Virginia Tech

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:It seems in general that they are trying to get out of being a safety school. Some high stat kids have been turned down the last couple of years while lower stat kids admitted. They probably don’t care much about early action. It’s just more kids applying to a long list of schools and it doesn’t help them predict their enrollment. They might get a handful of yeses to EA offers. How would it help them better manage their enrollment?

VT is not and has never been a "safety school"

And has not let in kids with lower stats than others for a majority.

Oh, please. You didn’t grow up here, did you? Tech was very much a safety in the 80s and 90s. I was a very average student and didn’t get into UVA or JMU - but I did get into VT. As did all of my average friends. Things have definitely changed since then, but it was absolutely a safety school at one time.

The College admissions game is changing every single year. Nothing is like what it was in the 80s and 90s. Here are the entering stats for the class last september at VT: (and remember these are the ENTERING students, not those of the entire accepted class, which is higher because some students go elsewhere): The high school GPAs for the entering class at VT last fall was a 4.22 for 75th percentile, a 4.02 for Median and 3.81 for bottom 25th of the class. SATs scores were 1270/1290/1200 similarly and ACTs were 31/28/25

So it was a safety school for my DC1 who had a 4.6 and 1580. And her friends who had similar stats.

The fact that people are continuing to argue that it's not a safety school is silly, and it's making VT look like they didn't teach you all a thing. My DC2 wants to go there and I am against it for this reason. I don't see a lot of high-level, critical thinking coming out of there, be it from the alumni, admin, or profs.

Could someone from VT please say something smart so we can feel better about our decision? A math proof maybe?

Sounds like your DC2 is smarter than you are! I went to VT and in my eng class a professor asked, "How many of you got into MIT?" No kidding, at least a third of the class raised their hand. I had a buddy on a full ride to VT after turning down a partial from MIT (this was in the 90s). You can think what you want; VT Eng is legit. It's a great education and their students do well. The students at VT are genuinely happy and most look back with a great fondness of their college experience after graduation.

My friends from other schools visited frequently. The ones I remember were my UVA friends who couldn't believe how happy and down to earth everyone was. They would comment on how it was SO different than the vibe at UVA and would go on and on about how we were so lucky to not have to worry about how were perceived when going to class. At the time, I didn't know what they meant.

And then the professor asked, "How many can produce an MIT acceptance letter to prove it?" And all the hands went down.

Believe what you want. It's a true story.

You verified that they got into MIT. That does make it true! Please share how you accomplished that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It seems in general that they are trying to get out of being a safety school. Some high stat kids have been turned down the last couple of years while lower stat kids admitted. They probably don’t care much about early action. It’s just more kids applying to a long list of schools and it doesn’t help them predict their enrollment. They might get a handful of yeses to EA offers. How would it help them better manage their enrollment?

VT is not and has never been a "safety school"

And has not let in kids with lower stats than others for a majority.

Oh, please. You didn’t grow up here, did you? Tech was very much a safety in the 80s and 90s. I was a very average student and didn’t get into UVA or JMU - but I did get into VT. As did all of my average friends. Things have definitely changed since then, but it was absolutely a safety school at one time.

The College admissions game is changing every single year. Nothing is like what it was in the 80s and 90s. Here are the entering stats for the class last september at VT: (and remember these are the ENTERING students, not those of the entire accepted class, which is higher because some students go elsewhere): The high school GPAs for the entering class at VT last fall was a 4.22 for 75th percentile, a 4.02 for Median and 3.81 for bottom 25th of the class. SATs scores were 1270/1290/1200 similarly and ACTs were 31/28/25

Right, which is why I was talking about the 80s-90s in my post and made it very clear that things have changed since then.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It seems in general that they are trying to get out of being a safety school. Some high stat kids have been turned down the last couple of years while lower stat kids admitted. They probably don’t care much about early action. It’s just more kids applying to a long list of schools and it doesn’t help them predict their enrollment. They might get a handful of yeses to EA offers. How would it help them better manage their enrollment?

VT is not and has never been a "safety school"

And has not let in kids with lower stats than others for a majority.

Oh, please. You didn’t grow up here, did you? Tech was very much a safety in the 80s and 90s. I was a very average student and didn’t get into UVA or JMU - but I did get into VT. As did all of my average friends. Things have definitely changed since then, but it was absolutely a safety school at one time.

The College admissions game is changing every single year. Nothing is like what it was in the 80s and 90s. Here are the entering stats for the class last september at VT: (and remember these are the ENTERING students, not those of the entire accepted class, which is higher because some students go elsewhere): The high school GPAs for the entering class at VT last fall was a 4.22 for 75th percentile, a 4.02 for Median and 3.81 for bottom 25th of the class. SATs scores were 1270/1290/1200 similarly and ACTs were 31/28/25

So it was a safety school for my DC1 who had a 4.6 and 1580. And her friends who had similar stats.

