Stanford admissions success stories

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:My son got in spring 2023. He had 4.0 unweighted, 1580 SAT, all 5s on APs, good ECs, but not anything award winning. He plans to major in Political Science or History so not anything STEM. I have no idea what got him in, but he did get a note from the woman who read his application about his essays, so maybe that was it.

He ended up choosing not to go. Too far and too expensive. He's at UVA and is very happy.

It's a shame that people apply to schools they have no intention on attending....

Honestly, what about far and too expensive did you not know in advance?

Seriously. People like this are taking away opportunities from their peers at their high school. Absolutely awful behavior by this family. If you don't want to go to Stanford or other highly selective schools, don't apply. Just go to UVA. Why take these possibilities away from other students at your high school? Nothing about Stanford's location or cost is mysterious. But highly selective universities will only take x amount of students from a particular high school, and this one took one away from someone that probably really wanted to attend. For no reason at all except the bragging rights. Pathetic.

This is a joke, right? I never said anything about Stanford being a mystery. Obviously we know where it is and how much it costs. Could we have paid full tuition? Yes. But it would have made us make significant changes in our lifestyle. After he got in to both UVA and Stanford and some other schools, we talked about it and decided it wasn't worth it. And he didn't take away a spot from anyone at his school - he wasn't at a private or one of the public schools where everyone applies to Ivies - he was the only one in his class who applied to Stanford and one of the few who applied to Ivies. Ugh, I don't even know why I am engaging you, but it pisses me off that you're assuming devious intent by my then 17 year old son.

Trophy hunting is a real thing at a lot of schools that do have a lot of applicants to Stanford and the like. So it gets people really riled up to see someone turn down such a hard acceptance for the reasons stated - location and cost. Which, duh. All well known. So the assumption is trophy hunting. You are very blessed to live in an area where you are the only applicant to selective schools and can make such choices without impacts to others.

It is not trophy hunting. I am a DP and we seriously considered UPenn vs. UVA when the cost of attendance was $70k v. $32K. But when UVA offered full tuition scholarship and comparison became $70k. v. $10k per year, UVA won.

You are in a different scenario than what people are talking about here.

Exactly. And that was unclear from the original post. It's a totally different scenario at a high school with a lot of kids applying to selective colleges. It did read like someone racking up acceptances with no intention of going. I mean people know where Stanford is. And how much it is going to cost them if they are not eligible for aid. So why apply if it's too far and you don't want to pay for it? But if it's someone applying from a small town with few applicants to such schools and they're just exploring possibilities, good for them. At a place like Sidwell or TJ, where there are a lot of kids applying to Stanford and the like, it's going to bring out some eye rolls. Trophy hunters - racking up acceptances with no intention of going - really do affect their peer students.

Well, not always. Take some “lesser” Virginia public that Stanford has not accepted anyone to in the last 10 years. Say there were 12 or so applications (doesn’t matter; could be 8). Then the high school gets an admit — after all, it was their due. And that admit does not yield. Enough said…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP. I live in California and know many kids who have applied to Stanford in the past three years. Of the kids admitted, every single one was a child of staff/faculty, a double legacy (both parents from Stanford), an athletic recruit, the child of someone famous, or the child of a significant donor. None of the kids who didn’t fit into one of those categories were admitted.

In contrast, I know several first generation college students from California admitted. In fact, 20% of Stanford's class is first generation which means their parents did not have a college degree.

Maybe. Maybe not. Depends how Stanford defines it.

It's exactly how stanford defines it.

https://news.stanford.edu/stories/2020/06/admissions-considerations-for-children-of-alumni-or-donors#:~:text=As%20well%2C%20we're%20proud,enrolling%20students%20were%20first%2Dgeneration.

No "maybes"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My son got in spring 2023. He had 4.0 unweighted, 1580 SAT, all 5s on APs, good ECs, but not anything award winning. He plans to major in Political Science or History so not anything STEM. I have no idea what got him in, but he did get a note from the woman who read his application about his essays, so maybe that was it.

He ended up choosing not to go. Too far and too expensive. He's at UVA and is very happy.

It's a shame that people apply to schools they have no intention on attending....

Honestly, what about far and too expensive did you not know in advance?

Seriously. People like this are taking away opportunities from their peers at their high school. Absolutely awful behavior by this family. If you don't want to go to Stanford or other highly selective schools, don't apply. Just go to UVA. Why take these possibilities away from other students at your high school? Nothing about Stanford's location or cost is mysterious. But highly selective universities will only take x amount of students from a particular high school, and this one took one away from someone that probably really wanted to attend. For no reason at all except the bragging rights. Pathetic.

