All these smart kids are getting rejected across the board

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents of seniors at our school are using words like bloodbath to describe the seniors acceptances. Kids who worked hard and did everything they were supposed to are not getting in to top 20-50 schools. Too many white, UMC families who saved and can pay full price are not getting in whereas 10 years ago they would have. It's partly due to test-optional and partly due to more diversity (socio-economic and racial) being sought after at top schools.

No, it’s due to everyone “shooting their shot” at the same colleges. Stop blaming testing and diversity. Colleges have been looking for diverse classes for decades. It’s not new.

What’s new is clear. The applications are exploding at top schools and falling at the rest. The reason is probably layered, from subtle things like adults belittling good options that aren’t impressive (my gosh, even JMU gets ripped here) to grade inflation making parents think their middle of the pack student is at the top of the class…again there are many reasons.

Stop blaming stupid stuff that makes you made and use reason.

I'll start by saying I don't have a problem with what's going on currently in admissions.

I agree with you that everyone is too focuses on the same set of colleges. BUT, I do think that with COVID, test optional, and recent cultural changes that some schools have truly expanded their horizons on how they evaluate candidates. I think in the past that they were more skewed towards test scores aligning with grades and adding in some ECs. Now without test scores, I think they are genuinely looking at other parts of the application in a new way.. It could also be that they are simply recognizing that they have so many applicants who were "qualified" that they should really stop just skewing admissions to those with the highest GPA/test stats and put increased thought into what each applicant might bring to campus (they were doing this before but I think with a smaller pool of high stats kids).

I personally think this is a good thing and will create all kinds of diversity (including the type of white UMC kids they accept). It also means the tip top gpa/test stat kids may not have the same advantages they had before and definitely need to cast a wider net.

But to say that test optional and diversity didn't change anything isn't quite right.

I think it is hard for a student who got better grades and better test scores to see a fellow classmate with worse everything gaining acceptance because they are URM. I have heard it was a really bad year for many MC and UMC white and Asian students.

Wow! Perhaps you don't know the whole story for the URM as a whole person? Test scores and grades are not everything. From your privileged position, you apparently do not recognize that the URM might be heading home after school to help take care of siblings or a grandparent, may not have time to go to tutoring or participate in 3 Varsity level sports, etc. They might have to work a job to help support the family; they might not be growing up in a home where the parents can help with school work, or with parents who went to college. If your parents didn't attend college, you often grow up with a very different perspective on life than someone whose parents both have Graduate degrees. Maybe they have a learning disability and their family doesn't have the financial resources to provide services that many privileged kids would get (I have lived this; paid $250-300/week for 4+ years to get my own kid on track once I paid for a full neuropsychological evaluation to diagnose the issues. I am so grateful that we as a family could afford to provide this for our kid). You simply don't know their life outside of school.

It really is time for the privileged to start recognizing the great advantages they have over many just from growing up privileged.

Stop the rescue fantasy. Most of the URM they take are coming from upper middle class families. Not all URM are poor.

The ones benefiting most are UMC blacks and Hispanics.

This is exactly what I’ve seen in our social circle. Our kids were raised in incredibly similar families, dads had the same kind of jobs, same kinds of degrees, same six figure incomes, same type of high schools, same rigor and test scores, moms college-educated. 2 half Mexican kids to Yale, 2 black kids to Harvard, our white kids rejected from everything with less than a 40% acceptance rate. The program is just not as noble as it seems.

And why shouldn’t Harvard and Yale pick kids of color over your white kids? Do you think there are no white kids at Harvard? Your white kids didn’t make the cut, sorry. Join the rest of us over here. It will be okay, I promise.

Well your kids, yes they will be ok. You apparently have raised yours to work hard and deal with disappointments.

Theirs? Maybe not because they have been raised to be entitled.
Life isn't always fair, but you will go much farther once you realize this and learn to move on from disappointment and learn from it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

But, because DC is not URM, and we are not low income, that's a strike against DC.

This often repeated line just isn't true. Our private admissions counselor said only first gen kids are getting a bump (in addition to recruited athletes, major donors, geographic diversity etc). There are just so many variable now that you really can't predict what will help or hurt your kid. An Asian male applying to CS or Engineering with have tough competition from other Asian males, but that same kid might have an advantage if he wants to be a nurse or a teacher.

white people are going to blame URMs no matter what you say.

I think because there are "white people" (ie: not brown, not yellow) who were, just one or two generations ago, who were first generation, and they got nothing.

My father was the first in his family to go to college and he was not a stellar student but managed to Cornell on the GI bill. Perhaps your child should try 3 years of military service?

