College Admissions Questions (2 Viewers)

[jhib]

Sure it was the college and not the feds?

 

[Courtjester]

We had to do this too for one college. The real quandary was all we had were the efiled copies so they weren't physically signed and I didn't remember the day I efiled them. I didn't think it was right to sign them as of last week so I just uploaded them unsigned. We will see if that bites us in the long run. 

 

[Courtjester]

CJ, I'm glad your daughter took care of business.  Congrats.

I'm down that I was asleep at the wheel on the Coke scholarship.  Sounded like it could've been up my daughter's alley.  If you don't mind, could you elaborate about why you think your daughter has a shot at a leadership scholarship specifically?  I know her ranking and GPA are gold but what else has she done in the leadership realm?  Just asking to sort of gauge what my daughter's chances are.  TIA

She is currently Senior class president,Vice President of student council, Secretary of the National Honor Society and Captain of the cheerleading squad (even though she is in a cast now)

Part of the scholarship questionaire asked  about service hours and she has a ton working with special needs kids. She just got done organizing a dance for special needs adults. She also tutors kids in ballet and contemporary dance on Saturdays. 

She is basically on the go 24/7 and unfortunately is one big ball of anxiety And this is all her doing---her mom and I always tell her to slow down and not fill her plate so full, but she doesn't listen. Last night she came home and told us she is auditioning for the lead in the next drama production. 

 

[jhib]

We had to do this too for one college. The real quandary was all we had were the efiled copies so they weren't physically signed and I didn't remember the day I efiled them. I didn't think it was right to sign them as of last week so I just uploaded them unsigned. We will see if that bites us in the long run. 

Yeah, same here. I assume it's fine because the instructions said they preferred pdfs from your tax preparer/software. Since they were digitally signed, what are you going to do? 

The other pain was that I had put down that she made $400 for a summer internship-type thing she did that summer (didn't start working a real job until early this year). Wasn't enough to have to file taxes herself, but then they asked for a w-2 or some other document to serve as a substitute. It was only a one-time stipend, so she didn't even have the pay stub. I ended up just checking the box that I was including a different document (because you had to check one), but put in the comments that we didn't have any documentation for it, but it was only $400 so c'mon. Hope they're cool with that. 

Wish I had just never mentioned it. 

 

[MAC_32]

Yeah, same here. I assume it's fine because the instructions said they preferred pdfs from your tax preparer/software. Since they were digitally signed, what are you going to do? 

The other pain was that I had put down that she made $400 for a summer internship-type thing she did that summer (didn't start working a real job until early this year). Wasn't enough to have to file taxes herself, but then they asked for a w-2 or some other document to serve as a substitute. It was only a one-time stipend, so she didn't even have the pay stub. I ended up just checking the box that I was including a different document (because you had to check one), but put in the comments that we didn't have any documentation for it, but it was only $400 so c'mon. Hope they're cool with that. 

Wish I had just never mentioned it. 

That's probably why you gotflagged. It won't be a problem, just a pain in the ###. 

 

[Courtjester]

First big scholarship response received yesterday---no go. Needless to say my daughter is pretty crushed because she thought that was one she had a pretty good shot at.'

Her school of choice says she will have an admissions response in the next 2-3 weeks max.  If she doesn't get in, it could be an interesting Christmas around our house. 

 

[NewlyRetired]

First big scholarship response received yesterday---no go. Needless to say my daughter is pretty crushed because she thought that was one she had a pretty good shot at.'

Her school of choice says she will have an admissions response in the next 2-3 weeks max.  If she doesn't get in, it could be an interesting Christmas around our house. 

Was the scholarship a private one?  I thought the school based ones decisions came at the same time as acceptances did.

Did you guys need that scholarship to make the numbers work for her school of choice or do you need to wait to see what kind of financial aid is coming to decide that?

 

[James Daulton]

Now my daughter is applying to the various honors schools of the colleges where she applied early action.  Why does this never-ending, teenage stress inducing process have to be scheduled for right at the holidays?    

