Camden County Tech Senior From Gloucester Township Gains Early Acceptance To MIT

GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP, NJ — A Camden County Technical School senior from Gloucester Township has been accepted to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, MA.

Matthew Love received an early acceptance letter from the school, and plans to attend in the fall as a mechanical engineering major, Camden County Technical School announced on Wednesday.

Love attends the Pre-Engineering Academy at the Gloucester Township Campus of Camden County Technical School (CCTS) and attended eighth grade at Charles W. Lewis. He was homeschooled by his mother, Joyce, from first through seventh grades.

“My mom and I heard about the opportunities at CCTS, and I can attest that they are all true,” Love said. “I enrolled in CCTS because I wanted to learn more than academics. I enjoy being challenged, and chose CCTS so I would also learn career skills in addition to the pure academics provided by a conventional high school. I was originally in HVAC/R, but when I was exposed to the robotics team and pre-engineering program, I was more drawn to the field of engineering. I love math and science, especially learning the theory behind it, so I switched my career focus.”

While at CCTS, Love was enrolled in AP and Honors classes. Now in his senior year, he attends Camden County College full-time along with 64 of his classmates as part of the Senior Option program. Each of these students will graduate with a year’s worth of college credits, at no cost to them.

He participated in extra-curricular activities and was an active member of the music program, the New Jersey Science League, and the “For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST)” robotics team.

“My counselors and the staff at CCTS assisted me in every way possible,” Love said. “I loved the accessibility of the AP courses. They customized my schedule and really listened to me to ensure that I was challenged and engaged.”

His top college choice was MIT, so he decided to apply for early admissions.

“I didn't want to waste my time or money applying to other colleges if I was accepted,” Love said.

He met with a local alumnus in Deptford for his college interview and said that although he felt confident, he knew he would just have to be patient and wait for their decision.

He received his letter in mid-December and is looking forward to continuing the momentum at MIT.

“My mom was my biggest fan and kept telling me that I was going to MIT, even before I applied,” Love said. “I knew I had somewhat of a chance with my SAT score being a 1560 and being ranked either number one or two in my senior class, but there was still the chance that I wouldn’t get in. I told my mom that only 7.8% of all applicants are accepted, and she insisted that I was one of them.”

MIT focuses on scientific and technological research and is divided into five schools and one college. Among its graduate schools are the highly ranked School of Engineering and Sloan School of Management, in addition to strong programs in economics, psychology,biology, chemistry, earth sciences, physics and mathematics.

“When I visited MIT, I loved everything about it,” Love said. “What made the biggest impression was the quantity of groundbreaking STEM research, both past and present, that was everywhere. It is the only college tour where they can honestly say that the Internet was invented there, that the world’s largest biomedical engineering lab is there, etc. It was amazing.”

“We are proud of Matt and wish him well in all his future endeavors,” Camden County Freeholder Carmen Rodriguez, liaison to the CCTS, said. “He serves as an excellent example of how the Camden County Technical School can prepare you to continue your education in college as well as train you for a career.”

Patch file photo