The Profile That Got Him Into Stanford

Summary

Francis describes the academic record, extracurricular activities, awards, and application advice that formed his profile when he applied to college. He says he will attend Stanford University to study mechanical engineering.

His central message is that strong applications can grow from sustained, personally meaningful work—and that students should not measure their worth by college decisions.

Academic Profile and Testing

• Francis attended a large public high school in White Plains, with 555 students in his graduating class. He ranked fourth when applying through Regular Decision.
• His school used an unusual weighted GPA scale with a maximum of 5.85; his weighted average was 5.347.
• He took the SAT five times, improving from 1340 to 1530. He submitted only his final score: 790 in Math and 740 in Reading.
• He encourages students not to be discouraged by an initially disappointing test score. If they have time and the opportunity to retake the test, preparation and repeated attempts can lead to improvement.
• He completed 10 AP courses by graduation. Six grades were available when he applied; he earned mostly A grades, along with two B grades. He was taking four additional AP courses in his senior year, with results not yet available at application time.

Extracurricular Activities

1. Independent engineering research

   • Designed an add-on for noise-canceling headphones that reduces surrounding noise while allowing the user to hear human speech in the direction they are facing.
   • Developed the idea to help people with sensory processing difficulties who may need protection from noise but still need to hear a teacher.
   • Tested the device with participants, gathered results, and continued developing the research.

2. Youth and Government

   • Took part in New York State’s judicial program, first as an attorney in mock appellate proceedings and later as a judge who mentored attorneys and evaluated their arguments.
   • In senior year, he was elected Chief Judge. His duties included organizing the judicial program’s conference, coordinating schedules and training, working with legal advisers, and helping with fundraising.
   • He also supported and mentored attorneys from around the state.

3. Environmental project

   • Worked with two friends on “Peerbin,” a river-based system designed to collect trash so it could be removed from the water.

4. Robotics

   • Joined his school’s FIRST Tech Challenge robotics club in its first year.
   • Served as head programmer in ninth and tenth grades, then as president or co-president in eleventh and twelfth grades.
   • The team did not reach state or major world competitions, but earned local and regional awards.

5. Gomala language picture dictionary

   • Created an online picture dictionary with more than 130 words and phrases in Gomala, a language spoken by his family in Cameroon.
   • Users can click an image and hear the word pronounced, using recordings from Francis, his mother, relatives, and friends.
   • The project helped him practice the language and supported its preservation and use among family and community members.

6. National Youth and Government competition

   • Represented New York in a national appellate-court competition three times.
   • He and a partner placed 14th out of 120 in one competition; in another, he placed eighth out of 142 individual judges.

7. Volunteering

   • Reported about 100–105 volunteer hours, including teaching STEM, working at food banks, and other community service.

8. Soccer

   • Played soccer for 14 years, both for his high school and for clubs.
   • On his high school team for four years, he received two All-League awards and an All-Section Honorable Mention, and served as team captain in his senior year.
   • He planned to play for a club team in college.

Awards and Application Updates

• Won first place in engineering at a regional science fair for his headphone-related project, followed by a second-place result in another year and a third-place result at another regional competition.
• Was selected for the national judicial competition from a pool of roughly 800 students, with only 15–17 students chosen. He included repeated selections in his application.
• Received a Best Lawyer in New York State award in ninth grade.
• Earned the African-American Men of Westchester Youth Legacy Social Justice Award for local work related to justice, equality, and fairness.
• Shortly before admissions decisions came out, he sent colleges—including Stanford—an update about results from the Westchester Engineering and Science Fair. These included first place in his engineering category, a Transforming Lives Award for a project aimed at improving the lives of people with autism spectrum disorders, and an invitation to present his invention at the New York State Invention Convention.

Advice for Applicants

• Keep college admissions in perspective: Admissions decisions are not a measure of intelligence or personal worth. Not getting into a dream school does not make someone a worse student or person.
• Do not put universities on a pedestal: Colleges are educational institutions where students develop, and students also bring value to the communities they join.
• Choose activities that genuinely interest you: Avoid pursuing activities only because they seem impressive; sustained work is more authentic when it reflects real interests.
• Write sincere essays: Francis recommends writing honestly, even if an essay feels unconventional, rather than trying to sound like someone else.
• Build a profile around meaningful work: His examples combine engineering, leadership, service, language preservation, and athletics, with a number of activities developing over several years.

Speakers and Sources Featured

• Francis — the sole speaker in the subtitles, discussing his application and advice.
• Atlas Education — referenced in the closing promotional message for admissions consultations; no separate representative speaks.