 

[Courtjester]

Was the scholarship a private one?  I thought the school based ones decisions came at the same time as acceptances did.

Did you guys need that scholarship to make the numbers work for her school of choice or do you need to wait to see what kind of financial aid is coming to decide that?

it is a private one for Colorado kids only and it basically had tiers. So 1450 kids applied and then they reduce that by so many and go to the next round and make the kids do more essays and more letters of recommendations And then reduce it by more rinse and repeat. It is a full ride scholarship to any Colorado school of your choice and as you get further in the process you get money for each round you survive.  My daughter didn't really think she would win it, but even getting to the round of like 500 kids left gets you like 10k.

Yeah like I posted early on in here, she could very well end up getting admitted to her school of choice and then we have to tell her no if their financial aid package doesn't meet her needs. 

 

[NewlyRetired]

Now my daughter is applying to the various honors schools of the colleges where she applied early action.  Why does this never-ending, teenage stress inducing process have to be scheduled for right at the holidays?    

I have to say this is one of the most unpleasant processes I have been through regarding my daughters education.  

I just don't remember this level of craziness when I applied way back when.

 

[jhib]

Her school of choice says she will have an admissions response in the next 2-3 weeks max.  If she doesn't get in, it could be an interesting Christmas around our house. 

I'm not going to be crushed if my daughter doesn't get in to her early decision school (because I'm sure she'll find one that works for her), but man, it'll make the following three weeks suck big time. 

 

[Lehigh98]

My oldest is only 10 but saw this thread and its interesting to see how much things have changed since I was applying 20+ years ago.

Good luck to all.

 

[Nugget]

My oldest is only 10 but saw this thread and its interesting to see how much things have changed since I was applying 20+ years ago.

Good luck to all.

My daughter is 13 and I can't stop checking on this thread.  

 

[NewlyRetired]

My daughter blessed her last essay this morning.  All that is needed now is one final review of the whole app to make sure we did not miss anything and we are good to go!

I found it ironic that my daughters safety school (Wheaton) required significantly more work to be passed in than her reach school (Brown)   

Have any of you guys/your kids used SlideRoom to send in portfolios to the schools?  We have to use it for two schools, Wheaton and Wesleyan.

For those that are new to the process, SlideRoom is a tool that allows children to submit portfolio's to the college (stories, plays, works of art, dance, films etc).  SlideRoom connects to the Common App.

 

[NewlyRetired]

Does anyone know what the deadline is for the Financial Aid stuff (CSS Profile and FAFSA)? 

 

[The_Man]

Does anyone know what the deadline is for the Financial Aid stuff (CSS Profile and FAFSA)? 

I think it varies by school - shouldn't be hard to find on the individual schools' websites in the Financial Aid section. FAFSA is easy this year as long as you have your 2015 tax return handy. It used to be a nightmare because you had to guesstimate your 2016 year-end tax stuff. CSS is a drag, though.

Good luck to your daughter!

 

[NewlyRetired]

I think it varies by school - shouldn't be hard to find on the individual schools' websites in the Financial Aid section. FAFSA is easy this year as long as you have your 2015 tax return handy. It used to be a nightmare because you had to guesstimate your 2016 year-end tax stuff. CSS is a drag, though.

Good luck to your daughter!

ok thanks.  I was not sure if there was a national date or a school specific date.

The FAFSA took like 15 minutes, it was sooo nice.  

We started the CSS and felt like we were getting an enema.  Dear god that thing sucks :(

 

[Courtjester]

ok thanks.  I was not sure if there was a national date or a school specific date.

The FAFSA took like 15 minutes, it was sooo nice.  

We started the CSS and felt like we were getting an enema.  Dear god that thing sucks :(

What is weird about the CSS is I hear people talking about how they had to write an essay or disclose what kind of cars they drive. I wonder if it varies by school? Our CSS sucked, but it was pretty much just financial stuff from our taxes. There is that portion at the end of the CSS that talked about additional information and I figured that is where a person could talk about debt to income issues and when I read the tips on it, they said don't bother doing that. It won't be considered.

