Our school limits to 12 applications without a special exception.

I’d like it to be lower, but that’d require schools to be incented to be more transparent. See the UK model, where 5 apps are the max and a sub 20% offer rate is elite.

Oh and one day all the aliens will apply to Harvard as well

I’m not sure it would work the way the OP hopes. In fact, I think having more options is better to dispatch and increase probability —otherwise everyone would just apply to the same top five schools. If you think about it mathematically, what would happen if all the top students on the planet did that?

So dumb. They can only take so many kids. Other students are not the reason your kid is not getting in.

12 is STILL too many.

Anonymous wrote:too many of the top 10 kids in a big high school class gobbled up 20 acceptances.

everyone would be better off if people thought more carefully, ran the NPC early, and didn't apply to 5 safeties.

why can't your kid be the top 10?

Anonymous wrote:Why this can't or should not happen:

1. Schools make way too much money from the application fees. They are not going to ask for applications be to be cut down.

2. Schools love to say they are "competitive" because 100,000 people applied for 3,000 spots or whatever. No matter if 90,000 did not have the stats in the first place! The school now looks competitive to anyone who loves highly rejective schools.

3. For those who need to merit shop, they need to apply to a wide range of schools. We were among those. Kids applied to Tuition Exchange schools, schools where kids would be eligible for merit, etc.

PS: That said, one of our kids applied to 13 schools and did not need to apply to 20. So, there is that.

Why this can't or should not happen:

1. Schools make way too much money from the application fees. They are not going to ask for applications be to be cut down.

2. Schools love to say they are "competitive" because 100,000 people applied for 3,000 spots or whatever. No matter if 90,000 did not have the stats in the first place! The school now looks competitive to anyone who loves highly rejective schools.

3. For those who need to merit shop, they need to apply to a wide range of schools. We were among those. Kids applied to Tuition Exchange schools, schools where kids would be eligible for merit, etc.

our high school limits it to 12 apps

everyone HATES this - until their kid is in it and then they totally get it, especially when you have super hooked kids in the pool

Anonymous wrote:too many of the top 10 kids in a big high school class gobbled up 20 acceptances.

everyone would be better off if people thought more carefully, ran the NPC early, and didn't apply to 5 safeties.

I think that making a thoughtful list is a good idea, but why is people applying to 5 safeties a concern?

Agreed.

This is why the top privates oversee the process carefully. Everyone who can is encouraged to ED their first pick, and plan to apply to no more than ten total EA/ED2/RD if that first swing does not pan out. In a class of 150-200 kids, this is highly effective.

It gets a much better distribution across the class, and most kids do well because the colleges only have a small group of kids from a top school from which to choose.

I wish public school students could benefit from a similar process, but the counselors have far too much work and far too little influence to help. And the rise of (scam) college consultants who encourage 20 apps per kid is seriously unhelpful. I also doubt it improves outcomes. But it sure juices the fees!

We took this into account when choosing our high school.

OP stop hating. Kids should apply to as much as possible and have options.

tell me you're full pay without telling me you're full pay

Anonymous wrote:too many of the top 10 kids in a big high school class gobbled up 20 acceptances.

everyone would be better off if people thought more carefully, ran the NPC early, and didn't apply to 5 safeties.

Ok

too many of the top 10 kids in a big high school class gobbled up 20 acceptances.

everyone would be better off if people thought more carefully, ran the NPC early, and didn't apply to 5 safeties.