Kamila
Hey college kids.
Kamila
Welcome back to my podcast.
Kamila
Who cares about College in today’s episode I’ll be interviewing Tyler, so if you could introduce yourself.
Tyler
Hello, thank you for having me. Sorry I’m Tyler rocket. I’m from Swampscott MA. I’ll be attending Carnegie Mellon University in the fall of 2022.
Tyler
So I, Oh yeah, I.
Tyler
Forgot, was I supposed to say again?
Kamila
To temper demographics like you know gender and race upon application.
Tyler
Oh yeah.
Tyler
Yeah, so regarding my demographics.
Tyler
I’m a white man.
Tyler
I use he him pronouns.
Tyler
Both my parents are immigrants.
Tyler
They grew up in South Africa.
Tyler
My dad was born in England and my mom was born in Zim.
Tyler
Subway, uhm so I grew up in the United States, so I’ll be going to Carnegie Mellon as a business major and temper with the concentration hopefully in finance.
Tyler
And I’m thinking of picking up a second major or minor and something like computational finance or computer science or something like that, so yeah.
Tyler
Pretty excited.
Kamila
All right, so first, let’s get an idea of.
Kamila
I guess the expectations for college with you and like what education looks like in your family.
Kamila
So can you tell me about #1? Did your parents like go to college? Did you have any siblings that went to college and did they you know Carnegie Mellon is one of the top universities. Did they expect you to apply to top universities and get into these top universities?
Tyler
Yeah, definitely so I have one younger brother who’s a sophomore, so I was the 1st to go to college.
Tyler
Both my parents.
Tyler
They were both college educated in South Africa, but on coming to the United States they really didn’t know anything about the system.
Tyler
They just kind of had the notion you know you go to.
Tyler
Like a top top school.
Tyler
Or you basically might as well not go to college, so there was always like a lot of pressure to go to a really good school in.
Tyler
My household so it definitely.
Tyler
Got more stressful as it went on.
Tyler
Long, yeah, so there’s definitely a lot of pressure from them to to succeed and do well, which it wasn’t necessarily in a bad way.
Tyler
Just kind of, you know, they really wanted me to succeed really, really wanted me to.
Tyler
Get a good college.
Tyler
So and I was lucky enough to have the.
Tyler
Opportunity I guess.
Tyler
I didn’t mention my socioeconomic status earlier, but I didn’t really apply for financial aid, so luckily I’m able to have parents that can afford to send me to college.
Tyler
So I’m like lucky enough to have had the opportunities to kind of set me up for that.
Tyler
I just had to do the work.
Kamila
So if you have any like older siblings and then also your parents didn’t know much about the system, was there anyone in like in particular that guided you throughout high school and like what you should be including or what you should be trying to strive for with a college application?
Kamila
Or did you kind of just Google the answers?
Kamila
And find your way around that.
Tyler
Yeah, definitely a lot of it was the Internet for sure.
Tyler
I also you know my 3 best friends.
Tyler
One of them is going to Tufts and the other one he got deferred from Stanford with as his top.
Tyler
Choice and my my other friend.
Tyler
He’s the valedictorian of my school and he’s going to Duke, so it’s like I kind of, you know, I’ve always had friends that they also, you know, kind of pushed me to succeed and I would just kind of ask them.
Tyler
You know what am I supposed to do?
Tyler
What am I supposed to do?
Tyler
And I have a?
Tyler
Counselor in my.
Tyler
School who helped me out a lot.
Tyler
But yeah most of it was definitely the Internet.
Tyler
Uh, usually like I use a lot of forums like Reddit and Discord to get information and like see me.
Tyler
So yeah, it was kind of.
Tyler
It was kind of nerve wracking at first ’cause.
Tyler
You know there’s so.
Tyler
Much to learn, and it was kind.
Tyler
Of I nowhere really.
Tyler
To to go to besides.
Tyler
Or within my family I had no one to ask really.
Tyler
But yeah, it was mostly the Internet and my friends.
Kamila
And then also before we get into your actual college app, you know the grades and extracurriculars.
Kamila
One last thing, what kind of school did you go to?
Kamila
Is it public, private, magnet, whatever?
Tyler
Yeah, I was lucky enough to go to a private school like 20 minutes away from from my town. So I will Saint John’s prep in Danvers.
Tyler
It’s really good school, so that gave me a lot of opportunities, especially with like the counselors and the rigorous coursework and everything.
Kamila
OK, and now like me you go to a private school.
Kamila
We have to talk about what is like the structure with private schools.
Kamila
When you come in, do they already have like a?
Kamila
I guess schedule for the next four years?
Kamila
Do you like how often do you meet up with counselors?
Kamila
So like how?
Kamila
How does it differ from a traditional public school where you know occasionally meet up with your counselor and you have a lot of like?
Kamila
Free reign over your courses and stuff.
Tyler
Yeah, well I guess with private school.
Tyler
For me it was kind of I go to an all boys.
Tyler
School by the way.
Tyler
Uhm, so it was kind of, you know.
