BEIJING, August 2 -- As many students dream of being accepted by just one of the top universities home or abroad, Wang Xiawa, 18, has received offers from nine prestigious U.S. universities, according to Huashang Morning Post.

    One of the top students in her school in Shenyang in Northeast China's Liaoning Province, Wang's parents and teachers expected her to go to Beijing or Qinghua University. But Wang decided to try her luck with overseas universities in her second year in high school, an important time when Chinese students are expected to devote themselves to preparing for the National College Entrance Examinations.

    "If I fail to obtain admission to a foreign university, I will never have any luck with top universities at home either," Wang said.

    During the eight months since then, Wang took constant time off from school to take the exams required by U.S. universities and prepare applications and other documents.

    A hard-working student, Wang was able to catch up on her schoolwork when she came back from her time away from classes.

    Wang loves English and scored 643 on her TOEFL (Test of English As a Foreign Language) and 2,090 on the SAT1 (Scholastic Aptitude Test for Math, Chinese and English) and 2,400 on the SAT2 (Scholastic Aptitude Text for Math, Physics and Chemistry). Her score on the SAT2, a requirement for admission to U.S. colleges, was higher than that of many American students.

    "The SAT should not be difficult for Chinese students as long as your English is good enough," Wang said.

    Eyeing the top 100 U.S. universities, Wang sent applications to 14 of them.Her acceptances included a full scholarship of US$46,000 to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and another full scholarship to the University of Pennsylvania.

    As Wang waited to hear from the American universities she had applied to, she was accepted by Zhejiang University, one of China's top universities.She picked MIT as one of America's top universities for engineering. "I will study marine engineering or aerospace engineering and I will continue to study for my master's degree and doctorate degree. I want to be a scientific researcher and help fulfill the human dream -- interstellar aeronautics," Wang said.

    What did the nine big name universities see in Wang? Her high tests marks certainly contributed a lot. But so did her extra-curricular accomplishments.

    She started to play the piano at 4 and dance at 6. Active in sports, she plays tennis and basketball well and compted in school swimming competitions. In a class by herself, Wang received national and provincial awards for two of her inventions.

    
    (Source: Shenzhen Daily)