 

[Courtjester]

My daughter ending up applying for six total schools so far. She is going to probably do two more if her main two decline.

But out of the six she applied for, she has already been accepted to 3 of them. One of them, CSU, is pretty much offering a full ride and is only 30 minutes away from home,  They will accept her college credit from classes she has taken, so she would be looking at a max of 2 1/2 years of college. I am pushing for this school if her school of choice falls apart, but it is in a seedy town (Pueblo, Colorado) that has just seen a huge uptick in violence and drug problems because of the legalized marijuana businesses down there.

One of the other ones that accepted her, Fed Ex'd this really nice oak frame to her that is meant to supposedly house her college diploma when she graduates from there .There are offering her a financial package of 20k a year for four years to go there, but the school costs 46k a year, which we could reduce obviously with scholarships. So this is obviously in the mix.

The third school was just done because the application was free and there was very little she had to do.

On the scholarship front, the Coke scholarship she applied for just came back 20 minutes ago--She was accepted out of 187,000 applicants into the semi-finals pool of only 2,000 kids. Now there is a bunch of stuff she has to do and they will whittle it down further--but this next round is where she is going to shine because it is all about grades and awards. She gets through this round, they fly her and the other finalist kids to Atlanta in February for a week. 150 of these total 2,000 kids will get $20,000--that's pretty good odds no matter how you slice it.

Every day it is something...

 

[SteelCurtain]

I have to say this is one of the most unpleasant processes I have been through regarding my daughters education.  

I just don't remember this level of craziness when I applied way back when.

It is a radically different process than 20+ years ago.   The good thing?  Kids are resilient and move forward pretty quickly if they don't get admitted to their first choice school.

 

[NewlyRetired]

Question for the group regarding the Common App:

I was reviewing my daughters common app today.

She is applying to 6 schools.  2 of which require test scores and 4 of which she will be going the Test Optional route.

What should we do with the Self Reporting test section?  Since we are going to be sending the test results directly to the 2 schools that require them, is it ok to leave this section blank so that the test optional schools do not see this information that is only intended for the test required schools?

 

[SteelCurtain]

Question for the group regarding the Common App:

I was reviewing my daughters common app today.

She is applying to 6 schools.  2 of which require test scores and 4 of which she will be going the Test Optional route.

What should we do with the Self Reporting test section?  Since we are going to be sending the test results directly to the 2 schools that require them, is it ok to leave this section blank so that the test optional schools do not see this information that is only intended for the test required schools?

Just fill out the dates she took the tests but leave the actual scores achieved blank.  That tells the schools that are requiring tests which test scores they should be looking for.

 

[NewlyRetired]

Just fill out the dates she took the tests but leave the actual scores achieved blank.  That tells the schools that are requiring tests which test scores they should be looking for.

I will try that but I think I will get an error saying the section is not complete if I leave just parts blank.

Why do the schools that require tests care about which ones they are looking for?  We are going to be sending specific test scores from the College Board directly to the colleges.  There will be no choices for the college to make as they will have the exact tests they require (we don't have the ability to Super Score so we are just picking the highest test score).

 

[SteelCurtain]

I will try that but I think I will get an error saying the section is not complete if I leave just parts blank.

Why do the schools that require tests care about which ones they are looking for?  We are going to be sending specific test scores from the College Board directly to the colleges.  There will be no choices for the college to make as they will have the exact tests they require (we don't have the ability to Super Score so we are just picking the highest test score).

It varies school to school, but if a student takes the November SAT (for example), and a school is reading their application in December, they will look to see if they have those scores.   We think this is a linear and simple process, however, there are sometimes delays in processing by testing agency, delays in distributing scores to students or HS's, delays in getting information to colleges (sometimes its the kid, sometimes is the school, sometimes its just something funky), and sometimes things get delayed in processing at the college/university or is filed in the wrong Jane Doe file.

