Anonymous
Post 11/21/2025 07:52     Subject: Did anyone's kid skip applying to a safety?
This thread is making me nervous. My DC did not apply to a true safety either since Indiana is no longer auto-admit. I think I will have him throw in an app to an OOS flagship today. Which are the ones with no supplementals- South Carolina? Penn State? Auburn? Any other recommendations? High GPA and 35 ACT single sitting. Interested in business.
Anonymous
Post 11/21/2025 07:47     Subject: Did anyone's kid skip applying to a safety?
I do like the advice of the poster who said look at the bright kids who go to “safety schools” to expand her worldview a bit.

I also think she is an adult and can make an educated decision on the specific data from her school and CCO. She can also scrounge in May at colleges with seats should her outcomes not be what she thought. If that happens not a dire outcome either.
Anonymous
Post 11/21/2025 07:44     Subject: Did anyone's kid skip applying to a safety?
Anonymous wrote:I think one of the issues is the family is full pay but does not want to be full pay so they are looking for merit. Apologies, I can’t tell if it is OP who is saying in the thread that they are also chasing merit.

My kid is similar and he had to apply broadly and knew he needed to apply to some schools where we were 100% certain the total cost would be in our price range we were open to paying. When the criteria are both that the school needs to admit the student and give enough merit to make it affordable, that makes it even more important to have some real safeties.

No, we aren't chasing merit. That said, I don't think we'd be excited to pay full price for an OOS true safety. I'd prefer our community college for a year, if that were the case.
Anonymous
Post 11/21/2025 07:41     Subject: Did anyone's kid skip applying to a safety?
I know a parent of a similar kid from Montgomery Co public school. Thought she was an easy admit to UMD. But was denied. She wanted a big, rah, rah school. In at Penn State, but much more expensive that her in state school. She is very happy there.
Anonymous
Post 11/21/2025 07:40     Subject: Did anyone's kid skip applying to a safety?
Anonymous wrote:A few years ago my kid applied to 4 Ivies, Vandy, Northwestern, BC, Notre Dame, Georgetown, UVA, & Michigan (in-state).

I tried to convince kid that a couple true safeties were necessary. I recommended places with significant automatic merit aid like Kansas, Nebraska, & Oklahoma.

But kid said he didn’t work his butt off in high school to end up at a school he could have gotten into with much less work. He was prepared to take a gap year & apply all over again if he got shut out. But he got accepted at 4 & waitlisted at 3. Everything worked out fine.

OP here, this is what DD says - she also has a couple of significant EC's that required a lot of work and, in the past, kids who held those roles at her school did very well in admissions even with lower stats. But I convinced her to apply to one "safety" last night. Thanks for all the great advice!
Anonymous
Post 11/21/2025 07:28     Subject: Did anyone's kid skip applying to a safety?
Anonymous wrote:DC is in the top 1-2% of her large public high school and has a 1540 SAT (school average is mid 1000) with lots of leadership. She has no interest in attending any of the schools that are considered true safeties and would rather apply to several high targets instead of adding a safety. She applied EA in state to UMD but their acceptances have been so weird lately, that I'm starting to worry that this is a bad ieaa. She's not applying for any impacted majors. Thoughts?


Yes that was a bad idea. A lot of 1500+ kids in this area.
Anonymous
Post 11/21/2025 07:24     Subject: Did anyone's kid skip applying to a safety?
I think one of the issues is the family is full pay but does not want to be full pay so they are looking for merit. Apologies, I can’t tell if it is OP who is saying in the thread that they are also chasing merit.

My kid is similar and he had to apply broadly and knew he needed to apply to some schools where we were 100% certain the total cost would be in our price range we were open to paying. When the criteria are both that the school needs to admit the student and give enough merit to make it affordable, that makes it even more important to have some real safeties.
Anonymous
Post 11/21/2025 07:23     Subject: Did anyone's kid skip applying to a safety?
Anonymous wrote:Applying only to reach schools is risky. Sometimes the only ones accepted the kid are the targets and safeties.

In a typical year, kids at our school would apply to several ivies and Stanford MIT as reach, applying to Duke, JHU as targets, and applying to Northwestern, Vandy, WashU, as safties. Often times, the only schools accepted them are the safeties. So counselor's advice is to focus on the essays for target/safety schools.


Is this OP or someone really connected/hooked from a private feeder private?

I’m a DP, with DCs from a true feeder private (top 40 national ranking, sends 30% to T20); we would never consider applying to Northwestern as a safety even for the #1 kid in class. Our top 6 in class last few years got into HYP; I know all of them had safeties like Pitt or UMD bc that’s what our CC told us.
Anonymous
Post 11/21/2025 06:53     Subject: Did anyone's kid skip applying to a safety?
No problem if your student is content to attend the local community college for at least one year. That's always the complete fallback safety option.
Anonymous
Post 11/21/2025 06:37     Subject: Did anyone's kid skip applying to a safety?
Not exactly the same thing, but I did this when I applied to grad school and got in nowhere. I had to try again a year later, when I expanded where I applied to less competitive schools.
Anonymous
Post 11/21/2025 06:06     Subject: Did anyone's kid skip applying to a safety?
We're not really going to know how easy or hard this application cycle is until after it's over. Have your kid apply to two safeties.
Anonymous
Post 11/21/2025 05:23     Subject: Did anyone's kid skip applying to a safety?
OP, did she apply ED anywhere? If so, she can always add a few schools in RD that are safeties if she is deferred or rejected in ED. DCUM doesn’t really talk about the fact that tons of kids get into schools in regular decision. It will work out if you are full pay and ready to pivot quickly if you get disappointing ED/EA results in December. My DS has 2-3 schools on his list that he will apply to RD if he doesn’t get into his ED school or his December release EA school. He has applied to 10 schools so far, but none are true safeties.
Anonymous
Post 11/21/2025 04:39     Subject: Did anyone's kid skip applying to a safety?
My kid also had high stats and 5 x AP exams at 5 which he used to get into a UK university. He didn't apply to Oxbridge but he applied to 5 top 10 universities and got places at all of them.

I think if your strategy doesn't work there's always rolling admissions to look at - Pitt etc.

Hang in there, I'm sure it will work out.
Anonymous
Post 11/20/2025 23:20     Subject: Did anyone's kid skip applying to a safety?
Anonymous wrote:DC is in the top 1-2% of her large public high school and has a 1540 SAT (school average is mid 1000) with lots of leadership. She has no interest in attending any of the schools that are considered true safeties and would rather apply to several high targets instead of adding a safety. She applied EA in state to UMD but their acceptances have been so weird lately, that I'm starting to worry that this is a bad ieaa. She's not applying for any impacted majors. Thoughts?


Kid’s safety was UVA in state, 100% of applicants in their near perfect SAT and class rank spot(top) got in the past 10 years. Your counselor should know if it is a true safety.
Anonymous
Post 11/20/2025 22:32     Subject: Did anyone's kid skip applying to a safety?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:#1 Rule in college admissions should be:

Make sure your child finds a safety they LOVE.

Takes away all the anxiety, strain, and heartbreak. If you didn’t do this, you’re an idiot.


Finding a safety they LOVE may be stressful in and of itself. Finding a safety they like well enough, is affordable and can definitely get into is just fine.


Agree with this