williams, amherst, swarthmore, pomona, bowdoin, haverford decisions today

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:And that is why tuition is so high, paying for the coaches and athletic facilities. Nobody watches some of these obscure sports anyways and yet the colleges recruit for all these sports. It’s a real shame that All sports matter more than academic achievements.

Tuition is very high for many reasons, and coaching/sports will be a lesser reason. You'd do well to start with the extensive and bloated bureaucracies of administrators and special interest deans and programs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:And that is why tuition is so high, paying for the coaches and athletic facilities. Nobody watches some of these obscure sports anyways and yet the colleges recruit for all these sports. It’s a real shame that All sports matter more than academic achievements.

Sports alumni make more money and donate much more to their schools. If these programs actually were losers over time they'd be cut. The people running these schools aren't idiots.

[Anonymous]

People: these schools are very, very small. Each year many thousands of kids apply for a very small number of spaces. They have to reject many, many applicants with outstanding qualification each year. They also try to have balanced classes:
men and women, different races, different academic interests, different geographic backgrounds, different extracurricular interests, and so on. If your amazing kid did not get in, it's not because your kid is not amazing; it just didn't work out, because this is life...

Don't take it personally.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Williams is tiny and half the kids there are legacies.

Didn't help my kid, with straight A's in HS and a 4.53 wGPA, a 35 ACT, and good EC's. Second kid who didn't get in to Williams, notwithstanding legacy status. Both kids were easily qualified to get in. I get that there are tons of super qualified kids who are rejected every year, but its really left a sour taste in my mouth. Gonna be a while before I think fondly of Williams again. I'll remember the good education and experience I had there, and I value the friends I made there, but I'm pretty mad at the College right now.

I'm also a Williams alum and I understand your disappointment. I do need to ask, though, whether you and your kids were aware that legacy status will really only be considered in the early round?

I was wondering this too. Because all the schools I know that give legacy preference, it only helps if you apply ED.

Disappointed Williams alum here from upthread: I've been told this in the past, and the legacy kids I know that have gotten in to Williams and other similar schools generally have applied ED. But my kid wasn't ready to commit to Williams at that point, so ED wasn't a good option for him. And to be clear, I knew that he wasn't entitled to anything, and that getting in was never a sure thing. The College has its own admissions priorities, and my smallish (but until now incredibly consistent donations) were not going to move the needle. But the College has made a statement to me that I'm not terribly important to it, and that approach will likely go both ways in the future. Its disappointing, because one of the great things about Williams is the community it fosters, both while in school and throughout life. (Its always been amazing to me to see how many Williams widows (who never went to Williams) come to the 50th reunions). And while I'm not in the least bit upset at my Williams community, my relationship with the College itself has been damaged.

Why? They told you the rules beforehand - if your kids wanted to take advantage of their legacy status, they had to apply ED. Your kids chose not to take their golden ticket and now you're all out of joint that they're not getting the special treatment THEY CHOSE to reject.

Did your kids take advantage of the extra college counseling help the College offers children of alumni? Did they set up a meeting with a Dean who will go over your child's information and give a candid assessment of their admission chances? Did they participate in the "Admission 101" program the College puts on every year? https://alumni.williams.edu/events/admission-101/

Williams is a great school. Sorry it didn't teach you to take responsibility for your own failures.

NP. OMG, please stop being such a jerk. A little more empathy, a lot less scolding and denigrating.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:1500+ SAT all As at highly regarded private (school doesn’t offer AP classes but DC took 4 and got 4s and 5s). Varsity sport, leadership in ECs. Legacy - rejected. Waitlisted at all others. No acceptances today. Brutal.

Similar to mine. 1560 SAT, 3.98UW, 4.85W, top magnet, 5s on APs, NMF, actor who won awards and has worked professionally, capt of sports team, national award, state orch, multiple regional awards, club pres, decent service. Rejected from Williams.

You guys sound surprised. They rejected 93% of applicants.

Your children sound amazing, they honestly do, but that does not mean all doors will be open to then. Adjust your attitude.

Please try not to be a jerk. Clearly we knew that this was not a given, but her stats are amazing (this is by no means a complete list). Heaven forbid you all just offer a little sympathy.

You get sympathy for that entire post except for the whiny White Fragility last line.

PP here. What does this have to do with race? Nothing. I don't get your response. Asking for sympathy for a disappointed kid is white fragility? Huh?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Williams is tiny and half the kids there are legacies.

Didn't help my kid, with straight A's in HS and a 4.53 wGPA, a 35 ACT, and good EC's. Second kid who didn't get in to Williams, notwithstanding legacy status. Both kids were easily qualified to get in. I get that there are tons of super qualified kids who are rejected every year, but its really left a sour taste in my mouth. Gonna be a while before I think fondly of Williams again. I'll remember the good education and experience I had there, and I value the friends I made there, but I'm pretty mad at the College right now.

I'm also a Williams alum and I understand your disappointment. I do need to ask, though, whether you and your kids were aware that legacy status will really only be considered in the early round?

I was wondering this too. Because all the schools I know that give legacy preference, it only helps if you apply ED.

