{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{Mary Alice}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}

You have as much intelligence and strength of character as I do. Maybe you just don't know it.

These programs are all very competitive. They have between 100 and 200 applicants every year for 5-10 slots. My grades and test scores are about average compared to the students who get accepted, but they don't stand out. And I have some things against me, such as being out of school for 12 years, being a distance student (which means that nobody really knows me), and having an F on my transcript for a project I never finished way back when.