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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]IDK if people know this, but GDS limits the amount of colleges you're allowed to apply to at 12, and 5 of them have to be "safety/foundational" schools if you hit the max. This means that people really think about where they want to apply to and if they like the school! I don't know a single person at GDS that's upset with where they're going to college and I feel like that's all that really matters :)

-GDS senior[/quote]

GDS’ college application cap is one of the reasons we turned it down, after my son was admitted (there were other reasons as well). It’s a stupid rule, and none of the administrators could offer a reasonable explanation. My son is a junior at Sidwell now, and he can’t even think of 2 safety schools he wants to attend/are good fits for what he’s looking for in a college. I’m baffled why anyone would need to apply to more than 2-3 safeties—they’re called safeties for a reason. [/quote]

I wouldn't be on such a high horse if my son were a junior at Sidwell right now. That grade (class of '27) is known for rampant cheating and misbehavior. The Science department has been left traumatized. I'm sure the college outcomes at Sidwell will dip next year because of how many kids were sent to the Honor Committee or reported to the school for cheating on assessments.[/quote]

There’s no high horse here. I don’t have a problem acknowledging the good and the bad at Sidwell. Rampant cheating in my son’s grade has definitely been an issue (and not just in the science department). Thankfully, my son doesn’t cheat and he’s never been called before the Honor Committee. That said, let’s return to the topic at hand: GDS’ 2026 college results generally, and the application cap specifically. The point I was trying to make is that I think GDS’ application cap (which includes a 5 safety school minimum) is doing a disservice to students. They should raise the cap to at least 15, and reduce the safety requirement to 2-3 schools. [/quote]

The cap has changed over the years, but currently it's up to 7 non-safety schools ("Reach" and "Target") and 3 to 5 safeties ("Foundation").  I'd prefer the non-safety cap be 8 or 9, but not sure if more beyond that is truly helpful. We'll see.   [/quote]

But isn’t safety is differnt for everyone? If some student is super good, then Dartmouth or Michigan could be a safety? [/quote]

Yup! I think it is to get the kids to think in terms of framing...cause there is no line[/quote]

You are probably not very close to this process if  you think that Dartmouth or Michigan are a safety for anyone. I think generally they are considered schools with a over 40% admit rate or at least 30%. It's not 1990[/quote]

Safety schools are generally considered schools with an 80%+ chance of admission.

There are a small handful of students for whom Dartmouth would be a safety.  These students can basically go wherever they want because they won some highly competitive national academic competition or something.  I would bet that the USAMO gold medalists can go to whatever math proigrasm they want in the country.[/quote]

I would say the only person who has Dartmouth as a reasonable safety is a recruiter athletes. Michigan as a safety would be very high stats + legacy. Both also by applying ED.[/quote]
No legacy at Michigan anymore.[/quote]

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