Disappointed Williams alum here from upthread: I've been told this in the past, and the legacy kids I know that have gotten in to Williams and other similar schools generally have applied ED. But my kid wasn't ready to commit to Williams at that point, so ED wasn't a good option for him. And to be clear, I knew that he wasn't entitled to anything, and that getting in was never a sure thing. The College has its own admissions priorities, and my smallish (but until now incredibly consistent donations) were not going to move the needle. But the College has made a statement to me that I'm not terribly important to it, and that approach will likely go both ways in the future. Its disappointing, because one of the great things about Williams is the community it fosters, both while in school and throughout life. (Its always been amazing to me to see how many Williams widows (who never went to Williams) come to the 50th reunions). And while I'm not in the least bit upset at my Williams community, my relationship with the College itself has been damaged.

Why? They told you the rules beforehand - if your kids wanted to take advantage of their legacy status, they had to apply ED. Your kids chose not to take their golden ticket and now you're all out of joint that they're not getting the special treatment THEY CHOSE to reject.

Did your kids take advantage of the extra college counseling help the College offers children of alumni? Did they set up a meeting with a Dean who will go over your child's information and give a candid assessment of their admission chances? Did they participate in the "Admission 101" program the College puts on every year? https://alumni.williams.edu/events/admission-101/

Williams is a great school. Sorry it didn't teach you to take responsibility for your own failures.

OMG, we did none of these - now feeling even more lucky that DC got in!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Denied - Swarthmore
Waitlist - Haverford
Accepted - UVA

Doesn’t make sense! If good enough for UVA, absolutely at least WL at Swarthmore.

Luckily kid unbothered. Did not like Haverford or Swarthmore much after visiting. :/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And that is why tuition is so high, paying for the coaches and athletic facilities. Nobody watches some of these obscure sports anyways and yet the colleges recruit for all these sports. It’s a real shame that All sports matter more than academic achievements.

Sports alumni make more money and donate much more to their schools. If these programs actually were losers over time they'd be cut. The people running these schools aren't idiots.

You’re just making this up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And that is why tuition is so high, paying for the coaches and athletic facilities. Nobody watches some of these obscure sports anyways and yet the colleges recruit for all these sports. It’s a real shame that All sports matter more than academic achievements.

Sports alumni make more money and donate much more to their schools. If these programs actually were losers over time they'd be cut. The people running these schools aren't idiots.

You’re just making this up.

FWIW, I've heard this more than once - from parents who've done everything for their kid's admissions chances but apply themselves to folks who work in admissions. The latter are more circumspect in how they describe it. I didn't necessarily hear that they earn more, but that they are consistent, generous donors to their alma maters.

[Anonymous]

Dual citizen USA/Japan, living in Europe. SAT 1560, Predicted IB 44, 4 HL courses, GPA 4.2 sports-team captain, newspaper editor, fluent in 4 languages.

Univ. of Cambridge (UK) A
Grinnell A
Kenyon A
Macalester A
Swarthmore WL
Amherst WL
JHU WL
Williams R

Cambridge required two written assessments, and interviews with 4 professors (one of which has a BBC documentary series). No interviews at any US schools were offered.
DD had dreamed of attending Swarthmore...lets see how waitlist goes...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Dual citizen USA/Japan, living in Europe. SAT 1560, Predicted IB 44, 4 HL courses, GPA 4.2 sports-team captain, newspaper editor, fluent in 4 languages.

Univ. of Cambridge (UK) A
Grinnell A
Kenyon A
Macalester A
Swarthmore WL
Amherst WL
JHU WL
Williams R

Cambridge required two written assessments, and interviews with 4 professors (one of which has a BBC documentary series). No interviews at any US schools were offered.
DD had dreamed of attending Swarthmore...lets see how waitlist goes...

Yield protect? Did DC try to get recruited for sports?

[Anonymous]

Yield protect? Did DC try to get recruited for sports?

No. Her team is small. But she did display commitment, perseverance, and leadership.

I don't think Williams needs to yield protect. For the others, DD applied ED2 to Swarthmore but withdrew at the last moment because she had just received her acceptance from Cambridge and wanted to consider the offer. She, after much thought, wants a liberal arts education instead of Cambridge's commitment to one course of study. Can you talk more about your thoughts on yield protection?

[Anonymous]

William’s yield is not that high in the 40s I believe (Amherst’s yield is even lower, like 39) so they probably will yield protect.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Yield protect? Did DC try to get recruited for sports?

No. Her team is small. But she did display commitment, perseverance, and leadership.

I don't think Williams needs to yield protect. For the others, DD applied ED2 to Swarthmore but withdrew at the last moment because she had just received her acceptance from Cambridge and wanted to consider the offer. She, after much thought, wants a liberal arts education instead of Cambridge's commitment to one course of study. Can you talk more about your thoughts on yield protection?

Has she submitted her letter of continued interest and let them know they are her first choice (if true)?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And that is why tuition is so high, paying for the coaches and athletic facilities. Nobody watches some of these obscure sports anyways and yet the colleges recruit for all these sports. It’s a real shame that All sports matter more than academic achievements.

Sports alumni make more money and donate much more to their schools. If these programs actually were losers over time they'd be cut. The people running these schools aren't idiots.

You’re just making this up.

FWIW, I've heard this more than once - from parents who've done everything for their kid's admissions chances but apply themselves to folks who work in admissions. The latter are more circumspect in how they describe it. I didn't necessarily hear that they earn more, but that they are consistent, generous donors to their alma maters.

+1

The alternative is that the people running these schools actually are idiots. That strikes me as less likely.