"But highly selective universities will only take x amount of students from a particular high school"

There are no quotas. it's why Stanford takes an absurd amount from high schools around California.

No firm quotas. But loose ones. These numbers are higher for certain California schools. Duh.

another dunce. Keep acting like you know what you're talking about

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:How common is it for a student to get a letter/comments from the application reader?

It's fairly common, generally, as a way to try to convince admitted students to attend. No one knows who actually wrote the note. Junior admission officers are typically in their 20s and might be assigned such a project.

The note my son got from Stanford had a name and email on it. My son actually wrote her back thanking her for the comments.

But, but, but…Stanford doesn’t care about yield!

Congrats, 20 admissions officers write notes across 2000 admits. It means nothing

[Anonymous]

Do the haters here realize that family income can change dramatically over the course of a year? Or four? A parent can fall ill. A kid can, too. They might discover a new interest and choose to attend elsewhere based on a major.

A year in the life of a 17-21 year old can change their circumstances. Maybe they fall and love and want to stay. A silly reason to base a college choice on. But that it the point of CHOICE. It belongs to the one who earned it. Not the kid who sits next to him in AP Physics. So pipe down. You are starting to sound not just mean but disturbed as well.

Go outside. Touch grass.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do the haters here realize that family income can change dramatically over the course of a year? Or four? A parent can fall ill. A kid can, too. They might discover a new interest and choose to attend elsewhere based on a major.

A year in the life of a 17-21 year old can change their circumstances. Maybe they fall and love and want to stay. A silly reason to base a college choice on. But that it the point of CHOICE. It belongs to the one who earned it. Not the kid who sits next to him in AP Physics. So pipe down. You are starting to sound not just mean but disturbed as well.

Go outside. Touch grass.

Ah, the “pipe down” poster, who keeps returning — and is using all caps to scream.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My son got in spring 2023. He had 4.0 unweighted, 1580 SAT, all 5s on APs, good ECs, but not anything award winning. He plans to major in Political Science or History so not anything STEM. I have no idea what got him in, but he did get a note from the woman who read his application about his essays, so maybe that was it.

He ended up choosing not to go. Too far and too expensive. He's at UVA and is very happy.

Wow, no offense, but what a maroon!

You can’t even spell moron. So I guess the jokes on you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My son got in spring 2023. He had 4.0 unweighted, 1580 SAT, all 5s on APs, good ECs, but not anything award winning. He plans to major in Political Science or History so not anything STEM. I have no idea what got him in, but he did get a note from the woman who read his application about his essays, so maybe that was it.

He ended up choosing not to go. Too far and too expensive. He's at UVA and is very happy.

Wow, no offense, but what a maroon!

You can’t even spell moron. So I guess the jokes on you.

And a <<< whoosh >>> ...

[Anonymous]

Being a World Champion or Olympic swimmer helps.

[Anonymous]

Nah, just emphasis and a dash of exasperation… and I’m not the sole defending poster. I am comfortable with my comments. And fairly certain that if the moderators could press a magical button that made all of our names suddenly visible, I would have nothing to worry about. There are certainly a few on this thread who would be mortified at their own bad behavior and judgement.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My son got in spring 2023. He had 4.0 unweighted, 1580 SAT, all 5s on APs, good ECs, but not anything award winning. He plans to major in Political Science or History so not anything STEM. I have no idea what got him in, but he did get a note from the woman who read his application about his essays, so maybe that was it.

He ended up choosing not to go. Too far and too expensive. He's at UVA and is very happy.

It's a shame that people apply to schools they have no intention on attending....

Honestly, what about far and too expensive did you not know in advance?

Seriously. People like this are taking away opportunities from their peers at their high school. Absolutely awful behavior by this family. If you don't want to go to Stanford or other highly selective schools, don't apply. Just go to UVA. Why take these possibilities away from other students at your high school? Nothing about Stanford's location or cost is mysterious. But highly selective universities will only take x amount of students from a particular high school, and this one took one away from someone that probably really wanted to attend. For no reason at all except the bragging rights. Pathetic.

This is a joke, right? I never said anything about Stanford being a mystery. Obviously we know where it is and how much it costs. Could we have paid full tuition? Yes. But it would have made us make significant changes in our lifestyle. After he got in to both UVA and Stanford and some other schools, we talked about it and decided it wasn't worth it. And he didn't take away a spot from anyone at his school - he wasn't at a private or one of the public schools where everyone applies to Ivies - he was the only one in his class who applied to Stanford and one of the few who applied to Ivies. Ugh, I don't even know why I am engaging you, but it pisses me off that you're assuming devious intent by my then 17 year old son.

