Hi! My name is Katya, and I come from Russia. I want to share my story of getting accepted into NYUAD in the ED I round.

My background

When I was in eighth grade, I got into one of the best international schools in Russia called Letovo School. It's an amazing school where I received a high-quality education in all disciplines. In my last two years of high school, I got into the IB program, which was really, really hard, but well, I got through it. I met so many wonderful people there, and it was a very competitive yet comfortable and kind environment. Recently, I have received my official IB results from the exams I wrote in May, and I scored 43/45 with 3 core points (A on my EE in physics and B in TOK).

My subjects were: English Literature HL, Physics HL, Mathematics: Analysis and Approaches HL, Chemistry SL, German B SL, and Philosophy SL. My school gave me 43 for my predicted score as well.

I took the SAT twice. At first, my score was 1450, and then 1500, and I submitted the 1500 to NYU. I also took the IELTS and got an overall score of 8.

Why NYUAD?

At first, I was choosing between British, European, and American universities, and I was actually leaning more towards British and European universities. But at the end of my DP1, a representative from NYUAD came to our school to give us a little presentation of what that school had to offer.

I absolutely fell in love with it because, firstly, I really appreciate that it's a liberal arts school, which means that I can switch between my majors and engage in academic activities that are not completely related to my major (mechanical engineering). The engineering facilities offered by the university are also great. And without a doubt, the financial aid provided by NYUAD that covered 90% of my tuition was a huge perk that led me towards accepting the offer.

Extracurriculars and honors

One of the most important activities that I was engaged in was interning at the Russian Quantum Center, where I learned a lot about physics and mathematics and got to work with highly esteemed scientists. I also participated in an astrophysics program that was made in collaboration with the Russian Academy of Sciences, and I got to do an engineering project using a telescope in the Caucasian mountains. I also volunteered a lot in DP1. I helped an orphanage conduct some English and Physics lessons, and I worked as an English tutor for Ukrainian refugees.

In my application, I included that I was the prize winner of an international engineering contest (where I presented my CAS project). And I also participated in the last stage of the All-Russian Olympiad in English.

Ending note

Throughout my application process, I realized that having family and friends by my side was the real key to success, because they gave me support and inspiration to push through. That's also why I'm very excited to meet my friends at NYUAD when I start studying there. Having someone I already know when going to a totally new place will be incredibly helpful for me, as they can guide me through all the crucial moments of my uni life. So, if you are a person who would like some help — don't hesitate to reach out to me :)

My IG: @katyataim