What happened during your father's time is completely irrelevant to any discussion of college admissions now except to use in a comparison of how much things have changed.[/quote


NO, it’s spot on due to first generation preference. Most of our parents were first generation, I was first generation but it didn’t do a thing for me. I had to fight to get ahead thrn first as a woman and second as a poor first generation. Now -simply because your parents didn’t finish college - you get perks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents of seniors at our school are using words like bloodbath to describe the seniors acceptances. Kids who worked hard and did everything they were supposed to are not getting in to top 20-50 schools. Too many white, UMC families who saved and can pay full price are not getting in whereas 10 years ago they would have. It's partly due to test-optional and partly due to more diversity (socio-economic and racial) being sought after at top schools.

No, it’s due to everyone “shooting their shot” at the same colleges. Stop blaming testing and diversity. Colleges have been looking for diverse classes for decades. It’s not new.

What’s new is clear. The applications are exploding at top schools and falling at the rest. The reason is probably layered, from subtle things like adults belittling good options that aren’t impressive (my gosh, even JMU gets ripped here) to grade inflation making parents think their middle of the pack student is at the top of the class…again there are many reasons.

Stop blaming stupid stuff that makes you made and use reason.

I'll start by saying I don't have a problem with what's going on currently in admissions.

I agree with you that everyone is too focuses on the same set of colleges. BUT, I do think that with COVID, test optional, and recent cultural changes that some schools have truly expanded their horizons on how they evaluate candidates. I think in the past that they were more skewed towards test scores aligning with grades and adding in some ECs. Now without test scores, I think they are genuinely looking at other parts of the application in a new way.. It could also be that they are simply recognizing that they have so many applicants who were "qualified" that they should really stop just skewing admissions to those with the highest GPA/test stats and put increased thought into what each applicant might bring to campus (they were doing this before but I think with a smaller pool of high stats kids).

I personally think this is a good thing and will create all kinds of diversity (including the type of white UMC kids they accept). It also means the tip top gpa/test stat kids may not have the same advantages they had before and definitely need to cast a wider net.

But to say that test optional and diversity didn't change anything isn't quite right.

I think it is hard for a student who got better grades and better test scores to see a fellow classmate with worse everything gaining acceptance because they are URM. I have heard it was a really bad year for many MC and UMC white and Asian students.

Wow! Perhaps you don't know the whole story for the URM as a whole person? Test scores and grades are not everything. From your privileged position, you apparently do not recognize that the URM might be heading home after school to help take care of siblings or a grandparent, may not have time to go to tutoring or participate in 3 Varsity level sports, etc. They might have to work a job to help support the family; they might not be growing up in a home where the parents can help with school work, or with parents who went to college. If your parents didn't attend college, you often grow up with a very different perspective on life than someone whose parents both have Graduate degrees. Maybe they have a learning disability and their family doesn't have the financial resources to provide services that many privileged kids would get (I have lived this; paid $250-300/week for 4+ years to get my own kid on track once I paid for a full neuropsychological evaluation to diagnose the issues. I am so grateful that we as a family could afford to provide this for our kid). You simply don't know their life outside of school.

It really is time for the privileged to start recognizing the great advantages they have over many just from growing up privileged.

Stop the rescue fantasy. Most of the URM they take are coming from upper middle class families. Not all URM are poor.

The ones benefiting most are UMC blacks and Hispanics.

This is exactly what I’ve seen in our social circle. Our kids were raised in incredibly similar families, dads had the same kind of jobs, same kinds of degrees, same six figure incomes, same type of high schools, same rigor and test scores, moms college-educated. 2 half Mexican kids to Yale, 2 black kids to Harvard, our white kids rejected from everything with less than a 40% acceptance rate. The program is just not as noble as it seems.

And why shouldn’t Harvard and Yale pick kids of color over your white kids? Do you think there are no white kids at Harvard? Your white kids didn’t make the cut, sorry. Join the rest of us over here. It will be okay, I promise.

Well your kids, yes they will be ok. You apparently have raised yours to work hard and deal with disappointments.

Theirs? Maybe not because they have been raised to be entitled.
Life isn't always fair, but you will go much farther once you realize this and learn to move on from disappointment and learn from it.

What disappointment?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents of seniors at our school are using words like bloodbath to describe the seniors acceptances. Kids who worked hard and did everything they were supposed to are not getting in to top 20-50 schools. Too many white, UMC families who saved and can pay full price are not getting in whereas 10 years ago they would have. It's partly due to test-optional and partly due to more diversity (socio-economic and racial) being sought after at top schools.

No, it’s due to everyone “shooting their shot” at the same colleges. Stop blaming testing and diversity. Colleges have been looking for diverse classes for decades. It’s not new.

