I got accepted to Harvard, Princeton and Yale—3 things my parents did at an early age: It 'made all the difference'

For every high schooler, the college admissions process is incredibly daunting. Thankfully, for me, the years of hard work all paid off.

I recently graduated from PCTI STEM Academy in Wayne, New Jersey. This spring, I was accepted into 10 of the top 25 universities in the U.S., including Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Columbia, and the University of Pennsylvania. This fall, I’ll be attending Harvard University.

Among my acceptances, I was offered a merit-based full ride from Washington University as a Langsdorf Scholar and a direct phone call from their Dean of Engineering, along with a Likely Scholar Designation through Columbia University’s C.P. Davis Scholar program.

What made all the difference? It started long before high school, with the way my parents raised me. We couldn’t afford college consultants or expensive enrichment programs, so they focused on simple, consistent routines that laid the foundation for my success.

Research consistently shows that good sleep and proper nutrition lead to better academic performance. My parents took this seriously.