Colby is poised to have the lowest acceptance rate of any LAC this year

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What's the student stats and yield rate

Acceptance rate + student stats + yield rate together determines actual selectivity.

I would argue student stats/quality is really the ultimate gauge of selectivity. Who cares how many weak applicants they reject?

Many schools have similar student stats/quality, but some are more popular/selective then others.

Some specialty schools have high stat kids, but not really selective.

Some mentioned Northeastern here. it's student stats/quality is very high.

It has low acceptance rate, high student stats/quality, but it's yield is relatively lower compared to other elite schools, thus it's considered less selective than other elite schools.

Northeastern stats are high but on 33 pct submit SAT and 11 pct submit ACT. Most peer schools are well over 50 percent total. So it’s another manipulation.

I just think acceptance rate and yield can be played with - what matters is how strong is the final student body. The quality of students you have, not the students you don’t have, is what makes a school selective.

It's stats have been very high even before TO.

In 2018, it was T20(national universities) for test scores when tests scores were mandatory.

https://www.businessinsider.com/the-50-smartest-colleges-in-america-2016-10

[Anonymous]

Colby has a lot of rich white kids from private schools.
Maybe they are now trying to diversify but it has a reputation for a homogeneous student population that is majority white and elite.
The school has a country Club feel to it

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Colby gets twice as many applications as Bowdoin. Is that because Colby is so much more in demand or because it is a much better school? NOPE. It is because Colby doesn't have an application fee. No supplemental essays and test optional, too.
Just hit send on your Common App. Makes it really, really easy for them to lower their acceptance rate. And while that won't push them up in the USNWR rankings anymore, there are plenty of people out there (and on here) that think acceptance rate is important. When we visited Colby a few years ago they could not stop talking about their 9% acceptance rate (they must have said it ten times and it was written on the whiteboard behind the AO presenting for the info session) as they pushed ED applications. I'm not saying it isn't a good school - it is. But they have played the game well!

Here’s the earlier post re: bragging about acceptance rate.

A college tells kids the acceptance rate AT AN INFORMATION SESSION and to you that is bragging.

A college tells kids that the rate is low and recommends they apply ED if it is their first choice - as virtually every colleges does in their information session - and that is somehow done for the sole purpose of stroking their own ego in front of 60 people who drove up to Maine.

Do you realize how ridiculous those accusations sound?

I suppose they were also "bragging" about their new athletic facility, and "bragging" about everything else they do?

Jumpin jeebus on a pogo stick this forum is so ridiculous.

Geez, this really got you worked up! I'm not the poster who said Colby was bragging but rather the poster who shared my experience at Colby. And to us, yes, it did feel like they were overemphasizing their acceptance rate. I don't know that I'd call it bragging but they did say many times "we are very proud of our 9% acceptance rate." And yes, to remind us all, they wrote it on the whiteboard. This was after having the info session participants play a guessing game about the acceptance rate. Really. And all of this happened even before taking us on a tour. We'd visited many, many schools at this point, including several of the other NESCACs and no other school did anything like this. We just found it odd. We have a younger kid who is looking at colleges now. My husband and I still joke when we are researching schools with him - "sure it looks like a nice school but does it have a 9% acceptance rate?" So, yes, that's what stood out to us about Colby. I don't remember much else besides that and the very nice Questbridge scholarship student who gave our tour and happened to be from our hometown. None of this means that Colby isn't a good school - it is a very good school. This is just an anecdote. No one is forcing you to read this forum if you find it so ridiculous.

I patriciate in the forum for many reasons, one of which is to point out ridiculous misinformation that could color the judgement of someone considering Colby. And FYI I did not attend nor has my family attended.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Colby gets twice as many applications as Bowdoin. Is that because Colby is so much more in demand or because it is a much better school? NOPE. It is because Colby doesn't have an application fee. No supplemental essays and test optional, too.
Just hit send on your Common App. Makes it really, really easy for them to lower their acceptance rate. And while that won't push them up in the USNWR rankings anymore, there are plenty of people out there (and on here) that think acceptance rate is important. When we visited Colby a few years ago they could not stop talking about their 9% acceptance rate (they must have said it ten times and it was written on the whiteboard behind the AO presenting for the info session) as they pushed ED applications. I'm not saying it isn't a good school - it is. But they have played the game well!

Here’s the earlier post re: bragging about acceptance rate.

A college tells kids the acceptance rate AT AN INFORMATION SESSION and to you that is bragging.

A college tells kids that the rate is low and recommends they apply ED if it is their first choice - as virtually every colleges does in their information session - and that is somehow done for the sole purpose of stroking their own ego in front of 60 people who drove up to Maine.

