Know Your Ambassadors - Rapid Fire with Abhinav@Brown University

Name: Abhinav Sriram
High School: Vidya Mandir Senior Secondary School
College: Brown University
Major: Undecided
College Year: Class of 2023

Q1: When did you decide that you wanted to study abroad?
A1: I decided towards the end of 11th grade.

Q2: Why did you want to study abroad?
A2: Primarily because I didn't know what I wanted to major in and thus the flexibility that the American colleges offered seemed like a perfect choice. Also because I wanted my college experience to be educational and not just some sort of vocational training.

Q3: Who helped/guided you with the College process?
A3: I managed it entirely on my own (lots of help from the internet and reddit). A friend of mine who was a senior at Brown, gave me feedback on some of my essays.

Q4: What was your proudest accomplishment(s) during your High School years (in or outside of school)?
A4: Helping start a club at my school and being actively involved with it for 6 years. I threw everything I had at it and it turned out to be a great experience.

Q5: Why do you think your College admitted you?
A5: I think it was most likely because of my essays - they perfectly tied together everything I did and made my application make sense as a whole.

Q6: What has been the biggest surprise so far in college?
A6: I have way less time than I thought I would. The work load is certainly intense, especially given that its an Ivy and that everyone works really really hard, but it's the smaller things that takeaway a lot of your time without you knowing it.

Q7: Something that you know now that you wish you had known in High School?
A7: If you fantasize about how college is going to be don't ever wonder if it won't live up to your expectations because it certainly will. All the hard work and effort is worth it.

Q8: Are you happy with your College decision?
A8: YES

Q9: How many students from India are in your batch in College?
A9: 25-30 students from India

Q10: Your advice to College-bound aspirants? (2 or 3 things)
A10:
1. Don't stress too much about any one particular aspect of your college application, especially your SAT/ACT scores (it is the least important part of your application). Your school work, essays, EC's and LORs make the difference.
2. Interviews are granted at random and aren't reflective of your application. So don't stress if you haven't received an interview from one school but your friend has. I received interviews from Stanford, Princeton and Penn but didn't get one from Brown (many of my friends did) and I eventually ended up getting into Brown.
3. Don't try to portray yourself as someone you aren't. AO's can easily sniff that stuff out. If you are honest and genuine then you will get in if you deserve it.

Hope you liked this Rapid Fire. If you have questions for Abhinav about Brown University, now is the time to ask!