What’s new is clear. The applications are exploding at top schools and falling at the rest. The reason is probably layered, from subtle things like adults belittling good options that aren’t impressive (my gosh, even JMU gets ripped here) to grade inflation making parents think their middle of the pack student is at the top of the class…again there are many reasons.

Stop blaming stupid stuff that makes you made and use reason.

I'll start by saying I don't have a problem with what's going on currently in admissions.

I agree with you that everyone is too focuses on the same set of colleges. BUT, I do think that with COVID, test optional, and recent cultural changes that some schools have truly expanded their horizons on how they evaluate candidates. I think in the past that they were more skewed towards test scores aligning with grades and adding in some ECs. Now without test scores, I think they are genuinely looking at other parts of the application in a new way.. It could also be that they are simply recognizing that they have so many applicants who were "qualified" that they should really stop just skewing admissions to those with the highest GPA/test stats and put increased thought into what each applicant might bring to campus (they were doing this before but I think with a smaller pool of high stats kids).

I personally think this is a good thing and will create all kinds of diversity (including the type of white UMC kids they accept). It also means the tip top gpa/test stat kids may not have the same advantages they had before and definitely need to cast a wider net.

But to say that test optional and diversity didn't change anything isn't quite right.

I think it is hard for a student who got better grades and better test scores to see a fellow classmate with worse everything gaining acceptance because they are URM. I have heard it was a really bad year for many MC and UMC white and Asian students.

Wow! Perhaps you don't know the whole story for the URM as a whole person? Test scores and grades are not everything. From your privileged position, you apparently do not recognize that the URM might be heading home after school to help take care of siblings or a grandparent, may not have time to go to tutoring or participate in 3 Varsity level sports, etc. They might have to work a job to help support the family; they might not be growing up in a home where the parents can help with school work, or with parents who went to college. If your parents didn't attend college, you often grow up with a very different perspective on life than someone whose parents both have Graduate degrees. Maybe they have a learning disability and their family doesn't have the financial resources to provide services that many privileged kids would get (I have lived this; paid $250-300/week for 4+ years to get my own kid on track once I paid for a full neuropsychological evaluation to diagnose the issues. I am so grateful that we as a family could afford to provide this for our kid). You simply don't know their life outside of school.

It really is time for the privileged to start recognizing the great advantages they have over many just from growing up privileged.

Stop the rescue fantasy. Most of the URM they take are coming from upper middle class families. Not all URM are poor.

The ones benefiting most are UMC blacks and Hispanics.

This is exactly what I’ve seen in our social circle. Our kids were raised in incredibly similar families, dads had the same kind of jobs, same kinds of degrees, same six figure incomes, same type of high schools, same rigor and test scores, moms college-educated. 2 half Mexican kids to Yale, 2 black kids to Harvard, our white kids rejected from everything with less than a 40% acceptance rate. The program is just not as noble as it seems.

The top ivy admits seem to mostly be African Americans. I’m sure the racial mix at these top schools will be different for this year.

Black students at Harvard are a whole 15% of the class and that is actually slightly down from the year before.
Harvard class of 2026

15.5% African American or Black
12.6% Latinx

Harvard class of 2025

15.9% African American or Black
12.5% Latinx

Care to revise your statement?

It isn’t just Harvard. This is more about other typical reach schools. If you did the same analysis for the top 50 schools, you should see a bump of racial mix.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents of seniors at our school are using words like bloodbath to describe the seniors acceptances. Kids who worked hard and did everything they were supposed to are not getting in to top 20-50 schools. Too many white, UMC families who saved and can pay full price are not getting in whereas 10 years ago they would have. It's partly due to test-optional and partly due to more diversity (socio-economic and racial) being sought after at top schools.

No, it’s due to everyone “shooting their shot” at the same colleges. Stop blaming testing and diversity. Colleges have been looking for diverse classes for decades. It’s not new.

What’s new is clear. The applications are exploding at top schools and falling at the rest. The reason is probably layered, from subtle things like adults belittling good options that aren’t impressive (my gosh, even JMU gets ripped here) to grade inflation making parents think their middle of the pack student is at the top of the class…again there are many reasons.

Stop blaming stupid stuff that makes you made and use reason.

I'll start by saying I don't have a problem with what's going on currently in admissions.

I agree with you that everyone is too focuses on the same set of colleges. BUT, I do think that with COVID, test optional, and recent cultural changes that some schools have truly expanded their horizons on how they evaluate candidates. I think in the past that they were more skewed towards test scores aligning with grades and adding in some ECs. Now without test scores, I think they are genuinely looking at other parts of the application in a new way.. It could also be that they are simply recognizing that they have so many applicants who were "qualified" that they should really stop just skewing admissions to those with the highest GPA/test stats and put increased thought into what each applicant might bring to campus (they were doing this before but I think with a smaller pool of high stats kids).