Do you realize how ridiculous those accusations sound?

I suppose they were also "bragging" about their new athletic facility, and "bragging" about everything else they do?

Jumpin jeebus on a pogo stick this forum is so ridiculous.

Geez, this really got you worked up! I'm not the poster who said Colby was bragging but rather the poster who shared my experience at Colby. And to us, yes, it did feel like they were overemphasizing their acceptance rate. I don't know that I'd call it bragging but they did say many times "we are very proud of our 9% acceptance rate." And yes, to remind us all, they wrote it on the whiteboard. This was after having the info session participants play a guessing game about the acceptance rate. Really. And all of this happened even before taking us on a tour. We'd visited many, many schools at this point, including several of the other NESCACs and no other school did anything like this. We just found it odd. We have a younger kid who is looking at colleges now. My husband and I still joke when we are researching schools with him - "sure it looks like a nice school but does it have a 9% acceptance rate?" So, yes, that's what stood out to us about Colby. I don't remember much else besides that and the very nice Questbridge scholarship student who gave our tour and happened to be from our hometown. None of this means that Colby isn't a good school - it is a very good school. This is just an anecdote. No one is forcing you to read this forum if you find it so ridiculous.

I patriciate in the forum for many reasons, one of which is to point out ridiculous misinformation that could color the judgement of someone considering Colby. And FYI I did not attend nor has my family attended.

I think Colby will do just fine without you ranting and calling everyone that you don't agree with on here ridiculous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Colby has a lot of rich white kids from private schools.
Maybe they are now trying to diversify but it has a reputation for a homogeneous student population that is majority white and elite.
The school has a country Club feel to it

If you do a google on Colby yearbook you can see the recent years’ senior pictures in the back sections and get an overall idea of the vibe at Colby. Looks like a diverse group of kids. It’s issuu. Pretty cool to have this at one’s fingertips!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean…most peer schools don’t do this.

This is as wrong as anything posted here today. Every highly competitive school mentions that it is difficult to get into. Every single one.

When I visited Yale they did so, and then (I swear this is true) when a young person asked if Yale had rolling admissions the very nice AO went into a short speech about how students need to look at the data to gauge their chances.

That was Yale "bragging" I guess.

These aren’t really equivalent? PP said the AO wrote the admissions rate on the board and did a quiz about it and mentioned it multiple times.

And you’re really fixated on the word “bragging,” so I’ll change it to “hyper-focused.” Colby seems to be hyper-focused on its admissions rate in a way that peer institutions are not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Colby gets twice as many applications as Bowdoin. Is that because Colby is so much more in demand or because it is a much better school? NOPE. It is because Colby doesn't have an application fee. No supplemental essays and test optional, too.
Just hit send on your Common App. Makes it really, really easy for them to lower their acceptance rate. And while that won't push them up in the USNWR rankings anymore, there are plenty of people out there (and on here) that think acceptance rate is important. When we visited Colby a few years ago they could not stop talking about their 9% acceptance rate (they must have said it ten times and it was written on the whiteboard behind the AO presenting for the info session) as they pushed ED applications. I'm not saying it isn't a good school - it is. But they have played the game well!

Here’s the earlier post re: bragging about acceptance rate.

A college tells kids the acceptance rate AT AN INFORMATION SESSION and to you that is bragging.

A college tells kids that the rate is low and recommends they apply ED if it is their first choice - as virtually every colleges does in their information session - and that is somehow done for the sole purpose of stroking their own ego in front of 60 people who drove up to Maine.

Do you realize how ridiculous those accusations sound?

I suppose they were also "bragging" about their new athletic facility, and "bragging" about everything else they do?

Jumpin jeebus on a pogo stick this forum is so ridiculous.

Geez, this really got you worked up! I'm not the poster who said Colby was bragging but rather the poster who shared my experience at Colby. And to us, yes, it did feel like they were overemphasizing their acceptance rate. I don't know that I'd call it bragging but they did say many times "we are very proud of our 9% acceptance rate." And yes, to remind us all, they wrote it on the whiteboard. This was after having the info session participants play a guessing game about the acceptance rate. Really. And all of this happened even before taking us on a tour. We'd visited many, many schools at this point, including several of the other NESCACs and no other school did anything like this. We just found it odd. We have a younger kid who is looking at colleges now. My husband and I still joke when we are researching schools with him - "sure it looks like a nice school but does it have a 9% acceptance rate?" So, yes, that's what stood out to us about Colby. I don't remember much else besides that and the very nice Questbridge scholarship student who gave our tour and happened to be from our hometown. None of this means that Colby isn't a good school - it is a very good school. This is just an anecdote. No one is forcing you to read this forum if you find it so ridiculous.

