EAST HARTFORD, Conn. — An East Hartford High School senior was in the McDonald’s parking lot on March 28 when she received the news of a lifetime – she gained acceptance into three Ivy League universities.
Christiana Zembrowski was sitting in her car outside of the fast-food chain when the clock struck 7 p.m. on “Ivy Day,” and the nation’s top schools revealed their much-anticipated admissions decisions.
“My sister and I were rushing to get food before they released decisions at 7 p.m., but we ended up getting stuck in the McDonald’s line longer than anticipated,” Zembrowski said in an article released by EHHS. “I started crying when I opened my acceptance letter to Yale, and then cried even harder when I opened my Harvard acceptance. I cried for an hour straight after opening the decisions; I was in total shock.”
Zembrowski said in the article that she signed into the application portal several times later that evening just to ensure that her status hadn’t changed.
In addition to Yale University and Harvard University, Zembrowski was accepted into Columbia University and several other prestigious schools.
According to the article, however, Zembrowski expects to choose between Yale and Harvard. During spring break, she attended student events on both campuses and said she “loved both schools.”
“I am super grateful and incredibly thankful that choosing between Yale University and Harvard University is even a choice that I am allowed to make,” Zembrowski said in the article. “It will definitely break my heart to have to choose between the two.”
Zembrowski believes her applications were enhanced by her course selection and the challenging classes offered at EHHS. During her time at the school, she took 11 AP classes and participated in various extracurricular and community service opportunities, according to the article.
Expressing thanks for the support of her teachers who helped her succeed in the classroom, Zembrowski said she appreciated their willingness to write her letters of recommendation and help revise her college essay and writing supplements.
“I believe a big part of my application was my writing supplements, and they would be nothing without the help I received from (my English teacher) Ms. Cutkomp,” Zembrowski said in the article.
When she decides on her school of choice, Zembrowski plans to pursue a pre-law track for her undergraduate studies while majoring in English and possibly minoring in history or philosophy.
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Dalton Zbierski is a digital content producer and writer at FOX61 News. He can be reached at dzbierski@FOX61.com.
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