The fact that people are continuing to argue that it's not a safety school is silly, and it's making VT look like they didn't teach you all a thing. My DC2 wants to go there and I am against it for this reason. I don't see a lot of high-level, critical thinking coming out of there, be it from the alumni, admin, or profs.

Could someone from VT please say something smart so we can feel better about our decision? A math proof maybe?

Sounds like your DC2 is smarter than you are! I went to VT and in my eng class a professor asked, "How many of you got into MIT?" No kidding, at least a third of the class raised their hand. I had a buddy on a full ride to VT after turning down a partial from MIT (this was in the 90s). You can think what you want; VT Eng is legit. It's a great education and their students do well. The students at VT are genuinely happy and most look back with a great fondness of their college experience after graduation.

My friends from other schools visited frequently. The ones I remember were my UVA friends who couldn't believe how happy and down to earth everyone was. They would comment on how it was SO different than the vibe at UVA and would go on and on about how we were so lucky to not have to worry about how were perceived when going to class. At the time, I didn't know what they meant.

And then the professor asked, "How many can produce an MIT acceptance letter to prove it?" And all the hands went down.

Believe what you want. It's a true story.

You verified that they got into MIT. That does make it true! Please share how you accomplished that.

One of my best friends got into MIT but went to PSU instead for monetary reasons. It happens. I'd be shocked if it was more than a handful at VT though; if it was anything close to a third the student stats would be much higher.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It seems in general that they are trying to get out of being a safety school. Some high stat kids have been turned down the last couple of years while lower stat kids admitted. They probably don’t care much about early action. It’s just more kids applying to a long list of schools and it doesn’t help them predict their enrollment. They might get a handful of yeses to EA offers. How would it help them better manage their enrollment?

VT is not and has never been a "safety school"

And has not let in kids with lower stats than others for a majority.

Oh, please. You didn’t grow up here, did you? Tech was very much a safety in the 80s and 90s. I was a very average student and didn’t get into UVA or JMU - but I did get into VT. As did all of my average friends. Things have definitely changed since then, but it was absolutely a safety school at one time.

The College admissions game is changing every single year. Nothing is like what it was in the 80s and 90s. Here are the entering stats for the class last september at VT: (and remember these are the ENTERING students, not those of the entire accepted class, which is higher because some students go elsewhere): The high school GPAs for the entering class at VT last fall was a 4.22 for 75th percentile, a 4.02 for Median and 3.81 for bottom 25th of the class. SATs scores were 1270/1290/1200 similarly and ACTs were 31/28/25

So it was a safety school for my DC1 who had a 4.6 and 1580. And her friends who had similar stats.

The fact that people are continuing to argue that it's not a safety school is silly, and it's making VT look like they didn't teach you all a thing. My DC2 wants to go there and I am against it for this reason. I don't see a lot of high-level, critical thinking coming out of there, be it from the alumni, admin, or profs.

Could someone from VT please say something smart so we can feel better about our decision? A math proof maybe?

Sounds like your DC2 is smarter than you are! I went to VT and in my eng class a professor asked, "How many of you got into MIT?" No kidding, at least a third of the class raised their hand. I had a buddy on a full ride to VT after turning down a partial from MIT (this was in the 90s). You can think what you want; VT Eng is legit. It's a great education and their students do well. The students at VT are genuinely happy and most look back with a great fondness of their college experience after graduation.

My friends from other schools visited frequently. The ones I remember were my UVA friends who couldn't believe how happy and down to earth everyone was. They would comment on how it was SO different than the vibe at UVA and would go on and on about how we were so lucky to not have to worry about how were perceived when going to class. At the time, I didn't know what they meant.

And then the professor asked, "How many can produce an MIT acceptance letter to prove it?" And all the hands went down.

Believe what you want. It's a true story.

You verified that they got into MIT. That does make it true! Please share how you accomplished that.

One of my best friends got into MIT but went to PSU instead for monetary reasons. It happens. I'd be shocked if it was more than a handful at VT though; if it was anything close to a third the student stats would be much higher.

My estimate: There are 0 undergrads enrolled at VT that were admitted to MIT.

