Just shy of 57,000 students applied to Stanford University this year.

Nate Snelling is one of the 2,075 who got in.

The Warwick Academy student submitted applications to 15 universities across the United States and Britain. Despite stellar grades, years of volunteer work, and a stack of sports accolades, a couple of schools didn’t make an offer – but he’s unfazed. Stanford was always the one he was aiming for.

He will study economics and finance at the California institution, widely recognised as “the most innovative university in the world”.

“The economics programme at Stanford is top-tier, so I'm really excited to study there,” he said. “And I love California. I love how similar the climate is to Bermuda’s, but I particularly like Stanford because of the area that it's in, Palo Alto. I didn't really want to be in a big city.”

The 17-year-old earned top marks in the International Baccalaureate and IGCSE programmes and multiple academic prizes. He has played for Bermuda on both the national football and rugby teams and was named most valuable player in both sports at Warwick Academy. He also plays trumpet in the school orchestra and at community events, manages his own Charles Schwab portfolio and runs a PC drop shipping and reselling business.

Apart from that Nate volunteers with local charities Grateful Bread and Support Public Schools, Bermuda, and raised $15,500 for the charity Home by running in the Hannover Re Half-Marathon last November.

“I visited their shelter a couple times and met some of the people there who were really, really nice. And when you hear some of the perspectives of these different people, you really realise how fortunate you are to be given the life that you're given,” he said.

“I definitely want to come back to Bermuda and start up a career here, and I think I could definitely make a good, positive impact on the community after I return from college.”

In offering Nate a place, Richard Shaw, Stanford’s Dean of Admission and Financial Aid, wrote: “Everyone who reviewed your application was inspired by your passion, determination, accomplishments and heart. We acknowledge and celebrate all you have worked for with the good news this letter brings. You are, quite simply, a fantastic match with Stanford. You will bring something original and extraordinary to our campus – a place where you can learn, grow and thrive.”

Nate credited his success, in part, to the support of his mother, Juliana Snelling, a Stanford alumna and Rhodes Scholar.

“I couldn't have done any of this without my mom. She’s always been very motivating but she never really put much pressure on me because she knew I was hardworking,” he said.

“I couldn’t have done it without her helping me organise all my different activities and just doing little things like making meals when I'm studying – that support, I think, really helps me. She also gave me a lot of good advice on what US colleges would be looking for and how I could boost my overall performance in and outside of the classroom.”

The ability to focus intensely on one thing at a time was also helpful, he added.

“If I'm playing rugby, I'm playing rugby. If I'm studying, all I'm doing is studying. I put all my focus into my studies for about one month, and I did pretty well,” he said. “But I think consistency over intensity is really important. You don't get 44 out of 45 IB points just by doing it all at the end.”

His goal after completing his degree is to pursue a master’s and possibly earn a Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

“And then I think I would go into either private equity or investment banking,” he said.

Asked what advice he would give younger students, Nate believes it’s important to “get involved and take every opportunity”.

“If anything sparks your interest, don't hesitate to get involved. I feel like a lot of times at school, people don't take the opportunities that they should, whether that's sports or even just joining music programmes,” he said. “And I think just giving your best effort in all the different areas of life that you're in – it really just helps you to gain experience and meet a bunch of different people. You never know who you're going to meet.”

It’s one of the things he’s most looking forward to at Stanford.

“I'm actually excited to meet people who have done really great things. To get into Stanford, you have to differentiate yourself, whether that's through charity, through school or through sport and I'm just really excited to go and meet all the different people there, to see what the school has to offer, and just get a good understanding of pure economics.”