Out of state vs. Fairfax County

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What are the "hooks" UVa wants if you're not in the top 10%? I'm being serious.

Great essays, demonstrated strong leadership (not just Pres/VP of a small club in HS - the club should be a significant presence in the school, and student should be able to articulate what they did in the club and how it made a big impact), doing well in tough classes (B+/A- is fine if course rigor is unquestionable), strong test scores to back up solid grades (including SAT or ACT and SAT II and APs), afterschool/summer jobs. Show them you have a personality and that you'd contribute more to the school than just being a studying machine - they have lots of those. I think the essays are key for kids who are not at the top of their class. Signed, Parent Whose Kid Got Into UVA from NoVa with Slightly-Below-UVA-Average Stats

Congrats on the acceptance!
While agree that all these attributes contribute to getting into UVA, I'd say they're more the "norm" and are not what people consider "hooks." A hook is typically a recruited athlete, an under represented minority, a legacy (usually of a family who donates $$$$) and then sometimes some random thing like school band is in desperate need for an oboe player or whatever.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What are the "hooks" UVa wants if you're not in the top 10%? I'm being serious.

Great essays, demonstrated strong leadership (not just Pres/VP of a small club in HS - the club should be a significant presence in the school, and student should be able to articulate what they did in the club and how it made a big impact), doing well in tough classes (B+/A- is fine if course rigor is unquestionable), strong test scores to back up solid grades (including SAT or ACT and SAT II and APs), afterschool/summer jobs. Show them you have a personality and that you'd contribute more to the school than just being a studying machine - they have lots of those. I think the essays are key for kids who are not at the top of their class. Signed, Parent Whose Kid Got Into UVA from NoVa with Slightly-Below-UVA-Average Stats

Congrats on the acceptance!
While agree that all these attributes contribute to getting into UVA, I'd say they're more the "norm" and are not what people consider "hooks." A hook is typically a recruited athlete, an under represented minority, a legacy (usually of a family who donates $$$$) and then sometimes some random thing like school band is in desperate need for an oboe player or whatever.

Excellent points. Thanks.

[Anonymous]

Question then: If my slightly above average daughter wanted to get in to UVa, following her brother, would it help her to be from a further out rural high school in the top 10% instead of Loudoun County. Would it even help that her brother went there before her?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Question then: If my slightly above average daughter wanted to get in to UVa, following her brother, would it help her to be from a further out rural high school in the top 10% instead of Loudoun County. Would it even help that her brother went there before her?

Unfortunately, I don't think DD gets in with or w/out UVa brother unless maybe she's a tip top recruit in a sport that matters to UVa.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For UVA's Class of 2015, 28% of in-state admissions offers went to residents of Ffx Co. The Dean of Admissions "acknowledged that Northern Virginia does well in the competition." (Source: http://www.dailyprogress.com/news/article_0d4c5fcd-505d-5261-bf95-59509fe1192b.html) Based on this article, your BEST chance of getting in is to be from NoVa, because the schools are generally stronger there compared to the rest of the state. Our kid got into UVA this year - we are residents of Arlington and he goes to a private school in DC - and he was slightly below the average scores but had great leadership ECs and consistent sports participation. Feels like we hit the lottery.

28% of admitted students are from Fairfax. That may be, but how many kids from Fairfax applied. That is, did only the best of the best from Fairfax get accepted vs. other schools/locations/counties where solid, top students (although maybe not top 1%) were also accepted?

If your kid had gone to school in Arlington, do you think he would've been accepted?

This is the PP. Sadly, if he had gone to school in Arlington I doubt he would have been accepted to UVA because he wouldn't have had college counselors with the time and connections to advocate for him one-on-one, to convince UVA that this kid with "only" a 3.9 would be a great addition to the student body based on the contributions he made to his high school community.

Please don't waste your time feeling sad for our Arlington students. I know, I know, you do have to justify your private education $$$ somehow. Glad you're feeling better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The student reviews are less than stellar. http://www.studentsreview.com/VA/UV_comments.html?page=1&type=&d_school=The University of Virginia

"The best college period! I would never go anywhere else! Great students, faculty and staff, and campus!! Pretty girls, just a great place! Everybody needs to go to college their!!"

I am really hoping this review was a joke or a UMD poster. Or maybe someone from Duke... sounds like "their" kind of sense of humor.

[Anonymous]

I don't know if many people are aware that W&M's acceptance rate (in and OOS combined) for males is over 40%. Only about a third of their applicants are male, so in order to maintain a reasonable m/f mix, they accept a much greater share of male applicants than female.