Colby is poised to have the lowest acceptance rate of any LAC this year

[Anonymous]

The President of Colby has teamed up with the Waterville community to build it up and it has already shown a ton of progress. There is a very nice hotel to stay at now, and the restaurants are actually really good! I love our visits there. It is so much quieter than around here, and it is just a very relaxing weekend. But, again, to each his own!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The President of Colby has teamed up with the Waterville community to build it up and it has already shown a ton of progress. There is a very nice hotel to stay at now, and the restaurants are actually really good! I love our visits there. It is so much quieter than around here, and it is just a very relaxing weekend. But, again, to each his own!

Waterville has indeed come a long way in a short period of time. Much improved in just 2 years

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Back to OP, generous financial aid probably has something to do with Colby’s application surge and selectivity. Colby is #5 on the list.

https://www.bestcolleges.com/blog/most-generous-universities-for-financial-aid/

No, it's due to test optional, which means more students apply, meanong more are rejected meaning selectivity percentage drops. This has been the case in all test optional schools which gives the dchools bragging rights to alums and ranking services. Most readers here understand it's a racket. Hence, the eye rolling at OP's post

What "ranking service" are you speaking of, and do they use acceptance rate in their calculation?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why can’t I find a recent CDS from Colby? Sus.

They don’t publish one anymore but you can find data on College Navigator.

Hmmm. I wonder why not.

My DD looked at Colby as part of her Bowdoin/Bates swing. The lack of CDS data was very annoying. And off putting. What are they hiding? 90% of the class admitted via ED? Something else wonky? Not interested in having my kid get there and finding out.

[Anonymous]

For those that are new to this thread and don't want to read 15 pages, there is a clear reason why Colby had such a low acceptance rate: The number of applications have skyrocketed.

And there is a reason why applications have skyrocketed. My DC just got a postcard from Colby, it said:

1) No application fee, it is free to apply.
2) No supplemental essays.
3) They said any family with under $75K income is likely to get free tuition.
4) They said any family with under $150K income is likely to pay around $15,000 a year.
5) Average student gets $68K in aid.

So even if you don't know anything about the school, never visited, etc., all you have to do is press a button on the Common App. and can get a decision from the staff and possibly a ton of financial aid.

Can't hurt to apply? And apparently a ton of students are doing so, and Colby is rejected almost all of them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For those that are new to this thread and don't want to read 15 pages, there is a clear reason why Colby had such a low acceptance rate: The number of applications have skyrocketed.

And there is a reason why applications have skyrocketed. My DC just got a postcard from Colby, it said:

1) No application fee, it is free to apply.
2) No supplemental essays.
3) They said any family with under $75K income is likely to get free tuition.
4) They said any family with under $150K income is likely to pay around $15,000 a year.
5) Average student gets $68K in aid.

So even if you don't know anything about the school, never visited, etc., all you have to do is press a button on the Common App. and can get a decision from the staff and possibly a ton of financial aid.

Can't hurt to apply? And apparently a ton of students are doing so, and Colby is rejected almost all of them.

+1. Yet another school
marketing itself to
jump in the rankings

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:so it’s all about no app fee? wes amd midd have no supps and don’t get these numbers. could they be fudging numbers?

Also, Hamilton, Grinnell, Colgate have no supps as well.

As far as I can tell, none of these schools do tons of marketing to prospective students, nor do they push people to apply ED or spend a lot of time talking about their acceptance rates (or at least Wesleyan and Midd don’t, the two we’ve toured).

Sounds like the application fee is just one element of Colby’s game.

Grinnell has both no supps, no fee.

I agree the Colby's game. but for last several years, Colby's yields were pretty good. Last year was around 54%.
I think the high yield means a lot. If people apply only for no fee and no supps, the yield shouldn't be this high comparing with other SLACs.

Or, high yield means they take a ton of kids ED. If you take 80% of the class ED, and they have close to 100% yield, that’s a lot different from yield perspective than taking 40% ED. Just ask Bates.

And without the CDS, we don’t know, do we?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those that are new to this thread and don't want to read 15 pages, there is a clear reason why Colby had such a low acceptance rate: The number of applications have skyrocketed.

And there is a reason why applications have skyrocketed. My DC just got a postcard from Colby, it said:

1) No application fee, it is free to apply.
2) No supplemental essays.
3) They said any family with under $75K income is likely to get free tuition.
4) They said any family with under $150K income is likely to pay around $15,000 a year.
5) Average student gets $68K in aid.

So even if you don't know anything about the school, never visited, etc., all you have to do is press a button on the Common App. and can get a decision from the staff and possibly a ton of financial aid.

