Definition of reach vs high target

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For my high stats DD, any school with an admission rate under 15% was considered a reach. Her rank and stats were in the top 50% for most of these schools, so we knew that she had a shot at some of the sub-6% schools and a pretty good shot at the schools at the upper end of the range. For her reaches, we expected DD to get into some and rejected or waitlisted at most. I guess there was one school she applied to with an acceptance rate close to 15% that could have been considered a high target, but we didn't really think of it that way.

Her target schools had admission rates in the 15-30% range. For these schools, we believed she was likely (more than 50%) to be admitted. But it wouldn't have been shocking to get rejected or waitlisted to any particular school in this range.

Her safety was a public university with an admission rate over 50% at which admission was virtually guaranteed.

DD's results out of 13 apps: Reaches: 5/8 Admits, 2/8 Waitlists, 1/8 Rejections. Targets: 3/4 Admits, 1/4 Waitlists. Safety: 1/1 Admits. FWIW, most of DD's reaches were in the very competitive T11-20/WASP range rather than the hypercompetitive HYPSM/T10 range. That wasn't strategic; it was more because DD wasn't particularly interested in most of the T10 schools.

what schools have admit rates in this range? They seem impossible to find.

DP: The 15-30% admit rate range: Wesleyan (16-17%), College of the Holy Cross (18%), Skidmore (23%), Franklin and Marshall (28%).

In the 30-40% range included Lehigh (30%), Lafayette (31%), Bucknell (33%), and William and Mary (33%).

Admit rates are not always the best proxy for selectivity. Do Holy Cross, Skidmore, and Franklin and Marshall have higher stat enrolled students than all the schools in the 30-40% range? I don't think so.

The question was about admit rates; these are the ones I know because my kids only applied to small schools in the East. What are "all the schools in the 30-40% range"?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For my high stats DD, any school with an admission rate under 15% was considered a reach. Her rank and stats were in the top 50% for most of these schools, so we knew that she had a shot at some of the sub-6% schools and a pretty good shot at the schools at the upper end of the range. For her reaches, we expected DD to get into some and rejected or waitlisted at most. I guess there was one school she applied to with an acceptance rate close to 15% that could have been considered a high target, but we didn't really think of it that way.

Her target schools had admission rates in the 15-30% range. For these schools, we believed she was likely (more than 50%) to be admitted. But it wouldn't have been shocking to get rejected or waitlisted to any particular school in this range.

Her safety was a public university with an admission rate over 50% at which admission was virtually guaranteed.

DD's results out of 13 apps: Reaches: 5/8 Admits, 2/8 Waitlists, 1/8 Rejections. Targets: 3/4 Admits, 1/4 Waitlists. Safety: 1/1 Admits. FWIW, most of DD's reaches were in the very competitive T11-20/WASP range rather than the hypercompetitive HYPSM/T10 range. That wasn't strategic; it was more because DD wasn't particularly interested in most of the T10 schools.

what schools have admit rates in this range? They seem impossible to find.

DP: The 15-30% admit rate range: Wesleyan (16-17%), College of the Holy Cross (18%), Skidmore (23%), Franklin and Marshall (28%).

In the 30-40% range included Lehigh (30%), Lafayette (31%), Bucknell (33%), and William and Mary (33%).

Admit rates are not always the best proxy for selectivity. Do Holy Cross, Skidmore, and Franklin and Marshall have higher stat enrolled students than all the schools in the 30-40% range? I don't think so.

A lot of those schools track demonstrated interest?

Yes, many of them do; not all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For my high stats DD, any school with an admission rate under 15% was considered a reach. Her rank and stats were in the top 50% for most of these schools, so we knew that she had a shot at some of the sub-6% schools and a pretty good shot at the schools at the upper end of the range. For her reaches, we expected DD to get into some and rejected or waitlisted at most. I guess there was one school she applied to with an acceptance rate close to 15% that could have been considered a high target, but we didn't really think of it that way.

Her target schools had admission rates in the 15-30% range. For these schools, we believed she was likely (more than 50%) to be admitted. But it wouldn't have been shocking to get rejected or waitlisted to any particular school in this range.

Her safety was a public university with an admission rate over 50% at which admission was virtually guaranteed.

DD's results out of 13 apps: Reaches: 5/8 Admits, 2/8 Waitlists, 1/8 Rejections. Targets: 3/4 Admits, 1/4 Waitlists. Safety: 1/1 Admits. FWIW, most of DD's reaches were in the very competitive T11-20/WASP range rather than the hypercompetitive HYPSM/T10 range. That wasn't strategic; it was more because DD wasn't particularly interested in most of the T10 schools.

what schools have admit rates in this range? They seem impossible to find.

DP: The 15-30% admit rate range: Wesleyan (16-17%), College of the Holy Cross (18%), Skidmore (23%), Franklin and Marshall (28%).

