Reply to No, test optional isn’t the reason your kid didn’t get in.

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Read this 2019 article from the NYT? Sound familiar?

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/30/magazine/almost-all-the-colleges-i-wanted-to-go-to-rejected-me-now-what.html?smtyp=cur&smid=fb-nytimes&fbclid=IwAR33p-Nhl1mO5BSmjk461YIxU1iqqvLZ5moObJWGaE2-iV7bm-csPn0xEFU&mibextid=Zxz2cZ

Kids have been getting rejected from Uber-competitor schools for a very long time. This was pre-COVID, pre-TO.

I realize there is an impulse to look for something to blame if your kid is rejected from their dream school or most of their targets. But it’s important to remember that your kid is the common denominator (especially with multiple rejections). There is obviously something deficient in the application for the kinds of schools targeted — maybe the essay is bad, maybe you didn’t take enough foreign language, maybe the ECs are spread too thin and don’t demonstrate passion and commitment over time?

What impressed me about the letter writer in the article was he seems to recognizes that instead of casting blame on others. At least there’s some acknowledgment he’s dealing with a bruised ego. That said, his attitude about the schools he did get into leaves a lot to be desired.

I feel bad for kids who faced a lot of rejection this year. But telling them it’s because test optional let lesser kids sneak in and steal their birthright admission isn’t helping them deal with reality. Learn to make the best of the opportunities you ARE given.[/quote]

Well, these sermons about learning to deal with the harsh realities of college admissions is of little help to students who spent years of high school chasing an unattainable goal. Not because they didn't study enough or didn't give their best to their community, their extracurriculars and their internships but because they are from unwanted financial class, race, geography or whatever.

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That is your fault as a parent if you made them think T25 is an "attainable goal" for anyone.  They have always been a reach for everyone, save a well hooked student (think parent is a celebrity or presidents or bill gates, etc).  
A well raised kid will grow up knowing you work hard in school to learn, do well and aim high, but also know their life is not over if they only get into school ranked #32.

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Amen! So many entitled people on this thread. [/quote]

This is the dumbest s**t, I have ever heard. You wouldn't dare say this to an URM or woman trying to get a coveted spot anywhere and coming up short and then venting. Everybody has the right to expect that if they work hard and play by the rules, they will get their reward in a country that is fair. Instead the universities play by twisted rules that are never made transparent and jerk people along. People are not entitled for expecting fair treatment, the Universities are evil for not being transparent about their admission policies.

Why don't HYPMS, make all their committee decisions and scores public after redacting personally identifying information. Why don't they release application and admit rates by race, score, GPA, legacy status etc every year so that people can clearly see what their real chances are.

Don't you dare call people entitled. If admissions were fair, everybody would know their chances very well as the would be enough data to make a very good guess. Instead these universities exploit applicants. They are the evil side here. Blame them [/quote]

You do realize you are advocating for socialism, right?
There are no guarantees of fair in our society, and what is fair is very hard to define. Is it fair that one student has had enrichment from early on? Or that the best musicians had parents who got them lessons, masterclasses and required them to practice 3 hours/day from age 8 up? Is it fair that a student has 2 parents w/ graduate degrees to help them navigate academics? Every student is different and brings different skills/ideas to the table in conjunction w/ his/her resources.
This whole notion of fairness is whack. You seem to think URM kids have some great advantage and ready to throw them all under the bus. Most admissions to top colleges are white and Asian. Many parents like you thought there was some formula for success, and if Jr. just ticked all the boxes, top admission is guaranteed. But, that's just not how it works. Colleges value various types of merits, not just the ones you value. Also, there isn't really a "system." Colleges all have their own priorities. You'll need to move to a socialist country for a system. Enjoy that.[/quote]

You have a weird logical sense.
Of course no society can achieve total fairness.  
However fair competition is what free democratic society is striving for and built upon
If you think URMs have disadvantages, help them to compete instead of giving them a free bye.
Lowering standards is not the answer.

By the way, for the millionth time, Asians are proven to be superior  in various merits in leadership,  Music, Art, ECs, etc. in the Supreme Court.  [/quote]

They are not "lowering standards".  Once again, by and large, URM that get into elite universities are excellent students who have overcome a lot to have great GPAs and take rigorous course load.   Obviously most schools do NOT want a class of only 1580+, 4.0UW and 14APs+.  They could build a class like that but they have never done that for good reasons.  Because they want a balance and by balance it's lets take kids between the 95 and 99+ percentiles into our freshman class.  Let's look at the whole student, because your SAT scores do NOT define you.  They never have.

BTW, nobody is saying your smart kid cannot go to college.  Most with ability to get lottery ticket to a T25 can and will get into several schools in the ~30-60 range and will do well in life.  They still get to attend an excellent university and succeed in life.

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The Supreme Court with probably ton of more  hard evidences than you seems to disagree.
At least they think colleges ask hinger standard for Asians.  
Not just SAT score, they scored higher on everything - leadership, ECs, interviews, etc.

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