Where did your high stats/ max rigor but OK ECs student end up?

[Anonymous]

Honestly, we were told the same thing from a private counselor, and it couldn't be more wrong for our situation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. His school still follows the AP curriculum but also offers post AP classes. He would have taken 12 APs and 2 post APs in math by the time he graduates. School calculates GPA on a scale of 100, but he has the equivalent of a 4.0 unweighted ( mostly A+s in all classes ). Intended major would be along the lines of economics/ finance / accounting .

This may be the issue: school is not a top private. Top privates don’t give out As easily let alone have 15% of the class getting A+. We have friends in lower tier private with similar profile. Thought bc they were top of class they could aim of r schools like Brown and Dartmouth ED; all rejected and ended up at schools like Wesleyan and Middlebury during RD.

*aim for

Also want to add from my one person’s observation in our city (outside DMV), T15 schools are taking kids from top privates and brilliant kids from public schools who are low income. The in-between mid-tier private and UMC kids don’t get in.

This. But I think if her kid is in the top 5%, there’s a good chance. OP: How did you come up with the top 15%, considering your kid got mostly A+’s? I think the best prediction is to look at their school’s Scoir. Also, you can see what schools kids with similar profiles from their school ended up this year. That’s a good benchmark and you can go from there.

OP here . His school doesn’t rank. Top 15% it’s just my conservative estimate based on how many kids end up on the honor roll every semester. His rank is probably higher, but I have no way of exactly quantifying that. We do have access to Scoir. The problem with Scoir though is that it only shows you GPA and SAT/ACT stats. You have no idea what ECs these kids did , or if they were a recruited athlete, or legacy. Just based on stats alone, he should be able to get into an Ivy . It’s the ECs that are the issue here based on what the counselor told us.

In my son’s decent private, half of the top 5% academically still got into T20 schools with those ECs. My son was in the top 10% (but not top 5%), and he got into a T30 unhooked with ECs slightly worse than yours.

Half of top 5%, assuming 150 kids school, that's only 3 kids to T20. But that's not a decent private. A decent private sends about 30 to T20.
An average public school sends more than that to T20.

His school is bigger. A public school is massive.

Like the above poster said, it’s much easier to get into a top college if you go to an top private or a public than an in-between private.

Also, we’re talking about unhooked kids here. They send quite a few recruited athletes to Ivies.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. His school still follows the AP curriculum but also offers post AP classes. He would have taken 12 APs and 2 post APs in math by the time he graduates. School calculates GPA on a scale of 100, but he has the equivalent of a 4.0 unweighted ( mostly A+s in all classes ). Intended major would be along the lines of economics/ finance / accounting .

This may be the issue: school is not a top private. Top privates don’t give out As easily let alone have 15% of the class getting A+. We have friends in lower tier private with similar profile. Thought bc they were top of class they could aim of r schools like Brown and Dartmouth ED; all rejected and ended up at schools like Wesleyan and Middlebury during RD.

*aim for

Also want to add from my one person’s observation in our city (outside DMV), T15 schools are taking kids from top privates and brilliant kids from public schools who are low income. The in-between mid-tier private and UMC kids don’t get in.

This. But I think if her kid is in the top 5%, there’s a good chance. OP: How did you come up with the top 15%, considering your kid got mostly A+’s? I think the best prediction is to look at their school’s Scoir. Also, you can see what schools kids with similar profiles from their school ended up this year. That’s a good benchmark and you can go from there.

OP here . His school doesn’t rank. Top 15% it’s just my conservative estimate based on how many kids end up on the honor roll every semester. His rank is probably higher, but I have no way of exactly quantifying that. We do have access to Scoir. The problem with Scoir though is that it only shows you GPA and SAT/ACT stats. You have no idea what ECs these kids did , or if they were a recruited athlete, or legacy. Just based on stats alone, he should be able to get into an Ivy . It’s the ECs that are the issue here based on what the counselor told us.

Agree for ECs and evidence for Econ or business.
Think about his existing extracurriculars and what he does have evidence for. Econ has become increasingly competitive…

Has he had jobs? Been involved in any extracurriculars like the schools investment club or other types of eon related extracurriculars? If not, you need to look at what he does have. Or it’s not too late to get a job for this summer… I also know kids who have done one month stints at various Michelin star restaurants, and then gotten a part-time job inside of a kitchen at a restaurant and then applied successfully to Cornell‘s hotel /Nolan business school. That does work.

Sports & community organizations show evidence of sociology?
Maybe evidence for ED: Vanderbilt HOD major or Northwestern LOC major.

Start a new thread with activities and people can offer suggestions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. His school still follows the AP curriculum but also offers post AP classes. He would have taken 12 APs and 2 post APs in math by the time he graduates. School calculates GPA on a scale of 100, but he has the equivalent of a 4.0 unweighted ( mostly A+s in all classes ). Intended major would be along the lines of economics/ finance / accounting .

