Lessons learned: 2025-2026

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Understand the role of institutional priorities and how few slots outside of that actually remain in regular decision. Lots of old links on here.

If you are early in the process, think about how you can hit a double or trifecta with some of these priorities: (legacy/donor/undersubscribed major/geo diversity/demo diversity/qualities to directly match new university programming/centers)

Some good videos on the AO review process - read the comments!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muoflMbC1IM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfb4od5j57I

This is the Dr. Hoffman guy!! These are old videos but good ones

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1) Don't ED to a school that no one at your HS matriculates to.

2) Don't ED to a very small SLAC if a significant number of ED admissions are essentially pre-admitted through pre-reads for recruited athletes. The ED admission rate is very misleading but when you take out athletes (who are essentially pre-admitted at 100% by pre-reads and full coach support) and leave some spaces for institutional priorities (First Gen, Low-income, rural, legacy, donor), there is actually very little space left!

3) If you must ED to a reach, emphasize that it is a very long shot, and DC should keep working on applications with the expectation they will NOT get into ED. That will help them bounceback from a deferral or decline.

4) Do NOT panic and ED2 to a lesser choice just because DC is feeling panic/fear/worry about not getting in admitted to their true 1st choice ED1. Let them work through their disappointment, focus on the colleges in the RD pool and while they are writing essays they will fall back in love with their other options.

5) Your DC is still growing/developing through senior year. Over holiday break, DC thinks they may want a bigger, more urban campus (the opposite of their ED1) and also is rethinking major! While they may have been happy with getting into ED1 and being "done" with the process over holiday break (a true bonus), I suspect in the long run not getting in and having more options to consider over the course of the year will be better for them.

Just know, you won't be getting in Rd, where there's 10-12x the amount of competition and not that many more seats available.

Just stop. You keep saying that on every thread.

My own kid got into 2 Ivies, Hopkins and Pomona RD after getting deferred from Georgetown. Friends similarly did better RD, or were WL and got off WLs RD in May.

Quit trying to scare everyone.

NP: Can this PP elaborate? Obviously this is great to hear but how would the math work? All these report of 1-2% acceptance by the time RD rolls around sounds demoralizing. Is PP's kid hooked? Can you offer advice on how a high stats unhooked kid could have a better shot at better even one RD accept?

I'd start a new post with your DC's stats?
It starts with stats, then look at major, EC alignment, essays, and LOR (what exactly did you give to those teachers)?
Ime with 2 kids, major matters a lot in RD with class shaping (along with gender).

Do you mean undersubscribed majors will have a better chance during RD? Or that colleges are looking to fill specific majors in ways that we won’t know? How could you tell your 2 kids got in partly due to class shaping?

[Anonymous]

Kid is now wishing that they applied to fewer safeties and more targets/mid-reaches.

Kid had a bunch of far reaches and is now feeling like they won't get into any reaches and will be stuck with limited (perfectly fine) options.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Kid is now wishing that they applied to fewer safeties and more targets/mid-reaches.

Kid had a bunch of far reaches and is now feeling like they won't get into any reaches and will be stuck with limited (perfectly fine) options.

Can you name specifics?

[Anonymous]

My child limited herself to very similar colleges. She got into reaches, safeties, targets but is now worried they are all about the same size, setting, etc
She’ll be fine, but she wishes she had one that stood out from the pack.

[Anonymous]

should have learned to sail

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kid is now wishing that they applied to fewer safeties and more targets/mid-reaches.

Kid had a bunch of far reaches and is now feeling like they won't get into any reaches and will be stuck with limited (perfectly fine) options.

Can you name specifics?

Per the school counselor’s recommendation, kid had 3 safeties, 3 targets, and 4-5 reaches.

Kid now thinks 1 safety would have been fine and wished they spent the time on more targets on the higher side. So maybe 1 true safety, 3 easier targets, 3 harder targets, 4 reaches.

Kid has gotten into all safeties and targets so far and has some nice merit options. The reaches all look tough though, based on SCOIR scattergram.

Kid will be fine wherever but wishes they took a different approach.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:should have learned to sail

+1000 Sailing is the side door to the Ivy League

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kid is now wishing that they applied to fewer safeties and more targets/mid-reaches.

Kid had a bunch of far reaches and is now feeling like they won't get into any reaches and will be stuck with limited (perfectly fine) options.