I personally think this is a good thing and will create all kinds of diversity (including the type of white UMC kids they accept). It also means the tip top gpa/test stat kids may not have the same advantages they had before and definitely need to cast a wider net.

But to say that test optional and diversity didn't change anything isn't quite right.

I think it is hard for a student who got better grades and better test scores to see a fellow classmate with worse everything gaining acceptance because they are URM. I have heard it was a really bad year for many MC and UMC white and Asian students.

Wow! Perhaps you don't know the whole story for the URM as a whole person? Test scores and grades are not everything. From your privileged position, you apparently do not recognize that the URM might be heading home after school to help take care of siblings or a grandparent, may not have time to go to tutoring or participate in 3 Varsity level sports, etc. They might have to work a job to help support the family; they might not be growing up in a home where the parents can help with school work, or with parents who went to college. If your parents didn't attend college, you often grow up with a very different perspective on life than someone whose parents both have Graduate degrees. Maybe they have a learning disability and their family doesn't have the financial resources to provide services that many privileged kids would get (I have lived this; paid $250-300/week for 4+ years to get my own kid on track once I paid for a full neuropsychological evaluation to diagnose the issues. I am so grateful that we as a family could afford to provide this for our kid). You simply don't know their life outside of school.

It really is time for the privileged to start recognizing the great advantages they have over many just from growing up privileged.

It’s always the same stereotype pablum. Somebody has got to show me exactly how race quotas do anything to improve the academic experience at a college. I’ll go w you a hint…..it doesn’t. If anything it’s far more likely to extract value from academics.

Lol. Demanding data and making unsupported assertions on the same post. Nice!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents of seniors at our school are using words like bloodbath to describe the seniors acceptances. Kids who worked hard and did everything they were supposed to are not getting in to top 20-50 schools. Too many white, UMC families who saved and can pay full price are not getting in whereas 10 years ago they would have. It's partly due to test-optional and partly due to more diversity (socio-economic and racial) being sought after at top schools.

No, it’s due to everyone “shooting their shot” at the same colleges. Stop blaming testing and diversity. Colleges have been looking for diverse classes for decades. It’s not new.

What’s new is clear. The applications are exploding at top schools and falling at the rest. The reason is probably layered, from subtle things like adults belittling good options that aren’t impressive (my gosh, even JMU gets ripped here) to grade inflation making parents think their middle of the pack student is at the top of the class…again there are many reasons.

Stop blaming stupid stuff that makes you made and use reason.

I'll start by saying I don't have a problem with what's going on currently in admissions.

I agree with you that everyone is too focuses on the same set of colleges. BUT, I do think that with COVID, test optional, and recent cultural changes that some schools have truly expanded their horizons on how they evaluate candidates. I think in the past that they were more skewed towards test scores aligning with grades and adding in some ECs. Now without test scores, I think they are genuinely looking at other parts of the application in a new way.. It could also be that they are simply recognizing that they have so many applicants who were "qualified" that they should really stop just skewing admissions to those with the highest GPA/test stats and put increased thought into what each applicant might bring to campus (they were doing this before but I think with a smaller pool of high stats kids).

I personally think this is a good thing and will create all kinds of diversity (including the type of white UMC kids they accept). It also means the tip top gpa/test stat kids may not have the same advantages they had before and definitely need to cast a wider net.

But to say that test optional and diversity didn't change anything isn't quite right.

I think it is hard for a student who got better grades and better test scores to see a fellow classmate with worse everything gaining acceptance because they are URM. I have heard it was a really bad year for many MC and UMC white and Asian students.

Wow! Perhaps you don't know the whole story for the URM as a whole person? Test scores and grades are not everything. From your privileged position, you apparently do not recognize that the URM might be heading home after school to help take care of siblings or a grandparent, may not have time to go to tutoring or participate in 3 Varsity level sports, etc. They might have to work a job to help support the family; they might not be growing up in a home where the parents can help with school work, or with parents who went to college. If your parents didn't attend college, you often grow up with a very different perspective on life than someone whose parents both have Graduate degrees. Maybe they have a learning disability and their family doesn't have the financial resources to provide services that many privileged kids would get (I have lived this; paid $250-300/week for 4+ years to get my own kid on track once I paid for a full neuropsychological evaluation to diagnose the issues. I am so grateful that we as a family could afford to provide this for our kid). You simply don't know their life outside of school.

It really is time for the privileged to start recognizing the great advantages they have over many just from growing up privileged.

Stop the rescue fantasy. Most of the URM they take are coming from upper middle class families. Not all URM are poor.