Tyler
We had basically said courses and we can only really pick a couple of electives our senior year and you could pick one year junior year.
Tyler
So it’s kind of, you know, there’s we have 4 levels at our school.
Tyler
We have CP accelerated honors and then Advanced Placement, which is yeah the standard one that everybody has.
Tyler
Yeah, you can pick your levels basically and not really classes.
Tyler
It’s kind of your set on on a path when you enter the school after taking the placement exams and everything and you’re kind of stuck on that path for the next four years.
Tyler
But, uh, you do meet with your counselor a couple times a year.
Tyler
It’s mostly like on.
Tyler
A request basis.
Tyler
’cause it’s it’s a relatively big school.
Tyler
There’s like 300 kids in grade.
Tyler
Uh, so and there’s like 6 counselors, so there are a lot of kids so you don’t meet that much, but there’s definitely like checkins and you can definitely, you know, arrange meetings whenever you want, so it’s definitely really beneficial.
Kamila
And the overall environment with your school is one of those schools that, like typically, sends a lot of kids to top schools.
Kamila
Or was it more like you had those who were not bad, like hard and like academic achieving?
Kamila
And then somewhere that were like in the middle and then some I guess like you or your friends who were like really academically rigorous?
Kamila
Like was it very competitive?
Kamila
Everywhere or was it more balanced out?
Tyler
Uh, yeah, I mean, I definitely say it’s pretty balanced.
Tyler
I guess.
Tyler
’cause you know, there’s so many different levels of courses you kind of.
Tyler
Only really exposed to that certain group of people for the next 4.
Tyler
Years, there’s not really that much mixing, so there’s definitely like cohorts.
Tyler
I I think you know people kind of expect when they go in and everybody is.
Tyler
Going to like a top school.
Tyler
But I’d definitely say it’s a.
Tyler
It’s pretty spread out, it’s.
Kamila
Alright, so let’s get into the core. I guess the courses you took and then eventually your grades. So based on whatever you do, wherever you land with your placement exam by the end of high school. How many AP’s?
Kamila
And how many?
Kamila
I don’t think we have to go to.
Kamila
Like accelerator, but at least how?
Kamila
Many APS and how?
Kamila
Many honors did you end up with?
Tyler
Uhm, yeah.
Tyler
Well for APS I will finish with the after taking 10 AP classes.
Tyler
By the time I graduate and honors, I don’t know the number.
Tyler
It was just I took everything else at the honors level.
Tyler
Yeah, I kind of just took as many as I could basically so I’m not really sure.
Tyler
I guess it’s six classes.
Tyler
So I don’t know somewhere around like 18 honors classes I guess.
Kamila
All right, so in the end, let’s talk about your GPA before we talk about like your safety and asked.
Kamila
So first, can you give the scale for your school what was like? I guess the highest GPA you could have 5.05 point 5. So can you give the scale for that? And also what was your unweighted and then?
Kamila
Weighted GPA when you apply to colleges.
Tyler
Yeah, so my school, UM are waiting to send the maximum GPA can get is at 4.75.
Tyler
It’s a yeah, theoretically on the 5.0 scale, but everybody is required to take two religion classes which are default at the CP level like you can’t take higher than that, so it makes the maximum GPA like a 4.75.
Tyler
So my weighted GPA on that scale was a four points at 4/1.
Tyler
Where’s my weighted GPA?
Tyler
Uh, my unweighted school didn’t give it to us, so I didn’t submit it to colleges or anything.
Tyler
I I just, you know, send my transcript and.
Tyler
My weighted GPA.
Kamila
But you’re basically almost straight A’s with maybe a couple.
Kamila
B’s in it.
Tyler
Yeah I had I-1.
Tyler
I2B pluses my freshman year and the rest were a minus and above.
Kamila
Alright, OK, so now let’s go into SATT and this is like you have to tell me. The entire you have to tell us the entire journey.
Kamila
So when did you even start thinking about ask Prep?
Kamila
What did you actually do to prepare?
Kamila
Whether that’s tutoring, taking classes if yours?
Kamila
I don’t know how private schools do it, but even like some public schools offer like courses for students to take.
Kamila
So if you took any of those and then obviously your attempts, how many attempts you had?
Kamila
And then what?
Kamila
Was your super score in the end?
Tyler
Yeah, so I guess for reference ended up going test optional to Carnegie Mellon if that’s important.
Tyler
So I started thinking about it like the end of my junior year.
Tyler
I guess I was a little later than some people, but like during the summer my junior year, I just took it once without studying and I got like a 1360 I think.
Tyler
And then I I did.
Tyler
Like a a class outside of school and I brought it up to a 1440.
Tyler
Which it was a 730 English and a 710. Math was that score. So I was just, you know, the Super scored one that I had.
Tyler
So I sent out.
Tyler
To basically all my safeties and some of my target schools and just went test optional might reach schools like Carnegie Mellon.
Kamila
Alright, alright that works.
Kamila
Do you think that like when you were doing it ’cause being test optional like doesn’t hurt you like obviously if they don’t see a score they can’t do anything but like obviously seeing the score a good score can help them.