I patriciate in the forum for many reasons, one of which is to point out ridiculous misinformation that could color the judgement of someone considering Colby. And FYI I did not attend nor has my family attended.

Anyone who takes this anonymous forum seriously, deserves all they get. Just brush it off as mildly entertaining and don’t react. Nobody’s crossing Colby (or any other college) off their list as a result of some comments that could originate from a 14 year old locked in the basement.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Colby gets twice as many applications as Bowdoin. Is that because Colby is so much more in demand or because it is a much better school? NOPE. It is because Colby doesn't have an application fee. No supplemental essays and test optional, too.
Just hit send on your Common App. Makes it really, really easy for them to lower their acceptance rate. And while that won't push them up in the USNWR rankings anymore, there are plenty of people out there (and on here) that think acceptance rate is important. When we visited Colby a few years ago they could not stop talking about their 9% acceptance rate (they must have said it ten times and it was written on the whiteboard behind the AO presenting for the info session) as they pushed ED applications. I'm not saying it isn't a good school - it is. But they have played the game well!

Here’s the earlier post re: bragging about acceptance rate.

A college tells kids the acceptance rate AT AN INFORMATION SESSION and to you that is bragging.

A college tells kids that the rate is low and recommends they apply ED if it is their first choice - as virtually every colleges does in their information session - and that is somehow done for the sole purpose of stroking their own ego in front of 60 people who drove up to Maine.

Do you realize how ridiculous those accusations sound?

I suppose they were also "bragging" about their new athletic facility, and "bragging" about everything else they do?

Jumpin jeebus on a pogo stick this forum is so ridiculous.

Geez, this really got you worked up! I'm not the poster who said Colby was bragging but rather the poster who shared my experience at Colby. And to us, yes, it did feel like they were overemphasizing their acceptance rate. I don't know that I'd call it bragging but they did say many times "we are very proud of our 9% acceptance rate." And yes, to remind us all, they wrote it on the whiteboard. This was after having the info session participants play a guessing game about the acceptance rate. Really. And all of this happened even before taking us on a tour. We'd visited many, many schools at this point, including several of the other NESCACs and no other school did anything like this. We just found it odd. We have a younger kid who is looking at colleges now. My husband and I still joke when we are researching schools with him - "sure it looks like a nice school but does it have a 9% acceptance rate?" So, yes, that's what stood out to us about Colby. I don't remember much else besides that and the very nice Questbridge scholarship student who gave our tour and happened to be from our hometown. None of this means that Colby isn't a good school - it is a very good school. This is just an anecdote. No one is forcing you to read this forum if you find it so ridiculous.

I patriciate in the forum for many reasons, one of which is to point out ridiculous misinformation that could color the judgement of someone considering Colby. And FYI I did not attend nor has my family attended.

Anyone who takes this anonymous forum seriously, deserves all they get. Just brush it off as mildly entertaining and don’t react. Nobody’s crossing Colby (or any other college) off their list as a result of some comments that could originate from a 14 year old locked in the basement.

+1. Clearly Northeastern's applications aren't being negatively impacted by the number of people on here who think that the school and its admissions practices are the Ninth Circle of Hell.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Colby gets twice as many applications as Bowdoin. Is that because Colby is so much more in demand or because it is a much better school? NOPE. It is because Colby doesn't have an application fee. No supplemental essays and test optional, too.
Just hit send on your Common App. Makes it really, really easy for them to lower their acceptance rate. And while that won't push them up in the USNWR rankings anymore, there are plenty of people out there (and on here) that think acceptance rate is important. When we visited Colby a few years ago they could not stop talking about their 9% acceptance rate (they must have said it ten times and it was written on the whiteboard behind the AO presenting for the info session) as they pushed ED applications. I'm not saying it isn't a good school - it is. But they have played the game well!

Here’s the earlier post re: bragging about acceptance rate.

A college tells kids the acceptance rate AT AN INFORMATION SESSION and to you that is bragging.

A college tells kids that the rate is low and recommends they apply ED if it is their first choice - as virtually every colleges does in their information session - and that is somehow done for the sole purpose of stroking their own ego in front of 60 people who drove up to Maine.

Do you realize how ridiculous those accusations sound?

I suppose they were also "bragging" about their new athletic facility, and "bragging" about everything else they do?

Jumpin jeebus on a pogo stick this forum is so ridiculous.