The ones benefiting most are UMC blacks and Hispanics.

This is exactly what I’ve seen in our social circle. Our kids were raised in incredibly similar families, dads had the same kind of jobs, same kinds of degrees, same six figure incomes, same type of high schools, same rigor and test scores, moms college-educated. 2 half Mexican kids to Yale, 2 black kids to Harvard, our white kids rejected from everything with less than a 40% acceptance rate. The program is just not as noble as it seems.

The top ivy admits seem to mostly be African Americans. I’m sure the racial mix at these top schools will be different for this year.

Black students at Harvard are a whole 15% of the class and that is actually slightly down from the year before.
Harvard class of 2026

15.5% African American or Black
12.6% Latinx

Harvard class of 2025

15.9% African American or Black
12.5% Latinx

Care to revise your statement?

It isn’t just Harvard. This is more about other typical reach schools. If you did the same analysis for the top 50 schools, you should see a bump of racial mix.

These numbers are obsolete without the percentage of applicants from the following groups. Either way, these students are admitted at MUCH higher rates than their white/asian counterparts. To be accepted as a non-minority to t20s RD is extremely rare if un-hooked.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents of seniors at our school are using words like bloodbath to describe the seniors acceptances. Kids who worked hard and did everything they were supposed to are not getting in to top 20-50 schools. Too many white, UMC families who saved and can pay full price are not getting in whereas 10 years ago they would have. It's partly due to test-optional and partly due to more diversity (socio-economic and racial) being sought after at top schools.

No, it’s due to everyone “shooting their shot” at the same colleges. Stop blaming testing and diversity. Colleges have been looking for diverse classes for decades. It’s not new.

What’s new is clear. The applications are exploding at top schools and falling at the rest. The reason is probably layered, from subtle things like adults belittling good options that aren’t impressive (my gosh, even JMU gets ripped here) to grade inflation making parents think their middle of the pack student is at the top of the class…again there are many reasons.

Stop blaming stupid stuff that makes you made and use reason.

I'll start by saying I don't have a problem with what's going on currently in admissions.

I agree with you that everyone is too focuses on the same set of colleges. BUT, I do think that with COVID, test optional, and recent cultural changes that some schools have truly expanded their horizons on how they evaluate candidates. I think in the past that they were more skewed towards test scores aligning with grades and adding in some ECs. Now without test scores, I think they are genuinely looking at other parts of the application in a new way.. It could also be that they are simply recognizing that they have so many applicants who were "qualified" that they should really stop just skewing admissions to those with the highest GPA/test stats and put increased thought into what each applicant might bring to campus (they were doing this before but I think with a smaller pool of high stats kids).

I personally think this is a good thing and will create all kinds of diversity (including the type of white UMC kids they accept). It also means the tip top gpa/test stat kids may not have the same advantages they had before and definitely need to cast a wider net.

But to say that test optional and diversity didn't change anything isn't quite right.

I think it is hard for a student who got better grades and better test scores to see a fellow classmate with worse everything gaining acceptance because they are URM. I have heard it was a really bad year for many MC and UMC white and Asian students.

Wow! Perhaps you don't know the whole story for the URM as a whole person? Test scores and grades are not everything. From your privileged position, you apparently do not recognize that the URM might be heading home after school to help take care of siblings or a grandparent, may not have time to go to tutoring or participate in 3 Varsity level sports, etc. They might have to work a job to help support the family; they might not be growing up in a home where the parents can help with school work, or with parents who went to college. If your parents didn't attend college, you often grow up with a very different perspective on life than someone whose parents both have Graduate degrees. Maybe they have a learning disability and their family doesn't have the financial resources to provide services that many privileged kids would get (I have lived this; paid $250-300/week for 4+ years to get my own kid on track once I paid for a full neuropsychological evaluation to diagnose the issues. I am so grateful that we as a family could afford to provide this for our kid). You simply don't know their life outside of school.

It really is time for the privileged to start recognizing the great advantages they have over many just from growing up privileged.

Stop the rescue fantasy. Most of the URM they take are coming from upper middle class families. Not all URM are poor.

The ones benefiting most are UMC blacks and Hispanics.

This is exactly what I’ve seen in our social circle. Our kids were raised in incredibly similar families, dads had the same kind of jobs, same kinds of degrees, same six figure incomes, same type of high schools, same rigor and test scores, moms college-educated. 2 half Mexican kids to Yale, 2 black kids to Harvard, our white kids rejected from everything with less than a 40% acceptance rate. The program is just not as noble as it seems.

The top ivy admits seem to mostly be African Americans. I’m sure the racial mix at these top schools will be different for this year.