This may be the issue: school is not a top private. Top privates don’t give out As easily let alone have 15% of the class getting A+. We have friends in lower tier private with similar profile. Thought bc they were top of class they could aim of r schools like Brown and Dartmouth ED; all rejected and ended up at schools like Wesleyan and Middlebury during RD.

*aim for

Also want to add from my one person’s observation in our city (outside DMV), T15 schools are taking kids from top privates and brilliant kids from public schools who are low income. The in-between mid-tier private and UMC kids don’t get in.

This. But I think if her kid is in the top 5%, there’s a good chance. OP: How did you come up with the top 15%, considering your kid got mostly A+’s? I think the best prediction is to look at their school’s Scoir. Also, you can see what schools kids with similar profiles from their school ended up this year. That’s a good benchmark and you can go from there.

OP here . His school doesn’t rank. Top 15% it’s just my conservative estimate based on how many kids end up on the honor roll every semester. His rank is probably higher, but I have no way of exactly quantifying that. We do have access to Scoir. The problem with Scoir though is that it only shows you GPA and SAT/ACT stats. You have no idea what ECs these kids did , or if they were a recruited athlete, or legacy. Just based on stats alone, he should be able to get into an Ivy . It’s the ECs that are the issue here based on what the counselor told us.

The college counselor will informally rank the kids (e.g., top 5% or top 10%) in the letter, or AOs can deduce from a combination of their GPA and course rigor. You need to be in the top 5% in your high school to get into a top 20 in your case it seems.

Many privates do not complete that portion of the form

[Anonymous]

The issue is applying to business. You must have a tight narrative to get into the most competitive business school programs.

This kid does not have that and will not get in. But will likely get in for other majors. This is where you need to be strategic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. His school still follows the AP curriculum but also offers post AP classes. He would have taken 12 APs and 2 post APs in math by the time he graduates. School calculates GPA on a scale of 100, but he has the equivalent of a 4.0 unweighted ( mostly A+s in all classes ). Intended major would be along the lines of economics/ finance / accounting .

This may be the issue: school is not a top private. Top privates don’t give out As easily let alone have 15% of the class getting A+. We have friends in lower tier private with similar profile. Thought bc they were top of class they could aim of r schools like Brown and Dartmouth ED; all rejected and ended up at schools like Wesleyan and Middlebury during RD.

*aim for

Also want to add from my one person’s observation in our city (outside DMV), T15 schools are taking kids from top privates and brilliant kids from public schools who are low income. The in-between mid-tier private and UMC kids don’t get in.

This. But I think if her kid is in the top 5%, there’s a good chance. OP: How did you come up with the top 15%, considering your kid got mostly A+’s? I think the best prediction is to look at their school’s Scoir. Also, you can see what schools kids with similar profiles from their school ended up this year. That’s a good benchmark and you can go from there.

OP here . His school doesn’t rank. Top 15% it’s just my conservative estimate based on how many kids end up on the honor roll every semester. His rank is probably higher, but I have no way of exactly quantifying that. We do have access to Scoir. The problem with Scoir though is that it only shows you GPA and SAT/ACT stats. You have no idea what ECs these kids did , or if they were a recruited athlete, or legacy. Just based on stats alone, he should be able to get into an Ivy . It’s the ECs that are the issue here based on what the counselor told us.

In my son’s decent private, half of the top 5% academically still got into T20 schools with those ECs. My son was in the top 10% (but not top 5%), and he got into a T30 unhooked with ECs slightly worse than yours.[b]

correction: just looked at your opening post again. i don’t think my son’s ecs are worse than yours.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The issue is applying to business. You must have a tight narrative to get into the most competitive business school programs.

This kid does not have that and will not get in. But will likely get in for other majors. This is where you need to be strategic.

Like what?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t think you are in Ivy or Ivy+ territory but everything else is on the table. It’s not all doom and gloom. Crafting a cohesive application with solid essays is key. What schools do they like? ED1 and ED2 if needed will be very helpful as well. You got this!!

Not true. If ED and with well defined/explained narrative, northwestern and Hopkins are possible.

1550 is barely enough (literally mid) for JHU for an unhooked kid. If only math is top rigor and science course are not (a few PPs pointed out that wasn't clear), then this applicant's stats are not high enough for JHU for an unhooked/non-feeder school kid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t think you are in Ivy or Ivy+ territory but everything else is on the table. It’s not all doom and gloom. Crafting a cohesive application with solid essays is key. What schools do they like? ED1 and ED2 if needed will be very helpful as well. You got this!!

Not true. If ED and with well defined/explained narrative, northwestern and Hopkins are possible.

1550 is barely enough (literally mid) for JHU for an unhooked kid. If only math is top rigor and science course are not (a few PPs pointed out that wasn't clear), then this applicant's stats are not high enough for JHU for an unhooked/non-feeder school kid.

