的高中生。你必須有一個可以讓你與眾不同的志願服務的個人理由！如果你曾被欺負（身體上或社交媒體上），並且你正在成立巴西柔術自衛俱樂部來對抗欺凌者，那麼你的活動突然變得有意義了！
- 不平衡，不全面。不要試圖寫下你所做的一切。專注於 1 或 2 項有意義的活動。所以偏頗。什麼都做的全面發展的學生不是寫論文或大學計劃的方式。
- 創造性地思考你的活動和你的文章。再想想 Diamond Bar、Walnut、Troy、Sunny Hills 的數百名學生，僅舉幾所高中。想想你的種族和人口統計數據。別人在做什麼，不要以同樣的方式去做！
看看野獸先生和馬克羅伯，他們通過社交媒體以他們自己的方式改變了我們的世界！你也可以做到的！
野獸海洋先生清理
視頻 1：https : //youtu.be/tLcnJEMnlTs
視頻 2：https : //youtu.be/cV2gBU6hKfY
石油公司、遊說者和利益集團在我們的社會和經濟中極為強大。聽到他們一遍遍地承諾保護我們的環境，我感到非常沮喪。這是阿諾德施瓦辛格不得不說的話（我們的終結者和過去的加利福尼亞州州長）。令人震驚！
阿諾德施瓦辛格對大石油的驚人啟示
世界上最有影響力的企業家和遠見者埃隆·馬斯克
“我不考慮上大學證明特殊能力，”馬斯克說。
埃隆馬斯克對大學教育的看法。
請不要斷章取意，Elon 基本上是在說，如果沒有批判性思維和對學習基本原理的真正理解，學習就沒有意義。上大學並不是學習有用的職業技能的必要條件。
因此，如果你關心某事，請站起來，讓你的朋友聚在一起並為此做點什麼。你將建立真正的技能來完成某事。學習經歷將令人難忘，你所學到的將伴隨你一生。
計劃只會讓你成功。承諾和努力總會得到回報。
我希望你可以通過暑期課程和活動將你的興趣與你的領導技能聯繫起來。
感謝你的閱讀！下次見！
丹尼爾先生