Black students at Harvard are a whole 15% of the class and that is actually slightly down from the year before.
Harvard class of 2026

15.5% African American or Black
12.6% Latinx

Harvard class of 2025

15.9% African American or Black
12.5% Latinx

Care to revise your statement?

It isn’t just Harvard. This is more about other typical reach schools. If you did the same analysis for the top 50 schools, you should see a bump of racial mix.

OMG, such horror, a bump. Are they the majority? No. They should be 1% of the total student body, right?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

But, because DC is not URM, and we are not low income, that's a strike against DC.

This often repeated line just isn't true. Our private admissions counselor said only first gen kids are getting a bump (in addition to recruited athletes, major donors, geographic diversity etc). There are just so many variable now that you really can't predict what will help or hurt your kid. An Asian male applying to CS or Engineering with have tough competition from other Asian males, but that same kid might have an advantage if he wants to be a nurse or a teacher.

white people are going to blame URMs no matter what you say.

I think because there are "white people" (ie: not brown, not yellow) who were, just one or two generations ago, who were first generation, and they got nothing.

My father was the first in his family to go to college and he was not a stellar student but managed to Cornell on the GI bill. Perhaps your child should try 3 years of military service?

What happened during your father's time is completely irrelevant to any discussion of college admissions now except to use in a comparison of how much things have changed.[/quote


NO, it’s spot on due to first generation preference. Most of our parents were first generation, I was first generation but it didn’t do a thing for me. I had to fight to get ahead thrn first as a woman and second as a poor first generation. Now -simply because your parents didn’t finish college - you get perks.

Private colleges get to curate the classes that they want to admit. Previously, their goal was to serve as gatekeepers of privilege —- preventing people who were not of the “right” class/color/religion from being admitted. Now they are trying to do the opposite.

Life isn’t fair. Suck it up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents of seniors at our school are using words like bloodbath to describe the seniors acceptances. Kids who worked hard and did everything they were supposed to are not getting in to top 20-50 schools. Too many white, UMC families who saved and can pay full price are not getting in whereas 10 years ago they would have. It's partly due to test-optional and partly due to more diversity (socio-economic and racial) being sought after at top schools.

No, it’s due to everyone “shooting their shot” at the same colleges. Stop blaming testing and diversity. Colleges have been looking for diverse classes for decades. It’s not new.

What’s new is clear. The applications are exploding at top schools and falling at the rest. The reason is probably layered, from subtle things like adults belittling good options that aren’t impressive (my gosh, even JMU gets ripped here) to grade inflation making parents think their middle of the pack student is at the top of the class…again there are many reasons.

Stop blaming stupid stuff that makes you made and use reason.

I'll start by saying I don't have a problem with what's going on currently in admissions.

I agree with you that everyone is too focuses on the same set of colleges. BUT, I do think that with COVID, test optional, and recent cultural changes that some schools have truly expanded their horizons on how they evaluate candidates. I think in the past that they were more skewed towards test scores aligning with grades and adding in some ECs. Now without test scores, I think they are genuinely looking at other parts of the application in a new way.. It could also be that they are simply recognizing that they have so many applicants who were "qualified" that they should really stop just skewing admissions to those with the highest GPA/test stats and put increased thought into what each applicant might bring to campus (they were doing this before but I think with a smaller pool of high stats kids).

I personally think this is a good thing and will create all kinds of diversity (including the type of white UMC kids they accept). It also means the tip top gpa/test stat kids may not have the same advantages they had before and definitely need to cast a wider net.

But to say that test optional and diversity didn't change anything isn't quite right.

I think it is hard for a student who got better grades and better test scores to see a fellow classmate with worse everything gaining acceptance because they are URM. I have heard it was a really bad year for many MC and UMC white and Asian students.

Wow! Perhaps you don't know the whole story for the URM as a whole person? Test scores and grades are not everything. From your privileged position, you apparently do not recognize that the URM might be heading home after school to help take care of siblings or a grandparent, may not have time to go to tutoring or participate in 3 Varsity level sports, etc. They might have to work a job to help support the family; they might not be growing up in a home where the parents can help with school work, or with parents who went to college. If your parents didn't attend college, you often grow up with a very different perspective on life than someone whose parents both have Graduate degrees. Maybe they have a learning disability and their family doesn't have the financial resources to provide services that many privileged kids would get (I have lived this; paid $250-300/week for 4+ years to get my own kid on track once I paid for a full neuropsychological evaluation to diagnose the issues. I am so grateful that we as a family could afford to provide this for our kid). You simply don't know their life outside of school.

It really is time for the privileged to start recognizing the great advantages they have over many just from growing up privileged.

Stop the rescue fantasy. Most of the URM they take are coming from upper middle class families. Not all URM are poor.

