Hey everyone. Really appreciate all the likes, views, subs, and comments! It's been about half a year since I graduated from college so I thought it would be cool to share a quick life update. As you can see from the thumbnail, I did not get into MIT (and no I'm not going to reapply lol). I went to the University of Southern California instead where I graduated with a BS in computer science. In college, I competed in more hackathons (check out my projects on Devpost + on the channel), lead engineering projects in a club, worked on a sports startup and a privacy startup, and did an internship at Amazon. Now, I work at a big tech company where I build data pipelines and data visualizations with JavaScript, PHP, Rust, and SQL. If you're interested in learning more about my experiences, please consider subscribing! I still make videos occasionally (mostly shit posts) and I'll gladly take suggestions on what to post about next. Anyways, thanks for watching!
Hey man your awesome and your projects are next level. Just a general thing I noticed, alot of people who seemed to be accepted jsut focused on one main project explaining the steps, initial failures and how they overcame them. They gave more of a process rather than end goal. Irregardless, the knowledge you possess and the video is awesome
This is a really exceptional portfolio. I'd think this would be exactly what they'd want, and I imagine they would perhaps overlook a somewhat relatively low gpa after seeing it, but I suppose not. Do you think you maybe didn't convey yourself as well as you could have in your essays/interview, or maybe you didn't get good recommendations? Anyways, hope you're doing well in your new endeavours. I'm sure you found success at BU. The institution only plays one part in it anyways.
Thanks! It's been about 4 years since I've applied, but my essays were good and my interview went well. The recommendations should have also been good/excellent. Also, I'm actually not at BU. I'm in my final year at USC now, but yeah, I would say I found some form of success here.
@@DevinMui oh, my bad. I thought I read in one of the threads that you were at BU. Well, best of luck with the rest of your time there and what comes after. I imagine it's your final year? Enjoy it
I think his projects were all exceptionally impressive, but I did notice that most portfolios which earned an acceptance tend to show more of the actual designing and making process. It may be better to choose your most impressive 2-3 projects and demonstrate in detail how the process of making them expresses your problem solving skills.
I don't think mit gives af about web development, they care about actual research espeically in the field of ai and robotics which this guy didn't have much of.
You are an inspiration, I never applied to MIT myself because I never took SAT (I decided to go to college while in high school and didn't have time). But now I'm finally going to attend university for EE and I watch these videos for ideas on what to build!
Hahaha yeahhh... I learned quickly that math was not my strong suit after probability theory, and my foray into academia didn't feel as rewarding. Oh well, sell outs be sell outs
Hey! It's nice to see someone use a caravan palace song! also, while your projects were simply IMPRESSIVE, (impressive is an understatement) I noticed that the ones that got in, are usually the ones that talked about/ explained the reasoning behind their project, why they made what they made, how it benefitted them/ their community, what inspired them and etc. Not the it matters because you're probably doing great at USC now. Best of luck at everything!
This 4 year ago portfolio had projects that I did in my final year undergrad in 2020 , I am lagging and far away from such ideas. Btw this was really nice portfolio.
@@DevinMui Believes, Intentions and State are truly important. Results are not. For, results are results, they're not the cause. Sometimes results are out of hand, sometimes it is a lottery. Such results are not important, then these are your believes, intentions and state that really are ;D
I would've highlighted three of your more impressive / in depth builds with 30s each. Flash the others. (but sounds like it didn't matter with your scores)
This was one of the most original and creative video I have seen in a while for a college admission. So much content in just 2 minutes...and with awesome bg music. I am curious where did you end up going my dude?
MIT couldn’t process the superfluous amount of information you provided; that’s code for they wanted you to break it down to them and communicate to them in-depth about 1) initial steps / process, 2) minor screw-ups, 3) resolution and improvisation, and 4) next steps.
Honestly the most impressive maker portfolio I've ever seen. I'm a rising senior also applying (lol) and I've recently started going to hackathons. So, did you get in? I truly hope you did becauses I'm almost exactly the same. Lolllll....
Thanks! Unfortunately, I did not get into MIT. However, I had a really bad GPA bc of all these extracurriculars which might explain somethings. I'll be attending BU so we might see each other in Boston!
RIP. This is almost exactly what MIT is looking for (real passion and iniative). Just wondering, were you rejected in the EA round or were you deferred? If you were deferred, then your GPA didn't hurt you, but if you weren't, then it's probably the sole reason that you didn't get in. Also, what was your GPA btw? Lol, I want to know because I also have a pretty mediocre GPA (like 3.6 unweighted).