Kamila
Did you have that worry like oh maybe I should?
Kamila
Like maybe I should have prepared earlier, like do you have that advice for people to like maybe?
Kamila
Take it a couple.
Kamila
Times leading up to college apps.
Tyler
Yeah, definitely that part of my application was one that you know I had a lot of regrets with.
Tyler
The standardized testing is definitely I would say.
It it.
Tyler
Definitely made me really, really nervous. I was kind of surprised ’cause you can look at a fair 2020 last year. I think like 76% of the class at Carnegie Mellon was like they submitted.
Tyler
Scores, so I mean other schools are like 5050, so some schools are really doesn’t matter. But I guess like you know, being those.
Tyler
Those are really top.
Tyler
Schools I know like Upenn as well.
Tyler
They also had, like around 75% submitted scores, so I would definitely recommend taking it multiple times like spaced out and then I would highly highly recommend the classes ’cause they actually make so much of a difference in just doing practice tests over and over and over ’cause the problems are really really similar, especially their reading passages.
Tyler
Yeah, so I guess definitely I would, I would.
Tyler
Definitely recommend putting a.
Tyler
Lot of effort into the standardized testing ’cause it?
Tyler
It makes a massive difference in your application, especially with so many kids going test optional.
Kamila
Yeah, all right.
Kamila
So let’s go into some more exciting stuff and I got like the GPS 80 honors AP class out of the way.
Kamila
So let’s go into extra curriculars, same with as I said when you were coming into high school with your classes when you came into private school, was there like a meeting with your guidance counselor and they’re like, alright Tyler?
Kamila
Do you have any particular interest?
Kamila
Do you want to like narrow down on something and focus your extracurriculars on that?
Kamila
Or were you more like free flowing discovering clubs?
Tyler
Uh, yeah, I mean, there wasn’t really any help.
Tyler
It was kind of just you can figure out what you want to do and show up to club meetings or try out for sports if you want.
Tyler
So I went into the to my high school playing soccer.
Tyler
I played soccer and I played Ultimate Frisbee in the spring, which I continued for four years, which is really fun.
Tyler
But mainly, my extracurriculars came from something at my school.
Tyler
It’s a Catholic school, so there’s like a lot of emphasis on community service, so I kind of started doing a ton of community service events and being.
Tyler
Really, really involved with that.
Tyler
And campus, you know leadership and and leading like alumni, events and things like that.
Tyler
So that was kind of.
Tyler
I mean, I really took advantage of land, specially in South May.
Tyler
I was just trying a bunch of things freshman and sophomore year.
Tyler
I kind of went to basically a different club meeting every day.
Tyler
I’ve basically been to every club in my school to kind of find.
Tyler
Like you know what I really enjoy and want to continue for.
Tyler
The next couple of years.
Tyler
Uh, so yeah I guess.
Tyler
It was just the mix of trying.
Tyler
Everything and then really focusing on the stuff I really liked, like Frisbee and community service.
Tyler
Yeah, so that’s been out of school too.
Tyler
I I I really like finance so I started investing.
Tyler
I like my own small fund my sophomore year and kind of grew that the next three years.
Tyler
So I would say definitely.
Tyler
It was important for me to just try out a bunch of different things and then really focus on a couple couple passions.
Kamila
All right, so I want to break down each extracurricular ’cause I think these are the ones that I mean.
Kamila
It makes your application you most people applying to Carnegie Mellon will have like almost perfect GPA’s or really good scores and stuff.
Kamila
So number one you talked about sports or soccer and Frisbee, and specifically soccer.
Kamila
You said you came into high school playing soccer, so were you in like a league?
Kamila
Outside of your own school.
Tyler
Yeah, I mean I played for like 10 years before coming to high school and I played the first two years of high school and then I ended up playing golf my junior year and played Frisbee.
Tyler
All four years.
Tyler
So yeah, the sports wasn’t too big of a part of my application.
Tyler
I yeah, I definitely focused more on like community service.
Tyler
And Frisbee, and you know my other passions.
Kamila
And I mean, I know it wasn’t a big part, but like in terms of college app part like soccer, you’ve been playing for 10 years.
Kamila
It’s like it’s going.
Kamila
To sound huge, and obviously it’s a big.
Kamila
Time commitment so when.
Kamila
You were like applying and writing it down on the application.
Kamila
Did you?
Kamila
I don’t know.
Kamila
Write down like, oh we went to like states or went to regionals and stuff like that.
Kamila
But did you guys have any accomplishments?
Kamila
That you wrote down like that.
Tyler
Yeah, definitely for the sports.
Tyler
Definitely include a lot of you know a description of like it’s Interstate tournaments, things like that is important to highlight and then any leadership I had within it.
Tyler
So like yeah, I’m a captain of the Frisby team this year.
Tyler
So for for Frisby I would put that.
Tyler
You know, it’s just kind of highlighting.
Tyler
Uh, that it’s, you know, it’s kind of.
