Virginia Tech offering incoming freshman $1000 not to come

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What a mess. I keep thinking this is what wait lists are for. Perhaps this is related to Amazon, but that campus is supposed to be for graduates, right? Amazon is looking to hire from all Virginia schools with the encouragement that they step up the number of graduates in relevant fields like CS.

Yes, the Alexandria campus is (right now) supposed to be graduate studies. I hadn't thought about the surge of interest being related to Amazon, particularly because of the distance to Alexandria but I suppose it's possible. I thought it was due to parents having sticker shock and realizing what a great deal the in-state Va schools are.

As a parent of a graduating senior in northern va, it seems that the issue is simply that kids didn’t get into where they expected to. Kids that expected a top 20 had to settle for UVA, kids that wanted UVA had to settle for VT, and even some kids who wanted VT had to settle for JMU. Most of the kids we know that wanted WM got in. In addition, even in the last weeks of April, we knew some who let out of state hope go and chose VT specifically; some for rejection reasons and others when the merit and financial aid didn’t come through.

^^^your sample size of 5 friends plus your kid isn’t quite a scientific study.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What a mess. I keep thinking this is what wait lists are for. Perhaps this is related to Amazon, but that campus is supposed to be for graduates, right? Amazon is looking to hire from all Virginia schools with the encouragement that they step up the number of graduates in relevant fields like CS.

Yes, the Alexandria campus is (right now) supposed to be graduate studies. I hadn't thought about the surge of interest being related to Amazon, particularly because of the distance to Alexandria but I suppose it's possible. I thought it was due to parents having sticker shock and realizing what a great deal the in-state Va schools are.

As a parent of a graduating senior in northern va, it seems that the issue is simply that kids didn’t get into where they expected to. Kids that expected a top 20 had to settle for UVA, kids that wanted UVA had to settle for VT, and even some kids who wanted VT had to settle for JMU. Most of the kids we know that wanted WM got in. In addition, even in the last weeks of April, we knew some who let out of state hope go and chose VT specifically; some for rejection reasons and others when the merit and financial aid didn’t come through.

^^^your sample size of 5 friends plus your kid isn’t quite a scientific study.

In PPs defense, it is as good a random sample as any, really.

[Anonymous]

Whomever pointed out up thread that it’s the time all those 18 year old prepaid tuition plans are being harvested has a good point. Lousy for all those in the majors listed above.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Whomever pointed out up thread that it’s the time all those 18 year old prepaid tuition plans are being harvested has a good point. Lousy for all those in the majors listed above.

True. But I would be more interested to see what WM numbers do. Part of their niche appeal is that they are so much more expensive than any other state school. Smaller classes. Beautiful, historic campus. But worth thousands more a year? (Obviously this doesn’t apply to engineering). Unless you have a prepaid plan.

My kid is a junior whose first choice by a mike is WM, and I am going to feel like a made a brilliant financial decision to do prepaid if he gets in. It will be luck that that is how it turned out, it I would feel like I was getting a bargain Certainly there are parents out there would would normally steer kids away from WM if full pay, but love the deal if prepaid? Off topic, but interesting thought.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What a mess. I keep thinking this is what wait lists are for. Perhaps this is related to Amazon, but that campus is supposed to be for graduates, right? Amazon is looking to hire from all Virginia schools with the encouragement that they step up the number of graduates in relevant fields like CS.

Yes, the Alexandria campus is (right now) supposed to be graduate studies. I hadn't thought about the surge of interest being related to Amazon, particularly because of the distance to Alexandria but I suppose it's possible. I thought it was due to parents having sticker shock and realizing what a great deal the in-state Va schools are.

As a parent of a graduating senior in northern va, it seems that the issue is simply that kids didn’t get into where they expected to. Kids that expected a top 20 had to settle for UVA, kids that wanted UVA had to settle for VT, and even some kids who wanted VT had to settle for JMU. Most of the kids we know that wanted WM got in. In addition, even in the last weeks of April, we knew some who let out of state hope go and chose VT specifically; some for rejection reasons and others when the merit and financial aid didn’t come through.

