Anonymous wrote:Normal smart? What does that even mean?

SAT over 1520 but no fancy EDs thanks to rich dad.

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Anonymous wrote:I have a junior who has straight As, highest rigor, 1500+ SAT, 2 varsity sports that he should be captain senior year, summer internships, academic clubs and competitions but no national or international recognition in anything.

He is such a hard working kid. I thought a 1500 would be good enough but he is trying to get 1550 on his SAT. Not sure how big of a difference 1510 or 1550 is.

I have seen some superstar kids get rejected from all the top schools and making me nervous.

My nephew got into Yale (REA) and Harvard (RD) with a 1520. He had a very high (perfect) GPA and took most rigorous curriculum. I really don't think the SAT score going up 20 points here or there mattered. I think once you hit 1500, you clear a bar and it's about the rest of your application - GPA, recommendations, EC/activities, major, jobs, essay, full pay, etc.

I would put the additional energy into the rest of your son's profile, OP rather than wasting time trying to improve the SAT once you've already reached the 99th percentile.

This. I don't know why people keep thinking that there is a distinction between 1500 and 1550. The Harvard lawsuit explained that a 1500+ got the same as a 1600. Getting rejected with a 1500 will not be the reason for the rejection...

I’ve heard the cutoff occurs at 1520/1530/1540, depending on the source.

The cutoff is actually much lower to get your application read. Sometimes 1440.
The test score won't make your application - plenty of perfect test scores and 4.0uw aren't even waitlisted.

Now, having a higher test score can help bolster the case of a STEM candidate, but I know of a test-optional humanities applicant admitted to Northwestern this year in RD (private HS).

There is no clear line in the sand.

That cutoff I mentioned was the score below which AOs in top Ivies would think your SAT score is low!

It's all about context and peer group. Look at your high school's college counseling profile - it will list the average.
From West Virginia, a 1400 would be considered amazing to Yale (and they have explicitly mentioned it on their podcast). Always, it's about high school context.

Normal smart? What does that even mean?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a junior who has straight As, highest rigor, 1500+ SAT, 2 varsity sports that he should be captain senior year, summer internships, academic clubs and competitions but no national or international recognition in anything.

He is such a hard working kid. I thought a 1500 would be good enough but he is trying to get 1550 on his SAT. Not sure how big of a difference 1510 or 1550 is.

I have seen some superstar kids get rejected from all the top schools and making me nervous.

My nephew got into Yale (REA) and Harvard (RD) with a 1520. He had a very high (perfect) GPA and took most rigorous curriculum. I really don't think the SAT score going up 20 points here or there mattered. I think once you hit 1500, you clear a bar and it's about the rest of your application - GPA, recommendations, EC/activities, major, jobs, essay, full pay, etc.

I would put the additional energy into the rest of your son's profile, OP rather than wasting time trying to improve the SAT once you've already reached the 99th percentile.

This. I don't know why people keep thinking that there is a distinction between 1500 and 1550. The Harvard lawsuit explained that a 1500+ got the same as a 1600. Getting rejected with a 1500 will not be the reason for the rejection...

I’ve heard the cutoff occurs at 1520/1530/1540, depending on the source.

This kid wouldn't have gotten into to other schools with higher test scores.
https://www.reddit.com/r/collegeresults/comments/1sk399n/36_act_scorer_gets_rejected_everywhere_selective/
Same here:
https://www.reddit.com/r/collegeresults/comments/1sicrdp/midwesterner_applies_to_30_schools_and_bags_top_1/

Imo, they needed to not do what everyone else does. Go the other direction if every other BME or CS major is going one way. They just seem the same as all the other applicants. When applying to majors with the greatest number of applications, you need to not look the same.
Also neither appeared memorable. The 2nd one had some great T20 options though.

In contrast, look at this memorable/unique major/application profile:
https://www.reddit.com/r/collegeresults/comments/1shsve1/hookless_wasian_defies_all_odds_and_gets_accepted/

Go test optional if you are below 1500 and they will treat you equally. Worked for us!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a junior who has straight As, highest rigor, 1500+ SAT, 2 varsity sports that he should be captain senior year, summer internships, academic clubs and competitions but no national or international recognition in anything.