Tyler
Definitely like highlight the uniqueness of of whatever sport you’re doing in that commitment level.
Tyler
Like you said, you know it’s a long time playing club sports, so definitely show that you’re putting in like a lot of African to something outside of school.
Tyler
Excuse me is important.
Kamila
Alright, let’s go on to community service now.
Kamila
’cause you said you put much more emphasis on that.
Kamila
So can you tell me about the different community service that you did either within or within school or out of school and then, like you know, specific organisations.
Kamila
What did you?
Kamila
What organisations were you part of eventually?
Kamila
What role did you lead up to and what did you actually do in those organisations?
Kamila
What kind of impact did you have?
Tyler
Uh, yeah.
Tyler
So I guess I started community service at my school.
Tyler
They had like community service offerings.
Tyler
You would just go for an hour to volunteer at a, uh, a residence home.
Tyler
Uhm, after school, and that’s kind of what started it.
Tyler
I started just.
Tyler
Going every week and.
Tyler
Then I kind of moved to out of school.
Tyler
I started participating in a organization called North Shore Rovers.
Tyler
It’s where kids are paired with.
Tyler
Our volunteers are paired with a child with a mental or physical disability, and you teach them how to play soccer.
Tyler
And you meet every Sunday morning for a couple hours for the course of over the course.
Tyler
Of the fall.
Tyler
And I had leadership in in that organization.
Tyler
I was a volunteer mentor and volunteer ambassador, so I was kind of responsible for, you know, being someone that other volunteers could look to for help and was responsible for getting new volunteers into the organization and within my school.
Tyler
I also I I got an award for.
Tyler
Community service my sophomore year.
Tyler
It’s just at the end of the year and I was also nominated to the XPS team in my school, which is it’s sensors invariant Brother, sponsored schools and there’s a bunch of them across the United States.
Tyler
And at each school, eight kids are nominated by faculty members recognized as leaders within the community, and we go to an overnight retreat in Connecticut with the kids from all these ovarian brothers schools across the country.
Tyler
And after that each team goes back to their respective school and kind of completes a service project.
Tyler
So we kind of started with just doing small community service stuff and kind of grow into like, you know, the leadership roles and kind of just happen naturally.
Kamila
And then with your service project, can you elaborate more on that?
Kamila
What did you focus on and what did you like?
Kamila
What was like the end product or end goal with that service project?
Tyler
Yeah, so we decided that well.
Tyler
We notice that in.
Tyler
Our school specifically for us, we didn’t really get like for all of us.
Tyler
We didn’t really get involved with the community service until like our sophomore junior year, so we thought it would be a good idea to help get the freshman involved and get the freshman more connected with the upperclassmen.
Tyler
So we’re creating.
Tyler
Like a buddy system where they’ll be, you know, one of the upperclassmen.
Tyler
One of the seniors will be paired up with like four or five freshmen in a group, and they’ll kind of meet periodically.
Tyler
You know every month or so throughout.
Tyler
The school year and just kind of do fun activities and kind of get to know each other and they can ask the senior for advice and everything and just kind of help bridge that gap and create better connections within the community.
Tyler
Especially than encouraging things like participating in campus events and community service and things like that.
Kamila
And one thing with this, like with community service within school with out of school when you obviously community service like I have been to enough college tours and like listen to enough.
Kamila
Just like a bunch of information, but community services like a core to many, especially like top schools.
Kamila
I really value that.
Kamila
So when you’re going into high school, what advice?
Kamila
Would you give in finding?
Kamila
Different organisations to be part of.
Kamila
Like who do you ask when you want to join community service and like is there a proper amount that you should do and how do you find the kind of community?
Kamila
Service that works for you.
Tyler
Ah well, I mean, I would kind of.
Tyler
I guess the advice I would give is kind of try a bunch of different things.
Tyler
There’s so many different places you can volunteer, and if even if it’s not like you know, places don’t advertise as like you can come here and serve 2 hours.
Tyler
Most places you can really just send an email, give a phone call, just say you know.
Tyler
You’re a student looking to volunteer, and most places will be really, really accommodating for that.
Tyler
I guess it’s just about you know you can ask other people around you who you know you are doing it or upperclassmen.
Tyler
But yeah, like you said, it’s it’s definitely noticed by college admissions and most people have have a lot of hours, but I would focus less on the hours and more about you know, finding areas of community service.
Tyler
Like you can focus on and continue, you know, going on or recurring basis instead of just, you know, some people just go on a mission trip and then get like you know there’s 60 hours and.
Tyler
And that’s it for community service.
Tyler
But I would definitely emphasize going on like a weekly or bi weekly basis or going and trying different things and specifically within your own community.
Tyler
It’s really nice to help within your own community and show that you know you’re giving back to you.
Tyler
Know your own town.
Kamila
All right, and one more thing, before we get until you mentioned investing, which like I’ve never heard from.
Kamila
Any interview I’ve done?
Kamila
I’ve done a bunch of these so before we get into that, are there any, like other major school?