In the 30-40% range included Lehigh (30%), Lafayette (31%), Bucknell (33%), and William and Mary (33%).

Admit rates are not always the best proxy for selectivity. Do Holy Cross, Skidmore, and Franklin and Marshall have higher stat enrolled students than all the schools in the 30-40% range? I don't think so.

At our private school, the same stats get into all of these. The CDS 75th percentile range for this list is 1360 (Bucknell) to 1510 (William and Mary). It's a good list for the smaller East Coast niche.

[Anonymous]

In my opinion, High Target is just a target, but with a quirky school like Case Western or UGA where there's always some randomness, but by and large it is a target (for a strong student).

[Anonymous]

Beyond the single measure of acceptance rate, perhaps consider the broader characteristic of selectivity. As guidance for this, this analysis assigns a "student selectivity rank" for each school listed in the site:

https://wallethub.com/edu/e/college-rankings/40750

Fully qualified applicants may be able to find suitable matches outside the, say, top few dozen schools when considered by this measure.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For my high stats DD, any school with an admission rate under 15% was considered a reach. Her rank and stats were in the top 50% for most of these schools, so we knew that she had a shot at some of the sub-6% schools and a pretty good shot at the schools at the upper end of the range. For her reaches, we expected DD to get into some and rejected or waitlisted at most. I guess there was one school she applied to with an acceptance rate close to 15% that could have been considered a high target, but we didn't really think of it that way.

Her target schools had admission rates in the 15-30% range. For these schools, we believed she was likely (more than 50%) to be admitted. But it wouldn't have been shocking to get rejected or waitlisted to any particular school in this range.

Her safety was a public university with an admission rate over 50% at which admission was virtually guaranteed.

DD's results out of 13 apps: Reaches: 5/8 Admits, 2/8 Waitlists, 1/8 Rejections. Targets: 3/4 Admits, 1/4 Waitlists. Safety: 1/1 Admits. FWIW, most of DD's reaches were in the very competitive T11-20/WASP range rather than the hypercompetitive HYPSM/T10 range. That wasn't strategic; it was more because DD wasn't particularly interested in most of the T10 schools.

what schools have admit rates in this range? They seem impossible to find.

DP: The 15-30% admit rate range: Wesleyan (16-17%), College of the Holy Cross (18%), Skidmore (23%), Franklin and Marshall (28%).

In the 30-40% range included Lehigh (30%), Lafayette (31%), Bucknell (33%), and William and Mary (33%).

Admit rates are not always the best proxy for selectivity. Do Holy Cross, Skidmore, and Franklin and Marshall have higher stat enrolled students than all the schools in the 30-40% range? I don't think so.

The question was about admit rates; these are the ones I know because my kids only applied to small schools in the East. What are "all the schools in the 30-40% range"?

I thought it was reach vs. target.

[Anonymous]

Admit rates are meaningless, depends on school, major and ED/RD.

For instance, at my kid's school almost everyone who applies to a certain LAC gets in. That LAC's published acceptance rate is 30ish percent. So is it a high target? Low reach? For some. But not from this particular high school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For my high stats DD, any school with an admission rate under 15% was considered a reach. Her rank and stats were in the top 50% for most of these schools, so we knew that she had a shot at some of the sub-6% schools and a pretty good shot at the schools at the upper end of the range. For her reaches, we expected DD to get into some and rejected or waitlisted at most. I guess there was one school she applied to with an acceptance rate close to 15% that could have been considered a high target, but we didn't really think of it that way.

Her target schools had admission rates in the 15-30% range. For these schools, we believed she was likely (more than 50%) to be admitted. But it wouldn't have been shocking to get rejected or waitlisted to any particular school in this range.

Her safety was a public university with an admission rate over 50% at which admission was virtually guaranteed.

DD's results out of 13 apps: Reaches: 5/8 Admits, 2/8 Waitlists, 1/8 Rejections. Targets: 3/4 Admits, 1/4 Waitlists. Safety: 1/1 Admits. FWIW, most of DD's reaches were in the very competitive T11-20/WASP range rather than the hypercompetitive HYPSM/T10 range. That wasn't strategic; it was more because DD wasn't particularly interested in most of the T10 schools.

what schools have admit rates in this range? They seem impossible to find.

DP: The 15-30% admit rate range: Wesleyan (16-17%), College of the Holy Cross (18%), Skidmore (23%), Franklin and Marshall (28%).

In the 30-40% range included Lehigh (30%), Lafayette (31%), Bucknell (33%), and William and Mary (33%).

Admit rates are not always the best proxy for selectivity. Do Holy Cross, Skidmore, and Franklin and Marshall have higher stat enrolled students than all the schools in the 30-40% range? I don't think so.

The question was about admit rates; these are the ones I know because my kids only applied to small schools in the East. What are "all the schools in the 30-40% range"?

I thought it was reach vs. target.