 

[NewlyRetired]

It varies school to school, but if a student takes the November SAT (for example), and a school is reading their application in December, they will look to see if they have those scores.   We think this is a linear and simple process, however, there are sometimes delays in processing by testing agency, delays in distributing scores to students or HS's, delays in getting information to colleges (sometimes its the kid, sometimes is the school, sometimes its just something funky), and sometimes things get delayed in processing at the college/university or is filed in the wrong Jane Doe file.

great thanks!

I also talked to my daughters guidance counselor about this and she said we can handle one of two ways

1) simply answer "no" to the self reporting since this is unofficial and the schools still need to get the official scores any way

2) create two different common apps, 1 for the test required schools where we can self report, and 1 for the Test Optional schools where we say no to self reporting

She recommended #1 since the schools that require testing don't pay much attention to that section to begin with because it is unofficial and they need to get the official scores from the College Board numbers we are going to submit.

 

[SteelCurtain]

great thanks!

I also talked to my daughters guidance counselor about this and she said we can handle one of two ways

1) simply answer "no" to the self reporting since this is unofficial and the schools still need to get the official scores any way

2) create two different common apps, 1 for the test required schools where we can self report, and 1 for the Test Optional schools where we say no to self reporting

She recommended #1 since the schools that require testing don't pay much attention to that section to begin with because it is unofficial and they need to get the official scores from the College Board numbers we are going to submit.

Yup.  Either way works. 

In reference to #2.  You could do the Common App.....submit to all the test optional schools.  Then adjust common app....then submit to everyone else.  (This may be what she is referring to, but in case, my way is easier.)

Good luck!

 

[NewlyRetired]

In reference to #2.  You could do the Common App.....submit to all the test optional schools.  Then adjust common app....then submit to everyone else.  (This may be what she is referring to, but in case, my way is easier.)

yes, that is exactly what she was suggesting in #2!  

I worded the response poorly

 

[The_Man]

Looks like tomorrow will bring in the end of the first round of Early Decisions. My niece hears from a highly selective school tonight - she and my sister are total stress cases right now. Not sure how she's going to handle it if she doesn't get in.

Anyone hearing anything?

 

[Big Blue Wrecking Crew]

My son got waitlisted at South Carolina.  Waiting to hear from Maryland, Delaware and Rutgers.  Guessing wait list with Maryland for sure; up in the air on Delaware/Rutgers.  His own fault based on grades, but what does Dad know?

 

[Courtjester]

So far my daughter has been accepted into five schools and has not received any rejections.  Her school of choice has said they will make the decision within the next 7 to 10 days, but her schools  2,3,4 are a yes. 

What is frustrating is these three schools just said congratulations you're accepted, and then they said they would follow up with an awards letter.  So we are expecting those to roll in here in the next week or so,  but it is kind of a false hope if the numbers don't work out. 

 One of the things I am seeing, and this is talking to other parents, is once you're accepted,  some schools want immediate deposits. 

 

[El Floppo]

anybody volunteer at the their alma mater in an effort to help get their kid in? (or at least give them a leg up)? any idea if it worked?

 

[rockaction]

All I remember is being at boarding school and not getting into certain schools I wanted because of my previous high school record. I got into a great liberal NE school, but for weeks I was crushed. I almost got put on cut probation when I was the top student at that boarding school for the better half of a year. I remember just not getting out of bed. The quality of the students and their pasts is so amazing, you don't realize as a teen until you get older that you've been in a numbers game, and it's not always a judgment upon you, just your written record. 

Best to everyone and their families awaiting this.

 

[NewlyRetired]

I had a conversation with my daughter while we were waiting in line for Rogue One last night and I think I bummed her out but I don't think I said anything that was wrong (at least from my understanding of the process).

I asked her what she thought about the non grades/test scores part of her application and she said she knows she is going to get great recommendations and she believes she wrote excellent essays and hopes that will help her get accepted into her harder schools.

I told her I don't think either recommendations or essays can actually change a decision from a no to a yes.  I told her that schools are expecting the essays and recommendations to all be very strong and that while they can not help you turn a no into a yes, the opposite is true.  A poor recommendation or a horribly written essay could move you from a yes to a no.

