Started with about 100 (every credible academic school that offered her sport at the right level). A handful of offers and one commit. Looking to add a back-up in case something odd happens but have a positive preread and expect to be admitted in ED1.

8-10. DC would only get to 15 colleges if they decided to go ahead and apply to schools that need absolutely nothing extra outside of what’s already in the common app. Like UVA, because why not?

Is your kid really competitive at lottery schools? Then cast a wide net. For lower level schools where you’re a strong candidate based on your school statistics, it’s not necessary to apply to so many.

Anonymous wrote:8-12 colleges are currently under consideration but still fine tuning the list and application strategy.

Our DC2 is on the lower end of this count. They are chasing merit. Would've been lower but DH offered to, separately, pick up the application fee for his alma mater. LOL. Otherwise, we capped the total app fee limit at $300 to encourage focus and keep time/effort realistic. DC is heavily involved in two school-based ECs and has a part-time job.

Our DS is at 17. Looking primarily at T10 - T40 schools, mix of SLACs and smaller universities. On paper he should be able to get into all of them (SATs above the median, etc.) but understands that each of his target and reach applications is simply a lottery ticket.

initially 22, ended up 36. Multiple T25 acceptances. Decided on a T25 with full ride merit award that was not on the initial 22 (we did not qualify for need aid). Couldn't be happier with the result, but substantive time commitment for the supplementals

15 is ok, especially if some are early action or rolling so they can work on essays in phases. Even better if they don't have any supplementals.

But, kids tend to leave all the essay writing to the last minute so if that ends up happening, highly suggest trimming the list to submit higher quality apps to fewer schools.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Having more makes sense this year with the current political climate

Yes, and with inevitable randomness in admission among t20 schools for a strong stats, good ECs kid who is flexible, who wants an impacted major, and who feels they would be happy pretty much anywhere, shotgunning is not really a bad approach. Whether the kid has the drive and discipline to do that many apps without sacrificing quality and without giving up on enjoying their senior year, is something your kid and you have to figure out.

💯

Anonymous wrote:Having more makes sense this year with the current political climate

How so? Everyone says it's the easiest year for a high-stats kid.

Poster above who mentioned 60% acceptance rate is on the right track.

My kid applied to 5. He was guaranteed to get into 3 of the 5. All are good schools but out of 5, his 3rd choice was a shoo-in with about an 80% acceptance rate and no concern for him getting denied.

Looking back, he could have skipped the 5th school because we asked him to put it on the list but he wouldn't have picked it over #3.

We also knew we have too high of an HHI and he was not a valedictorian type, so we were not expecting huge merit scholarships.

He did end up at his preferred school with no merit although he was waitlisted at a much more expensive Ivy. He declined the wait list so we didn't get a financial aid confirmation. But it looked minimal.

So 4 would have been enough, and if we'd been realistic, he could have skipped the Ivy and applied to 3.

1 ED1
3 EA/rolling
1 ED2

If necessary: 3 reaches, 2 targets

8-12 colleges are currently under consideration but still fine tuning the list and application strategy.

Anonymous wrote:Having more makes sense this year with the current political climate

Yes, and with inevitable randomness in admission among t20 schools for a strong stats, good ECs kid who is flexible, who wants an impacted major, and who feels they would be happy pretty much anywhere, shotgunning is not really a bad approach. Whether the kid has the drive and discipline to do that many apps without sacrificing quality and without giving up on enjoying their senior year, is something your kid and you have to figure out.

10 right now.

What I’ve seen is that kids cast a wide net, not weeding anything out, only to be confronted with acceptances & then have to decide on a firm timeline. It prolongs stress.

If your child truly knows 15 schools that they’d be delighted to attend (most being reaches) & it appears they can afford, I guess go for it. But if your kid has solid stats, isn’t chasing merit, & is primarily applying to schools with 60%+ acceptance rates, I’d see if they can whittle it down now.