Case Studies

Case Study: UC-Berkeley

Name: George, Missouri (USA)
Academics: 3.9 GPA, 1500 SAT, AP scores in AB Calculus (5), Macroeconomics (5), Art History (5), AP Physics 2 (5), AP Physics C (5)
Triangle of Talent Focus: A weekend job combining art, engineering, and career goals

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George received a scholarship to attend a private high school; he had always enjoyed drawing, especially buildings and skylines. He also, however, did not want to become an artist, since he wanted a job where he could earn money to support a family as well as his parents. After much discussion, the student decided to focus his high school time and energy on preparing for a career in engineering. The student did this by balancing academics and his part-time job. Despite needing to work a construction job on the weekends, this student was still capable of achieving 5 scores on several engineering and business-related APs. This weekend job was a blessing, however, as ThinkSTEP advised that his construction job gave him the opportunity to explain in his essays how he loved to witness the growth of buildings, from foundation to the top spires. Balancing his job and school also became a topic for the “hardship” essay in the UC application.