Great Results from our Graduates

Despite the recent challenges the world has had to face, the BWYA Class of 2020 graduates have shown their true colours, with some impressive university admissions.

01

Reaping a great harvest

With the admissions results for the Class of 2020 now all in, BWYA students received a total of 302 invitations from universities around the world. Among them, students applying to US universities had a 73% acceptance rate for the top 50 universities. These include Northwestern University with their extremely high standards, Cornell, Rice University, Washington University in St. Louis, the Harvard of the South, Emory University, and many more.

It is also worth noting, many of the BWYA graduates chose smaller-scale liberal arts colleges, for high-quality classic education. In total, nearly 40% of this year’s admissions came from the top 20 liberal arts colleges, including the highly reputable Smith College, the academically rigorous Scripps College, media leading Emerson College, and ‘New Ivy’ Skidmore College.

For graduates applying for art majors, the admissions rate for the top 20 art colleges reached 70%, including the Berklee College of Music, the premier music college and performing arts conservatory in the US, the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and world-leading Rhode Island School of Design. The data shows that more and more students are about to enter world-class higher learning institutions, to further their passions, and chase their dreams.

Outside of the US, our students received numerous offers from excellent universities in the UK, Canada, Netherlands, Hong Kong S.A.R. of China, and more. Amongst these are well known British universities Imperial College London, University College London, and the University of Edinburgh, top three Canadian universities University of Toronto, University of British Columbia, and McGill University, as well as the University of Hong Kong.

In 2020, our graduates received a total of 71 admission notices from outside the US. 60% of these came from institutions listed in the top 50 universities worldwide, and 90% from universities ranking in the top 20 universities for their respective regions.

02

Sharing as a gift

It is also important for us to share the rich experiences of this year’s graduating cohort with the younger generation. So let’s hear from some of our graduates and see what we can learn from them.

Penelope Zhang

Northwestern University, Journalism

Five years at BWYA

The encouragement from my teachers and the platforms they provided for me really helped me discover my passion in writing and reporting. I think the beauty of journalism is that it provides you the opportunity to talk to people from all walks of life and to improve your communication skills, which are crucial no matter which occupation I choose in the future, and I thank my teachers at BWYA immensely for their help and support.

George Gao

Washington University in St. Louis

Seven years at BWYA

Member of the Forensics club, Lego Robotics, Migrant Children’s Foundation Club
Founded BWYA Acappella Club, and captain of school basketball team
Performed in the annual musical, and Wolves Talent Show
Led the team participating in the First Robotics Competition
Won two BWYA Special Talents scholarships

Make good use of the close-knit, friendly, and accepting community of students and teachers that BWYA creates. Explore and challenge yourself both inside and outside of the classroom by adding your thoughts to the discussion in a class, as well as fully utilizing the wide variety of clubs and other opportunities that are readily offered here at BWYA.

Melanie Gao

Cornell University, Design and Environmental Analysis

Five years at BWYA

My advice is not to be too fixated on grades during the university application process. Grades are important, but universities look at their applicants holistically, so extracurricular activities and your hobbies are important as well.

Benjamin Li

Emerson College, Media Arts Production

Seven years at BWYA

I feel like, in many ways, BWYA has helped me form my own identity over the past seven years. My academic pursuits, my interest in the arts and my professional aspirations were all developed here at BWYA. Because of this, I am extremely grateful for all the opportunities BWYA has given me, for I would not be the same person I am today without BWYA.

Tony Zhao

Rhode Island School of Design, Painting

Four years at BWYA

I was interested in architecture when I was in the ninth grade, so I joined an architecture club in our school, and later I met Dr. Pacitti, who guided me to this path. I guess the wide range of activities really gave me a chance to explore myself. If I didn’t join that architecture club, I would never be interested in the creative field, so BWYA really helped me to find what I love.

Jack Long

Berklee College of Music, Film Scoring

Seven years at BWYA

Guidance from the university counselor was essential for my successful application. Specifically, the university counselors organized not one but two Berklee College of Music visits, in which I was able to talk to the director of admissions for Berklee in person, consult him with doubts, and get better informed with the audition processes.