He is such a hard working kid. I thought a 1500 would be good enough but he is trying to get 1550 on his SAT. Not sure how big of a difference 1510 or 1550 is.

I have seen some superstar kids get rejected from all the top schools and making me nervous.

My nephew got into Yale (REA) and Harvard (RD) with a 1520. He had a very high (perfect) GPA and took most rigorous curriculum. I really don't think the SAT score going up 20 points here or there mattered. I think once you hit 1500, you clear a bar and it's about the rest of your application - GPA, recommendations, EC/activities, major, jobs, essay, full pay, etc.

I would put the additional energy into the rest of your son's profile, OP rather than wasting time trying to improve the SAT once you've already reached the 99th percentile.

This. I don't know why people keep thinking that there is a distinction between 1500 and 1550. The Harvard lawsuit explained that a 1500+ got the same as a 1600. Getting rejected with a 1500 will not be the reason for the rejection...

I’ve heard the cutoff occurs at 1520/1530/1540, depending on the source.

The cutoff is actually much lower to get your application read. Sometimes 1440.
The test score won't make your application - plenty of perfect test scores and 4.0uw aren't even waitlisted.

Now, having a higher test score can help bolster the case of a STEM candidate, but I know of a test-optional humanities applicant admitted to Northwestern this year in RD (private HS).

There is no clear line in the sand.

That cutoff I mentioned was the score below which AOs in top Ivies would think your SAT score is low!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a junior who has straight As, highest rigor, 1500+ SAT, 2 varsity sports that he should be captain senior year, summer internships, academic clubs and competitions but no national or international recognition in anything.

He is such a hard working kid. I thought a 1500 would be good enough but he is trying to get 1550 on his SAT. Not sure how big of a difference 1510 or 1550 is.

I have seen some superstar kids get rejected from all the top schools and making me nervous.

My nephew got into Yale (REA) and Harvard (RD) with a 1520. He had a very high (perfect) GPA and took most rigorous curriculum. I really don't think the SAT score going up 20 points here or there mattered. I think once you hit 1500, you clear a bar and it's about the rest of your application - GPA, recommendations, EC/activities, major, jobs, essay, full pay, etc.

I would put the additional energy into the rest of your son's profile, OP rather than wasting time trying to improve the SAT once you've already reached the 99th percentile.

This. I don't know why people keep thinking that there is a distinction between 1500 and 1550. The Harvard lawsuit explained that a 1500+ got the same as a 1600. Getting rejected with a 1500 will not be the reason for the rejection...

I’ve heard the cutoff occurs at 1520/1530/1540, depending on the source.

The cutoff is actually much lower to get your application read. Sometimes 1440.
The test score won't make your application - plenty of perfect test scores and 4.0uw aren't even waitlisted.

Now, having a higher test score can help bolster the case of a STEM candidate, but I know of a test-optional humanities applicant admitted to Northwestern this year in RD (private HS).

There is no clear line in the sand.

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Anonymous wrote:Sure schools like UVA, UFlorida, UCLA, UCBerkely, UMichgan, UNC, UCSD, UT-Austin.

For example, UMich in-state accpetance rate is 40% and UCBerkeley has 30% incoming students from transer and many of them from community colleges. Plenty of normal kids.

But you think private schools are harder? I know for UT Austin in state lots of kids get in with less than perfect grades/scores by choosing less selective majors.

Harder what? Harder academically or harder to get in from privates?

Of course in state kids get into UT Austin and every other state school with lesser grades and applications. That’s the way it works.

No I mean private T20/30. Are they harder to get in than publics. I mean yes ins tate Umich/UT Austin etc will be easier. But are the public OOS harder than privates? Prob too hard to generalize

Flagships generally look at stats (other than Michigan, where the essays matter; awards also matter for Michigan). So that's why people keep mentioning the same public flagships.

T20 privates are holistic, and they are looking for certain attributes to fill a class. To get the most tailored advice, you might want to start a new thread with your kid's profile so you can figure out if they are (1) competitive for a top school, and if not, (2) is there anything that can be done?

