ED Bump at Bowdoin or Middlebury

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Colgate

+1 also maybe Lehigh, Lafayette, Bucknell

I would add Wesleyan to the mix.

[Anonymous]

Colby, Middlebury, Hamilton and Bowdoin are all but impossible to get into these days, unless you have a hook.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

FGDaddio wrote:This information is available for class of 2025 through the common data sets. The CDS have not been released for class of 2026 yet.

Bowdoin: RD 9% (852/9325) ED 263/960 27.4%

Middlebury: RD 13.4% 1601/11906 They break it down somewhat by ED1 and ED2 in terms of how many were accepted for each round, but not how many applied for each round (only the total that applied combined for ED1 and ED2). So 960 students total applied over both ED rounds, and 425 were admitted. That's an acceptance rate of 45%. However, of those, 380 were admitted in ED1 so clearly that's where the real bump is (but we don't know how many applied for ED2 vs ED1 so you can't extrapolate that rate). It would seem that if you want to do ED1, Middlebury is the more accepting school.

This is the best answer to the question. If she has equal preference for either school....use the ED for Middlebury based on that analysis.

Agree, but I know 2 kids rejected at Middlebury this last cycle: higher GPAs than OP's DC, both submitted high test scores (know the parents of one and DC good friends with the other), and one a sibling legacy as well as a PoC. Both rejected.

My DD with higher stats and a legacy was rejected at Midd RD.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Colby, Middlebury, Hamilton and Bowdoin are all but impossible to get into these days, unless you have a hook.

This is what we found with our child who just went through the college admissions process. Even though the bigger schools seem to be more popular at our child’s school, these small liberal arts colleges are so competitive and kids with top stats are getting rejected.

[Anonymous]

OP here. I should have clarified that DD may get into Colby and/or Hamilton as she is getting a pre-read at those two schools for her sport. Both coaches there have expressed interest in her already and have forwarded her information to the Admissions office. Middlebury has a higher threshold for her sport and DD doesn't qualify for the team there. She is on target athletically for Bowdoin but has not gotten attention from the coach despite her reaching out several times.

So assuming Colby and Hamilton can be a good possibility for ED2 if her pre-reads come back positive, dilemma is whether to try for Middlebury or Bowdoin for ED1.

Our son is in 11th grade and we may find ourselves in a similar predicament next year. So another question is whether the situation is different for a boy vs. a girl?

For one of the posters who asked about Davidson, I think that would be a great school for DD to attend although she could not play in her sport there. Is Davidson easier to get into than the northeastern counterparts mentioned above?

Sorry for all these questions but the responses have been so helpful.

[Anonymous]

Will the Colby/Hamilton coaches provide support for ED2, assuming positive pre-reads? Typically, the slots and support are for ED1 applicants. It might be worth clarifying when you reach that conversation.

[Anonymous]

Agree admission % is low for both, but would point out that Bowdoin has been TO for 50 years and not just TO due to COVID. I don't think TO hurts at all for Bowdoin, but your chances are still small

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

FGDaddio wrote:This information is available for class of 2025 through the common data sets. The CDS have not been released for class of 2026 yet.

Bowdoin: RD 9% (852/9325) ED 263/960 27.4%

Middlebury: RD 13.4% 1601/11906 They break it down somewhat by ED1 and ED2 in terms of how many were accepted for each round, but not how many applied for each round (only the total that applied combined for ED1 and ED2). So 960 students total applied over both ED rounds, and 425 were admitted. That's an acceptance rate of 45%. However, of those, 380 were admitted in ED1 so clearly that's where the real bump is (but we don't know how many applied for ED2 vs ED1 so you can't extrapolate that rate). It would seem that if you want to do ED1, Middlebury is the more accepting school.

This is the best answer to the question. If she has equal preference for either school....use the ED for Middlebury based on that analysis.

Once you back out the athletic recruits, who must apply ED1, the bump is much less significant.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Agree admission % is low for both, but would point out that Bowdoin has been TO for 50 years and not just TO due to COVID. I don't think TO hurts at all for Bowdoin, but your chances are still small

This is the winner, can't believe it took 3 pages of comments for someone to point out the most obvious differentiating factor between the two schools. Bowdoin means it when they say they're test optional. For a kid applying TO, that changes the ballgame entirely because it means she won't be at a deficit compared to other candidates. It's still not a lock - Bowdoin is one of the best and most competitive LACs in the country - but if she has her heart set on those two schools, it should be Bowdoin over Middlebury.

BTW I don't know the athletics piece of this at all, but most recruited athletes come in via ED1. So if your DD is going to play that card, she may not be able to wait until ED2 to do it.

[Anonymous]

Test optional coming out of an expensive private school is a bad look. Don’t do it.

[Anonymous]

PP is missing the point about TO at Bowdoin.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PP is missing the point about TO at Bowdoin.

It was raised on the first page.

[Anonymous]

The problem is that these schools are just so tiny, and they really want to spread out who they accept. If there is even a chance in their minds that they could get someone in from your school with better stats, even in RD, they'll reject your DD and hope for someone else. As your naviance shows, they know they can do better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Middlebury’s admissions decisions are need-blind for domestic students

https://www.middlebury.edu/college/admissions/affordability#

Bowdoin is as well https://www.bowdoin.edu/news/2022/07/bowdoin-college-expands-need-blind-admissions-policy-to-include-international-students.html

So being full pay will not help in admissions there. Agreeing to be a Feb at Midd might give a slight boost.

While this is just my opinion, it seems that test optional with that GPA will be a tough admit for either of those colleges. Please use Naviance and the advice of your HSGC. Best of luck!

This is important. I’d target similar schools that do not have need blind admissions, at least as safeties.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Test optional coming out of an expensive private school is a bad look. Don’t do it.

I agree with this. If you are coming from a top private and are fairly well to do, no SAT/ACT likely means your kid didn't do well. In their eyes there really is another explanation.