DC got merit aid at Dickinson, Lafayette and Denison. Test scores are not needed to get merit aid.

Anonymous wrote:Wow congrats to your son!! Well done.

Why are you assuming the kid is a boy?

Anonymous wrote:FWIW: my kid, whose GPA was strong from a rigorous private but who applied test optional everywhere due to non-spectacular ACT scores (32), applied to 14 schools-- accepted at Vermont, Dickinson, Lafayette, Denison, Emory and Georgetown; rejected at Duke, BC, Carnegie Mellon, and Vassar, and WL at UVa, VT, W&M, and Yale.

None of this makes any particular sense to me. DC had strong recs and essays, medium extra currics and sport, white, no hooks.

To me all this just illustrates how random all this is. DC leaning towards Georgetown and is happy, but still baffled about those WL schools! (Was expecting acceptance at at least W&M and VT, and rejection at Yale. Go figure).

Why didn’t you submit scores to at least those first four? That’s merit aid level at those.

Congrats, OP. Would you mind sharing some of the school acceptances? My junior has a very similar profile and I’m curious which schools worked for EA in particular.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What is up with the VA publics? They seem completely wacky this year.

They hate well-rounded high stats kids from rigorous NoVa public schools.

oh good lord

Anonymous wrote:What is up with the VA publics? They seem completely wacky this year.

They hate well-rounded high stats kids from rigorous NoVa public schools.

Anonymous wrote:I have always operated with the understanding that optional pretty much means required.

I could be wrong, but my understanding is that applications from white/Asian UMC kids in the DMV without a test score can raise a red flag (i.e., why wouldn't they submit a score unless it was weak)? And a 32 ACT may not be stellar, but I think it's still the 97th percentile so why not submit to clear up any doubts?

What is up with the VA publics? They seem completely wacky this year.

Anonymous wrote:FWIW: my kid, whose GPA was strong from a rigorous private but who applied test optional everywhere due to non-spectacular ACT scores (32), applied to 14 schools-- accepted at Vermont, Dickinson, Lafayette, Denison, Emory and Georgetown; rejected at Duke, BC, Carnegie Mellon, and Vassar, and WL at UVa, VT, W&M, and Yale.

None of this makes any particular sense to me. DC had strong recs and essays, medium extra currics and sport, white, no hooks.

To me all this just illustrates how random all this is. DC leaning towards Georgetown and is happy, but still baffled about those WL schools! (Was expecting acceptance at at least W&M and VT, and rejection at Yale. Go figure).

Agree, that is random.

Anonymous wrote:FWIW: my kid, whose GPA was strong from a rigorous private but who applied test optional everywhere due to non-spectacular ACT scores (32), applied to 14 schools-- accepted at Vermont, Dickinson, Lafayette, Denison, Emory and Georgetown; rejected at Duke, BC, Carnegie Mellon, and Vassar, and WL at UVa, VT, W&M, and Yale.

None of this makes any particular sense to me. DC had strong recs and essays, medium extra currics and sport, white, no hooks.

To me all this just illustrates how random all this is. DC leaning towards Georgetown and is happy, but still baffled about those WL schools! (Was expecting acceptance at at least W&M and VT, and rejection at Yale. Go figure).

Your kid got very lucky at Georgetown and Emory. Congratulations!

I have always operated with the understanding that optional pretty much means required.

FWIW: my kid, whose GPA was strong from a rigorous private but who applied test optional everywhere due to non-spectacular ACT scores (32), applied to 14 schools-- accepted at Vermont, Dickinson, Lafayette, Denison, Emory and Georgetown; rejected at Duke, BC, Carnegie Mellon, and Vassar, and WL at UVa, VT, W&M, and Yale.

None of this makes any particular sense to me. DC had strong recs and essays, medium extra currics and sport, white, no hooks.

To me all this just illustrates how random all this is. DC leaning towards Georgetown and is happy, but still baffled about those WL schools! (Was expecting acceptance at at least W&M and VT, and rejection at Yale. Go figure).

Nice! Congrats to your kid!

Wow congrats to your son!! Well done.

My kid applied to 11 schools, no ED, 5 EA (all acceptances), 6 RD (2 acceptances), 3 RDs were ivies (1 acceptance). Offered merit aid from 4 schools. Full pay.

One sitting for SAT early junior year with 1530, prepped using Kahn Academy, u/w GPA 4.0, 12 APs and post-APs, most rigorous schedule. AP scores all 5s.

Big public, fully virtual junior year.

Not a pointy kid, applied mainly to engineering, interesting mix of ECs, but no major awards, several writing related ECs.

I’m guessing good recommendations, definitely a kid who asks lots of questions and visits office hours.

No essay assistance other than AP lang teacher reading the common app essay and parents reading other essays.

Parents both from modest backgrounds, but highly educated. Caucasian.