Kamila
I guess oriented or maybe outside of school.
Kamila
Things that you want to talk about.
Kamila
Before we get into that.
Tyler
Oh no, nothing in particular, I don’t think.
Kamila
All right, let’s OK.
Kamila
What is this investing I need to know for personal reasons to like?
Kamila
Where did you even like start?
Kamila
Where does this interest even come from in order to like start investing and how do you even do that?
Kamila
As a high schooler?
Tyler
Yeah, so I guess, uh, my dad worked at fidelity for a living, so I always kind of knew got from him like the investing background and there’s a is an investment club in my school so it’s kind of, you know, I hear a little bit about it.
Tyler
But when you turn 16, you can get something called a custodial account where it’s technically under your parents name.
Tyler
And it’s like when you turn 18’s automatically putting your own name. So it’s just you know you you can invest in a stock market and trade bonds and stocks and.
Tyler
I kind of.
Tyler
Always, you know from my dad I kind of always thought it would be something I’d really enjoy from a little kid.
Tyler
I decided when I was like 5 I wanted.
Tyler
To work in finance.
Tyler
Just ’cause he did.
Tyler
And what I kind of changed when I got.
Tyler
Into high school.
Tyler
I kind of started following the stock market.
Tyler
You know, beginning in my sophomore year and when I finally turned 16 in May in my sophomore year.
Tyler
For my birthday, my dad opened it up.
Tyler
For me and I put.
Tyler
Some money in so my savings.
Tyler
And I started investing and I remember my first trade.
Tyler
I lost like half of the money I put in and.
Tyler
I was like, yeah, I was like this is a lot harder than I thought. But you know, eventually I ended up doing really well. I made like 70% total return.
Tyler
By the time I applied should I was nice to put on the application is you know you can show that I I could show that I kind of learned and and developed the skill and put the effort in.
Tyler
But yeah, I guess.
Tyler
It was just the it’s really easy to start.
Tyler
I know a lot of kids, a lot of kids do it, come from from my school, at least a lot of kids kind of got into it.
Tyler
They’re like sophomore and junior year, especially ’cause that was when the GameStop thing was happening in the Wall Street bets everybody.
Tyler
The market was going crazy and everybody.
Tyler
Making so much money so everybody was like, oh, shoot, I gotta buy stocks.
Tyler
But yeah, it was it was.
Tyler
It was really fun.
Tyler
It’s something that I just kind of got into from my dad, but kind of grew personally kind of grew to love personally and wanted to wanted to.
Tyler
Pursue in college.
Kamila
OK, and.
Kamila
In terms of the college application, ’cause?
Kamila
I mean, that’s what you’re here for.
Kamila
What did you put on the college application like?
Kamila
Because you have a very limited amount of space for investing ’cause it’s not like every kid does that.
Kamila
It’s not like a very typical extracurricular that you hear of I.
Kamila
I mean, I just.
Kamila
I’ve never heard of so in terms of the college AB, what did you exactly put on there?
Kamila
What did you emphasize?
Kamila
On the college app.
Tyler
Uh, yeah.
Tyler
Well I just said it was a private investment firm and I was the fund manager of the firm and I I listed the return, which was the exact number.
Tyler
Was 68% return as of you know May 2020, which is when I opened it and I just said, you know, I’m responsible for conducting market research.
Tyler
An analysis and you know, trade stocks and bonds.
Tyler
That was kind of what I put in the activity section, ’cause, you know, like you said, you don’t really have that many characters, so it’s just kind of a brief description of like.
Tyler
You know what I do?
Tyler
Basically, conduct market research and analysis.
Tyler
Was the highlight and then the return number.
Kamila
All right, so if unless there are other like bigger, I mean obviously you probably have like a club here there that you did for a year, but unless there are other bigger extracurriculars that you want to talk about, we can get into your making your college list and writing your essays.
Kamila
So when did you start?
Kamila
And this can be really anything that’s you know, doing a Google search and learning about different colleges going on college visits.
Kamila
When did you start actually thinking about what colleges you were going to apply to and how did you start making your list?
Kamila
What were the different things that you were looking for in a school?
Tyler
Yeah, so I guess I could kind of say that I started thinking about it my sophomore year, which is really early.
Tyler
I I definitely don’t think it’s necessary to think about it that early, but I kind of started then, but only really dove into it like towards the end of my junior year was when I really started developing a list.
Tyler
And I I don’t recommend doing this, but the kind of way I set on my list.
Tyler
Initially we just looked up like, you know, best undergraduate finance schools, best undergraduate business schools and then just took those.
Tyler
Took like the top ten and then kind of, you know, that’s that’s how I first started my list.
Tyler
Then obviously it developed way beyond that ’cause I ended up applying to.
Tyler
To 18 schools?
Tyler
So yeah, I definitely had a lot.
Tyler
’cause I kind of, you know.
Tyler
I my my parents really wanted me to.
Tyler
Go somewhere like Ivy League or close to.
Tyler
The Ivy League.
Tyler
So yeah, I guess I started around my junior year and kind of started started developing my list then.
