Disappointment

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m surprised at the UVA result but it supports my view that from FCPS you are strongly advised to apply ED to UVA.

Do you mean EA? OP said that her DD applied ED to JHU.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Anyone who thinks UNC is a safety for OOS has zero clue about the college process.

Yup---quick google will tell you it's single digit acceptance rates, add in the major (BME/engineering) and common sense will tell you it's a few points lower.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote: It was definitely very competitive this year...

You really are a poor listener & so divorced from reality. After all this feedback you go "it was very competitive this year!"

No. it is very competitive EVERY YEAR.

Your kid is an average kid for these schools. There are many other really good kids out there too, some even extraordinary. Versus it being in the bag, your child would have been very very lucky to get in, same for every other kid.

Lmao god you guys are so self-absorbed, OP is allowed to let out their (rightful) frustrations without being attacked left and right. If a perfect GPA, 1570 SAT, and 5s in 14 APs is "average" to you (yes, even in a more competitive area) then you need to get your head examined. I feel bad for some of your kids, this place can be such a toxic cesspool.

This thread is not as long as it is just because people are interested in one parent’s disappointment. There are lots of similar case studies in this forum, and lessons to be learned for those facing the admissions process in the future. OP provided stats and results, which of course invites discussion, plus opinions about those results, which invites alternative opinions. It’s all well and good, and kind of the point of the forum.

As far as toxic cesspool goes, it was OP who uncharitably speculated about less worthy classmates. Don’t want to be attacked? Don’t invite it.

It's interesting that OP didn't say anything about DD's race. After the posters saw her stats and ECs, multiple posters almost immediately pointed out that DD is an Asian. That is interesting.

Two take-aways:

1. The discriminatory practice goes on after the affirmative action is held unconstitutional. Asian applicants are disadvantaged in the college process, even one year after the Harvard case.

2. Asian applicants' EC sucks the big time so much so anyone could tell by their ECs without their racial information. Research/Non-profit/stem competition got to go.

Stop with the race bait! If there are 50K applicants for 1500 seats, many very highly qualified applicants are going to be disappointed. of those 50K applicants, at least 40K are "highly qualified" with SAT/GPA.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:At some point, elite college admissions becomes just a game. It has complex, ever-evolving rules, requires long-term strategy, involves intense competition, and produces winners and losers. It sucks to be rejected or to "lose", but it often simply means you didn't play the strategy optimally. OP's academics and test scores might have qualified her kid to play, but clearly the activities weren't optimized in a way that stood out to admissions committees.

For those navigating elite college admissions, I suggest finding a specific "hook" like an athletic talent, which can provide more concrete admissions benchmarks for test scores and grades.

This is the result of the dysfunctional admissions system. People who think it’s reasonable to “curate” ECs instead of having a student do what they like and enjoy doing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Here's the problem. It's a bell curve. Equally competitive and GREAT kids will behave according to the bell curve with these reach schools. None of them are 100% or even close.
Some kids' applications will land well at the right schools and they'll get a few admits.
Some kids might just get one of their dream schools.
Others will fall on the lean side of the bell curve and get none.
It's more rare to be the extreme, but EVERYONE needs to know this is a possibility
and prepare themselves and their kids for the chance that your high stats kid will not get into any reach schools. EVERY kid needs a good safety.

and this is why you see people applying for 10 or more of the top20s

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Anyone who thinks UNC is a safety for OOS has zero clue about the college process.

When did OP say it was a safety?

21:35pm post: "DD really liked CMU and wanted to double major with BME. UNC's joint program was supposed to be more of a safety, and DD said that she loved Dartmouth's flexibility in that program."

Op also said her daughter was "guaranteed" admission to UVA by her college counselor.

OP has to be a troll. This is beyond delusional.

I said almost guaranteed - Her counselor told us that it was very likely. UVA is a great school, but DD's public sends many kids to UVA every year. How is this delusional?

You literally wrote that Carolina OOS was supposed to be a safety (not even a target). That is delusional for anyone. ANYONE.