Admit rate matters for reach/target/safety. If the admit rate is 6%, it's a reach for everyone. If it is 80% is a safety for everyone. and so on. So the PP was specifically asking for those schools with admit rates that put them out of the "reach for everyone" range.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For a top student, where and how do you draw the line? How do you define these terms for yourself.

I know none of this matters, I just find lists and categories helpful. For example, no matter how high my kid's scores and grades are, I would say any school with a less than 20% acceptance rate is a reach. Should it actually be 25%? 35?

Similar line of thinking but with adjusted percentages.
Sub 15% acceptance rate is a REACH for everyone.
75th percentile of stats for sub 35% acceptance rate it was HARD TARGET
75th percentile of stats for sub 55% acceptance rate TARGET/MATCH

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For a top student, where and how do you draw the line? How do you define these terms for yourself.

I know none of this matters, I just find lists and categories helpful. For example, no matter how high my kid's scores and grades are, I would say any school with a less than 20% acceptance rate is a reach. Should it actually be 25%? 35?

Similar line of thinking but with adjusted percentages.
Sub 15% acceptance rate is a REACH for everyone.
75th percentile of stats for sub 35% acceptance rate it was HARD TARGET
75th percentile of stats for sub 55% acceptance rate TARGET/MATCH

Agree. What people forget is that a small school only has a limited number of spots, and they are taking athletes, musicians, etc. just like every school. So even if you are above the 75th, if they are a low admit school (<40%), it's not a safety. Targets mean they SHOULD want your kid based on stats, but they may not have room, so don't count on it. The bigger the school, the more leeway you have (unless you are OOS for a public with low OOS admits).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For my high stats DD, any school with an admission rate under 15% was considered a reach. Her rank and stats were in the top 50% for most of these schools, so we knew that she had a shot at some of the sub-6% schools and a pretty good shot at the schools at the upper end of the range. For her reaches, we expected DD to get into some and rejected or waitlisted at most. I guess there was one school she applied to with an acceptance rate close to 15% that could have been considered a high target, but we didn't really think of it that way.

Her target schools had admission rates in the 15-30% range. For these schools, we believed she was likely (more than 50%) to be admitted. But it wouldn't have been shocking to get rejected or waitlisted to any particular school in this range.

Her safety was a public university with an admission rate over 50% at which admission was virtually guaranteed.

DD's results out of 13 apps: Reaches: 5/8 Admits, 2/8 Waitlists, 1/8 Rejections. Targets: 3/4 Admits, 1/4 Waitlists. Safety: 1/1 Admits. FWIW, most of DD's reaches were in the very competitive T11-20/WASP range rather than the hypercompetitive HYPSM/T10 range. That wasn't strategic; it was more because DD wasn't particularly interested in most of the T10 schools.

what schools have admit rates in this range? They seem impossible to find.

DP: The 15-30% admit rate range: Wesleyan (16-17%), College of the Holy Cross (18%), Skidmore (23%), Franklin and Marshall (28%).

In the 30-40% range included Lehigh (30%), Lafayette (31%), Bucknell (33%), and William and Mary (33%).

Admit rates are not always the best proxy for selectivity. Do Holy Cross, Skidmore, and Franklin and Marshall have higher stat enrolled students than all the schools in the 30-40% range? I don't think so.

They have just as many high stat students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For my high stats DD, any school with an admission rate under 15% was considered a reach. Her rank and stats were in the top 50% for most of these schools, so we knew that she had a shot at some of the sub-6% schools and a pretty good shot at the schools at the upper end of the range. For her reaches, we expected DD to get into some and rejected or waitlisted at most. I guess there was one school she applied to with an acceptance rate close to 15% that could have been considered a high target, but we didn't really think of it that way.

Her target schools had admission rates in the 15-30% range. For these schools, we believed she was likely (more than 50%) to be admitted. But it wouldn't have been shocking to get rejected or waitlisted to any particular school in this range.

Her safety was a public university with an admission rate over 50% at which admission was virtually guaranteed.

DD's results out of 13 apps: Reaches: 5/8 Admits, 2/8 Waitlists, 1/8 Rejections. Targets: 3/4 Admits, 1/4 Waitlists. Safety: 1/1 Admits. FWIW, most of DD's reaches were in the very competitive T11-20/WASP range rather than the hypercompetitive HYPSM/T10 range. That wasn't strategic; it was more because DD wasn't particularly interested in most of the T10 schools.

what schools have admit rates in this range? They seem impossible to find.

DP: The 15-30% admit rate range: Wesleyan (16-17%), College of the Holy Cross (18%), Skidmore (23%), Franklin and Marshall (28%).

In the 30-40% range included Lehigh (30%), Lafayette (31%), Bucknell (33%), and William and Mary (33%).

Once you take out those admitted through ED the admission % drops by about 10% so they become reaches for most.

[Anonymous]

In reality, a "reach" school is any school that rejected the applicant, while a "high target" school is one which accepted the applicant.