Anonymous
Post 01/13/2026 10:56     Subject: If your child was rejected from their top choice, where did they end up
Anonymous wrote:Why is this whole board shooting for ivys?


(1) Lots of kids take a shot at a T20 reach school.

(2) Self-selection. This board attracts a disproportionate percentage of parents whose kids are doing this. This includes a ton outside the DC area who found this board through a search and stuck around because it’s helpful. Please don’t assume it’s in any way representative of ALL parents in the DC area.
Anonymous
Post 01/13/2026 10:52     Subject: If your child was rejected from their top choice, where did they end up
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Rejected Cornell, attending Oberlin

DD's friends from HS
Rejected Cornell, attending Pitt
Rejected Columbia, attending CMU
Rejected MIT, attending Northeastern
Rejected Georgetown, attending Case Western
Rejected Barnard, attending Bryn Mawr
Rejected Penn, attending Wesleyan
Rejected Brown, attending Amherst
Rejected Davidson, attending Case Western
Rejected Stanford, attending WashU
Rejected Oxford, attending St John's College

Friends at college
Rejected Amherst, attending Oberlin
Rejected Brown, attending Oberlin
Rejected Harvard, attending Oberlin
Rejected Wellesley, attending Oberlin
Rejected Northwestern, attending Oberlin
Rejected NYU, attending Oberlin
Rejected Dartmouth, attending Oberlin
Rejected Cornell, attending Oberlin
Rejected Williams, attending Oberlin


How the bloody heck do you know this about your kid's COLLEGE friends?

I am super involved in the lives of my college kids and talk to them almost every day but i would have zero knowledge about where 10 of their college friends were rejected from college. That is just really, really, really weird.


We talk a lot, I work at a university, and my kid wants to work in admissions for a bit after graduating. She and her friends discuss it at times or she mentions that it comes up in conversation. Every kid seems happy at Oberlin, even if it took a couple semesters for some. A handful of her friends also ED'd to Oberlin, but a lot of Midwestern LACs entice kids with merit even if they weren't the first choice.


NP - I am so, so tired of posters going out of their way to remark on how bizarre, weird, or horrible it is to know the details of our college kids' lives. A lot of us talk to our kids every day - what do you think we are talking about? My 19 year old talks my ear off about her every thought, what's going on with her friends, etc. and I listen. This was a big theme on the sorority thread too. Just stop it.
Anonymous
Post 01/13/2026 10:50     Subject: If your child was rejected from their top choice, where did they end up
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Rejected Cornell, attending Oberlin

DD's friends from HS
Rejected Cornell, attending Pitt
Rejected Columbia, attending CMU
Rejected MIT, attending Northeastern
Rejected Georgetown, attending Case Western
Rejected Barnard, attending Bryn Mawr
Rejected Penn, attending Wesleyan
Rejected Brown, attending Amherst
Rejected Davidson, attending Case Western
Rejected Stanford, attending WashU
Rejected Oxford, attending St John's College

Friends at college
Rejected Amherst, attending Oberlin
Rejected Brown, attending Oberlin
Rejected Harvard, attending Oberlin
Rejected Wellesley, attending Oberlin
Rejected Northwestern, attending Oberlin
Rejected NYU, attending Oberlin
Rejected Dartmouth, attending Oberlin
Rejected Cornell, attending Oberlin
Rejected Williams, attending Oberlin


How the bloody heck do you know this about your kid's COLLEGE friends?

I am super involved in the lives of my college kids and talk to them almost every day but i would have zero knowledge about where 10 of their college friends were rejected from college. That is just really, really, really weird.


We talk a lot, I work at a university, and my kid wants to work in admissions for a bit after graduating. She and her friends discuss it at times or she mentions that it comes up in conversation. Every kid seems happy at Oberlin, even if it took a couple semesters for some. A handful of her friends also ED'd to Oberlin, but a lot of Midwestern LACs entice kids with merit even if they weren't the first choice.
Anonymous
Post 01/13/2026 09:24     Subject: If your child was rejected from their top choice, where did they end up
Anonymous wrote:Rejected Wake Forest
Attending UVA


Rejected Wake ED???
Anonymous
Post 01/13/2026 09:07     Subject: Re:If your child was rejected from their top choice, where did they end up
Rejected from Michigan, Carnegie Mellon, & UVA.

