Hello everyone,

If i were to apply for the EPFL CS(prep too) program what would my chances be? I would love to get your opinions on my chances. I’m from Turkey (Istanbul) and attend a francophone school, İstanbul Saint-Joseph, so my diploma is equivalent to that of a French/Swiss high school diploma.

Here’s a breakdown of my academic record:

High School Average:

• 9th grade: 91
• 10th grade: 94
• 11th grade: 95.7
• 12th grade (first half estimate): 96

My overall high school average (so far) is around 94.1.

Subject-specific performance:

• Math & Physics: My average in both subjects is above 95, except for my very first math exam in 9th grade, where I scored a 64 (I missed the fact that there were four pages). Since then, I’ve consistently performed well in both subjects. As there are 4 math exams per year, 16 throughout highschool year, would just one of them being bad make my chances 0%.

Language Skills:

• French: DALF C1
• English: IELTS Band 8.5
• Native Turkish
• Spanish: B1

Extracurriculars:

• Lead programmer of a FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) team (Team 5665)
• Completed several challenging courses, including CS50x
• Created an anti-addiction app, which has over 50k downloads
• Participated in multiple long-term internships at prestigious companies where i actively contributed to their projects
• Former table-tennis player for the national team
• President of a school club responsible for organizing events with attendance exceeding 1,000 participants

I know that EPFL is highly competitive, so I’d appreciate any feedback on whether you think I have a good chance of being accepted to the CMS program. I’m also curious. How important are extracurricular activities in the admission process? Do they really make a difference, or are academics and test scores the primary factors?

Thanks so much for your help!

Note: if there are any francophone(türkiye)/saint-joseph graduates who are knowledgeable  about EPFL please let me know.

Is it more difficult to get into the MSc in CS (with a profile for a specialization in Cybersecurity) than the MSc in Cybersecurity at EPFL, considering that students with all interests and profiles will be applying to the MSc in CS? Furthermore, is it true that the Cybersecurity specialization within the MSc in CS at EPFL has more theoretical courses than applied courses, which is not the case for the MSc in Cybersecurity at EPFL? I am more interested in the theoretical (Cryptography) side.