Reply to Acceptance rate is not a great measure of selectivity

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]The only objective measure is incoming SAT scores.  It is the defining rating mechanism.
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SAT scores are objective but some schools place disproportionate emphasis on SAT at the expense of other things.  Vanderbilt is an example that instantly comes to mind. if you got a ultra high SAT score and not much else you are practically a shoo in. There are many top schools which could have much higher SAT averages if they chose to, but they choose to focus on other things as well. [/quote]

Yep, it can't just be a blanket assessment of test scores. Amherst College and Brown turn down over 75% of those scoring above a 34 ACT. I doubt this is the case with Vanderbilt given our Naviance.

Amherst is also extremely committed to socioeconomic and racial diversity- both groups which tend to score lower. Amherst's 27% URM is among the highest of any private school (https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/08/24/us/affirmative-action.html) and they also take in a lot more Pell Grant students than Ivies and the like (https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/amherst-a-leader-among-elite-colleges-in-enrolling-students-who-need-pell-grants/2014/03/25/9df8ab6a-b414-11e3-b899-20667de76985_story.html). I could see someone justifying this is irrelevant, but that Amherst's testing profile is only slightly weaker than UPenn's (an example) is not so drastic a gap when I think about the former's commitment to building a diverse class.

No institution is 100% transparent about its admission process so it can be challenging to put an acceptance rate in context, but I agree considering a variety of factors is the best approach. [/quote]

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