She did not like my answer.

 

[The_Man]

Any updates? My niece got deferred ED at Duke and spent the whole xmas break doing all her other applications. Plus now she's freaking out that she won't get in anywhere. 

 

[NewlyRetired]

Any updates? My niece got deferred ED at Duke and spent the whole xmas break doing all her other applications. Plus now she's freaking out that she won't get in anywhere. 

all 6 are regular decision for my daughter.  Just need to wait this out until March and see what is what. 

Do all colleges wait until March for regular decisions or could they trickle in at different times?

 

[James Daulton]

Any updates? My niece got deferred ED at Duke and spent the whole xmas break doing all her other applications. Plus now she's freaking out that she won't get in anywhere. 

So is Duke off the table or is there still a chance?  I'm amazed at the caliber of student that schools turn away.  My daughters friend was straight A, all AP, 1530 SATs and was deferred at U of Chicago.  Who the hell are these colleges accepting?

 

[NewlyRetired]

So is Duke off the table or is there still a chance?  I'm amazed at the caliber of student that schools turn away.  My daughters friend was straight A, all AP, 1450 SATs and was deferred at U of Chicago.  Who the hell are these colleges accepting?

There is something new with the deferrals and I can't figure it out yet what the schools are doing.  My daughters counselor said the deferrals have been steadily climbing every year.

In my family, my two nephews and two nieces were top students (grades, test scores, the works) and all 4 got deferred from Northeastern.  But all 4 got in during the regular admission process.  

So I think for now, no one should sweat a deferral and just tell the kids to wait it out until March.

I think the fact that kids are applying to so many schools these days is also throwing a wrench into the equation.  A ton of schools are seeing large growth in their applicant pools which also significantly lowers their acceptance rates.

 

[Fear The Turtle]

So is Duke off the table or is there still a chance?  I'm amazed at the caliber of student that schools turn away.  My daughters friend was straight A, all AP, 1450 SATs and was deferred at U of Chicago.  Who the hell are these colleges accepting?

Lots of international students who pay full price.  Huge bump in international applicants the last several years and getting more pronounced by the year.

 

[Fear The Turtle]

The scuttlebutt from my daughter's school.  First, the background: she goes to a magnet school that Newsweek ranks as MD's #1 public high school. Its class of 2016 (fewer than 300 kids, I believe) had at least one enrollee at every Ivy League school, two at Stanford, three at Hopkins, etc.

This year, an applicant with a 2400 SAT was rejected ED at Stanford.  Another kid who answered every question correctly on the AP Span Lit test, got accepted to Harvard.  He's Latino, by the way.  39 kids applied EA to Michigan and only two were accepted with the majority (including my daughter) being deferred.  Included among the deferrals was my daughter's boyfriend, who got a 34 in his only ACT attempt and a perfect score in his SAT Math subject test.  He was also deferred at M.I.T. even though the cross country coach there was really pushing for him.

Two close friends of my daughter's, both Asian by the way, applied ED at Duke.  One was accepted and one was rejected.  They both had great resumes.  The one who was accepted has performed (piano) at Carnegie Hall.  Another friend of hers was accepted to Hopkins.  But mostly the story has been one of either ED rejection or deferral.  

 

[Courtjester]

Everything has pretty much gone bad...

My Daughter got deferred at her school of choice. They got approximately 7500 early decision applicants. They accepted 7% of those and deferred 500 total kids. She will have to wait until March for their decision. They say they plan to accept about 100 of these kids but we have no idea if at 67k a year we could afford it even if they accept her. So she could wait for nothing. 

Her 2nd and 3rd choice school accepted her. School one DU will give her approx 25k a year to go there--it costs 66k a year to go and they want 41k out of pocket from us a year. School two (safe school) will give her like 14k a year but it costs 35k to go there---21k a year needed from us. So both are pretty much out unless scholarships roll in. I am  not going six figures in debt for a four year degree. 