Geez, this really got you worked up! I'm not the poster who said Colby was bragging but rather the poster who shared my experience at Colby. And to us, yes, it did feel like they were overemphasizing their acceptance rate. I don't know that I'd call it bragging but they did say many times "we are very proud of our 9% acceptance rate." And yes, to remind us all, they wrote it on the whiteboard. This was after having the info session participants play a guessing game about the acceptance rate. Really. And all of this happened even before taking us on a tour. We'd visited many, many schools at this point, including several of the other NESCACs and no other school did anything like this. We just found it odd. We have a younger kid who is looking at colleges now. My husband and I still joke when we are researching schools with him - "sure it looks like a nice school but does it have a 9% acceptance rate?" So, yes, that's what stood out to us about Colby. I don't remember much else besides that and the very nice Questbridge scholarship student who gave our tour and happened to be from our hometown. None of this means that Colby isn't a good school - it is a very good school. This is just an anecdote. No one is forcing you to read this forum if you find it so ridiculous.

I patriciate in the forum for many reasons, one of which is to point out ridiculous misinformation that could color the judgement of someone considering Colby. And FYI I did not attend nor has my family attended.

Anyone who takes this anonymous forum seriously, deserves all they get. Just brush it off as mildly entertaining and don’t react. Nobody’s crossing Colby (or any other college) off their list as a result of some comments that could originate from a 14 year old locked in the basement.

So shut up and let the misinformation dominate? Buyer beware?

No thank you.

[Anonymous]

Here's something to think about. Colby press release for class of 2027 said they took 1100+ kids of which 13% are international and 48% identify as US people of color.

So I think that leaves 39-40% for US caucasian admits.

That's about 450 kids admitted.

They also note that 50 states are represented in the US. So let's say another 10% of that 450 are from the remote states (Dakotas, Hawaii, Alaska etc).

So now at 400 slots from the populated US states for caucasian admits for class of 2027.

Now then you have recruited athletes and legacies - I assume those are still things are Colby.

So that leaves the question - how many spaces this year went to non-athlete-, non-legacy, bigger city private school kids?

Maybe 100? Quite possibly less. That would be across all of DC, NY, Boston, Chicago, and the west coast private schools.

The analysis is not meant to be racial (at all) but simply pragmatic. Just to point out how vanishingly impossible schools like Colby are for private school, coastal caucasian kids.

Not a whiny comment so please don't blow me up for this.

Just the facts based on what the school put out and them telegraphing their institutional priorities and frankly the value of these coastal private schools given these odds (if college is your primary lens - and i know it's not for many parents)

I ask the question as a level set for all of the local DMV private school kids (and parents) who applied. And the junior parents who plan to apply next year.

I'm guessing ~50% of the applicant pool to Colby of 18,000 is fighting for these 100 slots.

So perhaps 9000 kids in competition for these 100 slots for private school coastal US caucasian athlete, non-legacy. Good luck with that. Plan accordingly.

These small liberal arts colleges may no longer be the relief valve from tougher Ivies that the Big3 thought they were even 2 years ago

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean…most peer schools don’t do this.

This is as wrong as anything posted here today. Every highly competitive school mentions that it is difficult to get into. Every single one.

When I visited Yale they did so, and then (I swear this is true) when a young person asked if Yale had rolling admissions the very nice AO went into a short speech about how students need to look at the data to gauge their chances.

That was Yale "bragging" I guess.

These aren’t really equivalent? PP said the AO wrote the admissions rate on the board and did a quiz about it and mentioned it multiple times.

And you’re really fixated on the word “bragging,” so I’ll change it to “hyper-focused.” Colby seems to be hyper-focused on its admissions rate in a way that peer institutions are not.

Have you considered the irony of your position? Why you are so triggered that they talk about it, and why you feel compelled to use hyperbolic terms to describe it for this one particular college?

YOU are the one who is fixated. I am the one saying it is no big deal.

[Anonymous]

I wonder how many kids who got in ED somewhere then pulled their Colby applications are counted in Colby’s denominator (my DC is among them)

[Anonymous]

Does Colby say how many of their accepted students come from public schools?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wonder how many kids who got in ED somewhere then pulled their Colby applications are counted in Colby’s denominator (my DC is among them)

Withdrawn applications are not supposed to count as part of the total number of applications. But, that is a very interesting question! My DS withdrew applications from multiple schools upon ED1 acceptance. Several actually asked him to do so. I assumed it was so that they would not waste an admit on an applicant already committed to another school. Now I wonder...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wonder how many kids who got in ED somewhere then pulled their Colby applications are counted in Colby’s denominator (my DC is among them)

Another small LAC in Ohio does this as well.