Can you name specifics?

Per the school counselor’s recommendation, kid had 3 safeties, 3 targets, and 4-5 reaches.

Kid now thinks 1 safety would have been fine and wished they spent the time on more targets on the higher side. So maybe 1 true safety, 3 easier targets, 3 harder targets, 4 reaches.

Kid has gotten into all safeties and targets so far and has some nice merit options. The reaches all look tough though, based on SCOIR scattergram.

Kid will be fine wherever but wishes they took a different approach.

It can be a waste to apply to multiple safeties. Unless you are seeking merit aid and want to negotiate offers. Then having multiple offers can be useful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kid is now wishing that they applied to fewer safeties and more targets/mid-reaches.

Kid had a bunch of far reaches and is now feeling like they won't get into any reaches and will be stuck with limited (perfectly fine) options.

Can you name specifics?

Per the school counselor’s recommendation, kid had 3 safeties, 3 targets, and 4-5 reaches.

Kid now thinks 1 safety would have been fine and wished they spent the time on more targets on the higher side. So maybe 1 true safety, 3 easier targets, 3 harder targets, 4 reaches.

Kid has gotten into all safeties and targets so far and has some nice merit options. The reaches all look tough though, based on SCOIR scattergram.

Kid will be fine wherever but wishes they took a different approach.

It feels like that but you did the right thing.

You could have been rejected from all but safeties. Having choice, even if only among safeties, rather than being forced to "go to" one safety makes a huge difference.

Also having only a very limited set of acceptances like 2-3 and being rejected from 10 others makes it feel like something is wrong with you and/or the college that accepted you.

I am a college counselor and see this happen often.

[Anonymous]

fwiw- our public cleaned up with top 10-20 ranked ED 1 & 2. Unless Ivy day shows something else, those who are doing EA/RD get the safeties or low targets.

[Anonymous]

That makes no sense

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kid is now wishing that they applied to fewer safeties and more targets/mid-reaches.

Kid had a bunch of far reaches and is now feeling like they won't get into any reaches and will be stuck with limited (perfectly fine) options.

Can you name specifics?

Per the school counselor’s recommendation, kid had 3 safeties, 3 targets, and 4-5 reaches.

Kid now thinks 1 safety would have been fine and wished they spent the time on more targets on the higher side. So maybe 1 true safety, 3 easier targets, 3 harder targets, 4 reaches.

Kid has gotten into all safeties and targets so far and has some nice merit options. The reaches all look tough though, based on SCOIR scattergram.

Kid will be fine wherever but wishes they took a different approach.

Indeed. He should also have included some LOW reaches, if he hasn’t already. I think it’s smart to include the whole spectrum!

But human psychology is strange. My son applied to 1.5 dozen schools all in the top 50 range, half of which are reaches according to Scoir. Like your son, he got into almost all safeties and targets so far. After getting deferred by his low reach ED school, he was very discouraged as he had poured his heart into the application. So he was elevated when he got into the highest target (with merit too) on his list and was set on attending that school. But as the RD results are being released this month, he has a glimpse of hope for the low reaches. I know he’d be disappointed and sad for a while if all the reach schools turn him down

[Anonymous]

brainstorming before actually writing the essays may help a lot!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kid is now wishing that they applied to fewer safeties and more targets/mid-reaches.

Kid had a bunch of far reaches and is now feeling like they won't get into any reaches and will be stuck with limited (perfectly fine) options.

Can you name specifics?

Per the school counselor’s recommendation, kid had 3 safeties, 3 targets, and 4-5 reaches.

Kid now thinks 1 safety would have been fine and wished they spent the time on more targets on the higher side. So maybe 1 true safety, 3 easier targets, 3 harder targets, 4 reaches.

Kid has gotten into all safeties and targets so far and has some nice merit options. The reaches all look tough though, based on SCOIR scattergram.

Kid will be fine wherever but wishes they took a different approach.

I have a high stats DC. DC had one safety (Indiana Kelley). DC was prepared to add additional safeties in RD if he wasn’t admitted. Admitted to IU, so no need to add more schools. DC has some great EA admits and waiting to hear from 7 reaches in the next 2 weeks. One safety worked out for DC, but he got a lot of push back from his college counselor who finally agreed to DC’s strategy to add schools in RD if needed.