I’ve been accepted to RPI.
Tag Archive for 'RPI'
I’ve got good news, and I’ve got bad news. The bad news is that I don’t have a RPI tour video. The good news is that I instead have a pretty decent photo album.
Photos on Facebook, publicly viewable.
I’m always trying to move forward, turning the page of my book. To keep this up, I’m changing my blog’s directive. I’ll make videos when I can, and other content when it’s more appropriate to do so.
I typed this post up on my MacBook Pro in the back seat of a car on the way home from RPI; it’s fresh from my head and notes. I had a fun day, it’s a great school, I grabbed much more than a course guide, and I took plenty of photos and notes to share. Today, I share my notes.
After arriving in Troy, my parents and I found our glorious destination of a welcome parking lot where we were shuttled to the main facility for the Summer Visiting day. There, my parents and I were given the option to eat luxurious food. We chose turkey wraps, which my parents loved and I merely tolerated.
Then, my family and other families were greeted by the Dean of Admissions and Aid at RPI. He was a really nice guy, funny and genuine, too. He offered advice about getting admitted to RPI and other ’selective schools’, defined as schools with an admission rate under 50%.
He started with the notion that admission is a game of chance, and not to take it personally in case of rejection. He joked that he could kill everyone in the Freshman class, replace them with those who were turned down, and no one would notice. He explained that RPI does a holistic review for the admissions process including high school transcript, SAT scores, a recommendation letter, and extracurricular activities. The Dean said that every piece counts, but clearly stated that the high school transcript is the most important component at RPI. “What you took, and how you did,” he put it. Here’s the rest of his talk, broken down by category: Continue reading ‘Lessons from RPI’
Due to my own doubts bolstered by some feedback (an email with a useful link) from Christopher Penn of the Financial Aid Podcast and a comment from Kim, I won’t be taking video of my tour tomorrow. The audio is horrible, I can’t hold a camera steady, and I have little battery power in video mode on this camera. In lieu of this, I’m going to take a bunch of pictures, write notes, and craft a video together using them. On a technical note, this seems right up iMovie ‘08’s alley. I have another visit to RPI planned on September 8, a day reserved for Rensselaer Medalists.
I’ll be heading up to Troy, New York tomorrow (Wednesday) to visit Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute for the first time. Right now, my main school focuses are RPI, Lafayette, Tufts, and UCONN. I’m hesitant about RPI because of its price tag, alleged lack of aid, and status as a ‘tech school’, to spite my scholarship there. What makes those hesitations difficult to accept is that people tell me all that time that it’s an excellent school. I still haven’t concluded on the open discussion of tech school against general school, however, I’m slightly favoring the latter right now. I need to add some schools to the mix; four simply isn’t enough. Lafayette and Tufts deserve visits, as do my summer homework assignments.
I’m always looking for suggestions and thoughts. Anything I should look out for specifically for while touring RPI?
It’s been a long time coming. Finally, after learning that I received Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s ‘Rensselaer Medal’ back in the spring, I got something in the mail from RPI. It contained the news that I’m guaranteed a $60,000 scholarship at that school over four years. Unfortunately though, I’m not sure that I’m interested in a technical institute over a traditional university. Also, I’m still unsure about what I want to do or major in.
Opinions about tech schools in comparison to universities? I really need some help with this one.