So she is down to school 4 and 5. She had been accepted at both, but we haven't recieved their financial awards yet. School 4 is where her boyfriend is planning to attend---so we are not real happy she would be following him. As up and down as they are, I can see lots of drama distracting her from why she is in college.

School 5 is in our town and she is not excited about going somewhere so close to home. 

The rub is---Both of these schools she could have gotten into with average grades--so the question is why did she kill herself for the past four years to go to basically a college that accepts anyone? So frustrating...

She has been accepted into 3 others as well but either cost or location, she isn't considering them. 

She is still in the running for two big scholarships so who knows. 

Lots of tears and sleepless nights in our house. 

 

[HellToupee]

 One of the things I am seeing, and this is talking to other parents, is once you're accepted,  some schools want immediate deposits. 

Remember it's a buyers market. Some schools offer more $ after initial award and it's getting close to the deadline.

 

[The_Man]

all 6 are regular decision for my daughter.  Just need to wait this out until March and see what is what. 

Do all colleges wait until March for regular decisions or could they trickle in at different times?

It depends. Bigger state schools tend to release them earlier and then there's a real flurry starting in mid-March. If you google each school's name along with 2016 Admission notification date, you should be able to find when they came out last year. Or go to the College Confidential message board for each school and see when kids posted their decisions last year. The dates only change by a day or 2 from year to year. Ivy League is last, think it was March 31 last year. Maybe the 29th or 30th

 

[NewlyRetired]

This year, an applicant with a 2400 SAT was rejected ED at Stanford.  

holy crap....The SAT's are only out of 1600 now.  Does this mean this student got a perfect SAT as a sophomore (which I think the last time the 2400 scale was used?)?

I feel so inadequate reading this thread. :(

Its like if a kid has a b+ average these days, they can only get into a state school.  I don't think I would have been accepted anywhere today but the worst colleges with my grades 20+ years ago.

 

[The_Man]

Sorry @Courtjester. If it's any consolation, studies show kids' success in life correlates with the quality of the schools that accept them, not the schools they end up attending. Basically if you're the kind of good, smart kid who busts it in high school, you'll be the same kind of kid no matter where you go. But good luck telling that to a senior who's been killing herself for 4 years and then ends up at the same place as kids who haven't been working as hard all that time. Not to mention, it's extra-tough out there for white girls. There are just so many good applicants among them.

People who haven't been through it lately have no idea how tough admissions has become. Last year, my son was #1 in his class, 2350 SAT (on the old 3-parter), and 2 800 subject tests, captain of 2 varsity sports and had spent a summer studying Arabic in the Middle East on a State Department scholarship. Shut out at Harvard, Yale and Princeton, got into Brown - with a definite boost from being a guy (they get 40% more female applicants and only accept about 8% of them compared to 15% of men). 

After Princeton published its "Welcome to the Class of 2020" press release, breaking down the % of M/F students, minority and international students, legacy and first generation students, and recruited athletes, we did the math and figure they took -at most - 250 average white dudes who don't fit any of those categories, like my son. Once you realize you're actually competing for 1 of so few spots, you understand how long the odds of getting in really are. 

 

[NewlyRetired]

 Not to mention, it's extra-tough out there for white girls.

I can say locally this is the case.   Out of my daughters top 10 kids in her school (senior class), 9 are girls (8 white, 1 Asian-american).  I am doing what I can to set her expectations on how tough this is going to be but I think it is so hard for kids to understand who have been at or near the top of their class for so many years, just how insignificant that can be on a country and global scale.

 

[SteelCurtain]

So far my daughter has been accepted into five schools and has not received any rejections.  Her school of choice has said they will make the decision within the next 7 to 10 days, but her schools  2,3,4 are a yes. 

What is frustrating is these three schools just said congratulations you're accepted, and then they said they would follow up with an awards letter.  So we are expecting those to roll in here in the next week or so,  but it is kind of a false hope if the numbers don't work out. 

 One of the things I am seeing, and this is talking to other parents, is once you're accepted,  some schools want immediate deposits. 

Not allowed unless they applied Early Decision.