[Anonymous]

I don't know where Parchment gets its cross-admit data, but FWIW, they report 16% of those who got into both MIT and VT went to VT.

https://www.parchment.com/c/college/tools/college-cross-admit-comparison.php?compare=Massachusetts+Institute+of+Technology&with=Virginia+Tech

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't know where Parchment gets its cross-admit data, but FWIW, they report 16% of those who got into both MIT and VT went to VT.

https://www.parchment.com/c/college/tools/college-cross-admit-comparison.php?compare=Massachusetts+Institute+of+Technology&with=Virginia+Tech

In comparison, %s choosing other big state schools when also admitted to MIT:
UCLA: 8%
Michigan-Ann Arbor: 10%
Berkeley: 12%
UVA: 16%
Penn State: 20%
UMD College Park: 33%
UNC Chapel Hill: 33%

Note that some of these sample sizes must be pretty small since the confidence intervals get large.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:70% admissions rate. Yes, they have been a safety school for many.

You still need a 4.0 to get In. I wouldn’t call that safety.

My kids didn't. I have twins, both got in and didn't have 4.0 wt gpas. They had sat scores of 1450 and 1500 and some good ecs.

[Anonymous]

01:06 I forgot to mention, one of the kids got into one of the schools at vt that is hard to get in to.

[Anonymous]

I am a Tech alumnus. I was in the hard sciences, but not engineering. Going to Tech has had little impact on my career, either positively or negatively. I went on to Grad School and earned my PhD. I now am in a senior technical role (Chief Scientist) for a large defense contractor.

The only negative I can say about my education is I did not have to write enough. I was a lousy writer upon graduation, and that held me back in my first 10 years of my career. (I got better at writing, and now writing is considered a skill).

My point is, for undergrad (if grad school is in play), it does not matter where you go to school, as long as you do not have to apologize. And VT does not require apologies.

[Anonymous]

My estimate: There are 0 undergrads enrolled at VT that were admitted to MIT.

This happens more than you think. My DC goes to a VA Governor's school (not TJ). Every year, there are kids that get into Ivys, S, M, Duke, Georgetown, etc. And, many times they choose a state school or another private for a free undergrad education. With that said, I've never seen or heard of a kid that got into H or S turn it down. I have heard of kids turning down MIT, Duke, Brown, and Georgetown for the full ride. This happens frequently for students who want to major in engineering and UMC students that plan to go to grad school.

[Anonymous]

How is it hard to understand why someone would turn down MIT for VT? It is all about the $$$$. At a certain income, at a certain college, for a certain family, it can be unaffordable. Each circumstance is different. Based on NPC, we can afford Harvard, but not most other top tier privates. Child can not get into Harvard, so VT and UVA and maybe W and M are best options.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How is it hard to understand why someone would turn down MIT for VT? It is all about the $$$$. At a certain income, at a certain college, for a certain family, it can be unaffordable. Each circumstance is different. Based on NPC, we can afford Harvard, but not most other top tier privates. Child can not get into Harvard, so VT and UVA and maybe W and M are best options.

+1 Exactly where we are. DS can go to HYPSM or in-state or another school that <= in state options.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It seems in general that they are trying to get out of being a safety school. Some high stat kids have been turned down the last couple of years while lower stat kids admitted. They probably don’t care much about early action. It’s just more kids applying to a long list of schools and it doesn’t help them predict their enrollment. They might get a handful of yeses to EA offers. How would it help them better manage their enrollment?

VT is not and has never been a "safety school"

And has not let in kids with lower stats than others for a majority.

Oh, please. You didn’t grow up here, did you? Tech was very much a safety in the 80s and 90s. I was a very average student and didn’t get into UVA or JMU - but I did get into VT. As did all of my average friends. Things have definitely changed since then, but it was absolutely a safety school at one time.

The College admissions game is changing every single year. Nothing is like what it was in the 80s and 90s. Here are the entering stats for the class last september at VT: (and remember these are the ENTERING students, not those of the entire accepted class, which is higher because some students go elsewhere): The high school GPAs for the entering class at VT last fall was a 4.22 for 75th percentile, a 4.02 for Median and 3.81 for bottom 25th of the class. SATs scores were 1270/1290/1200 similarly and ACTs were 31/28/25

So it was a safety school for my DC1 who had a 4.6 and 1580. And her friends who had similar stats.

The fact that people are continuing to argue that it's not a safety school is silly, and it's making VT look like they didn't teach you all a thing. My DC2 wants to go there and I am against it for this reason. I don't see a lot of high-level, critical thinking coming out of there, be it from the alumni, admin, or profs.

Could someone from VT please say something smart so we can feel better about our decision? A math proof maybe?

Sounds like your DC2 is smarter than you are! I went to VT and in my eng class a professor asked, "How many of you got into MIT?" No kidding, at least a third of the class raised their hand. I had a buddy on a full ride to VT after turning down a partial from MIT (this was in the 90s). You can think what you want; VT Eng is legit. It's a great education and their students do well. The students at VT are genuinely happy and most look back with a great fondness of their college experience after graduation.