Wound up at NYU. Transferred to UVA.
Anonymous
Post 01/13/2026 08:59     Subject: Re:If your child was rejected from their top choice, where did they end up
Rejected UCLA, attended UCSD. Really liked it.
Anonymous
Post 01/13/2026 08:53     Subject: If your child was rejected from their top choice, where did they end up
Anonymous wrote:Rejected Wake Forest
Attending UVA


Instate for UVA?
Anonymous
Post 01/13/2026 08:51     Subject: If your child was rejected from their top choice, where did they end up
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Rejected Cornell, attending Oberlin

DD's friends from HS
Rejected Cornell, attending Pitt
Rejected Columbia, attending CMU
Rejected MIT, attending Northeastern
Rejected Georgetown, attending Case Western
Rejected Barnard, attending Bryn Mawr
Rejected Penn, attending Wesleyan
Rejected Brown, attending Amherst
Rejected Davidson, attending Case Western
Rejected Stanford, attending WashU
Rejected Oxford, attending St John's College

Friends at college
Rejected Amherst, attending Oberlin
Rejected Brown, attending Oberlin
Rejected Harvard, attending Oberlin
Rejected Wellesley, attending Oberlin
Rejected Northwestern, attending Oberlin
Rejected NYU, attending Oberlin
Rejected Dartmouth, attending Oberlin
Rejected Cornell, attending Oberlin
Rejected Williams, attending Oberlin


This is interesting. Most are pretty big steps down.

I was going to say the opposite: they all ended up doing just fine.

Both are true: the kids took big steps down and also ended up doing just fine. This process makes people hyper focused on tiny gradations in status. It’s not an accident: the richest schools use their enormous marketing budgets to push those distinctions, because otherwise everyone would go for the more affordable “just fine” options.
Anonymous
Post 01/13/2026 08:40     Subject: If your child was rejected from their top choice, where did they end up
Anonymous wrote:Rejected UVA, attending Michigan.


+1

same!
Anonymous
Post 01/13/2026 08:38     Subject: If your child was rejected from their top choice, where did they end up
Rejected UVA, attending Michigan.
Anonymous
Post 01/13/2026 08:37     Subject: If your child was rejected from their top choice, where did they end up
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Rejected Cornell, attending Oberlin

DD's friends from HS
Rejected Cornell, attending Pitt
Rejected Columbia, attending CMU
Rejected MIT, attending Northeastern
Rejected Georgetown, attending Case Western
Rejected Barnard, attending Bryn Mawr
Rejected Penn, attending Wesleyan
Rejected Brown, attending Amherst
Rejected Davidson, attending Case Western
Rejected Stanford, attending WashU
Rejected Oxford, attending St John's College

Friends at college
Rejected Amherst, attending Oberlin
Rejected Brown, attending Oberlin
Rejected Harvard, attending Oberlin
Rejected Wellesley, attending Oberlin
Rejected Northwestern, attending Oberlin
Rejected NYU, attending Oberlin
Rejected Dartmouth, attending Oberlin
Rejected Cornell, attending Oberlin
Rejected Williams, attending Oberlin


This is interesting. Most are pretty big steps down.


NP. Everyone takes a shot somewhere. Half of my DC’s friends are applying to Ivy League schools and they have no chance whatsoever.


Are people supposed to state their pipe dream school or viable dream school here?
Anonymous
Post 01/13/2026 07:31     Subject: If your child was rejected from their top choice, where did they end up
Also UMD. Also found it a great fit.
Anonymous
Post 01/13/2026 07:30     Subject: If your child was rejected from their top choice, where did they end up
Rejected UVA. Attending UMD. Loves it. Go Terps!
Anonymous
Post 01/13/2026 07:18     Subject: If your child was rejected from their top choice, where did they end up
Rejected UF ( Florida) attending UVA
Anonymous
Post 01/13/2026 05:32     Subject: If your child was rejected from their top choice, where did they end up
Rejected Georgetown, UNC, WF, Yale
Attending UVA