Here is a very good explanation that apparently you, your DD and her college counselors should watch. It is never, NEVER, a safety or target for any OOS student. I’m not here to argument the merits of a UNC degree (although I am a fan) but the numbers are what they are. Around 6% OOS acceptance rate, firm instate mandate minimum numbers, 57% increase in applications from 2017-2024 (thereby massively increasing your competition and driving down that acceptance rate even further).

Do you not understand math? Yes, it is delusional thinking to label OOS UNC a safety, an almost safety or a target. https://www.instagram.com/reel/DHXMaoEv1tW/?igsh=eG0yMWtna3owZ2di

We didn't hire a college counselor, she had her school counselor. Should we have spent on one?

No one said anything about a private college counselor. Her school counselor is her college counselor. Are you really this obtuse? I guess so. Your FREE school college counselor definitely should have known re OOS Carolina. Everyone knows. It is no secret. So either you are not intelligent or are lying/are making this all up.

I didn't grow up in the US so yes, I don't have the best grasp of these terms. I know that her school counselor is her college counselor, but they are also referred to as guidance counselors. I think you're the obtuse one here, sorry to say.

Do you even know what obtuse means?

Yes I do, and I was using it to referring to how quick you are to make assumptions and be nasty. That, to me, doesn't make someone the brightest of the bunch.

Um, no. Obtuse means being slow or not alert in perception, feeling or intellect or being unwilling to understand. A 5 second google search can tell you the definition. You literally just made up a different definition and are not using the word correctly. It does not mean to be quick to make assumptions or "being nasty".

Delusional means characterized by or holding false beliefs or judgments about external reality that are held despite incontrovertible evidence to the contrary; based on or having faulty judgment; mistaken. This is another word you need to learn the correct meaning.

Not OP.

You are rude. Look it up.

[Anonymous]

I did not read through all the responses but I will provide this perspective. I didn't get into any of the schools that I was dreaming of at 18. I went with one that accepted me, transferred to a big public university after that - and just like the butterfly effect I was able to meet the love of my life at that second school. I shudder at the thought of choosing another path and not meeting. At 40 now - we both have graduate degrees, have good jobs, two awesome kids, overall an amazing life! Encourage ambition but also counsel that sometimes even the things laid before you will result in joy beyond what she can imagine right now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At some point, elite college admissions becomes just a game. It has complex, ever-evolving rules, requires long-term strategy, involves intense competition, and produces winners and losers. It sucks to be rejected or to "lose", but it often simply means you didn't play the strategy optimally. OP's academics and test scores might have qualified her kid to play, but clearly the activities weren't optimized in a way that stood out to admissions committees.

For those navigating elite college admissions, I suggest finding a specific "hook" like an athletic talent, which can provide more concrete admissions benchmarks for test scores and grades.

This is the result of the dysfunctional admissions system. People who think it’s reasonable to “curate” ECs instead of having a student do what they like and enjoy doing.

I also think these rejections hit harder when you spend all of high school taking classes that you didn't want to take or doing activities that you didn't want to do just for your resume. If you like your life and choices, then you don't feel like you've sacrificed for nothing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At some point, elite college admissions becomes just a game. It has complex, ever-evolving rules, requires long-term strategy, involves intense competition, and produces winners and losers. It sucks to be rejected or to "lose", but it often simply means you didn't play the strategy optimally. OP's academics and test scores might have qualified her kid to play, but clearly the activities weren't optimized in a way that stood out to admissions committees.

For those navigating elite college admissions, I suggest finding a specific "hook" like an athletic talent, which can provide more concrete admissions benchmarks for test scores and grades.

This is the result of the dysfunctional admissions system. People who think it’s reasonable to “curate” ECs instead of having a student do what they like and enjoy doing.

I also think these rejections hit harder when you spend all of high school taking classes that you didn't want to take or doing activities that you didn't want to do just for your resume. If you like your life and choices, then you don't feel like you've sacrificed for nothing.

That's a life and adulting lesson , you have to do a lot of stuff you don't like or enjoy. Better to learn in high school or earlier.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Anyone who thinks UNC is a safety for OOS has zero clue about the college process.