^^^your sample size of 5 friends plus your kid isn’t quite a scientific study.

In PPs defense, it is as good a random sample as any, really.

And it could also be completely made up, as any anecdote on an anonymous forum could be. -DP

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From the head of Virginia Tech’s Aerospace Engineering Department on Twitter:

“While some schools struggle with enrollment, we have the opposite problem at Virginia Tech.Target freshman enrollment in Engineering was 2060, but 2700 have accepted for Fall 2019 with 350 wanting Aerospace Engineering.”

As other schools get a lot harder to get into (UMCP, UVA) any okay students that want engineering will go to VT. That is why it is more of a weed-out school. You can't expect kids without calculus to get into engineering school and for some reason VT accepts them.

Huh? VTech is better at engineering than UVA.

Please stop

UVA people always want to cite USNews. VT is 13 in USNews undergraduate engineering ranking while UVA is 38th.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From the head of Virginia Tech’s Aerospace Engineering Department on Twitter:

“While some schools struggle with enrollment, we have the opposite problem at Virginia Tech.Target freshman enrollment in Engineering was 2060, but 2700 have accepted for Fall 2019 with 350 wanting Aerospace Engineering.”

As other schools get a lot harder to get into (UMCP, UVA) any okay students that want engineering will go to VT. That is why it is more of a weed-out school. You can't expect kids without calculus to get into engineering school and for some reason VT accepts them.

Huh? VTech is better at engineering than UVA.

Please stop

UVA people always want to cite USNews. VT is 13 in USNews undergraduate engineering ranking while UVA is 38th.

Well, if UVA was in the Big 10, its engineering program would only be ranked behind Illinois and Michigan. And Purdue and Northwestern. And Wisconsin and Penn State. And Maryland and Minnesota. And Ohio State.

[Anonymous]

The people who are obsessed with rankings are so incredibly boring.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From the head of Virginia Tech’s Aerospace Engineering Department on Twitter:

“While some schools struggle with enrollment, we have the opposite problem at Virginia Tech.Target freshman enrollment in Engineering was 2060, but 2700 have accepted for Fall 2019 with 350 wanting Aerospace Engineering.”

As other schools get a lot harder to get into (UMCP, UVA) any okay students that want engineering will go to VT. That is why it is more of a weed-out school. You can't expect kids without calculus to get into engineering school and for some reason VT accepts them.

We were explicitly told by the admissions office at VT four years ago that they want to see calculus finished by end of junior year with an A for engineering admits. If you don't have that, they advised against applying EA, because they would put a hold on the application until they could see the calculus grade (this was before VT offered ED). The competition has only gotten worse. At the engineering open house we were shown the stats. You clearly needed a minimum 4.0 to get in.

My son is an incoming freshman. Is just finished Pre-Calc and was admitted. He doesn’t have a 4.0 either. Kids getting all A’s can get into better schools than VT. It’s a great school, but it is not that hard to get into.

Still waiting for an answer. Please respond. Did your son get admitted specifically to the VT engineering program with those academic details?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From the head of Virginia Tech’s Aerospace Engineering Department on Twitter:

“While some schools struggle with enrollment, we have the opposite problem at Virginia Tech.Target freshman enrollment in Engineering was 2060, but 2700 have accepted for Fall 2019 with 350 wanting Aerospace Engineering.”

As other schools get a lot harder to get into (UMCP, UVA) any okay students that want engineering will go to VT. That is why it is more of a weed-out school. You can't expect kids without calculus to get into engineering school and for some reason VT accepts them.

Huh? VTech is better at engineering than UVA.

Please stop

UVA people always want to cite USNews. VT is 13 in USNews undergraduate engineering ranking while UVA is 38th.

Well, if UVA was in the Big 10, its engineering program would only be ranked behind Illinois and Michigan. And Purdue and Northwestern. And Wisconsin and Penn State. And Maryland and Minnesota. And Ohio State.