Can't hurt to apply? And apparently a ton of students are doing so, and Colby is rejected almost all of them.

+1. Yet another school
marketing itself to
jump in the rankings

-2. Yet another poster who does not understand that acceptance rate is not used in the USN rankings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:so it’s all about no app fee? wes amd midd have no supps and don’t get these numbers. could they be fudging numbers?

Also, Hamilton, Grinnell, Colgate have no supps as well.

As far as I can tell, none of these schools do tons of marketing to prospective students, nor do they push people to apply ED or spend a lot of time talking about their acceptance rates (or at least Wesleyan and Midd don’t, the two we’ve toured).

Sounds like the application fee is just one element of Colby’s game.

Grinnell has both no supps, no fee.

I agree the Colby's game. but for last several years, Colby's yields were pretty good. Last year was around 54%.
I think the high yield means a lot. If people apply only for no fee and no supps, the yield shouldn't be this high comparing with other SLACs.

Or, high yield means they take a ton of kids ED. If you take 80% of the class ED, and they have close to 100% yield, that’s a lot different from yield perspective than taking 40% ED. Just ask Bates.

And without the CDS, we don’t know, do we?

You don’t like Colby and don’t care to listen to another point of view. No one can change your mind. We get it. You can stop posting now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't believe so many people feel the urge to say such negative things about a school - and probably most of them have never visited or know anything more than the broadest details. Does it make people just feel so good to put others down?
I hope all you negative people don't have kids that want to go to Colby. We don't need you there to poison the waters.
It is an amazing school with a President who is visionary and strategic about the future. They built a $200M gym for their athletics program that is stunning. They are building tons of new dorms this year. They have a gorgeous new art museum and art facility. They have an amazing freshman orientation trip and a Jan Plan where kids study all kinds of interesting things for a month. They encourage Study Abroad and they have a robust career development/network program. The classes are small, a lot of the teachers are great, kids get a great education. You can ski in the winter and hike in the fall and spring. I only wish I was 20 and my only job was to study and think about where I want to go in life in such an ideal setting.
I think it's awesome that they don't charge an application fee. I mean, come on, everyone complains how greedy it is to have to pay for all those applications!! So, some schools cut it out and now you complain about that??
Really, I feel like we found the best kept secret - although it is clear that it is not much of a secret anymore. We visited most of the SLACs and Colby was easily the favorite. For my child! There are many friends at Middlebury and Bates who love it there too.
I highly recommend if your child is interested that you go and visit and make your own assessment. Hopefully, your child is not picking their college based on whether a place has a 14% acceptance rate compared to an 8% one.

Not to mention Waterville, which is probably the worst location for any SLAC in the country. I have tried, and I actually cannot think of a more wretched town where a SLAC is located.

It can't be crappier than Lewiston. Yuck.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For those that are new to this thread and don't want to read 15 pages, there is a clear reason why Colby had such a low acceptance rate: The number of applications have skyrocketed.

And there is a reason why applications have skyrocketed. My DC just got a postcard from Colby, it said:

1) No application fee, it is free to apply.
2) No supplemental essays.
3) They said any family with under $75K income is likely to get free tuition.
4) They said any family with under $150K income is likely to pay around $15,000 a year.
5) Average student gets $68K in aid.

So even if you don't know anything about the school, never visited, etc., all you have to do is press a button on the Common App. and can get a decision from the staff and possibly a ton of financial aid.

Can't hurt to apply? And apparently a ton of students are doing so, and Colby is rejected almost all of them.

I'm getting sick and tired of all these colleges making themselves look attractive to students. It just feeds on itself. THe more kids apply and get rejected the more kids want to apply. Shame on them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those that are new to this thread and don't want to read 15 pages, there is a clear reason why Colby had such a low acceptance rate: The number of applications have skyrocketed.

And there is a reason why applications have skyrocketed. My DC just got a postcard from Colby, it said:

1) No application fee, it is free to apply.
2) No supplemental essays.
3) They said any family with under $75K income is likely to get free tuition.
4) They said any family with under $150K income is likely to pay around $15,000 a year.
5) Average student gets $68K in aid.

So even if you don't know anything about the school, never visited, etc., all you have to do is press a button on the Common App. and can get a decision from the staff and possibly a ton of financial aid.

Can't hurt to apply? And apparently a ton of students are doing so, and Colby is rejected almost all of them.

I'm getting sick and tired of all these colleges making themselves look attractive to students. It just feeds on itself. THe more kids apply and get rejected the more kids want to apply. Shame on them.

Gosh I hope you are being sarcastic.

Otherwise you are literally complaining about a highly competitive college making it easier and cheaper for students to apply.

