Thank you for your helpful response, PP

Anonymous wrote:Any confirmation about the higher number of applications this year?

We will hopefully know more in a couple of weeks, when campus news articles might reveal ED/EA admission stats. Apps are up at Brown, as indicated above.

It is well-known that test-optional increases apps at highly competitive colleges. Increases are to be expected. I don't envy AOs this year, probably having to spend more time sorting through high schools and rigor comparisons. Ultimately, GPAs are truly not comparable, as there is no real standardization.

Keep in mind the caveat, that apps being up is only likely be the case top colleges, top meaning top 50-100 or so. There was that earlier WSJ news article saying that Common App applications were down across the board.

Any confirmation about the higher number of applications this year?

Anonymous wrote:Applications are up because without test scores students are reaching for the stars, MIT style.

This is definitely it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Brown university had early decision volume increase by 16% this year.

Where did you get these stats? My kid applied ED.
TIA

NP. https://www.browndailyherald.com/2020/11/12/logan-powells-road-brown-admission-office/

Anonymous wrote:Brown university had early decision volume increase by 16% this year.

Where did you get these stats? My kid applied ED.
TIA

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Applications are up because without test scores students are reaching for the stars, MIT style.

I would bet on this reason primarily.
The COVID thing is good, but my thought is that most applicants don’t know how well each college did re COVID. my kids school is touting that that they did great. So at that rate their apps would be up too. Either way, think they just did meh.

This. My kid is a tour guide at his college. They have handled Covid horribly. They canceled the housing contracts of all upperclassmen two weeks before classes started, but did not move all classes online, creating a major housing/scheduling crisis. They did zero surveillance testing until they were in the middle of an outbreak and then only tested small numbers every few weeks. They made asymptomatic students seek out their own testing off campus...even if their suite mate was positive and symptomatic. It has been a total cluster. But the tour guides are told exactly what they can and can’t say. Students applying have no idea.

Why are you protecting the school by not naming it? It would be helpful to know more.

Most schools have completely fumbled on their COVID response and preparation, even second semester around. No one is going to tell you "yeah, my kid's college really sucks!" You people are so gullible. If I told you which schools have no handle on anything (from experience), you would not believe it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Applications are up because without test scores students are reaching for the stars, MIT style.

I would bet on this reason primarily.
The COVID thing is good, but my thought is that most applicants don’t know how well each college did re COVID. my kids school is touting that that they did great. So at that rate their apps would be up too. Either way, think they just did meh.

This. My kid is a tour guide at his college. They have handled Covid horribly. They canceled the housing contracts of all upperclassmen two weeks before classes started, but did not move all classes online, creating a major housing/scheduling crisis. They did zero surveillance testing until they were in the middle of an outbreak and then only tested small numbers every few weeks. They made asymptomatic students seek out their own testing off campus...even if their suite mate was positive and symptomatic. It has been a total cluster. But the tour guides are told exactly what they can and can’t say. Students applying have no idea.

Why are you protecting the school by not naming it? It would be helpful to know more.

Ummm because she wants to stay anonymous? Which is allowed.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Applications are up because without test scores students are reaching for the stars, MIT style.

I would bet on this reason primarily.
The COVID thing is good, but my thought is that most applicants don’t know how well each college did re COVID. my kids school is touting that that they did great. So at that rate their apps would be up too. Either way, think they just did meh.

This. My kid is a tour guide at his college. They have handled Covid horribly. They canceled the housing contracts of all upperclassmen two weeks before classes started, but did not move all classes online, creating a major housing/scheduling crisis. They did zero surveillance testing until they were in the middle of an outbreak and then only tested small numbers every few weeks. They made asymptomatic students seek out their own testing off campus...even if their suite mate was positive and symptomatic. It has been a total cluster. But the tour guides are told exactly what they can and can’t say. Students applying have no idea.

Why are you protecting the school by not naming it? It would be helpful to know more.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My son does interviewing (remotely this year) for MIT. He told me that applications to MIT are way up from last year. I asked him if he had any idea why that would be. He said he thinks it might be because MIT did a really good job with Covid and with orchestrating for all students to spend a semester on campus this year. Is this true at other universities?

With all deference, someone who interviews is an alum with no power with the admissions office. Of course, the admissions office will tell him and the other alum/interviewers glowing facts that are not going to pan out. They need him to repeat that to the applicants (who will not get in because schools ignore the alumni interviewers) and to his mom who will repeat it to DCUM.

OP never said that's what MIT told her son. He was just speculating, she was sharing, and asking if anyone else had experienced the trend. MIT don't need to flex.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone who didn't bomb the SAT is submitting. That's an almost-verbatim-quote from our HS counselor.

Kids who chose not to send test scores have miscalculated. Seems like schools will assume no score means bad score.

No score can also mean you didn’t have a chance to take it. My kid.

Don’t let these people get you down. They probably have a kid that prepped and got a decent score and they think that puts them in the catbird seat. My DC has been on zoom meetings with several admissions officers at competitive schools and they have been quite emphatic that not having a score will NOT be a disadvantage. They did say that they would look at AP test scores.

FWIW, my DC is signed up to take both the SAT and ACT, but hasn’t yet, so I don’t really have a dog in this fight.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My son does interviewing (remotely this year) for MIT. He told me that applications to MIT are way up from last year. I asked him if he had any idea why that would be. He said he thinks it might be because MIT did a really good job with Covid and with orchestrating for all students to spend a semester on campus this year. Is this true at other universities?

With all deference, someone who interviews is an alum with no power with the admissions office. Of course, the admissions office will tell him and the other alum/interviewers glowing facts that are not going to pan out. They need him to repeat that to the applicants (who will not get in because schools ignore the alumni interviewers) and to his mom who will repeat it to DCUM.

Lovely. MIT doesn’t need me or my question on DCUM to fill its rosters. OP.

Brown university had early decision volume increase by 16% this year.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Applications are up because without test scores students are reaching for the stars, MIT style.

I would bet on this reason primarily.
The COVID thing is good, but my thought is that most applicants don’t know how well each college did re COVID. my kids school is touting that that they did great. So at that rate their apps would be up too. Either way, think they just did meh.

This. My kid is a tour guide at his college. They have handled Covid horribly. They canceled the housing contracts of all upperclassmen two weeks before classes started, but did not move all classes online, creating a major housing/scheduling crisis. They did zero surveillance testing until they were in the middle of an outbreak and then only tested small numbers every few weeks. They made asymptomatic students seek out their own testing off campus...even if their suite mate was positive and symptomatic. It has been a total cluster. But the tour guides are told exactly what they can and can’t say. Students applying have no idea.

Anonymous wrote:My son does interviewing (remotely this year) for MIT. He told me that applications to MIT are way up from last year. I asked him if he had any idea why that would be. He said he thinks it might be because MIT did a really good job with Covid and with orchestrating for all students to spend a semester on campus this year. Is this true at other universities?

With all deference, someone who interviews is an alum with no power with the admissions office. Of course, the admissions office will tell him and the other alum/interviewers glowing facts that are not going to pan out. They need him to repeat that to the applicants (who will not get in because schools ignore the alumni interviewers) and to his mom who will repeat it to DCUM.