1540 is 50th percentile from last year’s CDS with only 50% submitting. 1550 should be 75th percentile now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:With a 1550 and 4.0 unweighted (this assumes you got all A's, with no A-'s , etc. but with average EC's, you're looking T50, maybe one or two in the T25. Virginia Tech, University of Rochester, Syracuse, Delaware, etc.

Look to the colleges that give lots of merit for SATs like Alabama, Arizona State, etc.

These are all safeties. They’re not even in the T50!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:With a 1550 and 4.0 unweighted (this assumes you got all A's, with no A-'s , etc. but with average EC's, you're looking T50, maybe one or two in the T25. Virginia Tech, University of Rochester, Syracuse, Delaware, etc.

Look to the colleges that give lots of merit for SATs like Alabama, Arizona State, etc.

These are all safeties. They’re not even in the T50!

+1 That post is out to lunch.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The issue is applying to business. You must have a tight narrative to get into the most competitive business school programs.

This kid does not have that and will not get in. But will likely get in for other majors. This is where you need to be strategic.

Like what?

We would need to look at his transcript and his extracurriculars. There is nothing listed here that gives us any indication about what this kid has actually done. This is where a good counselor can help.
Or frankly, just in the know parents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. His school still follows the AP curriculum but also offers post AP classes. He would have taken 12 APs and 2 post APs in math by the time he graduates. School calculates GPA on a scale of 100, but he has the equivalent of a 4.0 unweighted ( mostly A+s in all classes ). Intended major would be along the lines of economics/ finance / accounting .

This may be the issue: school is not a top private. Top privates don’t give out As easily let alone have 15% of the class getting A+. We have friends in lower tier private with similar profile. Thought bc they were top of class they could aim of r schools like Brown and Dartmouth ED; all rejected and ended up at schools like Wesleyan and Middlebury during RD.

*aim for

Also want to add from my one person’s observation in our city (outside DMV), T15 schools are taking kids from top privates and brilliant kids from public schools who are low income. The in-between mid-tier private and UMC kids don’t get in.

This. But I think if her kid is in the top 5%, there’s a good chance. OP: How did you come up with the top 15%, considering your kid got mostly A+’s? I think the best prediction is to look at their school’s Scoir. Also, you can see what schools kids with similar profiles from their school ended up this year. That’s a good benchmark and you can go from there.

OP here . His school doesn’t rank. Top 15% it’s just my conservative estimate based on how many kids end up on the honor roll every semester. His rank is probably higher, but I have no way of exactly quantifying that. We do have access to Scoir. The problem with Scoir though is that it only shows you GPA and SAT/ACT stats. You have no idea what ECs these kids did , or if they were a recruited athlete, or legacy. Just based on stats alone, he should be able to get into an Ivy . It’s the ECs that are the issue here based on what the counselor told us.

Agree for ECs and evidence for Econ or business.
Think about his existing extracurriculars and what he does have evidence for. Econ has become increasingly competitive…

Has he had jobs? Been involved in any extracurriculars like the schools investment club or other types of eon related extracurriculars? If not, you need to look at what he does have. Or it’s not too late to get a job for this summer… I also know kids who have done one month stints at various Michelin star restaurants, and then gotten a part-time job inside of a kitchen at a restaurant and then applied successfully to Cornell‘s hotel /Nolan business school. That does work.

Sports & community organizations show evidence of sociology?
Maybe evidence for ED: Vanderbilt HOD major or Northwestern LOC major.

Start a new thread with activities and people can offer suggestions.

+1
Major choice can be a strategic advantage or disadvantage

[Anonymous]

OP, if you want max prestige school, apply to WashU or Emory ED.

If everyone is right that your DC is at a lower/mid-tier private and is not taking top rigor for all courses, then you must ED an attainable school. Kids with this profile get shutout from 20 during RD, but do much better with T15-25 schools during ED.

Do not get greedy to aim for Ivies, that's unrealistic except maybe Cornell ED if not majoring in Comp Sci, engineering or business.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The issue is applying to business. You must have a tight narrative to get into the most competitive business school programs.

This kid does not have that and will not get in. But will likely get in for other majors. This is where you need to be strategic.

Like what?

From OP (assuming intended majors business?)

ECs: 2 somewhat competitive but pay-to-play pre college programs related to the intended major (done purely because they were interested in the subjects). School orchestra. School newspaper. Varsity sports, but not recruited athlete. Independent research (but not with a university professor). president of a school club related to their intended major. short unpaid internship in their intended major.

I’d refocus the business/econ type of activities to be focused on organizational theory/behavior, organizational studies and sociology of organizations and how they work?

Apply:

EA:
Michigan LSA (Organizational Studies, Sociology, Econ); UVA; USC; UT; UNC; Richmond; W&M

ED: Northwestern LOC
ED: Vanderbilt HOD
ED: Cornell ILR Org Studies