I'd have a hard time trying to name things less deserving of complaint.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't believe so many people feel the urge to say such negative things about a school - and probably most of them have never visited or know anything more than the broadest details. Does it make people just feel so good to put others down?
I hope all you negative people don't have kids that want to go to Colby. We don't need you there to poison the waters.
It is an amazing school with a President who is visionary and strategic about the future. They built a $200M gym for their athletics program that is stunning. They are building tons of new dorms this year. They have a gorgeous new art museum and art facility. They have an amazing freshman orientation trip and a Jan Plan where kids study all kinds of interesting things for a month. They encourage Study Abroad and they have a robust career development/network program. The classes are small, a lot of the teachers are great, kids get a great education. You can ski in the winter and hike in the fall and spring. I only wish I was 20 and my only job was to study and think about where I want to go in life in such an ideal setting.
I think it's awesome that they don't charge an application fee. I mean, come on, everyone complains how greedy it is to have to pay for all those applications!! So, some schools cut it out and now you complain about that??
Really, I feel like we found the best kept secret - although it is clear that it is not much of a secret anymore. We visited most of the SLACs and Colby was easily the favorite. For my child! There are many friends at Middlebury and Bates who love it there too.
I highly recommend if your child is interested that you go and visit and make your own assessment. Hopefully, your child is not picking their college based on whether a place has a 14% acceptance rate compared to an 8% one.

Not to mention Waterville, which is probably the worst location for any SLAC in the country. I have tried, and I actually cannot think of a more wretched town where a SLAC is located.

It can't be crappier than Lewiston. Yuck.

+1

Lewiston, Maine--home to Bates College--is not an attractive location. Personally, I would not send a child there even if offered full tuition.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't believe so many people feel the urge to say such negative things about a school - and probably most of them have never visited or know anything more than the broadest details. Does it make people just feel so good to put others down?
I hope all you negative people don't have kids that want to go to Colby. We don't need you there to poison the waters.
It is an amazing school with a President who is visionary and strategic about the future. They built a $200M gym for their athletics program that is stunning. They are building tons of new dorms this year. They have a gorgeous new art museum and art facility. They have an amazing freshman orientation trip and a Jan Plan where kids study all kinds of interesting things for a month. They encourage Study Abroad and they have a robust career development/network program. The classes are small, a lot of the teachers are great, kids get a great education. You can ski in the winter and hike in the fall and spring. I only wish I was 20 and my only job was to study and think about where I want to go in life in such an ideal setting.
I think it's awesome that they don't charge an application fee. I mean, come on, everyone complains how greedy it is to have to pay for all those applications!! So, some schools cut it out and now you complain about that??
Really, I feel like we found the best kept secret - although it is clear that it is not much of a secret anymore. We visited most of the SLACs and Colby was easily the favorite. For my child! There are many friends at Middlebury and Bates who love it there too.
I highly recommend if your child is interested that you go and visit and make your own assessment. Hopefully, your child is not picking their college based on whether a place has a 14% acceptance rate compared to an 8% one.

Not to mention Waterville, which is probably the worst location for any SLAC in the country. I have tried, and I actually cannot think of a more wretched town where a SLAC is located.

It can't be crappier than Lewiston. Yuck.

+1

Lewiston, Maine--home to Bates College--is not an attractive location. Personally, I would not send a child there even if offered full tuition.

Lewiston is bad. Waterville is worse. Keep in mind Lewiston is much closer to LL Bean, Freeport, beaches, and Portland.

Don’t get me wrong, Lewiston would surely be in the top 10 of worst SLAC locations, maybe even top 5. But I am not being rhetorical: is there a worse place than Waterville? I would like to think there is. But I honestly can’t think of one. Nominees?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For those that are new to this thread and don't want to read 15 pages, there is a clear reason why Colby had such a low acceptance rate: The number of applications have skyrocketed.

And there is a reason why applications have skyrocketed. My DC just got a postcard from Colby, it said:

1) No application fee, it is free to apply.
2) No supplemental essays.
3) They said any family with under $75K income is likely to get free tuition.
4) They said any family with under $150K income is likely to pay around $15,000 a year.
5) Average student gets $68K in aid.

So even if you don't know anything about the school, never visited, etc., all you have to do is press a button on the Common App. and can get a decision from the staff and possibly a ton of financial aid.

Can't hurt to apply? And apparently a ton of students are doing so, and Colby is rejected almost all of them.

+1. Yet another school
marketing itself to
jump in the rankings

-2. Yet another poster who does not understand that acceptance rate is not used in the USN rankings.

It is crazy that supposed bright people do not know this. Acceptance rate are not used. SAT scores are barely used. US News uses an equity driven ranking system.