Kamila
Alright, and what were the different OK, besides the top ten finance schools were other factors that you looked for and this can like be anything like very.
Kamila
Particular or like broad, were you looking for like I don’t know was like a city suburb, rural setting.
Kamila
Important population was that important you know stuff like that what were you looking for with?
Kamila
The different factors.
Tyler
Yeah, I definitely kind of had a mix of everything, but I definitely really had an emphasis on being close to a city.
Tyler
I really wanted a campus that had like a closed campus field, but it was also right next to a city.
Tyler
You know, I looked at schools like I want it ordered.
Tyler
For example, Northeastern and I, you know, I like how it’s in a city that I didn’t really like how it was, you know, kind of.
Tyler
Basically, was the city like.
Tyler
There’s no central campus feel.
Kamila
Oh my God is.
Kamila
It really like in the city.
Tyler
Yeah, it’s like.
Kamila
That’s my dream.
Tyler
We live, oh, really.
Kamila
School OK, that sounds great for me.
Kamila
Alright, yeah you’re going.
Tyler
Yeah, it’s like in the city, in the city and it’s really nice like I love it.
Tyler
It’s an amazing part of Boston.
Tyler
But I prefer like Boston College for example.
Tyler
’cause it was like close to the city but had that closed kind of feel.
Tyler
So I definitely was looking for a for a school up close to a city, especially for like business and finance, so it’s kind of important to me.
Tyler
I want to be by by a city, so I’m glad to be close to Pittsburgh with Carnegie Mellon obviously, but I also I also kind of cared about things like frats.
Tyler
I kind of, you know, want the option to maybe join a fraternity and.
Tyler
In college, that was wasn’t too important to me, but that was something I cared about and I guess class size.
Tyler
I definitely prefer it a little bit on the larger stud like around 10,007 to 10,000 students was kind of my ideal number.
Tyler
I didn’t want it to be too small and I didn’t want it to be like 2 massive either.
Tyler
So kind.
Tyler
Of like a.
Tyler
Medium class size rather than that it wasn’t.
Tyler
Uh, it wasn’t really that much other than obviously academics.
Tyler
That was important to me.
Kamila
All right now.
Kamila
Of the 18 schools that you can remember, can you list out the ones that you applied to?
Kamila
Like I guess we can start with your safeties, go to targets and then go to your reach schools like I guess.
Kamila
In that order.
Tyler
Yeah, for sure I I guess.
Tyler
I should have probably listed this.
Tyler
But yeah, for my safeties I applied to Fordham University of Miami University of Pittsburgh.
Tyler
I was kind of there for my safeties basically, and then for my targets I had Villanova.
Tyler
Uh babson.
Tyler
Uhm, and then I had basically a bunch of reaches.
Tyler
I had, you know, northeastern.
Tyler
I applied there.
Tyler
I had UNC, Utah, Austin, University of Michigan, University of Pennsylvania, Cornell, Notre Dame.
Tyler
Carnegie Mellon.
Tyler
Uhm, what else did I have?
Tyler
Vanderbilt, Emory, oh, I guess another.
Tyler
Match I had was Lee High.
Tyler
I forgot to mention that one.
Tyler
Uh, yeah, I think I’m probably leaving out a couple, but that was kind of the main ones.
Tyler
I was focusing on.
Kamila
Yeah, so you also said you applied Eddie two to Carnegie Mellon, so can you explain how that Eddie two worked and how you were able to apply to other schools with that?
Tyler
Yeah, so I initially did early decision one to the University of Pennsylvania, but I was rejected so I did early action to a bunch of other schools that none of them were restrictive or anything, and.
Then he did.
Tyler
82 A Carnegie Mellon. Obviously it was my top choice, so.
Tyler
It was it.
Tyler
Was really nice ’cause you hear back like within the month it was by January 3rd and they heard back on the 29th.
Tyler
We just so nice to hear back quick so so it didn’t really restrict me from anything.
Tyler
It was kind of just it’s, you know it’s binding.
Tyler
So once you’re admitted you have to withdraw every application or deny acceptance at any other schools.
Tyler
Uh, they may have been admitted to, but I didn’t.
Tyler
I I wasn’t restricted from applying anywhere else too.
Tyler
So so yeah, it was definitely.
Tyler
No brand new for me.
Kamila
All right, and we have to hear what was your reaction when you went into Carnegie Mellon ’cause.
Kamila
That’s no easy feat.
Tyler
Yeah it was.
Tyler
I was super excited ’cause I was honestly really not expecting it.
Tyler
I actually we had like a big Blizzard the night before in a school dance so I was sleeping over at my friends house with a couple of my buddies and I woke up in the morning.
Tyler
I kept on like waking up every hour starting at like 5:00 AM and then checked my phone to see if it was 9:00 AM.
Tyler
Yet ’cause that’s when I said that.
Tyler
They’re gonna release decisions.
Tyler
Also I checked and I was kind of like taking it back.
Tyler
I was like like.
Tyler
Why come you don’t believe it?
