Anonymous wrote:National awards in ice skating and equestrian (different ppl)

This. And young arts winners.

Super pointy liberal arts kid who is an amazing and acclaimed writer.

Colleague's wife applied from SFBA, had zero hooks, middle middle-class family, good academics (not stellar), was accepted, and then graduated.

She had studied a less common language in HS. Her ECs all lined up with interest in that part of the world. Her application essay indicated her desire to study that language. She got a degree in that language.

My guess is that they needed students for that language program that year. I doubt this is reproducible for any popular major/degree.

Anonymous wrote:Meaning none of these: legacy, athlete, FGLI/Questbridge, donor/celeb/VIP kids. What are they looking for? Do normal people get in with highest SAT, GPA, top rigor and not oversubscribed majors (not comp sci, engineering, business, eco, pre med)?

NP. I live near Stanford and I’ve known several kids who have gotten into Stanford. Not a single one has been unhooked. Every single one is ALDC.

The one I know who got in unhooked from our DMV public is super smart. He was a Regeneron finalist and lots of other awards. I assume he had a top GPA and test scores. He turned Stanford down for an Ivy.

Anonymous wrote:Last year, there were nearly 14,000 high school seniors in MCPS. 8 of those 14,000 students were accepted to Stanford. It's fair to assume at least half of those 8 students had significant hooks. So, generously, 4 unhooked students in MCPS received acceptances to Stanford.

That includes the magnets. The W schools. Good schools with high performing students.

8 total. Maybe 4 unhooked. A Powerball ticket would be a better investment for 99.99 percent of MCPS students.

I love how you’re guessing and passing it off as data

I know a handful of students admitted- all were hooked except one. The non-hooked student was brilliant. The others were not particularly impressive and everyone was shocked they got in.

Last year, there were nearly 14,000 high school seniors in MCPS. 8 of those 14,000 students were accepted to Stanford. It's fair to assume at least half of those 8 students had significant hooks. So, generously, 4 unhooked students in MCPS received acceptances to Stanford.

That includes the magnets. The W schools. Good schools with high performing students.

8 total. Maybe 4 unhooked. A Powerball ticket would be a better investment for 99.99 percent of MCPS students.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Meaning none of these: legacy, athlete, FGLI/Questbridge, donor/celeb/VIP kids. What are they looking for? Do normal people get in with highest SAT, GPA, top rigor and not oversubscribed majors (not comp sci, engineering, business, eco, pre med)?

The kid from my flyover meh high school who got in isn't really hooked but he does have older siblings and parents in academia. He was able to get a research position in high school at another college in the summer. He wasn't even top of the class. Not an athlete. Just a curious kid who caught an AO's attention.

Being from a flyover state is a hook.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Grinders.
People who focus on being productive and gaining accolades every minute of every hour of the day.
2 in DCs class got in REA that way.

The unhooked Sidwell admit in my kid’s recent class fits this description. Plus they had a gripping essay topic.

how do you know another kid's essay topic?

Stanford admits tend to be hooked.

Anonymous wrote:Our babysitter's mother's uncle's son's friend was admitted uncooked.

lol! I would pay to see that!

Anonymous wrote:Meaning none of these: legacy, athlete, FGLI/Questbridge, donor/celeb/VIP kids. What are they looking for? Do normal people get in with highest SAT, GPA, top rigor and not oversubscribed majors (not comp sci, engineering, business, eco, pre med)?

The kid from my flyover meh high school who got in isn't really hooked but he does have older siblings and parents in academia. He was able to get a research position in high school at another college in the summer. He wasn't even top of the class. Not an athlete. Just a curious kid who caught an AO's attention.

I knew a kid - Mormon, 1600 SAT score, took honors but no AP/IB. No sports. Got in. No idea what happened there.

The ones I know weren’t hooked in the way OP mentions but just next level talented. Like very athletic but not being recruited for sports but had the type of talent that they could be. Plus legit deep leadership activities in something that wasn’t sports that they were passionate about. They also had top grades. I would imagine the essays and recommendations were also excellent.