Battling a mixture of exhaustion and sickness, senior Michael Tan languidly came home from school on December 14. after taking two finals. He knew that early admission college letters were sent out and even though he wasn’t expecting any kind of acceptance; he figured he might as well check. What he saw though, left him quite surprised.

“I took a dozen pictures just to make sure I had proof that it was actually happening.” said Tan. “I was kind of in a daze so I decided to take a nap–and when I woke up like two hours later, I was pretty sure I was dreaming.” Still in a daze, Tan checked his photos on his phone, and sure enough, the photos steered him back to what had felt like a dream, but was now his reality. Tan had just been accepted to Brown University one of the most prestigious schools in the nation. Aside from Brown, Tan applied to five California schools, (UC Berkeley, UCLA, UC Irvine, UC San Diego, and University of Southern California) along with two schools on the east coast (Boston University and Brown University). He will hear back from these schools in March, but since he applied to Brown early admission, he has to attend.

Aside from his stellar academic achievements, Tan is currently the lieutenant governor of the Key Club, which gets students together and discusses community service. This club goes outside Rio’s borders, talking to other high schools in the area about community service matters. But they isn’t all for Tan. Since his freshman year at Rio, Tan has been apart of the Science Bowl, which is an academic competition designed like the game of Jeopardy. Students are tested on science and mathematical facts. The Science Bowl can get pretty intense. “My favorite part is when I hear a question that I know and answer is correctly.” said Tan. “I just have this big grin on my face, and I’m like I know something that you didn’t”. Aside from running  a club and taking part of the Science Bowl, Tan has played on the Rio golf team since freshman year and hopes to continue on a club team in college. As for juniors applying to college in the nearby future, Tan recommends that you start early. “I would suggest spending time on colleges you like and letting your friends and teachers read your college applications,” said Tan. “I’d also suggest that you write two or three rough drafts, just so you turn in your best work.”