The ones benefiting most are UMC blacks and Hispanics.

This is exactly what I’ve seen in our social circle. Our kids were raised in incredibly similar families, dads had the same kind of jobs, same kinds of degrees, same six figure incomes, same type of high schools, same rigor and test scores, moms college-educated. 2 half Mexican kids to Yale, 2 black kids to Harvard, our white kids rejected from everything with less than a 40% acceptance rate. The program is just not as noble as it seems.

The top ivy admits seem to mostly be African Americans. I’m sure the racial mix at these top schools will be different for this year.

Black students at Harvard are a whole 15% of the class and that is actually slightly down from the year before.
Harvard class of 2026

15.5% African American or Black
12.6% Latinx

Harvard class of 2025

15.9% African American or Black
12.5% Latinx

Care to revise your statement?

It isn’t just Harvard. This is more about other typical reach schools. If you did the same analysis for the top 50 schools, you should see a bump of racial mix.

Shouldn't you have already done that if you're making the claim? Or are you just making sh-t up?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am hearing about these kids who have near perfect grades, super high SAT scores and strong extracurricular activities and they are getting rejected across the board. The parents are well educated professionals. The kids are getting rejected from their parents’ alma maters.

I feel like this same kids would be ivy bound 20-30 years ago.

Colleges know that A's are giving out like water in schools due to helicopter parenting. A 4.0 student is really a equal to a 3.0 gpa from 20 years ago. Super high SAT scores are made possible through the internet cheat sheets and 'prep' courses that teach to the test, so SAT is not reliable and many colleges are dropping the SAT. If you want your kids to get into a school just donate some money.

No. One of my own scored really high without attending any center or what not. We were afraid he won’t as he is not doing what everyone else is doing. Some people are naturally better test takers and if they are good students, scoring high doesn’t require external help.

So you saved yourselves the test prep $$, but admissions folks know that high scores can be coached. While these tests were supposed to level the playing field, affluent folks always find a way to maximize, of course. Same with the doctor shopping to get LD diagnoses.

Affluent folks have the privilege of networks and legacy. That doesn't seem to deter these colleges from giving them a bump for that.

So, let me see....

UMC have means to get test prep, so we shouldn't use standardized tests.
UMC have educated parents and means to help the kids get good grades, so we shouldn't focus on grades.
UMC have the means to pay for great e.c.s, so we shouldn't just look at e.c.s

But, we will look at whether your UMC parent went to college here or not and give you a bump.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Private colleges get to curate the classes that they want to admit. Previously, their goal was to serve as gatekeepers of privilege —- preventing people who were not of the “right” class/color/religion from being admitted. Now they are trying to do the opposite.

Life isn’t fair. Suck it up.

How is legacy admissions, which largely benefits wealthy white families, "doing the opposite"?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP--if your kids are in Pre-school, elementary, it will probably be very different---I think much less competition.

It depends. If Trumpism wins out and international students, other than Saudis and Russians can't or won't come to the US, then sure.

so you are saying that even if there is a drop in the number of American kids, colleges will continue this madness by bringing international students to apply?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Private colleges get to curate the classes that they want to admit. Previously, their goal was to serve as gatekeepers of privilege —- preventing people who were not of the “right” class/color/religion from being admitted. Now they are trying to do the opposite.

Life isn’t fair. Suck it up.

How is legacy admissions, which largely benefits wealthy white families, "doing the opposite"?

And all those athletes that have to spend tens of thousands of dollars a year to be D1 recruitable.
And all those elite private schools and boarding schools that prepare them so well but cost $50,000 a year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents of seniors at our school are using words like bloodbath to describe the seniors acceptances. Kids who worked hard and did everything they were supposed to are not getting in to top 20-50 schools. Too many white, UMC families who saved and can pay full price are not getting in whereas 10 years ago they would have. It's partly due to test-optional and partly due to more diversity (socio-economic and racial) being sought after at top schools.

No, it’s due to everyone “shooting their shot” at the same colleges. Stop blaming testing and diversity. Colleges have been looking for diverse classes for decades. It’s not new.

What’s new is clear. The applications are exploding at top schools and falling at the rest. The reason is probably layered, from subtle things like adults belittling good options that aren’t impressive (my gosh, even JMU gets ripped here) to grade inflation making parents think their middle of the pack student is at the top of the class…again there are many reasons.

Stop blaming stupid stuff that makes you made and use reason.

I'll start by saying I don't have a problem with what's going on currently in admissions.