Jenny Ding

Smith College

Four years at BWYA

I chose Smith College because like most liberal art schools, it has small class sizes (under 20 on average), reachable professors, and opportunities for undergraduate research. It is also more flexible to switch majors or double majors. As an undecided freshman, I will have the opportunity to explore different fields before I arrive on my final decision in the fourth semester. Academically, Smith is strong in applied psychology and art history, which suits my passions.

03

Support and guidance for the future

Before the epidemic, at BWYA we organised a number of university visits. Johns Hopkins University, Manchester University, Parsons School of Design, the University of British Columbia and other prestigious schools joined us at BWYA for face-to-face discussions about the application process, and how to best present yourself. Although the sudden outbreak disrupted further arrangements and blocked meetings, the help and guidance of the BWYA University Counselling team continued – sharing resources from many online university exhibitions, and organising application guidance seminars. There were also further online meetings organised with admissions officers from Tulane University, Brandeis University, and Denver University at home. The online advice and guidance bring much help and support to our students and families as they applied from home.

03

Congratulations to our graduates

Locally grounded, globally aware is the motto at the heart of all BWYA activities. With down-to-earth and clear guidance from our teachers and supporting staff, our students and graduates are able to move on from BWYA into the wider world and accomplish great things, all the while not forgetting where they came from, and who they are.

We’d like to offer this year’s graduates a hearty congratulations for all that they have achieved.

Please scroll down to view the full 2020 university acceptances list.

U.S.

Allegheny College
Art Center College of Design
Auburn University
Bard College
Berklee College of Music (2)
Binghamton University
Boston College
Boston University
Brandeis University (4)
California College of the Arts (5)
Cornell University
DePauw University
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona Beach
Emerson College (3)
Emory University
Franklin and Marshall College
Indiana University-Bloomington
Lynn University (2)
Maryland Institute College of Art (4)
Massachusetts College of Art and Design
New York University (3)
Northeastern University
Northwestern University
Occidental College
Ohio State University-Main Campus (2)
Otis College of Art and Design (2)
Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus (4)
Pepperdine University
Pratt Institute-Main (2)
Purdue University-Main Campus (2)
Rhode Island School of Design
Rice University
Rochester Institute of Technology
Rutgers University-Newark
Sarah Lawrence College
Savannah College of Art and Design (6)
School of the Art Institute of Chicago (6)
School of Visual Arts (2)
Scripps College
Skidmore College
Smith College
St. John’s College
Syracuse University
The College of Wooster (2)
The New School (2)
Trinity College
Tulane University
University at Buffalo
University of Arizona
University of California-Davis
University of California-Riverside
University of California-San Diego
University of California-Santa Barbara (3)
University of California-Santa Cruz (2)
University of Delaware
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (3)
University of Maryland-College Park (2)
University of Massachusetts-Amherst
University of Miami
University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of Puget Sound
University of Rochester
University of Virginia-Main Campus
University of Washington-Seattle Campus (2)
University of Wisconsin-Madison (5)
Washington University in St Louis (2)

Canada

Brock University
McGill University
McMaster University (3)
Queen’s University (4)
Ryerson University
Simon Fraser University (4)
The University of British Columbia – Okanagan (2)
The University of British Columbia – Vancouver (9)
University of Alberta (2)
University of Guelph
University of Toronto – Mississauga (3)
University of Toronto – Scarborough (2)
University of Toronto – St. George (8)
University of Victoria (3)
Western University (2)
York University (2)

U.K.

Durham University (2)
Imperial College London-
King’s College London (2)
Kings College London
St Andrews- Molecular Biology
University College London (3)
University of Edinburgh (2)
University of Manchester (2)

Europe 

IE University (Spain)
Maastricht University (Netherlands)
Tilburg University (Netherlands)
University of Amsterdam (Netherlands)

Asia

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (2)
The University of Hong Kong (3)
Emirates Aviation University (UAE)