Application process: How to get into Ashoka university | Dream liberal arts university -Parnika Sahu

Summary

The video is an interview with Parnika Sahu, who describes preparing for and gaining admission to Ashoka University at age 17. She explains how she explored her interest in psychology, built extracurricular experience, and completed a multi-part application largely on her own. The discussion also covers finding student opportunities and managing procrastination.

How Parnika prepared

• She clarified her academic interests early. After Grade 10, she knew she wanted to study psychology. She initially considered studying in the United States, then explored liberal arts universities in India, including Ashoka, Krea, and FLAME.
• She used Grades 11 and 12 to build experience. During that time, she co-founded two organizations, completed internships and online programs, took courses related to her interests, and developed her writing and communication skills.
• She chose a demanding subject combination. Although her school required five subjects, she took six, including mathematics. She says she chose math to prepare for the aptitude test and keep future study options open. She studied much of it independently while prioritizing her psychology classes.
• She sought information directly. At a university outreach event, she spoke with an Ashoka representative, took notes, and asked about the application process.

Ashoka application process

As Parnika describes it, the application process involved several stages:

1. Complete the application form.

   • Provide personal details and information about extracurricular activities.
   • Supply evidence for activities where requested.
   • Describe each activity within a strict word limit. She recalls it being fewer than 100 words per activity.

2. Write the essays.

   • The application included two essays, with word limits she recalls as roughly 150 and 400 words.
   • She drafted and revised her responses, then asked friends to read them.
   • She says the essays were important because they helped convey her interests and personality to admissions readers.

3. Take an aptitude test or submit SAT scores.

   • Since she had not taken the SAT, she chose Ashoka’s aptitude test.
   • She prepared independently using sample papers and books.

4. Wait for interview shortlisting.

   • Shortlisting was based on the application and aptitude test.
   • Unsure when decisions would be sent, she contacted the university by email while waiting.

5. Attend an interview.

   • Her interview was online.
   • She read accounts from other applicants to understand the format, but says her own interview became a natural conversation, including a discussion about mental-health legislation.
   • She recalls the interviewers as welcoming and says she did not feel stereotyped.

Parnika says she was admitted to Ashoka, Krea, and FLAME in the early round, before her board exams. She received Ashoka’s offer in January and describes the result as an emotional, highly anticipated moment. She also planned to sit the CUET because her parents wanted her to try for Delhi University.

Finding internships and other opportunities

• Parnika says she did not begin taking extracurricular activities seriously until the pandemic shifted classes online and gave her more time.
• She credits her cousin and co-founder with sharing opportunities, and says she also found programs through a student-community WhatsApp group and LinkedIn.
• She describes applying to programs, gaining experience, and then hearing about further opportunities through people she met—a growing chain of connections rather than nepotism.
• She recommends exploring structured programs and internships, especially those that fit around school schedules. She mentions a counter-speech fellowship—whose name may be unclear in the auto-captions and which she says was later rebranded as “Artivist”—and a Reimagining Media program involving mentorship and media projects.

Other ideas from the conversation

• Parnika describes herself as someone who procrastinates, but says she tends to finish necessary tasks and then procrastinate. The host jokingly calls this “productive procrastination.”
• Her account suggests that students can build experience by exploring genuine interests, taking initiative, and making use of opportunities as they arise. She also emphasizes that she completed the application without a college counselor.
• The host briefly shares his own experience receiving board results and discusses a related News 3D program.

Speakers and sources featured or mentioned

• Parnika Sahu — Guest; discusses her Ashoka application, studies, extracurriculars, and student opportunities.
• The interviewer/host — Leads the interview; his name is not spoken clearly in the subtitles. The channel metadata identifies him as Vardan Bajaj.
• Ashoka University — Discussed as the university and source of its application and admissions process; an Ashoka representative is mentioned.
• Krea University and FLAME University — Mentioned as other universities to which Parnika applied.
• Quora — Mentioned by Parnika as a place where she read applicants’ interview experiences.
• The counter-speech fellowship and Reimagining Media program — Student programs Parnika mentions; the organization name is unclear in the auto-captions.
• Sukriti Pant — Mentioned as someone the host planned to interview in a later episode; she does not speak in this video.