I agree with you that everyone is too focuses on the same set of colleges. BUT, I do think that with COVID, test optional, and recent cultural changes that some schools have truly expanded their horizons on how they evaluate candidates. I think in the past that they were more skewed towards test scores aligning with grades and adding in some ECs. Now without test scores, I think they are genuinely looking at other parts of the application in a new way.. It could also be that they are simply recognizing that they have so many applicants who were "qualified" that they should really stop just skewing admissions to those with the highest GPA/test stats and put increased thought into what each applicant might bring to campus (they were doing this before but I think with a smaller pool of high stats kids).

I personally think this is a good thing and will create all kinds of diversity (including the type of white UMC kids they accept). It also means the tip top gpa/test stat kids may not have the same advantages they had before and definitely need to cast a wider net.

But to say that test optional and diversity didn't change anything isn't quite right.

I think it is hard for a student who got better grades and better test scores to see a fellow classmate with worse everything gaining acceptance because they are URM. I have heard it was a really bad year for many MC and UMC white and Asian students.

Wow! Perhaps you don't know the whole story for the URM as a whole person? Test scores and grades are not everything. From your privileged position, you apparently do not recognize that the URM might be heading home after school to help take care of siblings or a grandparent, may not have time to go to tutoring or participate in 3 Varsity level sports, etc. They might have to work a job to help support the family; they might not be growing up in a home where the parents can help with school work, or with parents who went to college. If your parents didn't attend college, you often grow up with a very different perspective on life than someone whose parents both have Graduate degrees. Maybe they have a learning disability and their family doesn't have the financial resources to provide services that many privileged kids would get (I have lived this; paid $250-300/week for 4+ years to get my own kid on track once I paid for a full neuropsychological evaluation to diagnose the issues. I am so grateful that we as a family could afford to provide this for our kid). You simply don't know their life outside of school.

It really is time for the privileged to start recognizing the great advantages they have over many just from growing up privileged.

Stop the rescue fantasy. Most of the URM they take are coming from upper middle class families. Not all URM are poor.

The ones benefiting most are UMC blacks and Hispanics.

This is exactly what I’ve seen in our social circle. Our kids were raised in incredibly similar families, dads had the same kind of jobs, same kinds of degrees, same six figure incomes, same type of high schools, same rigor and test scores, moms college-educated. 2 half Mexican kids to Yale, 2 black kids to Harvard, our white kids rejected from everything with less than a 40% acceptance rate. The program is just not as noble as it seems.

And why shouldn’t Harvard and Yale pick kids of color over your white kids? Do you think there are no white kids at Harvard? Your white kids didn’t make the cut, sorry. Join the rest of us over here. It will be okay, I promise.

Well your kids, yes they will be ok. You apparently have raised yours to work hard and deal with disappointments.

Theirs? Maybe not because they have been raised to be entitled.
Life isn't always fair, but you will go much farther once you realize this and learn to move on from disappointment and learn from it.

What disappointment?

Not getting into a T20 school with their lottery ticket

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am hearing about these kids who have near perfect grades, super high SAT scores and strong extracurricular activities and they are getting rejected across the board. The parents are well educated professionals. The kids are getting rejected from their parents’ alma maters.

I feel like this same kids would be ivy bound 20-30 years ago.

This is not happening. Stop the fear mongering.

It happened twice in my family: once with a nephew and once with my cousin's daughter.

My cousin's daughter graduated #1 in her class last year. Her SAT was in the high 1400s and ACT was nearly perfect at 35. She took a total of 10 AP courses and scored 5s on 6 and 4s on 4. She had strong extracurriculars including a research biology internship two summers in a row.

Rejected from UVA, which was her first choice, and also rejected from W&M, VA Tech, MIT, Stanford, the Ivies, and Duke. She got waitlisted at FSU, UCLA, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, Cal Tech, and Rice. She did get off the waitlist at Rice but she was scrambling while on the waitlist to apply to places with rolling admission. Her counselor was stunned.

My cousin and her husband consulted with a professional college counselor after the fact to see what went wrong in preparation for her younger sister when it was her turn to apply. Basically, she was a dime-a-dozen at places like UVA, the ivies, Duke, MIT, etc. and even with her excellent resume, there was nothing that made her stand out. Schools like FSU and UCLA looked at her incredible stats and grouped her as a "she's applying here as a safety" so they waitlisted.

My nephew had good stats but his downfall was parents who were a bit too out of touch with the college process. He's the youngest and there's a big 12 year age gap. Their next youngest was 30 when my nephew was a senior, so they were going off their experiences and expectations from years prior. Both of their older kids went to their alma mater UNC. They are all donors but not HUGE donors and thought he would get in no problem because compared to his siblings, he was a better student and he was also a two-sport athlete. He got rejected from UNC and all the others. Big gut punch for him. He did community college for 1 year and ended up transferring to Wake Forest.