Binghamton Teacher Recommendation: Fill & Download for Free

I attended the NY City public schools starting in the 1960s. Some students who were in 1st grade were allowed to move directly into 3rd grade the following year. I was able to skip 8th grade when I got to Junior High School. We entered one year in 7th grade and returned as 9th graders. There were a few students that I remembered from 1st grade that I essentially caught up to. This resulted in me starting college when I was 17. There were a very few that skipped both 2nd and 8th grade. One guy in my dorm was 16 when he was a freshmen at SUNY Binghamton but I believe this was quite rare.NYC had a program called SP for Special Progress. It was accelerated academics for students who had been identified via testing and/or teacher recommendations. I imagine that the impetus was cost savings. If you can get a student out of school one or two years earlier, the amount could be considerable especially with such a large system as in NY.

I applied to 19 schools (I considered an honors college as a separate one). Majority of them were in-state (NYC/Upstate area, Long Island), with 8 of the schools being out of state. I’ll include some of my stats as well as a short description of how they are presented the way they are, and what school I’ve decided on at the moment.BackgroundBlack/ First Generation College Student (both of my parents are from Trinidad and Tobago).Middle class family.My public high school is split into 3 communities, not actual schools. This was part of the plan when the school was first created, as it allowed for more student focus since they were put into 3 different communities. At graduation, we would have 3 salutatorians and 3 valedictorians.Class Rank: In my community, I rank 2 out of what I think is 85 students.Test ScoresSAT: 1190/1600 (640-EBRW/550-Math)21/24 on the essayACT: 25 (I didn’t report this score in any of my applications)AP English Language and Composition Exam: 3My school only offered a few AP classes, as the way they were ran made the material much simpler than it was supposed to be. I had only taken AP US History, Environmental Science, Psychology, and English Language. I was expecting to take English Literature and Statistics in my senior year, but before it started the two courses had been removed. This was the only course in which I passed the following exam for, everything else was a 2.Senior Year CoursesCalculus: this wasn’t an Honors or AP course, it was mainly a standard one.Senior EnglishRegents Chemistry (In NY, certain subjects have a test you take at the end of the school year called the Regents)Dual-enrollment classes at CUNY Queensborough Community College. For my senior year, I’ve taken a second level Psychology course known as “The Psychology of Adjustment”. I’ve taken my fourth course, overall, known as “Introduction to Criminal Justice.”Government: Our (high) school is run on a semester system. The first semester was dedicated to economics, and the second was dedicated to Civics.Participatory Budgeting and Justice: This was a special course, as I believe only 40 schools were selected to offer this course. The school received $2,000, and our principal matched that, so we had $4,000 to work with. Throughout the course, we learned about budgeting and government proceedings, as we had also worked to give a voice to school opinions and determine what they would like us to improve with the $4K. After conducting a survey vote, our school had spent the money on improvements on bathrooms (although I don’t think that change could materialize since the COVID-19 pandemic closed down our schools).Student/Senior Government: This is both a class and a club, as once every week we meet up to discuss events that we can hold for the student body and what can be done for the seniors.Physical EducationExtracurricular ActivitiesNational Honor Society member since 10th GradeSchool Beautification Club co-founder: I founded this club along with 3 other NHS members. It mainly started off as cleaning up areas of the school and trying to promote a much cleaner environment, as I was hoping we could’ve done more than this. Unfortunately, it had to be halted given all that was occurring. I received the Leadership award along with my 3 other founders from our school’s NHS.Fencing: I only did this in the 11th grade and then the coach quit :/Church Lector: Every Saturday I would help out at mass by participating in the daily readings since the 10th Grade.Field Biology Internship: For 8 weeks, I participated in an internship at a nearby park and its nature center. I conducted some small research regarding the environment, where at the end of the internship we had to prepare a presentation on an environmental topic based on the research we conducted. My topic was simply about Climate Change.Student/Senior Government: see description under “Senior Courses” section.“Herstory”: This was a writing club headlined by my Sophomore and Junior Year English teacher. It was partnered with Adelphi University, as every week we would come together and collaborate. We would share pieces on topics ranging from mental health to loss of a loved one, as would provide positive feedback and suggestions on what can be done to improve it for the next time. In the end of each semester, the club would have a final reading where we all gather and share the culmination of our weeks work.Teaching Intern: This was part of another class I took in Junior Year, in which we were required to attend an internship with one of two neighboring elementary/middle schools. I was assigned to a first grade class, which grew very fond of me including the co-teachers for that course. I helped teach some lessons, ensured that the students were completing their work, and cleaned the classroom and organized files for the teachers (some of this may have sound mundane, but as the year progressed I helped along with other interns in decorating a hallway in preparation for some of the school’s bigger events).CollegeNow: This was the program that offered the dual-enrollment course(s) I had taken. We earned real college credit that can be applied towards the college that we go to (dependent on if the credit matches any course that we would have to take). I’ve done this since junior year.GPA: My school went by a 100 system, and the last I’ve checked, my cumulative GPA was a 97.36 weighted.Letters of Recommendation: I got one from the person who I always help every Saturday at church, the professor at my dual enrollment course(s) for psychology, my Chemistry teacher (who was also my Biology teacher sophomore year), my Spanish teacher (he had known me for the 3 years I was in his class), and my Algebra 2 teacher (we got close, and she liked me as a student throughout the year I was in her class). When I write this part of the answer, it did seem like a lot of letters to have.My common app essay was about my ability to succeed in a speech contest at elementary school despite having a speech disability, where I managed to grow into a succeeding person at high school. Felt a bit generic, but after getting it edited it seemed to be something much more deeper to me.Here are the college decisions. I applied to most of these for Regular DecisionAcceptedCUNY Hunter CollegeCUNY City CollegeCUNY Brooklyn CollegeAdelphi University: I was accepted to this school through an on-site admissions** program that my high school offered.Long Island University-Post : I was also accepted to this school through an on-site admissions program at my high school.SUNY Binghamton: This was considered to be one of the best SUNY schools out of those that were in the system.University of Minnesota-Twin Cities: I was a bit surprised to be accepted to this school. I applied here because I wanted to move to Minnesota in my adult life, or when my career began. This school felt like more of a target for me.Penn State-University Park: I liked this school as well, and was happy to be accepted. However, I don’t think I would attend this school given the lack of financial aid they provided me. :/Hofstra University: I was also accepted to the Honor College (which I don’t think I applied for). I got the Dean’s Scholarship, which was $26,000 per year. I don’t think I’ll attend this school either, given it’s short distance from where I live.** On-site admissions is when an admissions counselor from a college visits your high school, reviews your application and then immediately tells you whether or not you have been accepted to said college.WaitlistedSUNY Stony Brook University: I was a little surprised to see that I was offered a spot on the wait list. I declined it however since I wasn’t too keen on attending this school. Plus I knew there were other applicants who wanted to go to this school more than I did.University of Michigan: This is my dream school! I knew it was a competitive school, but I fell in love with the atmosphere and the academics as well. I was also surprised to see that I was considered up to the point I got this decision, but upon reading the letter, I immediately accepted the offer. I’m still praying and hoping for good news from this school (l listed 4 majors for this school and attached 3 letters of rec. That probably could’ve been why I’m in this position as well).RejectedBowdoin College: I didn’t submit my test scores for this school since it was test optional. I thought my essays and some of my achievement would help in my application, but I guess not. I also had a slight feeling this would happen given the competition among the other applicants.Boston University: This one stung for a little bit. I first woke up on the Saturday that the decision was posted, checked my email and found that the decision was available. I logged into my portal only to see that I was rejected. I wouldn’t really mind going to this school since it’s pretty great academically and it’s in Boston, which is a pretty nice city. However I did see the average SAT range, and I didn’t think the academic rigor at my school would help given the caliber of this one.Yale University: I toured the campus and attended an info session the July before my senior year started. New Haven did have its sketchy parts and moments, but I fell in love with the campus and the vibe that the school exuded. I know my test score(s) weren’t exactly the best, nor the courses I had taken, but I still took a risk and applied. I completed the application a few days before it was due, and managed to get them edited, but when I revisit the supplements, it still felt a little bit mediocre to me.Columbia University: I couldn’t really tour this school, but I still applied regardless. I hadn’t really exposed myself to much classical material as I thought Columbia had expected, but I still provided lists of my interest in literature and entertainment. Again, a little bit stunned yet still had a strong expectation this would happen.Brandeis University: I was stunned by this one as well. I had help in the college application process by two people. One person is from a service known as UStrive and the other was a former student from my school who goes to this college. He checks up on me to see how I’m doing and helps guide me through anything I need to complete for the sake of the process. I even referenced him on my application when it asked for all the sources I learned about Brandeis from. I was on the phone with him when I was opening up the status update, but again as me and him were both stunned to see that I had been rejected. I didn’t submit my test scores as I instead used a graded paper from my Government class. I guess I underestimated how competitive this school was as well.New York University: I had originally expected this to happen to me, despite how well I crafted my application. I was a little bit down when viewing the decision, but it was a bit expected given that over 85,000 people applied here for the CO2024. Plus I’ve also heard that the financial aid NYU gives out isn’t really helpful, so to say. My parents