Ivy League results so far? who is making it in?

[Anonymous]

My kid attends a well regarded DMV public school. I personally know of one into HYP with great grades/scores and few leadership ECs. Another was deferred with very similar credentials. It’s a crapshoot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

What I'm saying though, is so-called "well-rounded" kids aren't that "well-"rounded. They're just "rounded". I'd love to see a kid who was the president of a couple clubs and see how she fares, but so far that has alluded me.

I have one of those kids, he applied to colleges last year. Harvard and Princeton did not want him, another top 10 (non-Ivy) school took him. I have no idea what happened with Princeton, but Harvard was at least partially bad luck. The kid was one of top 10-20 (depends on how you count) nationally ranked in a certain activity, and it just happened so that last year another 10+ top people from the same bunch applied to Harvard EA; we know 5 that got in. Two were legacies, two brought in geographic diversity (all else equal, it helps to be from the South), one was simply overall amazing (I don’t want to give any details as it will probably out him immediately). So, in addition to the overall competition with Harvard, my kid faced a very tough competition with respect to his specific strength. In another year things might have played out differently.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

What I'm saying though, is so-called "well-rounded" kids aren't that "well-"rounded. They're just "rounded". I'd love to see a kid who was the president of a couple clubs and see how she fares, but so far that has alluded me.

I have one of those kids, he applied to colleges last year. Harvard and Princeton did not want him, another top 10 (non-Ivy) school took him. I have no idea what happened with Princeton, but Harvard was at least partially bad luck. The kid was one of top 10-20 (depends on how you count) nationally ranked in a certain activity, and it just happened so that last year another 10+ top people from the same bunch applied to Harvard EA; we know 5 that got in. Two were legacies, two brought in geographic diversity (all else equal, it helps to be from the South), one was simply overall amazing (I don’t want to give any details as it will probably out him immediately). So, in addition to the overall competition with Harvard, my kid faced a very tough competition with respect to his specific strength. In another year things might have played out differently.

It's good that talent is being distributed. Congrats to your kid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DD attends a top all-girls private on the east coast but not DMV. The smartest kid in her class announced on social media she was admitted to Penn. I dont know her exact stats but she is tippy top academics at v. rigorous school. Based on publicly known facts she is in all honors classes since 9th, a national merit semi-finalist, always earns the highest level honor roll (ie honors, high honors, highest honors). What is notable to me is the medium smart kids from this school end up Harvard or Princeton to play sports (squash, lacrosse, etc.) This kid is a class leader with national competitive academics and Penn it is.

I guess she figured she had a very good shot to go for that ED rather than a HYPS.

Well played. If she was HYPS material, knew that she would stand out academically, took the ED advantage and got into Penn. Now she can enjoy the balance of her senior year. I can see why she is the smartest in her class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As an interviewer, I'm not seeing anyone get in. But I am seeing a pattern to those who don't. I see a lot of kids who might charitably be described - I'm sure their parents would describe them on DCUM - as well-rounded. They participate in a few clubs. But that's just it, they participate. Very few are officers let alone leaders.

My hypothesis, which I'd love to see tested, is that just being president of a couple things and having a decent talent would probably be enough to get you in. I'm an interviewer, so I don't know anything. But if you have a kid who's interested in Ivies, make sure she tries to actually lead something. Otherwise you'll be here whining about how "well-rounded kids don't have a chance."

This is old news. The ivies used to want well rounded kids but that time is long gone. Today they demand demonstrated excellence in a single field of endeavor. Presumably this makes their socially engineered class easier to assemble.

Imagine the competition when their spawn apply for college! Shudders....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As an interviewer, I'm not seeing anyone get in. But I am seeing a pattern to those who don't. I see a lot of kids who might charitably be described - I'm sure their parents would describe them on DCUM - as well-rounded. They participate in a few clubs. But that's just it, they participate. Very few are officers let alone leaders.

My hypothesis, which I'd love to see tested, is that just being president of a couple things and having a decent talent would probably be enough to get you in. I'm an interviewer, so I don't know anything. But if you have a kid who's interested in Ivies, make sure she tries to actually lead something. Otherwise you'll be here whining about how "well-rounded kids don't have a chance."

This is old news. The ivies used to want well rounded kids but that time is long gone. Today they demand demonstrated excellence in a single field of endeavor. Presumably this makes their socially engineered class easier to assemble.

Know a decent number of otherwise unhooked kids who got into Harvard and Yale. None of them demonstrated excellence as you posit. This is just what parents tell themselves. It's not the case - those kids are not plentiful enough to fill one university class, much less eight.

