Advice needed after ED rejection

[Anonymous]

WashU ED2

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So the GPA is low(er)? They are only top 30 percent? Did the counselor advise ED to Cornell?? That seems really odd and a waste of ED. You have to go down the ranks like Tufts BC EDII. Add U Rochester Case Western Pitt to the RD rounds.

I kinda disagree with this. The hooked kids apply to a different cluster: HYP, Vandy, Penn, Brown, Columbia, Chicago, SLACs. Some apply TO.

Cornell, JHU, Rice, Emory, CMU, these are hard schools with lower prestige, the hooked kids seldom are interested in going. Cornell has more legacies (but not donors/connection) applying.

[Anonymous]

So, OP, if you are going to start a thread and want help, answer the questions. Or you should not have started the thread…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So the GPA is low(er)? They are only top 30 percent? Did the counselor advise ED to Cornell?? That seems really odd and a waste of ED. You have to go down the ranks like Tufts BC EDII. Add U Rochester Case Western Pitt to the RD rounds.

I kinda disagree with this. The hooked kids apply to a different cluster: HYP, Vandy, Penn, Brown, Columbia, Chicago, SLACs. Some apply TO.

Cornell, JHU, Rice, Emory, CMU, these are hard schools with lower prestige, the hooked kids seldom are interested in going. Cornell has more legacies (but not donors/connection) applying.

Disagree with this entirely. Last year 3/4 Cornell kids at our school were hooked. 2/2 Emory kids were.
CMU, JHU and Rice I agree with. Esp. since JHU is almost anti-legacy kids (as a JHU alum I can attest to this.. lol)

[Anonymous]

Let's analyze this.

"An excellent private that sends 40% to T30" typically means it's a schools with lots of legacy and some hooked kids. Is this in NYC or a top boarding school? If it is or something similar, 2 kinds of kids from these privates get into a T20 like Cornell: hooked kids/legacy/athletes, or unhooked academic stars who are top 10% of the class.

If OP's DC is unhooked and top 30%, then you need to get really lucky to get into a T20:
- have top teacher reco letters that speak to potentials to grow into much higher than top 30%
- great SAT/ACT
- have a very special EC, and
- have no other higher ranked kids applying to the same T20

All T20 colleges want top 10% kids (HYPMS want top 5%). At top 30% from a very competitive private with hooked kids, your best bets would have been U Chicago if full pay ED 0/1, or a tier 2 LACs like Middlebury that love full pay kids from top privates.

We're in a private that sends 40% to T30, including at least 1-2 kids/year to HYP and 2-3/year to Cornell. I just checked, the Cornell accepts are top 15% of the class.

Try these for ED2 and RD if your DC is excited about them and wants a higher ranked school (assuming since they applied to Cornell for humanities so assuming rank/prestige is a consideration):
ED2 - Emory, Tufts, NYU, Wash U
RD: Bowdoin, Middlebury, Wesleyan, Vassar

[Anonymous]

Cornell has similar vibe to some state R1/flagships. UVA? W&M? UVM? Or maybe consider smaller schools, Wesleyan? Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Cornell is weird this year. It used to take a large number ED from our school. This year they took zero. Even legacies got deferred. I almost think they may have a different admissions policy this year.

Agree. Speculation from our CCO is they will take A LOT in RD.

But the cornell essays MUST focus on the specific cornell ethos. Its unique....and also nichey-a kid who gets into Yale often won't get into Cornell. Same for many SLACs. Very different focus/vibe and you need to convey in your essays (including personal essay)......

What does this mean?

[Anonymous]

Sorry OP, this is truly a heartbreaking process.
Help your DC think through what he really liked about Cornell- an academic program, the size, the campus etc. and then help him re-look at his list to see if there are changes to be made.
Also really focus in on the supplemental essays for his RD applications. Is there something unique he highlights in the "Why X college" - there should be, also what will he bring to each school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So the GPA is low(er)? They are only top 30 percent? Did the counselor advise ED to Cornell?? That seems really odd and a waste of ED. You have to go down the ranks like Tufts BC EDII. Add U Rochester Case Western Pitt to the RD rounds.

I kinda disagree with this. The hooked kids apply to a different cluster: HYP, Vandy, Penn, Brown, Columbia, Chicago, SLACs. Some apply TO.

Cornell, JHU, Rice, Emory, CMU, these are hard schools with lower prestige, the hooked kids seldom are interested in going. Cornell has more legacies (but not donors/connection) applying.

Disagree with this entirely. Last year 3/4 Cornell kids at our school were hooked. 2/2 Emory kids were.
CMU, JHU and Rice I agree with. Esp. since JHU is almost anti-legacy kids (as a JHU alum I can attest to this.. lol)

How is it possible? You just partially agreed with me on CMU JHU Rice?

Cornell has many legacies applying, but most of them are not donors or have special connection. Legacy has some weight but not huge.
Not sure about Emory.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Understand that all of these schools are single digit admit rates and in ED, they are taking their athletes and legacies. An unhooked kid should not be applying to Cornell ED and your college guidance should have told you that (ask me how I know, LOL...BTDT)

This advice is not quite correct.
My unhooked, public school kid got in Cornell ED for engineering. No legacy, non-athlete. No national awards.

OP- good luck with the next round, rooting for you!

DP: but let me guess, your DC was ranked higher than top 30%? No way an unhooked 30% ranked kids get into T10 engineering from any public HS, not even TJ

[Anonymous]

DP. About the private school hooked kids ...
The hooked ones get in in ED. Every year you see mid-stats or TO kids showing up on instagram when ED is out.

More unhooked ones get in in RD. And no, there are plenty of unhooked kids getting in T20 schools. Grades is only one data point, other parts of the application including ECs and essays weigh a lot too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DP. About the private school hooked kids ...
The hooked ones get in in ED. Every year you see mid-stats or TO kids showing up on instagram when ED is out.

More unhooked ones get in in RD. And no, there are plenty of unhooked kids getting in T20 schools. Grades is only one data point, other parts of the application including ECs and essays weigh a lot too.

Cornell is test required.

[Anonymous]

does your kid have a school that they really love? that's their ED2

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DP. About the private school hooked kids ...
The hooked ones get in in ED. Every year you see mid-stats or TO kids showing up on instagram when ED is out.

More unhooked ones get in in RD. And no, there are plenty of unhooked kids getting in T20 schools. Grades is only one data point, other parts of the application including ECs and essays weigh a lot too.

Disagree with your confidence as a parent of 2024 and 2025 kids from a top private. RD can be a bloodbath for kids like OPs (decent but not top top% from a top private.) My kid was this kid last year and they were outright rejected RD from Vanderbilt, Northwestern Northwestern (not surprising--these schools have like a 95% rejection rate in RD) and waitlisted at places like BC and Emory (possible yield protection on the BC side). RD is TOUGH.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DP. About the private school hooked kids ...
The hooked ones get in in ED. Every year you see mid-stats or TO kids showing up on instagram when ED is out.

More unhooked ones get in in RD. And no, there are plenty of unhooked kids getting in T20 schools. Grades is only one data point, other parts of the application including ECs and essays weigh a lot too.

Cornell is test required.

I wasn't talking about OP's case or Cornell in particular. What I am saying is you can get a sense of how many unhooked kids get in T20 looking at RD results.