Unveiling Common EC Activities of Harvard and MIT Admitted Students

Today, I will share an EC activity that our students can engage in to take a step up in the field of science—an activity commonly pursued by both Harvard and MIT admitted students.

Students who were admitted to Harvard and those who were accepted to MIT have both been involved in this EC activity.

activity that can also be connected with research is the Science Honors Program offered by Columbia University (SHP).

If accepted into the SHP, students become part of Columbia University's community, attending classes and engaging in various academic experiences, including experiments, under the guidance of affiliated researchers. This experience not only helps in deciding one's major based on various experiences but also serves as inspiration when undertaking research after completing the SHP program.

For high school students, this program is highly beneficial, providing valuable experiences at a relatively affordable cost of $600 per year. However, there is a limitation—applicants must reside within a 75-mile radius of Columbia University, which primarily attracts students from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut.

The program is available from the 10th to 12th grades, running from September to May with classes on Saturdays from 10:00 am to 12:30 pm. The application deadline for SHP is April 15, 2023.

While the program is relatively affordable, there are specific conditions to meet. Applicants must live within a 75-mile radius of Columbia University. As a result, students living in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut are the ones who usually apply.

To be eligible, students must be at least in the 9th grade, and the program starts from the 10th grade. Starting in the 10th grade, the advantage is that students can consistently maintain participation in the program until the 12th grade. Therefore, if a student's age and location meet the SHP conditions, we highly recommend applying.

SHP Application Requirements:

• High School Transcript

• Essay

• Recommendation letter

• Entrance Examination

SHP Entrance Examination:

• Science (Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Meteorology, Geology...)

• Math (Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry, Probabilities, and Hard Math)

The exam includes sections in both science and math. While taking the exam is possible if you have studied up to Algebra II in math, there are challenging math problems similar to those seen in competitive exams.

Previous Exam:

The SHP entrance exam format has changed. In the previous format, the three-hour exam was divided into three sections:

• Section 1: Math (Easy) - 50 (MCQ)

• Section 2: Science - 75 (MCQ)

• Section 3: Math (Challenge) - 15 (MCQ)

The field that determines acceptance or rejection in the SHP entrance exam is the challenging part of Biology and Math. I will explain the reason below.

Current Exam - As of October 2022:

Regarding the changed exam format due to the pandemic in 2022, the exam duration has been reduced to 2 hours, conducted online. Applicants can log in at their preferred time to take the exam. The exam consists of only one section, covering Easy Math, Science, and Hard Math. While currently online, Columbia University has suggested the possibility of returning to an offline format.

Science Part:

• Biology: 40-50%

• Chemistry: 20-30%

• Physics: 10%

• Earth Science: less than 5%

I emphasized the importance of Biology in the SHP entrance exam because Biology-related questions dominate the Science section, comprising 40-50%. Following Biology, the number of questions increases in the order of Chemistry, Physics, and Earth Science, which has only 1-2 questions. Therefore, strategically focusing on Biology and Chemistry is recommended.

Regarding the difficulty of the exam:

While the SAT Subject Test 2, which is now discontinued, serves as a comparable reference, with sufficient preparation, students can confidently answer many questions. Do not be discouraged; it's worth studying.

Math Part:

• Easy Math: Al 1, Geo, Al 2 (Including Trig) - Honor class

• Hard Math: Easier than AMC 10 difficulty

In the field of math, a student who has studied up to Algebra II, including Trigonometry, can confidently answer the questions. If you are enrolled in an Honor's class, even Hard Math is not as challenging as the AMC 10.

The SHP entrance exam questions have not been publicly disclosed, and applicants do not know which questions they answered correctly or incorrectly. Only the pass/fail result is displayed. Therefore, it is difficult to find SHP entrance exam questions even through online searches. However, based on years of experience, we have compiled questions from the memories of applying students at A-One Institute.

Now, let me share one of the Hard Math questions from the SHP exam that we have learned about over the years:

This problem involves the probability of forming a triangle using adjacent dots. If you have learned probability in high school, it should not be difficult to solve.

Since you have confirmed that the questions are not overly challenging, I encourage you to take on the challenge if you meet the eligibility criteria.

Today's featured activity is the Science Honors Program offered by Columbia University, limited to the Eastern region. We will strive to introduce meaningful activities in other regions in the future, so please stay tuned for more information.