Worried about acceptance did we build list wrong?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m happy to share my child’s profile for input if you’re willing. He’s a junior at a Fairfax County public high school (VA, not TJ) with a 4.0 GPA and a 1500 SAT (second attempt, with plans to retake). He’s part of an Engineering CTE, class President and will participate in Boys State due to an interest in leadership (not military-focused). He plays a sport but is not a captain, does not plan to continue it in college, and is not at a recruitment level (keeping the sport private). He has also completed a few STEM-related internships.

While he’s strong in STEM, student leadership, and earns A’s across the board (public school grading context acknowledged), he’s not interested in engineering school specifically. He’s more drawn to entrepreneurship, marketing, maybe economics, but we’re trying to be thoughtful about fit and not add unnecessary pressure by targeting ultra-selective undergraduate business programs.

His profile feels similar to many strong students we know. He’s particularly interested in schools like Tufts, BC, Emory, Vanderbilt, which seem popular among peers. He also really loved visits to WashU and Duke (understandably).

I like some of the safeties being mentioned here and we will chose at least 4. I would appreciate feedback on whether his profile has a realistic shot at some of these more competitive schools. How do students get into these reaches or targets - does ED work? or do they typically end of in safeties? I looked at the acceptances over the past few years at his school and many seem like they have a "hook".

Many of your entrepreneurs these days that come up with things that people really need and want, in fact, are also engineers and happen to be successful entrepreneurs and marketers as well. FYI.

[Anonymous]

Any word from Villanova since you posted, OP? Fingers crossed!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:ED Wash U - Deferred
1490 SAT, 3.9 unweighted, 4.6 weighted, solid activities & leadership, eagle scout, applied undecided most places, strong science/math classes
Anyone having doubts? Very worried. Waiting on:
Rice University
Tufts University
Duke
Boston College
Boston University
University of Michigan
University of Virginia
Northeastern University
Villanova
Pitt

I think one safety with admission where you are willing to go is enough. No point in wasting time and money on multiple safety. This would be Pitt. Most of the schools should be reaches. It is like an inverted pyramid schools list of STAR.

My child got deferred from Brown ED and has acceptance from Pitt where he is willing to go if nothing better works. Still waiting on lots of public schools EAs and Ivies

[Anonymous]

Pitt has a ton of very smart kids. It attracts local kids that have no interest in Penn State and they often are eligible for some sort of tuition break.

My son goes there and you will be surprised how many professors have kids who go there instead of dealing with the tuition exchange.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, what were your expectations with this list? It is chock full of reaches. Your student will be fine, but may not have many choices.

A 1490 is a great SAT, but unfortunately it isn’t helping the application for most schools on your list.

Also, when did he apply to Pitt? That is an “apply in August” school.

+1. A little low for UVA. 75Th percentile had a 1510. But median a 1470.

So half of the students have lower SAT scores that the applicant. I don’t know what people are thinking. He will get into half of these schools.

This is unrelated to OP. BU has a College of General Studies. There is no minimum requirements. If after two years in the program the student has at least a 2.0 GPA and 60 credits they can complete the Bachelor’s in their chosen major.

The OP can get into BU on his high scores but it will depend on major and how many applicants in a given year. He’ll do ok, OP. Plenty of good options on his list.

Enrolled student score ranges are percentiles, not acceptance rates.

Plus 1/3 of UVA enrolled didn’t even submit test scores, which means there were probably all below the 25%.

[Anonymous]

My DC applied to one true safety and 15 additional schools—targets and reaches. So far into the safety and one reach. Deferred from 4 so far and still waiting on 10 remaining schools in EA and RD.

[Anonymous]

You apply to a lot of reaches to hit one in RD. And if done thoughtfully and in a very tailored way, yes, it can work!

Worked for both my kids who applied to 20-22 schools each.
At Ivy and T10.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Pitt has a ton of very smart kids. It attracts local kids that have no interest in Penn State and they often are eligible for some sort of tuition break.

My son goes there and you will be surprised how many professors have kids who go there instead of dealing with the tuition exchange.

Agree. Pitt is not a safety for OPs student.

[Anonymous]

Just want to chime in that my son applied to two of the schools on your list, Pitt and Wisconsin, last year with a GPA and scores that were significantly lower than your son’s, OP. He got into both. His extracurriculars weren’t spectacular either. I will say he’s a gifted writer, so maybe his essay helped, but I think your son will get into a lot of these schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just want to chime in that my son applied to two of the schools on your list, Pitt and Wisconsin, last year with a GPA and scores that were significantly lower than your son’s, OP. He got into both. His extracurriculars weren’t spectacular either. I will say he’s a gifted writer, so maybe his essay helped, but I think your son will get into a lot of these schools.

When did your kid apply to Pitt and Wisconsin - EA or RD?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just want to chime in that my son applied to two of the schools on your list, Pitt and Wisconsin, last year with a GPA and scores that were significantly lower than your son’s, OP. He got into both. His extracurriculars weren’t spectacular either. I will say he’s a gifted writer, so maybe his essay helped, but I think your son will get into a lot of these schools.

When did your kid apply to Pitt and Wisconsin - EA or RD?

Pitt is rolling, and I think he applied around the same time he did his other early action apps. (So, not in August—probably Nov 1?) He applied to almost everything EA just to get it done.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Pitt has a ton of very smart kids. It attracts local kids that have no interest in Penn State and they often are eligible for some sort of tuition break.

My son goes there and you will be surprised how many professors have kids who go there instead of dealing with the tuition exchange.

Agree. Pitt is not a safety for OPs student.

I think Pitt is confusing, because a school can be a safety for two reasons. One is that you know you'll be accepted, because they do automatic admissions based on stats, or because their admissions is very predictable and you are far above the line where they accept anyone. Pitt is not a safety for OP's kid in that sense.

But a school can also be a safety because you've been accepted. If you hear from a school in October that you're admitted, it becomes a safety. Heck, if your kid gets into MIT EA, then it's a safety in the sense that you can withdraw or not send other applications. A lot of kids apply to Pitt very early, and then once accepted don't apply to schools they like less than Pitt, because Pitt is now "safe" for them.

So, OP's kid may hear lots of peers with similar profiles referring to Pitt as their safety, and think of it as a "safety school", but that's because those kids applied in August, and heard back a long time ago.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Pitt has a ton of very smart kids. It attracts local kids that have no interest in Penn State and they often are eligible for some sort of tuition break.

My son goes there and you will be surprised how many professors have kids who go there instead of dealing with the tuition exchange.

Agree. Pitt is not a safety for OPs student.

I think Pitt is confusing, because a school can be a safety for two reasons. One is that you know you'll be accepted, because they do automatic admissions based on stats, or because their admissions is very predictable and you are far above the line where they accept anyone. Pitt is not a safety for OP's kid in that sense.

But a school can also be a safety because you've been accepted. If you hear from a school in October that you're admitted, it becomes a safety. Heck, if your kid gets into MIT EA, then it's a safety in the sense that you can withdraw or not send other applications. A lot of kids apply to Pitt very early, and then once accepted don't apply to schools they like less than Pitt, because Pitt is now "safe" for them.

So, OP's kid may hear lots of peers with similar profiles referring to Pitt as their safety, and think of it as a "safety school", but that's because those kids applied in August, and heard back a long time ago.

PP here - agree, good points!

[Anonymous]

It’ll probably work out ok for op, but definitely too reach heavy and should have applied to more schools ea or in the case of Pitt, in August.

[Anonymous]

It isn't "we" it's "I" as in your kid. That's where you went wrong. It isn't about you as the parent. At all.