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Dubai student cracks elite US university entry

Wiann Wilson blazes a trail for other to follow

Wiann Wilson, a GEMS Wellington International School in Dubai alumna, has set an example for students who hope to wield their profound academic and social interests towards admission to elite universities in the United States.

Through leadership roles, self-driven initiatives and a determination to make an impact in the UAE and beyond, she ultimately secured an acceptance to her dream school as a Political Science major in the cultural epicenter of the United States: Columbia University in the City of New York.

Wiann began working with Hale’s counseling team at the beginning of high school — a strategic step towards crafting a well-rounded profile over the course of four years. While she already had the essential cornerstones of a good application, she worked closely with her counselors to construct a solid profile through extracurricular involvement and in-depth academic research.

As is expected of any Ivy League admit, she maintained a stellar academic record throughout high school and was heavily engaged in her school and local community, maximizing her skills in communication and leadership through roles as Head Girl, MUN Secretary General, Lead Writer of her school’s magazine, and Social Media Lead at a local non-profit organization. These roles weren’t simply checkbox activities required for a successful application; they demonstrated a consistent motivation to drive her community to do better, on all fronts.

But what distinguished Wiann from the thousands of international students who apply to schools in North America was the origin of her early interest in Columbia as her top-choice school. It was not merely brand recognition that drove her to apply—it all started with Professor Kimberle Crenshaw, author of books such as The Poet X and On Intersectionality, who would heavily motivate her long-term academic trajectory, as well as future research and extracurricular activities. Inspired by her academic legacy at Columbia and role as a pivotal figure in civil rights advocacy, Wiann has sought to not only mirror, but amplify Crenshaw’s essential theories through research and initiatives that promote the advancement of intersectional policies and the expansion of Critical Race Theory.

With Crenshaw at her fingertips, she recognized that there was no better place to start fusing her extracurricular and social agenda than in her own community. Having personally witnessed the biased and non-inclusive academic content in varied curricula, she organized a program with “Diversify our Narrative”, seeking to incorporate the history, experiences, and opinions of those whose voices have been systemically overlooked. And to fortify her theoretical frameworks, in year 12 she conducted research with a PhD mentor from Washington University that examined the crisis of masculinity in the political economy, focused on the contexts of the United States and India.

Ultimately, Wiann was able to craft an application that paired excellence in a multitude of capacities with her unwavering focus on Columbia University and the social issues that resonate with her. As she departs for her new journey this fall, she will undoubtedly carry forward the legacy of its alumni and faculty.

This meticulous, practiced approach to admissions counseling is what sets Hale Education—and the students it guides—apart from the competition. In an American admissions landscape where dwindling fractions of percentages of international students are offered acceptances each year, the holistic strategies offered by Hale counselors often make all the difference.