At first, I started out with a lot of books/online tutorials to learn languages/libraries. Eventually, I started coming up with my own ideas and finding ways to make those using the knowledge from tutorials. Of course, tutorials aren't enough to know how to build things and I had to find answers to problems from StackOverflow, documentation, and library code. I'd say most practical skills you can learn online for free easily (basic programming, basic embedded systems, web dev). For more complicated/dry things like algorithms, data structures, OS, etc, it can help to take a course on them so you stay motivated and cover topics you might glaze over self-teaching yourself through a textbook.
Tip for the next time, if you decide to apply: I've saw that most of these rejected portfolios don't show the projects in details, and often some kind of weapons, or partying are seen on those portfolios. On the other hand, those who passed usually focus on 2 or 3 projects, usually some robot or an app, and they show the process and the struggles in detail, they also talk a lot about themselves, the roles they took up during the making process, and the skills they developed. Hope this helps anyone trying to get into MIT :) Oh but i forgot to mention, from all of these portfolios, this is one of the most impressive one, if you truly made even 50% of things shown, it's amazing, the amount of coding, and knowledge. It's really sad but i've seen a lot of racial bias, i saw some really crappy protfolios but seeming because of their race, they got admitted, it's a real shame. Keep it up, you'll probably do great either way with any other college.
Wow, seems like MIT lost the greatest Devin Mun in 2022, and now in 2050 he already have helped to colonize Saturn, Neptune and Mars. What a great loss it was…
I loved your work but let me give you a small suggestion I think Portfolio got rejected because you didn't come on camera and not explained anything it was like I am watching a productivity-boosting video no offense but you had to explain stuff and sadly this Portfolio can't do it :) all the best for the future
Thanks for the suggestion! I agree that this portfolio video was incredibly broad, but that was intentional. At least in the year I applied, you could add a detailed explanation to each of your projects. I used that to thoroughly explain each of my projects and include links to the work and demos.
Men, your a working hard men. They probably rejected you because there was just probably no more space on thee waitlist and acceptance list 🤷🏽♂️, who knows Edit, I just thought about something, how do they know you really built that stuff tbh, I believe you did but they probably not sure
Here's the thing (I graduated from and now interview for MIT): Presentation: we don't expect it to be super-polished. Here are some things that are notable: HS GPA: ~4.2 (weighted I assume: low for MIT) SAT: 1490 (low for MIT) Magna Cum Laude (also low for MIT) ECs? Hackathons, Robotics, Startups, Orchestra (arguably really stacked on the CS side, not much else) ?? leadership ?? social skills ?? fit with MIT? (don't just think a Maker Portfolio will make or break your application) ?? how will he contribute to the campus community? The problem with the above is "the above, being weak in the academic side, even with the portfolio, is terribly common among applicants and there are plenty of applicants who will have better stats." Therefore, there's no pressing reason why that applicant should be admitted.
@@chrislee367 sir, thank you for your comment and explanation. I do not know anything about MIT and it's admission process. However, l do know about presentations and the presentation in this video is terrible. I do not know anything about the student in the video. My impression is that the student, in the video, could do fine at MIT but there were not enough vacancies to give him an opportunity at MIT so he may be studying at someplace.
Hey everyone. Really appreciate all the likes, views, subs, and comments! It's been about half a year since I graduated from college so I thought it would be cool to share a quick life update.
As you can see from the thumbnail, I did not get into MIT (and no I'm not going to reapply lol). I went to the University of Southern California instead where I graduated with a BS in computer science. In college, I competed in more hackathons (check out my projects on Devpost + on the channel), lead engineering projects in a club, worked on a sports startup and a privacy startup, and did an internship at Amazon. Now, I work at a big tech company where I build data pipelines and data visualizations with JavaScript, PHP, Rust, and SQL.
If you're interested in learning more about my experiences, please consider subscribing! I still make videos occasionally (mostly shit posts) and I'll gladly take suggestions on what to post about next. Anyways, thanks for watching!
That's awesome Devin, so cool to see how far you have come
Cool
Wow
You were too good for MIT, their professors were too fearful of your power
:D
Hey man your awesome and your projects are next level. Just a general thing I noticed, alot of people who seemed to be accepted jsut focused on one main project explaining the steps, initial failures and how they overcame them. They gave more of a process rather than end goal. Irregardless, the knowledge you possess and the video is awesome
Thanks! Appreciate the insights
Wow...this is the best one I've seen and I can't believe you were not accepted...their loss I guess :/
True
This is great and your taste in music is also top notch. I’d be happy to help you build your own MIT. We could put it somewhere with better weather.
Thanks so much! MIT in California would be way better (ignoring Caltech)
This is a really exceptional portfolio. I'd think this would be exactly what they'd want, and I imagine they would perhaps overlook a somewhat relatively low gpa after seeing it, but I suppose not. Do you think you maybe didn't convey yourself as well as you could have in your essays/interview, or maybe you didn't get good recommendations?