When did OP say it was a safety?

21:35pm post: "DD really liked CMU and wanted to double major with BME. UNC's joint program was supposed to be more of a safety, and DD said that she loved Dartmouth's flexibility in that program."

Op also said her daughter was "guaranteed" admission to UVA by her college counselor.

OP has to be a troll. This is beyond delusional.

I said almost guaranteed - Her counselor told us that it was very likely. UVA is a great school, but DD's public sends many kids to UVA every year. How is this delusional?

You literally wrote that Carolina OOS was supposed to be a safety (not even a target). That is delusional for anyone. ANYONE.

Here is a very good explanation that apparently you, your DD and her college counselors should watch. It is never, NEVER, a safety or target for any OOS student. I’m not here to argument the merits of a UNC degree (although I am a fan) but the numbers are what they are. Around 6% OOS acceptance rate, firm instate mandate minimum numbers, 57% increase in applications from 2017-2024 (thereby massively increasing your competition and driving down that acceptance rate even further).

Do you not understand math? Yes, it is delusional thinking to label OOS UNC a safety, an almost safety or a target. https://www.instagram.com/reel/DHXMaoEv1tW/?igsh=eG0yMWtna3owZ2di

We didn't hire a college counselor, she had her school counselor. Should we have spent on one?

No one said anything about a private college counselor. Her school counselor is her college counselor. Are you really this obtuse? I guess so. Your FREE school college counselor definitely should have known re OOS Carolina. Everyone knows. It is no secret. So either you are not intelligent or are lying/are making this all up.

I didn't grow up in the US so yes, I don't have the best grasp of these terms. I know that her school counselor is her college counselor, but they are also referred to as guidance counselors. I think you're the obtuse one here, sorry to say.

Do you even know what obtuse means?

Yes I do, and I was using it to referring to how quick you are to make assumptions and be nasty. That, to me, doesn't make someone the brightest of the bunch.

Um, no. Obtuse means being slow or not alert in perception, feeling or intellect or being unwilling to understand. A 5 second google search can tell you the definition. You literally just made up a different definition and are not using the word correctly. It does not mean to be quick to make assumptions or "being nasty".

Delusional means characterized by or holding false beliefs or judgments about external reality that are held despite incontrovertible evidence to the contrary; based on or having faulty judgment; mistaken. This is another word you need to learn the correct meaning.

Not OP.

You are rude. Look it up.

No, I am blunt and correct. Follow the conversation. OP’s mistakes and her unwillingness to listen probably cost her daughter a lot of unnecessary disappointment. Thinking OOS UNC and instate UVA from NOVA are safeties? GTHOH. I feel very sorry for this kid; but luckily she still has great options. That is, if this scenario is even real.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone who thinks UNC is a safety for OOS has zero clue about the college process.

Yup---quick google will tell you it's single digit acceptance rates, add in the major (BME/engineering) and common sense will tell you it's a few points lower.

I’m genuinely amazed when unhooked OOS kids get into UNC-CH. We’re in upstate NY and our excellent public high school is 0/66 in the past five years, with most being very high stat kids.

[Anonymous]

Nah, she wasn’t realistic about a lot of these colleges. I’m pp whose DC got into 8 schools a while back.

I agree with other posters. You have to do lots of research to get good outcomes. And I mean a lot of research. And then you have to be very realistic about the game and how you can win at it.

We were lucky because 1) my kid was not a 1500+ student; 2) the Ivies were never a consideration because of it, and 3) a few other “street smart” factors that we homed in on that narrowed our focus.

Colleges tell you who they are without necessarily telling you who they are if you are researching well and asking the right questions.

My last thought is that very few students should be applying to Ivies. It’s too hard to win at that game, and the penalty of losing other options early on is just not worth it unless you are really hooked.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I did not read through all the responses but I will provide this perspective. I didn't get into any of the schools that I was dreaming of at 18. I went with one that accepted me, transferred to a big public university after that - and just like the butterfly effect I was able to meet the love of my life at that second school. I shudder at the thought of choosing another path and not meeting. At 40 now - we both have graduate degrees, have good jobs, two awesome kids, overall an amazing life! Encourage ambition but also counsel that sometimes even the things laid before you will result in joy beyond what she can imagine right now.