Trophy hunting is a real thing at a lot of schools that do have a lot of applicants to Stanford and the like. So it gets people really riled up to see someone turn down such a hard acceptance for the reasons stated - location and cost. Which, duh. All well known. So the assumption is trophy hunting. You are very blessed to live in an area where you are the only applicant to selective schools and can make such choices without impacts to others.

It is not trophy hunting. I am a DP and we seriously considered UPenn vs. UVA when the cost of attendance was $70k v. $32K. But when UVA offered full tuition scholarship and comparison became $70k. v. $10k per year, UVA won.

You are in a different scenario than what people are talking about here.

It's almost impossible for an in-state kid to get a 'full tuition scholarship' at UVA. Ivies have fantastic needs blind aid (full tuition) for HHI at 150k or less; in those instances the Ivy is the obvious choice: it's free. As a donut hole family, it's $38k vs $78-87k, but if you factor in 17,000 students vs 7,000 and then start looking at additional benefits, special programs, undergrad teaching vs TA, things start to give you pause and we went with 'fit'. A kid that doesn't want a larger state school or drinking/party culture, etc., it's a different decision.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP. I live in California and know many kids who have applied to Stanford in the past three years. Of the kids admitted, every single one was a child of staff/faculty, a double legacy (both parents from Stanford), an athletic recruit, the child of someone famous, or the child of a significant donor. None of the kids who didn’t fit into one of those categories were admitted.

In contrast, I know several first generation college students from California admitted. In fact, 20% of Stanford's class is first generation which means their parents did not have a college degree.

Maybe. Maybe not. Depends how Stanford defines it.

It's exactly how stanford defines it.

https://news.stanford.edu/stories/2020/06/admissions-considerations-for-children-of-alumni-or-donors#:~:text=As%20well%2C%20we're%20proud,enrolling%20students%20were%20first%2Dgeneration.

No "maybes"

Silence on whether they mean “in the United States.” Maybe you should find a better cite if you presume to dispel all “maybes.”

Don’t forget that Stanford is a Questbridge partner; Questbridge matches students who have parents with degrees abroad as “first generation.” So they get in through the back door at Stanford in any event. See how things get more complicated if you are thoughtful and not dismissive?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My son got in spring 2023. He had 4.0 unweighted, 1580 SAT, all 5s on APs, good ECs, but not anything award winning. He plans to major in Political Science or History so not anything STEM. I have no idea what got him in, but he did get a note from the woman who read his application about his essays, so maybe that was it.

He ended up choosing not to go. Too far and too expensive. He's at UVA and is very happy.

Who was the woman?

Someone who lost capital advocating for a kid who didn’t yield. Will take it out on future applicants to that high school. Stanford’s yield rate is over 80%…

this is not how any of this works

(New poster to this thread.)

To the best of my knowledge, it is how it works.

I agree with these two above....it is how it works

Are you agreeing that because a student got into a school and didn’t attend, that no other kids from his high school would get in the following year? Yeah, no. LOL

this. why why why do I ever take anyone here seriously, ever.

there are 5-7 schools in America that give two shits about yield. Stanford is one of them. You idiots.

Stanford does not actually care about yield as much as people on here think.

Stanford can not care much about yield generally, but nobody unhooked gets into Stanford without having an advocate; that advocate cares immensely about that particular student’s yield. Get it?

What do you mean an “advocate”?

[Anonymous]

What does Stanford look for? It sounds like research us important and a niche academic interest?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I still think it's a shame.....

Like the kid at our school who got in REA to their top choice Ivy and yet proceeded to apply to all other Ivy schools in RD to see where they would get in. This 100% hurts classmates who want to attend the other Ivy schools and 100% had a chance if her application didn't bump them.

It's a natural instinct to want to play the game and get the glory. Now you can always say DC got into Stanford. But the reasons for not going did not change over time - you had this information from the start - you wanted to have the folly - nobody's going to stop you - and clearly others are cheering you on.

This makes no sense.

My son applied to 3 schools, one of which was Stanford. He didn't know which ones he would be admitted to when he submitted his applications. No "game playing," just waiting to hear back. Stanford factors its ~ 85% yield when sending out its admits; they understand some of their admits will choose to go elsewhere. There's no "moral obligation" to accept.