Anyways, hope you're doing well in your new endeavours. I'm sure you found success at BU. The institution only plays one part in it anyways.
Thanks! It's been about 4 years since I've applied, but my essays were good and my interview went well. The recommendations should have also been good/excellent.
Also, I'm actually not at BU. I'm in my final year at USC now, but yeah, I would say I found some form of success here.
@@DevinMui oh, my bad. I thought I read in one of the threads that you were at BU.
Well, best of luck with the rest of your time there and what comes after. I imagine it's your final year? Enjoy it
@@DevinMui Hey, my brother got rejected from USC and into MIT, you just don’t know
I think his projects were all exceptionally impressive, but I did notice that most portfolios which earned an acceptance tend to show more of the actual designing and making process. It may be better to choose your most impressive 2-3 projects and demonstrate in detail how the process of making them expresses your problem solving skills.
I don't think mit gives af about web development, they care about actual research espeically in the field of ai and robotics which this guy didn't have much of.
You are an inspiration, I never applied to MIT myself because I never took SAT (I decided to go to college while in high school and didn't have time). But now I'm finally going to attend university for EE and I watch these videos for ideas on what to build!
Oh man, I've seen a bunch of your projects on Devpost. It was really their loss that they didn't accept someone as talented as you... :P
Haha, it's fine. I didn't have the strongest stats (probably bc of my excessive hackathon hacking). If you're applying this year, good luck!
"What do you do now? Software Engineering @ Meta"
Seems like that PhD in mathematics idea didn't last long
Hahaha yeahhh... I learned quickly that math was not my strong suit after probability theory, and my foray into academia didn't feel as rewarding. Oh well, sell outs be sell outs
Hey! It's nice to see someone use a caravan palace song! also, while your projects were simply IMPRESSIVE, (impressive is an understatement) I noticed that the ones that got in, are usually the ones that talked about/ explained the reasoning behind their project, why they made what they made, how it benefitted them/ their community, what inspired them and etc. Not the it matters because you're probably doing great at USC now. Best of luck at everything!
Thanks!
Bro you're actually goated.
This 4 year ago portfolio had projects that I did in my final year undergrad in 2020 , I am lagging and far away from such ideas. Btw this was really nice portfolio.
You can do it! I believe in you. Just start small and build from there
@@DevinMui thank you .
@@DevinMui Believes, Intentions and State are truly important. Results are not. For, results are results, they're not the cause. Sometimes results are out of hand, sometimes it is a lottery. Such results are not important, then these are your believes, intentions and state that really are ;D
I would've highlighted three of your more impressive / in depth builds with 30s each. Flash the others. (but sounds like it didn't matter with your scores)
Thanks for the feedback! I'll keep that in mind for next time
According to you, what would be the reason for rejected by MIT even after having such a strong and extraordinary ECs ?
Mediocre GPA? GPA is a much better indicator for college performance than SATs and ECs
@@DevinMui hmm what is ur GPA?
@@DevinMui what was your gpa? is the one provided by high school?
This was one of the most original and creative video I have seen in a while for a college admission. So much content in just 2 minutes...and with awesome bg music. I am curious where did you end up going my dude?
USC
MIT couldn’t process the superfluous amount of information you provided; that’s code for they wanted you to break it down to them and communicate to them in-depth about 1) initial steps / process, 2) minor screw-ups, 3) resolution and improvisation, and 4) next steps.
but then when you make a video like that they say its too technical and not creative or original enough.
Recognized the JFK overpass, nice to see SF!
This is awesome
Honestly the most impressive maker portfolio I've ever seen. I'm a rising senior also applying (lol) and I've recently started going to hackathons. So, did you get in? I truly hope you did becauses I'm almost exactly the same. Lolllll....
Thanks! Unfortunately, I did not get into MIT. However, I had a really bad GPA bc of all these extracurriculars which might explain somethings. I'll be attending BU so we might see each other in Boston!
RIP. This is almost exactly what MIT is looking for (real passion and iniative). Just wondering, were you rejected in the EA round or were you deferred? If you were deferred, then your GPA didn't hurt you, but if you weren't, then it's probably the sole reason that you didn't get in. Also, what was your GPA btw? Lol, I want to know because I also have a pretty mediocre GPA (like 3.6 unweighted).
I applied EA and I was rejected haha. I had a 3.4 unweighted GPA tho so it made sense.
@@DevinMui sorry for asking after 3 year xD but did u took the sat
@@nitisarath Yeah lol it was required for everyone back then
im lerning from your mistaken im trying this year thanks for sharing bro u did good thank you
Amazing portfolio
Nice choice in music.