For top privates, it's so much more than top GPA and test scores. They want the whole package: leadership, community impact, collaboration, and intellectual heft/depth and vitality.

Top schools are not looking for “well-rounded” students; T25 are really looking for students who are more “angular,” meaning they’ve developed a high level of depth in something meaningful. It's not about your DC's achievements; a strong T25 application shows what they've learned or how those experiences shaped them.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sure schools like UVA, UFlorida, UCLA, UCBerkely, UMichgan, UNC, UCSD, UT-Austin.

For example, UMich in-state accpetance rate is 40% and UCBerkeley has 30% incoming students from transer and many of them from community colleges. Plenty of normal kids.

But you think private schools are harder? I know for UT Austin in state lots of kids get in with less than perfect grades/scores by choosing less selective majors.

Harder what? Harder academically or harder to get in from privates?

Of course in state kids get into UT Austin and every other state school with lesser grades and applications. That’s the way it works.

No I mean private T20/30. Are they harder to get in than publics. I mean yes ins tate Umich/UT Austin etc will be easier. But are the public OOS harder than privates? Prob too hard to generalize

Normal smart are the athletes and donors kids. They don't do anything special except their sport and be rich. They take up a lot of the spots so make a good list.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a junior who has straight As, highest rigor, 1500+ SAT, 2 varsity sports that he should be captain senior year, summer internships, academic clubs and competitions but no national or international recognition in anything.

He is such a hard working kid. I thought a 1500 would be good enough but he is trying to get 1550 on his SAT. Not sure how big of a difference 1510 or 1550 is.

I have seen some superstar kids get rejected from all the top schools and making me nervous.

My nephew got into Yale (REA) and Harvard (RD) with a 1520. He had a very high (perfect) GPA and took most rigorous curriculum. I really don't think the SAT score going up 20 points here or there mattered. I think once you hit 1500, you clear a bar and it's about the rest of your application - GPA, recommendations, EC/activities, major, jobs, essay, full pay, etc.

I would put the additional energy into the rest of your son's profile, OP rather than wasting time trying to improve the SAT once you've already reached the 99th percentile.

This. I don't know why people keep thinking that there is a distinction between 1500 and 1550. The Harvard lawsuit explained that a 1500+ got the same as a 1600. Getting rejected with a 1500 will not be the reason for the rejection...

I’ve heard the cutoff occurs at 1520/1530/1540, depending on the source.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sure schools like UVA, UFlorida, UCLA, UCBerkely, UMichgan, UNC, UCSD, UT-Austin.

For example, UMich in-state accpetance rate is 40% and UCBerkeley has 30% incoming students from transer and many of them from community colleges. Plenty of normal kids.

But you think private schools are harder? I know for UT Austin in state lots of kids get in with less than perfect grades/scores by choosing less selective majors.

Harder what? Harder academically or harder to get in from privates?

Of course in state kids get into UT Austin and every other state school with lesser grades and applications. That’s the way it works.

unhooked from the DMV, maybe T39-29. An ED full-pay boy might make a difference at a few t20s. I would not waste an ED on a T10 school.

Anonymous wrote:I have a junior who has straight As, highest rigor, 1500+ SAT, 2 varsity sports that he should be captain senior year, summer internships, academic clubs and competitions but no national or international recognition in anything.

He is such a hard working kid. I thought a 1500 would be good enough but he is trying to get 1550 on his SAT. Not sure how big of a difference 1510 or 1550 is.

I have seen some superstar kids get rejected from all the top schools and making me nervous.

Ivy and Stanford are legacies and super kids. Top 15-30 you have a shot. Make sure you understand the defines for merit aid. Some schools require your application in early.

Anonymous wrote:Sure schools like UVA, UFlorida, UCLA, UCBerkely, UMichgan, UNC, UCSD, UT-Austin.

For example, UMich in-state accpetance rate is 40% and UCBerkeley has 30% incoming students from transer and many of them from community colleges. Plenty of normal kids.

But you think private schools are harder? I know for UT Austin in state lots of kids get in with less than perfect grades/scores by choosing less selective majors.