SNU Medicine with a Predicted IB 43: No SAT Chemistry or AP Chemistry Score, After Advance IB Chemistry and Biology Lessons

Here are a few glimpses of the lessons.

An IA lesson within IB Chemistry.

A look at students' IA progress—of course, I can't show everything!

These are the 2020 AP Chemistry and AP Economics results.

One student received a 4. The other four all received 5s in Chemistry. In Economics, there were four subject results of 5.

First, AP Chemistry.

And here are the 2020 AP Economics results.

Two students studied, and both received 5s in both subjects: four 5s in total.

—

Hello. Something extraordinary has happened.

I wrote about this student once before.

I described students fluent in four languages. This is a female student, although I think that earlier post focused mainly on the male students.

She was also fluent in four languages.

She got into Seoul National University Medicine. Wow.

I knew she was a strong student, but I had another student who was academically even stronger,

so although I expected her to enter a good university—and thought SNU was possible—

I never dreamed that it would be SNU Medicine. There really was another student whose academic work was stronger.

That other student had a predicted IB total of 45, and I had written a post about them.

The title concerned an Oxford rejection. They were rejected by Oxford and went to KAIST.

Both students were extremely capable.

One was rejected by Oxford, while the other was accepted to SNU Medicine.

Of course, their admission routes differed. The Oxford applicant qualified for the three-year overseas-study route; the student accepted to SNU Medicine qualified for the 12-year route.

Anyway, I'm delighted to see such a good result.

The part you probably most want to read is her academic profile.

It doesn't sound especially unusual, to the point that you might wonder whether I'm making it up.

I taught her Chemistry and also helped with Biology. I used to teach Biology, though I no longer do.

Before she started IB, I remember finishing Chemistry and Biology with her through private lessons every weekday, four hours a day.

As I explained each point, she kept reacting and nodding, though sometimes I wondered how much she was taking in.

After several sessions, we even worked through about five years of core past papers. Reaching that point took two months.

We completed in two months what normally occupied two school years, then parted ways. She returned around exam periods for further help.

I don't have a perfectly verified record of her profile, because it's awkward to ask for every detail after someone gets in.

I can say, 'Congratulations on SNU Medicine! You worked so hard back then; I'm glad it paid off,'

but following that with, 'May I ask for your entire application profile?' isn't easy.

Still, we had talked a lot, so here's what I understood: I don't think she had an SAT score.

Her TOEFL was nearly perfect, and I heard that she had language-test scores corresponding to the four languages she spoke. As for Chemistry and Biology,

she had no AP or SAT subject scores. Her predicted IB total was 43—not even a perfect total. And she qualified for the 12-year overseas-study admission route.

I understand she also did various activities. Her mother prepared a great deal, attended many information sessions,

and asked me many questions. I imagine she helped organize quite a number of activities.

I think this case gives us a lot to consider.

I teach SAT Chemistry and AP Chemistry as well as IB, but looking at this student

made me wonder whether those additional scores were always necessary for SNU Medicine.

Of course, having them could be better than not having them, but for such a highly competitive department, it seems important to choose a strategy and obtain the qualifications that serve it.

I think I've been fortunate. The students I taught this time all seem to have entered good universities.

Of course, I didn't get them admitted; they worked hard across all their subjects. Still, I'm delighted that their university outcomes were so good.

The blog has gained followers and more readers.

Whenever I write a post, many related questions come in.

But honestly, I didn't do anything directly related to their university admission.

I mainly taught Chemistry, so I don't claim to know all the university-admissions information.

I wonder whether I'll teach another student capable of entering SNU Medicine.

There is, however, another outstanding student whose potential suggests an even more remarkable university outcome.

They already have around ten AP scores of 5 and many perfect SAT subject scores. I really wonder where they'll go.

I'm looking forward to finding out.

Now, I think more students will begin preparing for IB and SAT Chemistry again.

Another Oxford admission story:

2025 University of Oxford acceptance… — Naver Blog

Other medicine and pharmacy admission stories:

2024 IB Chemistry students accepted to Sungkyunkwan Pharmacy and other programs… — Naver Blog