Your post, and others like it are cruel. How well do you personally know these kids? Maybe they had a life-changing experience which was the subject of their essay. You just shouldn’t judge in this way. Maybe their teacher wrote an amazing LoR. You have no idea, truly.

[Anonymous]

I think you misunderstand the PP. The notion that there must be a freakish focus on one endeavor is overblown. That doesn’t make it any easier to get in, of course. But it does illustrate it is a crap shoot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As an interviewer, I'm not seeing anyone get in. But I am seeing a pattern to those who don't. I see a lot of kids who might charitably be described - I'm sure their parents would describe them on DCUM - as well-rounded. They participate in a few clubs. But that's just it, they participate. Very few are officers let alone leaders.

My hypothesis, which I'd love to see tested, is that just being president of a couple things and having a decent talent would probably be enough to get you in. I'm an interviewer, so I don't know anything. But if you have a kid who's interested in Ivies, make sure she tries to actually lead something. Otherwise you'll be here whining about how "well-rounded kids don't have a chance."

This is old news. The ivies used to want well rounded kids but that time is long gone. Today they demand demonstrated excellence in a single field of endeavor. Presumably this makes their socially engineered class easier to assemble.

Know a decent number of otherwise unhooked kids who got into Harvard and Yale. None of them demonstrated excellence as you posit. This is just what parents tell themselves. It's not the case - those kids are not plentiful enough to fill one university class, much less eight.

Your post, and others like it are cruel. How well do you personally know these kids? Maybe they had a life-changing experience which was the subject of their essay. You just shouldn’t judge in this way. Maybe their teacher wrote an amazing LoR. You have no idea, truly.

You have no reading comprehension skills. I know them all well enough to know that they did not do newspaper worthy things or demonstrated excellence in a single field. They were all kids who excelled in school and did interesting but completely normal ECs. Which means that these other factors including perhaps some that you mentioned helped.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This thread. 13 pages. For exactly 9 first-hand accounts of who got in.

Of those 9, we had:
2 recruited athletes (Penn and Brown)
2 national musical ensemble members (Harvard and Yale)
1 legacy (Cornell)
4 "regular" kids
: 1 had a 3.96 and 35 ACT (Penn)
: 1 had 1580 SAT, 2 800 SAT IIs and is top student tho not ranked (Yale)
: 1 4.2/4.0 gpa, 35 Act 800 780, 770 (Yale)
: 1 undefined (Yale)

I think that’s actually a pretty good snapshot. 22% athletes, 11% legacy. And it shows that you have to be the very tip-top kid in your class with impeccable scores to have a shot.

Again, I’m talking about actual first-hand accounts from this year, from people who know. Not a bunch of gossip or BS.

Thanks for this. I got to page 5 and almost exited the thread

[Anonymous]

DS is in at Princeton and Penn. Waiting on ther others. He's profoundly gifted. We assume he'll get in everywhere, but may head to Swarthmore instead.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DS is in at Princeton and Penn. Waiting on ther others. He's profoundly gifted. We assume he'll get in everywhere, but may head to Swarthmore instead.

Cough cough. BS. Cough cough. Penn is ED.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DS is in at Princeton and Penn. Waiting on ther others. He's profoundly gifted. We assume he'll get in everywhere, but may head to Swarthmore instead.

Cough cough. BS. Cough cough. Penn is ED.

Exactly - you are not allowed to apply SCEA to Princeton and ED to Penn.

[Anonymous]

Yale EA. Top of class at Montgomery County public school (not a W), top test scores, outstanding extracurriculars including fluent Mandarin and Spanish, published political papers, varsity sports letter, several jazz bands, NASA internship etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DS is in at Princeton and Penn. Waiting on ther others. He's profoundly gifted. We assume he'll get in everywhere, but may head to Swarthmore instead.

Cough cough. BS. Cough cough. Penn is ED.

Exactly - you are not allowed to apply SCEA to Princeton and ED to Penn.

One of them is a written statement from a coach that he's in. The other is formal letter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DS is in at Princeton and Penn. Waiting on ther others. He's profoundly gifted. We assume he'll get in everywhere, but may head to Swarthmore instead.

Cough cough. BS. Cough cough. Penn is ED.

Exactly - you are not allowed to apply SCEA to Princeton and ED to Penn.

One of them is a written statement from a coach that he's in. The other is formal letter.

Good try but didn't cut the mustard.

If your kid is being recruited by one of the schools for a sport to the point that he's getting a written statement promising admissions, he is not seriously looking at Swarthmore.