My friends from other schools visited frequently. The ones I remember were my UVA friends who couldn't believe how happy and down to earth everyone was. They would comment on how it was SO different than the vibe at UVA and would go on and on about how we were so lucky to not have to worry about how were perceived when going to class. At the time, I didn't know what they meant.

And then the professor asked, "How many can produce an MIT acceptance letter to prove it?" And all the hands went down.

Believe what you want. It's a true story.

You verified that they got into MIT. That does make it true! Please share how you accomplished that.

One of my best friends got into MIT but went to PSU instead for monetary reasons. It happens. I'd be shocked if it was more than a handful at VT though; if it was anything close to a third the student stats would be much higher.

My estimate: There are 0 undergrads enrolled at VT that were admitted to MIT.

You're an idiot. People pass on the "better" school all the time for various reasons. My college roommate is brilliant. She got into an Ivy. She turned it down b/c she couldn't afford it (not just tuition but the other related expenses). She ended up and so-so state college with me, where she excelled. She got into an excellent grad school and then had a high-powered career out in Silicon Valley (until she decided to "lean out" and change careers to be with family more).

It happens.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It seems in general that they are trying to get out of being a safety school. Some high stat kids have been turned down the last couple of years while lower stat kids admitted. They probably don’t care much about early action. It’s just more kids applying to a long list of schools and it doesn’t help them predict their enrollment. They might get a handful of yeses to EA offers. How would it help them better manage their enrollment?

VT is not and has never been a "safety school"

And has not let in kids with lower stats than others for a majority.

Oh, please. You didn’t grow up here, did you? Tech was very much a safety in the 80s and 90s. I was a very average student and didn’t get into UVA or JMU - but I did get into VT. As did all of my average friends. Things have definitely changed since then, but it was absolutely a safety school at one time.

The College admissions game is changing every single year. Nothing is like what it was in the 80s and 90s. Here are the entering stats for the class last september at VT: (and remember these are the ENTERING students, not those of the entire accepted class, which is higher because some students go elsewhere): The high school GPAs for the entering class at VT last fall was a 4.22 for 75th percentile, a 4.02 for Median and 3.81 for bottom 25th of the class. SATs scores were 1270/1290/1200 similarly and ACTs were 31/28/25

So it was a safety school for my DC1 who had a 4.6 and 1580. And her friends who had similar stats.

The fact that people are continuing to argue that it's not a safety school is silly, and it's making VT look like they didn't teach you all a thing. My DC2 wants to go there and I am against it for this reason. I don't see a lot of high-level, critical thinking coming out of there, be it from the alumni, admin, or profs.

Could someone from VT please say something smart so we can feel better about our decision? A math proof maybe?

Sounds like your DC2 is smarter than you are! I went to VT and in my eng class a professor asked, "How many of you got into MIT?" No kidding, at least a third of the class raised their hand. I had a buddy on a full ride to VT after turning down a partial from MIT (this was in the 90s). You can think what you want; VT Eng is legit. It's a great education and their students do well. The students at VT are genuinely happy and most look back with a great fondness of their college experience after graduation.

My friends from other schools visited frequently. The ones I remember were my UVA friends who couldn't believe how happy and down to earth everyone was. They would comment on how it was SO different than the vibe at UVA and would go on and on about how we were so lucky to not have to worry about how were perceived when going to class. At the time, I didn't know what they meant.

And then the professor asked, "How many can produce an MIT acceptance letter to prove it?" And all the hands went down.

Believe what you want. It's a true story.

You verified that they got into MIT. That does make it true! Please share how you accomplished that.

One of my best friends got into MIT but went to PSU instead for monetary reasons. It happens. I'd be shocked if it was more than a handful at VT though; if it was anything close to a third the student stats would be much higher.

My estimate: There are 0 undergrads enrolled at VT that were admitted to MIT.

You're an idiot. People pass on the "better" school all the time for various reasons. My college roommate is brilliant. She got into an Ivy. She turned it down b/c she couldn't afford it (not just tuition but the other related expenses). She ended up and so-so state college with me, where she excelled. She got into an excellent grad school and then had a high-powered career out in Silicon Valley (until she decided to "lean out" and change careers to be with family more).

It happens.

Left out the critical piece: State school gave her a full ride, plus living expenses.

[Anonymous]

Not just IVY I know of at least 2 people who made what others may consider unpopular decisions on in-state colleges.

One chose VT over UVA for a humanities field. (People thought she was 'crazy"). But one parent and sibling went to VT (Dad went to Radford). And she had been to all of the games and had always dreamed of being a hokie.

Also another chose JMU over VT for Computer Science (they were admitted into VT engineering for CS too.). I think that was because of distance to home and they were admitted to JMU honors.