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Teen Applies to 20 Colleges, Gets Accepted to Every Single One

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Berthinia Rutledge-Brown has always known her son, 17-year-old Micheal Brown, was smart. Of course, every mother knows how intelligent their child is, but when the time comes to apply to college, their children have to prove themselves to admissions counselors they’ve never met before.

Micheal has always cared about his grades, and his mother has always pushed him to strive for greatness.

“After sixth grade, Mike was in control of his education,” recalled the proud mom. “He was focused, he knew what he wanted and he made his own decisions.”



And with a 4.68 grade point average, an SAT score of 1540 out of 1600, and an ACT score of 34 out of 36, Micheal set his sights on Stanford University.

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But he didn’t stop there. Micheal applied to 20 of the best schools in the country — his top eight including Stanford, Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, University of Pennsylvania, and Georgetown — in hopes that he’d get at least one chance at his dream education.

Even with his outstanding academic merits and his involvement in school activities, debate team and internships, the teen wasn’t sure it would be enough.

So when he found out his Stanford early decision had been made in December, he went over to a friend’s house with his mom. They logged onto the admissions portal with their fingers crossed, and after taking one look at the screen, Micheal immediately lost it — he’d been accepted to his dream school.



Little did he know, that acceptance was only the beginning. Decision after decision came flooding in, each and every one accepting Micheal to their school.

And while being accepted to 20 colleges is no easy feat, Micheal wasn’t finished. Not only had he been admitted to each university, but he’d been given a full ride to every single one.

“He actually earned it,” his proud mom said. “I always knew Mike would get into a good school. I always knew he’d get good scholarship support. But I never imagined this.”

“I cried because I realized that there was a chance that my child would get the education he deserves — the one I could not afford to pay for,” she said.

The teen was also awarded $260,000 in outside scholarships in addition to those from the schools.

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As Micheal looks forward to making a big decision next month, he hopes that his story can teach other kids to reach for their dreams too.

“It’s something I’m proud of because I see my hard work paying off, determination paying off, sacrifices paying off,” he said.

Of course, he won’t be taking a break from his constant achievement just yet. Before the May 1 decision day, Micheal will be traveling to tour schools to find out which of his 20 options is right for him.

He plans to major in political science and minor in economics. But no matter where he decides to attend school in the fall, one thing is certain: Micheal Brown’s future is certainly looking bright.

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Liz was a senior story editor for The Western Journal.
Liz was a senior story editor for The Western Journal.
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Arizona
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