Go to the rules colleges must follow (according to their national organization) https://www.nacacnet.org/globalassets/documents/advocacy-and-ethics/statement-of-principles-of-good-practice/spgp_10_1_2016_final.pdf

Page 4 -- Section II, B, 3 -- says you have until May 1 to submit an enrollment deposit.  (exception being if you applied Early Decision.)  Admittedly, some larger state schools may require a housing deposit earlier but I believe that is usually refundable until May 1.

 

[SteelCurtain]

Sorry @Courtjester. If it's any consolation, studies show kids' success in life correlates with the quality of the schools that accept them, not the schools they end up attending. Basically if you're the kind of good, smart kid who busts it in high school, you'll be the same kind of kid no matter where you go. But good luck telling that to a senior who's been killing herself for 4 years and then ends up at the same place as kids who haven't been working as hard all that time. Not to mention, it's extra-tough out there for white girls. There are just so many good applicants among them.

People who haven't been through it lately have no idea how tough admissions has become. Last year, my son was #1 in his class, 2350 SAT (on the old 3-parter), and 2 800 subject tests, captain of 2 varsity sports and had spent a summer studying Arabic in the Middle East on a State Department scholarship. Shut out at Harvard, Yale and Princeton, got into Brown - with a definite boost from being a guy (they get 40% more female applicants and only accept about 8% of them compared to 15% of men). 

After Princeton published its "Welcome to the Class of 2020" press release, breaking down the % of M/F students, minority and international students, legacy and first generation students, and recruited athletes, we did the math and figure they took -at most - 250 average white dudes who don't fit any of those categories, like my son. Once you realize you're actually competing for 1 of so few spots, you understand how long the odds of getting in really are. 

Harvard denies more students with perfect SATs than they admit.

Harvard denies more kids ranked #1 in their HS class than they admit.

Think about that for a moment.  If you are playing in the super selective stratosphere, it is very much like playing the lottery.

 

[NewlyRetired]

The rub is---Both of these schools she could have gotten into with average grades--so the question is why did she kill herself for the past four years to go to basically a college that accepts anyone? So frustrating...

she won't be able to appreciate it now at her age but the habits she has formed in high school will help her through out college, no matter where she goes.  

In fact, there is a blessing in disguise here.  When top high school students go to a top college, the vast majority quickly find out that they are no longer anything special and that can cause problems for some kids who can lose confidence after being the top for so long, and cause a downward spiral.

Going to a slightly lower school can give her the room to continue to excel as one of the top students.

This of course will be meaningless to her but you as a parent should embrace this.

One thing I learned in my career as an engineer was to basically ignore what college kids went to when looking at their resumes.  I worked with kids from MIT who were extremely poor workers and kids from significantly less fancy engineering schools who became fantastic engineers.  I would not be surprised to see this true in almost every field.

The key you need to stress to daughter is to just continue to kick ### in college no matter where she goes, be it a tier 1 or something lower.   This is especially important if she wants to go to grad school.

 

[Fear The Turtle]

I am confused by it as well.

The reason my daughter (according to her logic) is going this route is the acceptance rate is like 31% for ED vs like 16% for EA at this school and this is like vs 7% normal application.

 I do think you have to withdraw all your other applications once you get the acceptance letter. At least that's what I've read. So considering that, you may ultimately decline to go to the school for financial reasons, but you've now withdrawn all your other applications and have to start over. 

I wonder if there's room to game play here.  That is, you apply Early Decision (to give yourself whatever edge that gives) to a university and are accepted.  Then, shortly thereafter, you're accepted at a preferred school.  Say you're fairly poor, can you quickly (magically  ) determine that you can't afford the ED school and back out before being forced to withdraw other applications?  What's the time lag? 

 

[Fear The Turtle]

Make sure you do NOT miss that Nov. 1 priority admission deadline. College Park filled more than 90% of this year's freshman class with priority applicants.

I just got off the phone with a UMD admissions officer and she told me the number is closer to 70-80%.  Still pretty darn high.