Nine US universities “fight” over Mexican student

Due to his outstanding academic performance, Daniel Marín Quiroz was accepted at the nine most prestigious universities of the United States, six of which are among the famous “Ivy League” group.

The ‘Ivy League’ comprises eight private universities in the northeast of the United States considered among the country’s Top universities and which are synonymous with academic excellence.

Daniel was accepted at Harvard, Stanford, Yale, Columbia, University of Pennsylvania, Duke, Brown, Dartmouth and Rice University.

All the universities have offered him a 100% scholarship, with the exception of Yale (a 92% scholarship), and in the particular cases of Harvard and Stanford, have also offered to cover full board and lodging expenses throughout the duration of his studies.

Besides being accepted, the PrepaTec State of Mexico student has won several scholarships of merit.

“Columbia and Yale have invited me to New York and New Haven, all expenses paid, to get to know their facilities. Duke has named me “Karsh International Scholar” which is a fully paid scholarship to study at their university,” Daniel said in an interview with CONECTA.

“Rice named me “Trustee Distinguished Scholar”, which also offers me a scholarship for scientific merit, and Columbia named me “Egleston Scholar”, which provides me with personal tutors and research funding, traveling to conferences abroad, or financing personal projects such as a startup,” he added.

This came after he’d had to go through each university’s admissions process, involving more than a dozen interviews in person and over Skype, as well as letters of recommendation from his teachers.

He also achieved the required score on the SAT Math, SAT Math 2 and SAT Physics exams, among other requirements in the application process to these universities.

Daniel had to prove his worth in more ways than a United States resident would in order to be accepted.

Of particular note on his résumé are his achievements in national and international Physics and Mathematics competitions, such as winning the gold medal twice in the National Physics Olympiad (the second time obtaining the highest score in Mexico).

In addition, he represented Mexico in the 2018 International Physics Olympiad (IPhO), winning a bronze medal and obtaining the best score that year for the Mexican team.

He’s also participated in a theoretical physics research project that will be published in the Mexican Journal of Physics, as well as showing outstanding participation in various regional and state competitions for physics and mathematics.

Daniel also managed to find time for extracurricular activities, such as composing electronic music, performing on the drums, playing the piano and acoustic guitar, besides teaching physics and mathematics to other students in his community.
 

Today, Stanford is the most selective university in the United States, with the lowest admission percentage of 4.2%. It’s followed by other universities such as Harvard (whose admission percentage this year was the lowest on record) at 4.5% and Columbia at 5.1%.

“At the moment, I’m deciding between Harvard and Stanford as to where I will study the next four years of my life. I’m going to study economics, computer science and theoretical physics at university”, he says proudly.

PREPATEC, AN EXCEPTIONAL COMMUNITY

Daniel says that attending high school at Tecnológico de Monterrey has provided him with many benefits which he doesn’t think he could have obtained at any other high school in Mexico.

“I’ve had access to an exceptional community of teachers who’ve helped me through the whole process of the Olympiads. My teacher Enrique Hoyos in particular supported me throughout the whole run of the Physics Olympiad,” he says.

He also mentions the Tec’s diverse environment, in which he’s been able to share his interests with any of his classmates, whether about science or not.

“We’re encouraged to endeavor in whatever area we like most and they give us plenty of tools to carry out our projects. The Tec has given me especially invaluable support by allowing me to take part in every competition and every scientific event.

“(They’ve helped me) with transport and food, with advice and e-books, with advanced scientific software and with access to the entire community of undergraduate teachers and students and all the benefits that studying high school at a university brings,” he concluded.

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