Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Same story every year

Right. If you have been reading this forum for years, each year's parents say it is especially hard for their kid/this year's class.

I know COVID was unusual, but I have never really seen anyone post that their year was typical of most years. Yet, when you see the pattern of posts each year, the same themes repeat.

It's true that apps have been rising for years. But, if I recall, birthrate high mark was 2000, steady but flat since, and should be falling in a few more years. Test optional did cause a significant jump for high school class of 2021. The largest example I'm aware of is >60% increase at MIT. Most top-50s saw something like a 20-30% increase. With the same policies in place this year, it would make sense for app numbers to be similar. One wrinkle, the uncertainty last admission season seemed (anecdotally) to cause a lot of last-minute RD apps, and it's possible that applicants will have adjusted somehow, though I'm not sure how other than to apply early where possible.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ok, I'll bite. Which school?
I personally don't believe it'll be all that crazy but who knows?

Large public...could be a one-off but I doubt it.

No, I meant that my DC is at a large public (not that they applied ED to a large public- they applied to a SLAC).

Anonymous wrote:I wish the college counseling would try to mete out so things like that wouldn't happen.

You want the counselors to say "No you can't apply there Bobby already called it"?

No you don't.

How can anyone say last year wasn’t different when, because of test optional, many if not most schools received a lot more applications for the same number of spots?

Anonymous wrote:Same story every year

Right. If you have been reading this forum for years, each year's parents say it is especially hard for their kid/this year's class.

I know COVID was unusual, but I have never really seen anyone post that their year was typical of most years. Yet, when you see the pattern of posts each year, the same themes repeat.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:UMD College Park is my bet. The middle classes dream! Flagship and instate tuition.

UMD doesn’t do ED, only EA.

We were told by counselors this year that all kids should apply EA to UMD if they want to get in.

True true!

It’s been like that for a long time. UMD fills 97% of the class with EA. They are also strict about all of the supporting materials being in by Nov 1.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid is a senior in FCPS. It seems like half the senior class is applying ED to UVA and the other half is applying ED to VT

Which hopefully helps my ED to WM kid.

Indeed! GL to your W&M hopeful!

Admission is tough every year. And maybe some people don't notice an acceptance rate that goes from, say, 7 to 3%. But people do notice when rates at good-but-not-top-10 schools go from, say, the mid 20s into the teens, and so forth. It isn't just the narrow group of top 10 schools that saw application increases under test optional policies, it was most schools in the top 100. That's just the nature of test optional policies, more apps, lower rates.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:UMD College Park is my bet. The middle classes dream! Flagship and instate tuition.

UMD doesn’t do ED, only EA.

We were told by counselors this year that all kids should apply EA to UMD if they want to get in.

True true!

Let's resist the urge to get riled up here. Admissions is tough every year. I've been in this forum for a while and have seen the words "blood bath" every single year.

If you only look at the top 20/30/50 schools, you'd think no one gets into college. If you look at the rest (where deadlines are being extended because colleges didn't hit their goals), you'll know that everything is going to be fine.

Anonymous wrote:DC just found out that at least 7 other kids from their high school applied ED to the same school...last year, it was 3. Fortunately, DC's is already into one school and applied to a couple other safeties during the EA round but I'm guessing this is going to be another very difficult and unpredictable year.

which hs OP and which college?

Anonymous wrote:My kid is a senior in FCPS. It seems like half the senior class is applying ED to UVA and the other half is applying ED to VT

Which hopefully helps my ED to WM kid.

My kid is a senior in FCPS. It seems like half the senior class is applying ED to UVA and the other half is applying ED to VT

Last year saw an increase in applications due to test optional policies. With colleges still test optional, the number of applications to top schools will probably be similar.

Last year, many top colleges accepted too many students - lots of overenrollment. It would make sense if they adjusted their acceptances downward a smitch this year.

The one positive difference for this year's seniors is that there may not be that chunk of COVID deferrals.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree OP. We're watching the numbers on Naviance and it's pretty scary - already the number applicants are outpacing the totals for last year.

Our school hasn’t added applications for this fall yet. Is that typical they’d be listed there already?

As soon as a student puts the college in their "Applying to" list in Naviance, it gets added to the purple bar graph.

The purple bar graph only goes up to fall 2021 admissions, so that’s not true for DC’s school.