'


Maybe. But putting football aside (a yawn for me), UVA still comes in consistently as no. 2 or 3 best public school in America, with Michigan trailing behind. https://news.virginia.edu/content/us-news-19-rankings-rate-uva-no-3-public-and-no-2-best-value-among-publics

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The people who are obsessed with rankings are so incredibly boring.

+1, it probably had more to do with money and if students don't get aid and parents cannot afford the high prices they are smart and go to state colleges.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The only kids at VT or JMU that had a 3.2 got in for some other compelling reason (ie athletics). No regular applicant is getting in with anything close to that. So, the other students worked hard and excelled at something (or overcame difficulties) that the “settling” student did not.

That’s what this board would have you believe, but that’s just not the case. Our tour guide at VT last summer actually told us in her why I chose VT speech that she didn’t get in anywhere else and was angry when she arrived but she fell in love with it.

I don't understand why you think the statement of one tour guide at VT is worth anything???? All you have to do is look at the SCHEV statistics for ENTERING students last fall, 2018, to see that the first statement is true - that no one is getting into VT with a 3.2 unless they have a compelling reason. The median 75th percentile high school GPA of entering students 2018 was a 4.25, the median a 4.06 and the bottom 25th of the entering class had a 3.88. Please remember that entering statistics are lower than the "accepted" statistics because some of the accepted students go elsewhere. http://research.schev.edu//enrollment/B10_FreshmenProfile.asp

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From the head of Virginia Tech’s Aerospace Engineering Department on Twitter:

“While some schools struggle with enrollment, we have the opposite problem at Virginia Tech.Target freshman enrollment in Engineering was 2060, but 2700 have accepted for Fall 2019 with 350 wanting Aerospace Engineering.”

As other schools get a lot harder to get into (UMCP, UVA) any okay students that want engineering will go to VT. That is why it is more of a weed-out school. You can't expect kids without calculus to get into engineering school and for some reason VT accepts them.

Huh? VTech is better at engineering than UVA.

Please stop

UVA people always want to cite USNews. VT is 13 in USNews undergraduate engineering ranking while UVA is 38th.

Well, if UVA was in the Big 10, its engineering program would only be ranked behind Illinois and Michigan. And Purdue and Northwestern. And Wisconsin and Penn State. And Maryland and Minnesota. And Ohio State.

UVA and VT run very different engineering schools. No school's merits can be completely described by one number. There are reasons for choosing one or the other. Except this year.... if my kid had been heading to VT engineering, he'd be choosing a gap year now instead. I will care a whole lot less about a school's rankîngs if my kid got weeded out.

[Anonymous]

True. But I would be more interested to see what WM numbers do. Part of their niche appeal is that they are so much more expensive than any other state school. Smaller classes. Beautiful, historic campus. But worth thousands more a year? (Obviously this doesn’t apply to engineering). Unless you have a prepaid plan.

My kid is a junior whose first choice by a mike is WM, and I am going to feel like a made a brilliant financial decision to do prepaid if he gets in. It will be luck that that is how it turned out, it I would feel like I was getting a bargain Certainly there are parents out there would would normally steer kids away from WM if full pay, but love the deal if prepaid? Off topic, but interesting thought.

Never thought of W&M as a niche school. UVA instate is $33,008 for 2019-2020. W&M is $39,604. Whether W&M is worth the differential will depend on the student/parent.

[Anonymous]

https://www.insidehighered.com/admissions/views/2019/06/24/colleges-should-only-rarely-revoke-admissions-offers-opinion

Recently, Virginia Tech announced that it has over-enrolled its freshman class for the fall by a whopping 1,000 students. Ignoring the question of how that happens from an enrollment management perspective, Virginia Tech deserves credit for its response to a situation that will create havoc for the university and the surrounding community. Virginia Tech is upholding its commitment to the students who applied and enrolled in good faith, but has adopted a policy similar to that used by airlines in an overbooking situation. VT recently reached out to 1,500 students in certain majors and offered them cash incentives of $1,000 to take a gap year and defer admission, or attend a community college and then transfer. It is too early to know how successful that plan is, but as of a week ago my sources were telling me that fewer than 100 students had accepted the offer.