Amen, sister. As the renowned poet Garth Brooks once said, “Sometimes I thank god for unanswered prayers.” 😊

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nah, she wasn’t realistic about a lot of these colleges. I’m pp whose DC got into 8 schools a while back.

I agree with other posters. You have to do lots of research to get good outcomes. And I mean a lot of research. And then you have to be very realistic about the game and how you can win at it.

We were lucky because 1) my kid was not a 1500+ student; 2) the Ivies were never a consideration because of it, and 3) a few other “street smart” factors that we homed in on that narrowed our focus.

Colleges tell you who they are without necessarily telling you who they are if you are researching well and asking the right questions.

My last thought is that very few students should be applying to Ivies. It’s too hard to win at that game, and the penalty of losing other options early on is just not worth it unless you are really hooked.

I’m intrigued by this. Can you please share more? Maybe an example of two?

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Anyone who thinks UNC is a safety for OOS has zero clue about the college process.

When did OP say it was a safety?

21:35pm post: "DD really liked CMU and wanted to double major with BME. UNC's joint program was supposed to be more of a safety, and DD said that she loved Dartmouth's flexibility in that program."

Op also said her daughter was "guaranteed" admission to UVA by her college counselor.

OP has to be a troll. This is beyond delusional.

I said almost guaranteed - Her counselor told us that it was very likely. UVA is a great school, but DD's public sends many kids to UVA every year. How is this delusional?

You literally wrote that Carolina OOS was supposed to be a safety (not even a target). That is delusional for anyone. ANYONE.

Here is a very good explanation that apparently you, your DD and her college counselors should watch. It is never, NEVER, a safety or target for any OOS student. I’m not here to argument the merits of a UNC degree (although I am a fan) but the numbers are what they are. Around 6% OOS acceptance rate, firm instate mandate minimum numbers, 57% increase in applications from 2017-2024 (thereby massively increasing your competition and driving down that acceptance rate even further).

Do you not understand math? Yes, it is delusional thinking to label OOS UNC a safety, an almost safety or a target. https://www.instagram.com/reel/DHXMaoEv1tW/?igsh=eG0yMWtna3owZ2di

We didn't hire a college counselor, she had her school counselor. Should we have spent on one?

No one said anything about a private college counselor. Her school counselor is her college counselor. Are you really this obtuse? I guess so. Your FREE school college counselor definitely should have known re OOS Carolina. Everyone knows. It is no secret. So either you are not intelligent or are lying/are making this all up.

I didn't grow up in the US so yes, I don't have the best grasp of these terms. I know that her school counselor is her college counselor, but they are also referred to as guidance counselors. I think you're the obtuse one here, sorry to say.

Do you even know what obtuse means?

Yes I do, and I was using it to referring to how quick you are to make assumptions and be nasty. That, to me, doesn't make someone the brightest of the bunch.

Um, no. Obtuse means being slow or not alert in perception, feeling or intellect or being unwilling to understand. A 5 second google search can tell you the definition. You literally just made up a different definition and are not using the word correctly. It does not mean to be quick to make assumptions or "being nasty".

Delusional means characterized by or holding false beliefs or judgments about external reality that are held despite incontrovertible evidence to the contrary; based on or having faulty judgment; mistaken. This is another word you need to learn the correct meaning.

Not OP.

You are rude. Look it up.

No, I am blunt and correct. Follow the conversation. OP’s mistakes and her unwillingness to listen probably cost her daughter a lot of unnecessary disappointment. Thinking OOS UNC and instate UVA from NOVA are safeties? GTHOH. I feel very sorry for this kid; but luckily she still has great options. That is, if this scenario is even real.

Whether you are correct is a debatable. Twenty-plus pages debatable. That you are rude is not. Plenty of other PPs have made the same arguments you have without calling OP a stupid, lying troll.

“Do you even know what obtuse means?”

Rude.