There is no most "volume", only more "volume"! In the case of soaring applicants and no increase in school enrollment places, this year's U.S. application has reached a new height, with GPA scores rising and standardization...... Thousands of troops cross the single-plank bridge, and the one who always stands out wins!
Standing out through standardized requirements and activities seems to be a bit difficult for this year's and future U.S. applications. Through communication with admissions officers of prestigious American universities and related data analysis, we have found that the right competition has become an important "weapon" for American applicants to stand out in recent years, and learning to choose the right competition is to some extent as important as choosing a school!
To this end, Liumei.com has sorted out the high-frequency subject competitions in the top U.S. applications for you, so as to help cheer for everyone's U.S. applications!
Humanities and Social Sciences
1. John Locke Essay Competition
The John Locke Essay Competition is sponsored by the John Locke Institute, an independent educational organization in Oxford, UK, and co-organized by professors from Oxford University, Princeton University, Brown University and other prestigious universities.
The judging panel for the competition is held annually from the University of Oxford. The competition has become one of the most popular and recognized English essay competitions for high school students in the world because of its wide range of subjects and profound and interesting topics. The John Locke Essay Contest has been recognized by universities in the United Kingdom and the United States, and is one of the most valuable competitions in the social sciences category in recent years.
2. New York Times Writing Contest
As one of the most influential media outlets in the world, the New York Times provides a high-quality creative platform to middle school students around the world every year, and hundreds of thousands of students have participated in it over the past 14 years. In addition to a variety of types, the New York Times (NYT) series of writing contests also has a relatively high gold content.
Not only are these contests completely free, winners receive a New York Times official website and a large scholarship, but they also have a good reputation among high school students around the world, and the awards are highly recognized by universities!
The more well-known and high-value writing competitions are (click the link to view details):
纽约时报个人叙事写作竞赛 Personal Narrative Writing Contest
纽约时报社论写作竞赛Editorial Contest
纽约时报STEM写作比赛 STEM Writing Contest
纽约时报夏季读写比赛 Summer Reading Contest
3.The Concord Review
Founded in 1987, it is currently the world's only quarterly academic journal on history for high school students. It is the only quarterly journal in the world that publishes students' academic essays in history, representing the highest honors in the field of high school history.
It is regarded as the highest honor in the field of high school history, with an acceptance rate of only about 8%, and its authority and gold content are beyond doubt. At the same time, the organizing committee also held a Summer Camp with very good feedback from students.
It is reported that about 42% of the students who have published articles in "The Concord Review" have been admitted to Ivy League schools, which is a well-deserved "vine climbing weapon"!
Business
1. WGHS Wharton Investment Competition
由宾夕法尼亚大学沃顿商学院举办的Wharton Global High School Investment Competition（WGHS，原称KWHS）是最具含金量的赛事之一。
The competition is open to high school students from around the world in grades 9-12 in groups of 4-7. Compared to other competitions with long schedules and complicated rules, the rules are very simple and crude - virtual investment.
Each team is required to invest $100,000 in virtual initial capital on Wharton's proprietary OTIS simulation platform for 10 weeks. The competition judges will select the winners based on the scientific and effective nature of the group's investment strategy.
The application track for business has been very standardized, and if students have participated in a high-level and high-value competition such as the Wharton Investment Competition, it will be a big plus. The three major regions in the world, Region 1, China, Japan, South Korea, etc., Region 2, India, Singapore, Thailand, Region 3, America, Europe, Africa and Oceania, etc.
2. CTB China Great Wisdom Exchange
China Thinks Big from Harvard, or CTB for short, is the largest Chinese youth innovation competition, giving birth to the largest number of students admitted to world-famous universities and independent admissions. Every year, the national finals will be held at the Stanford Center in Beijing and the Harvard Center in Shanghai, and the winners can participate in the North American roadshow held at Harvard University, Stanford University, Silicon Valley and other places.
The results of the participating teams have been published in academic journals at home and abroad, and reported by CCTV and other official media. China Thinks Big cooperates with dozens of top universities at home and abroad, including Yale, Stanford, Tsinghua University, Peking University, Fudan University, and Jiaotong University, to propose annual research topics and practical challenges to middle school students. Through the knowledge system and classic research methodology of world-renowned universities, the academic and innovative potential of the participants is stimulated, and the participants are encouraged to pay attention to social issues and focus on the life around them. With original ideas and innovative solutions, we will practice the spirit of "Think Big, Do Small".
Race Harvest. In addition to the official award certificates issued by the judges, teams and individuals who perform well in the competition will also have opportunities; Obtain a letter of recommendation from the jury and the Harvard Organizing Committee, and recommend the full performance and results of the competition to the overseas university admissions office and the domestic independent admissions office where the student is applying; Potential research projects will be valued by the relevant faculties of the partner universities, and will be given the opportunity to further cooperate with university professors and scholars, or receive further support from the institutions and foundations of the judges. Team members have received key points in the selection of Harvard University's various activities in China.
Science and engineering
1.ISEF
As one of the "ceilings" of science and engineering competitions, it is estimated that no one does not know how hardcore ISEF is!
The Intel International Science and Engineering Prize (ISEF) is known as the "Little Nobel Prize" of the global youth science competition, and the winner is invited to the Nobel Prize ceremony and can even name an asteroid after himself.
The competition was founded by the Society for Science & the Public and developed from the 1950 American Science Fair for Middle School Students. It is currently the world's largest and highest-level youth science and technology competition for grades 9-12.
Participating in ISEF can also improve the overall competitiveness of applicants, not only showing their love for STEM subjects, but also delving into the impact of technology on society from different perspectives.
2. Yau Chengtong Science Award
It is said that nine out of ten Chinese applicants admitted to Ivy League schools have Yau's involvement!
The Yau Chengtong Middle School Science Award is known as the "Nobel Prize for Chinese Youth", and its gold content and international popularity are not weaker than those of the Regeneron Science Genius Award, ISEF and other competitions.
Since its inception in 2008, the S.T. Yau Middle School Science Award has developed from a single mathematics competition to a competition for students' scientific research and innovation ability based on six subjects: mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, computer, and economic and financial modeling.
And the reason why it can be "praised on the altar" is that it has contributed to the scientific research and academic exploration of high school students. At the same time, participating in the competition can not only help students meet the most authoritative scholars in various scientific research fields, but also have the opportunity to send to Qingbei or gain the favor of Hayeps.
3.USACO
The full name of USACO is USA Computing Olympiad, that is, the American Computer Olympiad, which corresponds to the Youth Informatics Olympiad (NOIP) in China.
Unlike USAMO, USACO is not only highly recognized among U.S. universities, but is also open to high school students from all over the world, and you only need to register an account on the official website to participate, and there is no cost to register.
The awards of this competition are a great opportunity to prove programming skills to undergraduate universities, and it is very beneficial for children who are preparing to study abroad and intend to apply for science and engineering, especially computer science.
Starting in December each year, USACO will host three monthly tournaments and one U.S. Open tournament online on four weekends. Contestants can choose any time period and any place during the competition to participate online.
The above are some of the high-frequency competitions in the application of Ivy League schools and top American schools, and there are many high-quality competitions, and you need to make a specific choice according to the major and direction of application. We remind our students that participating in the competition can play a finishing role in the application, but the final result still depends on the overall strength of the applicant. If you have any questions about the competition, please feel free to contact us!