Tyler
Yeah, I just like ran into the room where my friends were sleeping and told them and then like his mom came and she was like like what’s what’s the problem like what’s going on?
Tyler
Is that one OK?
Tyler
And I told her I got.
Tyler
In and she was super hyped, so yeah, it was really awesome.
Tyler
They were my friends, so right after that I obviously called my parents.
Tyler
And everything not to tell them, but I was super over the moon about it, ’cause it’s you know, I was not expecting it and and I’m super excited about it.
Kamila
This is pretty recently, so you’re still very very hyped up if they came out like the 29th or something.
Tyler
Yeah, definitely it.
Tyler
Definitely has now gone away.
Tyler
It’s only.
Tyler
Done better, I’m super excited about it.
Tyler
I just I keep looking it up and things like that.
Tyler
And you know following all the accounts and everything so yeah.
All right so.
Kamila
We obviously very excited about Carnegie Mellon and you said it was one of your top choices.
Kamila
Can you tell?
Kamila
Us a little bit about Carnegie Mellon like you.
Kamila
Know you know campus size where it’s near, what it has to offer.
Kamila
And then obviously, what are the?
Kamila
It’s the top schools, so it’s obviously pretty good at many things, but what are some of the programs that they’re really well known for?
Kamila
Do they have any special programs that you’re really excited to be a part of when you go to Carnegie Mellon in the fall?
Tyler
Yeah, for sure. So the class size undergraduates is around like 7000 and it’s right by Pittsburgh. It’s right next to the University of Pittsburgh, actually.
Tyler
So it’s like right by the city, but it’s kind of got that closed campus and then has a.
Tyler
Park on the other side.
Tyler
Of it, which is really nice and then like golf course, I love to play golf.
Tyler
So that was awesome too.
Tyler
But yeah, the campus people say that the campus isn’t really, you know, people give it like you know, say it’s kind of ugly, but I personally really liked the campus.
Tyler
I think it’s nice.
Tyler
It’s grown a lot recently.
Tyler
It keeps expanding and keep building.
Tyler
New areas on campus so, So what it’s known for?
Tyler
I guess it’s obviously really known for its computer science and engineering programs, especially computer science.
Tyler
And then it also has a good business program, which is, you know what I’m going into. Obviously it’s grown a lot recently. In 2018 they built a new building, the Temple Quad.
Tyler
Which is really, really nice.
Tyler
I love the design of it and everything.
Tyler
It’s a lot of like natural light.
Tyler
So yeah, I guess it’s really known for the computer science field, especially that’s kind of what people think of and and math to.
Tyler
You know, you know.
Tyler
Someone says Carnegie Mellon.
Tyler
Personally, I always thought of math.
Tyler
So yeah, and I guess ah, regarding like special programs, I know it’s really, really easy to like double major in another school at Carnegie Mellon.
Tyler
Which is really, really nice ’cause obviously doing business it’s.
Tyler
I would like.
Tyler
To be able to take advantage of.
Tyler
Computer science or something like that.
Tyler
’cause in middle school I did like some programming.
Tyler
I didn’t really do it too much, but it’s something I’ve always kind of dabbled in.
Tyler
Like I’ve always kind of wanted to take advantage of it so I can do finance with like a major or minor in the computer science school on the side.
Tyler
So so which I think is really nice and they had offer, you know, a bunch of different concentrations within the business major, which I think is also great.
Tyler
And they definitely focus on the technical stuff.
Tyler
I know they have like a.
Tyler
I think they have.
Tyler
A computer science.
Tyler
Requirement for freshmen as well, which is which is really cool ’cause it kind of you know we’ll get my foot in the door.
Tyler
With that
Kamila
And then one thing, and, well, you’re right. When I think of Carnegie Mellon, like all I’ve been told, my whole life is computer science like that. Is the computer science school like #1.
Kamila
Yeah well yeah.
Kamila
One of the top ones.
Kamila
So when you’re applying to not just Carnegie Mellon, but as school and you’re applying as like a major, that’s really, I guess they’re known for like computer science.
Kamila
You have probably some like the nerdiest comp side kids like applying there so when you do that doesn’t make it harder for you to get accepted.
Kamila
If you apply as that major and then once you’re into the school, let’s say you applied undecided and you want to become one of those hard majors like computer science, is it hard to make that transition too?
Kamila
If you, if you know that.
Tyler
Ah yeah.
Speaker 1
Right?
Tyler
Yeah, I mean, I know I’ve talked a lot.
Tyler
About my buddy ’cause he.
Tyler
He applied into the Computer science school.
Tyler
I know for Carnegie Mellon the acceptance rate into the Business School. The past year, I think it was like 11.6%.
Tyler
And in the computer science school was like 4% or something. Those numbers could be off I, it’s just I. I think I really yeah it’s just.
Tyler
Yeah, it’s really.
Tyler
Low, so definitely it is really hard to get into computer science school so.
Tyler
Personally, and I guess regarding what you said about transferring once you get into the school.