also liked this school, since their medical school is free for any student that attends NYU. I toured the school in Junior Year and loved it especially since it was in the Greenwich Village area.CUNY Macaulay Honors College: I actually expected this to happen, but I only applied since I felt like it was worth a shot given my academic standing.CUNY Baruch: I didn’t have any strong feelings towards this school, and by the time I got a decision from them, I had already committed to another college.University of Michigan: *see the second update at the bottom of this post*As of now, I’m mainly looking towards committing to SUNY Binghamton, as it still provides a traditional college experience I’m looking for and has a pretty good value with it, that is unless Michigan accepts me (I’m hoping that they also provide some substantial financial aid despite my being an out-of-state student, if the acceptance happens).Reflecting on this process, I definitely would’ve changed some of the things I had done, starting with studying more for the benefit of improving my test scores. I also would’ve limited the amount of EC’s I had listed, since I probably should’ve kept only some of the ones that were the most meaningful to me or I dedicated the most time to. More time could’ve also been put into crafting my essay and writing supplements. I understand that the college I go to doesn’t define my worth or abilities as a person, even if an elitist part of me tells me otherwise. In the end, I still managed to make my parents proud, even despite the rejections from the schools that had plentiful resources and opportunities. Overall, the college application process was a pretty interesting time during my high school years, as it also had taught me more about myself in ways I wouldn’t have thought to look at.I had applied to most of these schools for Psychology, but I am now interested in studying Neuroscience for the Pre-Med track. I’m open to hearing any advice on how to adjust to the college life as a first-generation student, and if anyone is studying Neuroscience or is a Pre-Med student. I’m also open to hearing your opinion on how the major is and any study skills that might help. I’ll come back to this post later once I make my decision or if anything has changed before my final high school year ends.Last Note: I had contacted the admissions office and my regional counselor for Michigan about whether it’s acceptable to send a letter of continued interest, and they said no (I first asked the counselor via email, where he thanked me for the email and appreciates my interest in the school). I simply ask, if you’ve been waitlisted, how was your experience? Did the school accept you off of it? If not, what school do/did you go to?UPDATE: I apologize for being extremely late on not updating this post at an earlier time, but here I am now. I’ve committed to Binghamton University! I still haven’t heard anything from U of Michigan, but I feel that I’d be better off going to Binghamton for the time being since I’m already deep in the process of preparing to start the Fall 2020 term.SECOND UPDATE: Again, apologies for not being timely on updating this post. On July 24, I got an email from U of Michigan in which I had been rejected (or in other words, am unable to attend the school since all of the remaining spots had been filled up). U of M did say that I am welcome to apply as a transfer student, preferably when I am a rising junior. For now, I’ll enjoy my first two years at Binghamton (planning to major in Neuroscience for Pre-Med) and decide where I’ll go from there. I look forward to starting my time at college.THIRD UPDATE: I’ve finished my first semester at Binghamton. Overall, it was a rather interesting experience transitioning from high school to college. I’ve learned how to properly manage the classes I’m taking (Rate My Professor helps), and next semester I intend to develop a stronger work ethic, and a more rigid study routine and schedule. I did manage to pass all my classes, but I know I can do much better in the coming months and years.

Sign up for an acting class. I’m nearing the end of a class I signed up for, mainly to help me as a director, and I’m absolutely convinced this is what every aspiring actor should do. I’ve already roped three of the students from The Actor's Workshop of Ithaca into my next film and I’m hunting down one more. It’s like a semester-long audition.You’ll dive right into it, learning how to consistently deliver compelling, natural performances, and, just as importantly, you’ll develop a network of other actors, teachers, and others in the business, who are serious about their craft and will help pull you along with them. It’s hard not to be good friends with fellow actors that you’re opening your heart to in every class. You see each other overcome challenges and climb to their potential, feeling a sense of team pride.On top of that, if it’s a serious acting class, the teacher will likely be well-established in the area’s film and theater scene. I see my acting teacher posting casting calls and making recommendations every day. She’s a social media mogul, and just yesterday, my film was cheered for at a screening which she tipped me off that I should submit my film to (at The Ithaca Fringe Festival’s video showcase) . Also, I’ve seen a bunch of Actor’s Workshop students and alums in theater productions, including at that same festival.I can’t speak for larger markets, like New York City. I’d imagine, as an actor, I’d feel intimidated at the vast competition for roles, and I’d love if another more experienced actor comments on that, but smaller “theater towns”, like Ithaca, and where I live, Binghamton, definitely make it easy to get experience and start honing your craft.It’s infectious. If I wasn’t so passionate about making films, I’d feel very motivated to start auditioning for roles myself. How far you go in the acting business depends on your commitment and talent, but it WILL get you into the acting business.