That a Stanford University Undergraduate admission stacks up against the odds, would be an understatement, considering that the premier University receives around 50,000 applications every year with an acceptance rate being one of the lowest in the world at around 3.9 percent. Add to that, a global pandemic and the extreme uncertainty and anxiety brought on by it, and suddenly the challenge seems insurmountable. A feat that would make anyone proud on any ordinary day, today a Stanford admit means ever so much more. It is a testament to the extraordinary determination and the thirst for excellence as demonstrated by Ms. Prakeerthi Kondamudi, a grade 12 student of the IB Diploma Program (IBDP) curriculum at Oakridge International School, Visakhapatnam.
Prakeerthi, IBDP student, Head Girl from Oakridge Vizag
Prakeerthi is what her teachers would know to be an ideal student. She has consistently maintained close to perfect scores in all the tests and assignments conducted both online and offline, as well as record scores of 1560/1600 and 22/24 in her SAT and SAT Essay respectively. Her achievements span across all the academic and extracurricular opportunities offered by the school and beyond.
“As a student of the first batch of the IBDP, Prakeerthi has shown that for an Oakridger – No dream is ever too big and No dreamer ever too small,” said Amit Jain, School Director.
An artist who offers her Art and knowledge of Entrepreneurship in service of the visually impaired, through her not-for-profit enterprise called ‘Paint2see’. She cites the famous book ‘Indomitable Spirit’ written by the late Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam as a source of inspiration. Prakeerthi is the Head Girl of Oakridge School and compassionately teaches English to Non-English speakers from underprivileged societies. In the recently held MIT STEAM Challenge – ‘Living in Space’, she and her classmates designed a portable painting hub to work in zero gravity. This was inspired by Nicole Scott, the first astronaut to paint in space.
“Her curiosity, engagement, time-management, discipline and resilience are what have helped her to overcome challenges and achieve her goals,” Ms. Shaila Bhamidipati, Principal.
These achievements make Prakeerthi an all-rounder, but as they say well-rounded is not good enough. The admissions processes are anything but formulaic and students today are expected to be ‘angular’ and showcase ‘intellectual vitality’ in order to make it to the Stanford Quad. “Prakeerthi’s ability to think critically and creatively was always evident in her curiosity and discussions during classes. It was a great pleasure reading through her TOK essay in which she has beautifully captured the pulse of the course through her insightful and well-articulated reasoning and writing skills,” says her TOK teacher and IBDP Coordinator Dr. Pallavi Joshi.
“I thank God, my parents, my schools, my teachers, and my friends who have been instrumental in shaping me into who I am today. I look forward to acquiring many more skills at Stanford and working with many more heads and hearts to synergize a profound social impact in our communities around the globe,” says Prakeerthi.
Her plans include a major in inter-disciplinary courses that include Computer Science and Management for her Undergraduate Studies at Stanford. Her overjoyed parents commented saying “We wish her the best to succeed in all her endeavors. And we personally thank Shaila Ma’am and Pallavi Ma’am for the encouragement and amazing support you have given to Prakeerthi.”
For more information, please visit www.oakridge.in/visakhapatnam.