Tyler
I know a lot of kids talk about, you know they just want to try like applying into a really you know the last selected parts of the university and then try to transfer.
Tyler
But I know that transferring specifically into the computer science school, it’s not just like adding a major or adding a second major.
Tyler
Or minor, it’s.
Tyler
Like you have to go through a whole process and actually reapply so it’s still extremely selective and I guess I would recommend not to do that.
Tyler
’cause you know you don’t want to get stuck in a major you don’t like it, and them saying they’re not going to accept you into the major.
Tyler
You were kind of banking on.
Tyler
So yeah, I would say it is hard to transfer within the school.
Tyler
You can easily add a major or minor, but completely transferring is going to be pretty difficult, especially to computer science or engineering.
Tyler
But yeah, I I guess computer science is definitely the hardest, but I would also recommend just applying to what you want to do.
Tyler
Don’t just I.
Tyler
I really would advise not trying to like game the system and apply it to a clinical easy major.
Tyler
I would just kind of apply to what you want to do.
Kamila
Right, so a couple more questions before we end.
Kamila
Here are you.
Kamila
Going to go on campus to Carnegie Mellon this fall.
Tyler
Uh, yeah for sure, definitely.
Tyler
Uh, yeah, and I’ll go visit as well in in April, hopefully.
Kamila
OK alright, so last thing before we wrap up here is advice so.
Kamila
We wouldn’t say like you’re successful in the college process.
Kamila
I think that’s the wrong word, but you obviously did get.
Kamila
Into a top school and you were.
Kamila
You were like well involved and you got good grades in school.
Kamila
So for people who are maybe perhaps waiting for their college decisions, if you want to give advice for that, or maybe freshmen just coming in or people who are just starting the college process, what advice would you give for them?
Kamila
So yeah, let’s do that.
Kamila
What advice would you give for current college high school students who are either coming in and thinking about college?
Kamila
Or like maybe in the college process and then also for those you know, maybe any words of constant like consolation for those who are waiting for their decisions.
Tyler
Yeah, I guess going into high school and while you’re in high school, the advice I would give is just like get involved at your school.
Tyler
It’s definitely never too early to start because you know you put on the common tab you select the years you’ve participated in activities and it’s always really nice.
Tyler
This like 910-1112 for grades you’ve participated in something. So I would definitely kind of cast.
Tyler
Your net wide.
Tyler
And kind of try a bunch of different things and find what you like and kind of explore those passions and then leadership within those passions will develop naturally.
Tyler
Just kind of, you know, explore things you like and definitely go out of your comfort zone.
Tyler
Obviously it was kind of hard for me personally to go and try a bunch of different things and be around new people and go with doing community service after school.
Tyler
Sometimes I was like, oh, I’d rather just go home and take a nap.
Tyler
But you know, I would definitely advise following your passions and kind of exploring new things.
Tyler
And I guess for people waiting for college.
Tyler
Uh, I would say you.
Tyler
Know it’s.
Tyler
You know whatever is meant to happen is going to happen, I guess.
Tyler
Now once you click submit, it’s out of your hands.
Tyler
At that point, there’s nothing you can do, and stressing about it isn’t really going to change or isn’t going to change anything.
Tyler
There’s nothing you can do at this point, so as long as you know you you put in your best effort the past four years you tried your hardest, you know.
Tyler
Whatever is bound to happen is going to happen.
Tyler
And and at the end.
Tyler
Of the day.
Tyler
The difference between going to like a top 30 college and going, you know, to a different school that’s you know, supposedly not as good.
Tyler
It’s probably not that.
Tyler
Much, it’s about what you do in college and the amount of work you put in in college that is going to make the difference rather than specifically, you know, going to you know Harvard versus another another school so.
Kamila
All right, Tyler, thank you so much for coming on.
Kamila
And you know, obviously congratulations for getting to Carnegie Mellon.
Kamila
I will.
Kamila
Email you when I release your episode of true.
Kamila
Probably very, very soon.
Kamila
’cause I don’t have any other episodes lined up and then also one last thing you did, I have to keep this podcast going so you did mention you have some friends like one got into Duke and then particularly one friend got into town.
Kamila
Would you mind asking them if they’d like to come onto my podcast to be interviewed just?
Kamila
Like you are.
Tyler
Yeah for sure.
Tyler
I already spoke to the friend in topics I.
Tyler
Told him about.
Tyler
It and I I said I could.
Tyler
I go to ask if he wanted to be on too, but yeah, I think he’d definitely.
Tyler
Be down, I’ll ask the friend who.
Tyler
Got into Duke as well.
Tyler
For sure.
Tyler
I’ll I’ll text both of them.
Kamila
Alright, thank you so much and you’re eastern.
Kamila
So have a good evening.
Tyler
Thank you, appreciate it.
Kamila
Alright bye bye.
Kamila
That’s it for my episode with Tyler.
Kamila
I hope you enjoy it and I hope you subscribe next week.
Kamila
I’ll be releasing an episode with Henry who will be attending Tufts this upcoming fall, and I hope to see you then.