Thanks!
i wanna see the air guitar more. Looks so cool!
what was your gpa?
air guitar kinda sus
big sus tbh
How did you learn how to build these things?
At first, I started out with a lot of books/online tutorials to learn languages/libraries. Eventually, I started coming up with my own ideas and finding ways to make those using the knowledge from tutorials. Of course, tutorials aren't enough to know how to build things and I had to find answers to problems from StackOverflow, documentation, and library code.
I'd say most practical skills you can learn online for free easily (basic programming, basic embedded systems, web dev). For more complicated/dry things like algorithms, data structures, OS, etc, it can help to take a course on them so you stay motivated and cover topics you might glaze over self-teaching yourself through a textbook.
Just curious what was the air guitar one
wholesome
Tip for the next time, if you decide to apply:
I've saw that most of these rejected portfolios don't show the projects in details, and often some kind of weapons, or partying are seen on those portfolios.
On the other hand, those who passed usually focus on 2 or 3 projects, usually some robot or an app, and they show the process and the struggles in detail, they also talk a lot about themselves, the roles they took up during the making process, and the skills they developed.
Hope this helps anyone trying to get into MIT :)
Oh but i forgot to mention, from all of these portfolios, this is one of the most impressive one, if you truly made even 50% of things shown, it's amazing, the amount of coding, and knowledge.
It's really sad but i've seen a lot of racial bias, i saw some really crappy protfolios but seeming because of their race, they got admitted, it's a real shame.
Keep it up, you'll probably do great either way with any other college.
Thanks! I appreciate the feedback :)
Probably you should've graduated by now, what you majored in at USC.?
Just Out of curiosity :) ,What universities you got into.??/applied to?
Btw is calculator up for sale.??
how did you not get into MIT. The projects you made are cool
Haha. Thank you! Unfortunately, there's more to getting in than just projects. I don't think I would've fit in anyways
0:21 sus Air Guitar
Wow, seems like MIT lost the greatest Devin Mun in 2022, and now in 2050 he already have helped to colonize Saturn, Neptune and Mars. What a great loss it was…
I loved your work but let me give you a small suggestion I think Portfolio got rejected because you didn't come on camera and not explained anything it was like I am watching a productivity-boosting video no offense but you had to explain stuff and sadly this Portfolio can't do it :) all the best for the future
Thanks for the suggestion! I agree that this portfolio video was incredibly broad, but that was intentional. At least in the year I applied, you could add a detailed explanation to each of your projects. I used that to thoroughly explain each of my projects and include links to the work and demos.
what school did you get accepted into?
The University of Southern California
@@DevinMui nice
I think MIT rejected TH-cam's maker portfolio
did you create all of these while in highschool, cus thats actully insane
I did!
Hi, i was wondering were you got the money for your 3d printer?
I taught a summer class in high school and saved up
air guitar 😳😳
Did you get in MIT EA?
RIP
Men, your a working hard men.
They probably rejected you because there was just probably no more space on thee waitlist and acceptance list 🤷🏽♂️, who knows
Edit, I just thought about something, how do they know you really built that stuff tbh, I believe you did but they probably not sure
Wait, where did you go to college finally?
The University of Spoiled Children
@@DevinMui So Harvard?
@@kagakai7729 if only
@@kagakai7729 lol 😂😂😂
can anyone tell me for whom this portfolio is important
mitadmissions.org/apply/firstyear/portfolios-additional-material/
Before this I saw a Asian girl's maker portfolio which was just one drawing robot and 1:30 seconds of dolls she crocheted.
MITs loss honestly
i like your name
@@DevinMui Thank You sir
This video is very impressive but its presentation is weak. You do not explain your stuff and you do not give motivation for them.
Thanks for the feedback
Here's the thing (I graduated from and now interview for MIT):
Presentation: we don't expect it to be super-polished.
Here are some things that are notable:
HS GPA: ~4.2 (weighted I assume: low for MIT)
SAT: 1490 (low for MIT)
Magna Cum Laude (also low for MIT)
ECs?
Hackathons, Robotics, Startups, Orchestra (arguably really stacked on the CS side, not much else)
?? leadership
?? social skills
?? fit with MIT? (don't just think a Maker Portfolio will make or break your application)
?? how will he contribute to the campus community?
The problem with the above is "the above, being weak in the academic side, even with the portfolio, is terribly common among applicants and there are plenty of applicants who will have better stats." Therefore, there's no pressing reason why that applicant should be admitted.
@@chrislee367 sir, thank you for your comment and explanation. I do not know anything about MIT and it's admission process. However, l do know about presentations and the presentation in this video is terrible. I do not know anything about the student in the video. My impression is that the student, in the video, could do fine at MIT but there were not enough vacancies to give him an opportunity at MIT so he may be studying at someplace.
cool stuff bro