Hello! My name is João Pedro, and I’m a Brazilian student who got accepted into the University of Notre Dame for the Class of 2028! See how I did:

My Background

I come from a small city called Betim; it is located in Minas Gerais, one of the biggest states in Brazil. I went to a regular public school my whole life, which means no AP classes, no IB program, none of the fancy stuff you usually hear about in U.S. college applications.

Studying Abroad: My Dream

I knew I didn’t want to stay in Brazil forever; I always had a dream of studying abroad and meeting new cultures. I found out about the U.S. application process during the pandemic in 2020, at the very beginning of high school.

My dream of living in the U.S. actually started when I was about 11. Back in 2017–2018, I was obsessed with YouTube. Many of my favorite YouTubers lived in the U.S., mostly in Florida, so to me, “the United States” basically was Florida. I wanted to live there, become a YouTuber, and create content in the U.S. That’s where it all began.

Why Notre Dame?

Honestly, Notre Dame chose me. It was the only school that offered the financial aid package I needed, and also the one I secretly wanted the most. I applied Early Decision, so I knew by December that I was coming here.

I wanted to be in an environment focused on academics and with a Christian environment. That’s how I found Notre Dame: a top-20 U.S. school, deeply Christian, and also very strong in science — exactly what I wanted.

When I read Notre Dame’s website, it felt like I was reading a description of myself: a place committed to Catholicism and scientific research. These are two of the strongest parts of my personality. I love science and I’m a Christian. Balancing science and faith has always been tricky, but Notre Dame combines both beautifully.

Academic Stats & Tips

My GPA was just 3.3, but I was ranked #1 in my class. I didn’t send the SAT (test-optional), and my Duolingo English Test score was 120.

By top-20 standards, my numbers were low, which is why I was convinced I wouldn’t get in.

My tip is: If academics are your strength, aim high, but remember that at the most competitive schools, everyone has strong grades. Great extracurriculars matter just as much. If your academics aren’t stellar (like mine), you’ll need to lean heavily on your activities and, more importantly, how you present them. Show passion. Don’t try to fake being a genius; show who you are as a person and how your values align with the school’s.

Extracurricular Activities

On the science side, my biggest project was my astronomy page, which grew to over 100k followers. It wasn’t just about posting content; I built a community, had group chats, and even wrote an astronomy e-book inspired by the page.

On the faith side, I led a small Bible study group at my school for two years. It only had about 20 members, but it was deeply meaningful to me and helped shape my leadership skills even more than my large online audience.

I obviously had other extracurricular activities as well, but my most important ones were these two.

Personal Statement

My essay reflected this science–faith duality. I compared it to Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity, where space and time are not separate but part of a single continuum. In my life, science and religion aren’t separate either; they merge into one dimension.

Financial Aid

Notre Dame’s need-based aid covers everything I need: tuition, housing, and meals. They even gave me a laptop, money for winter clothes, and covered all costs for campus events like football games. I’m going to Greece soon for a $10k summer program, fully funded by ND. If not for all these extras, living here would require at least $1,500 per semester, but with my package, I can get by with almost no out-of-pocket costs.

They have a need-based and need-blind policy for international students, so it’s a truly special university (at least for me).

Major change: Which to choose?

I started as an Aerospace Engineering major, but switched to Physics and added Economics.

I’ve always loved astronomy, but in Brazil, studying physics basically meant becoming a teacher, and I didn’t want that.

But as I started to study engineering, I saw the math side was no joke, and I wasn’t really seeing physics as much as I thought, so that’s why I decided to switch majors.

Here, I can actually do research and engage with physics just the way I wanted!

My First Week: Total Chaos

My arrival was… insane. My flight ticket turned out to be standby, which I didn’t know until the airport. I got stuck in multiple cities, missed my international orientation, lost my Airbnb money, and slept overnight in an airport for the first time in my life.

But once I finally arrived, it was like a movie: dorm parties, football stadium chants, exploring campus landmarks. It was exhausting but unforgettable!

Academic & Social Balance

Being at a Top 20 school means academics here are hard. Coming from a Brazilian public school, I was far behind! My 3.3 GPA here feels awful when 90% of students have a 3.8 or even higher. Also, everything’s in English, which added another layer of difficulty.

That’s why I had to learn how to truly study to be on the same level as my peers. I spent countless hours studying for things my peers already had easily, just because of my academic background.

Although that, I also tried to enjoy my first year. I went to parties, football games… Anything that I could!

The first year was all about adaptation, but I’m learning to balance study and personal life better now.

Friendships In a New Country

Making friends is easy, keeping friends who match my values and lifestyle is the hard part!

As a Christian, I’m looking for disciplined, faith-driven people, and as much as ND is a catholic school, this doesn’t mean everyone here is, so finding these types of people is pretty rare.

I also had a pretty hard time adjusting. The friendship style here is very different from Brazil; for example, the Brazilian jokes don’t always land here, and vice versa.

But overall, I’ve met many people and built connections, even if I won’t keep all of them long term.