Anonymous
Post 04/06/2026 11:11     Subject: Rejections
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:he needed to take 4 years of a language for most schools in hs.


Nonsense. Only the very most selective schools care about 4 years of language.

Yup. You'll need 4 years in HS (8th does not count) for the top 10 schools. That is just how it is.
Anonymous
Post 04/06/2026 11:07     Subject: Rejections
Anonymous wrote:This really reinforces the idea that GPA is the screen nowadays; SAT is relevant only as a plus factor once you make it through the GPA screen.


Which is so dumb given the variabiiltiy in rigor applied to assinging GPAs.
Anonymous
Post 04/06/2026 11:04     Subject: Re:Rejections
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:To the OP - I am sorry - this will be my DC next year - DC is aiming high but with 2 B’s this year I don’t think they will do well. We also thought top rigor mattered but should have gone with the easier classes. I hope it all works out for your DC !


Context matters. If those are the only Bs, it's ok. If your kid goes to a rigorous top private, it's ok. If the Bs are in notoriously hard classes, it's better.

+1
It all depends on your high school. High rigor kids did particularly well at our school, especially when the Bs are from hard classes.
Anonymous
Post 04/06/2026 10:49     Subject: Rejections
Would definitely be interested to know the student’s intended major, if OP is willing to share. GMU and VCU are quite strong for certain programs.
Anonymous
Post 04/06/2026 10:46     Subject: Rejections
Definitely we need to see the list and the major. Also- how were the supplemental essays? Places like VT love them. The PP is right about needing a truly realistic and accurate list.
Anonymous
Post 04/06/2026 10:40     Subject: Rejections
Anonymous wrote:Having such a high SAT score with a relatively low GPA makes him look low effort.


This is what I think too. Have seen it happen with DD’s incredibly gifted friend who slacked off in school and scored 1580 on his SAT.
Anonymous
Post 04/06/2026 10:29     Subject: Re:Rejections
Anonymous wrote:Cannot emphasize enough the importance of a truly, brutally, realistically, balanced list


+1
Anonymous
Post 04/06/2026 10:28     Subject: Rejections
From what I've seen this year, test scores, grades and random extra-curriculars are no substitute for full pay + hook.
Anonymous
Post 04/06/2026 10:24     Subject: Re:Rejections
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:To the OP - I am sorry - this will be my DC next year - DC is aiming high but with 2 B’s this year I don’t think they will do well. We also thought top rigor mattered but should have gone with the easier classes. I hope it all works out for your DC !


Get a high test score and this will improve your chances at most flagships. By high I mean 35+ and 1520+ SAT

This thinking was the mistake OP made.
Anonymous
Post 04/06/2026 10:17     Subject: Re:Rejections
Anonymous wrote:To the OP - I am sorry - this will be my DC next year - DC is aiming high but with 2 B’s this year I don’t think they will do well. We also thought top rigor mattered but should have gone with the easier classes. I hope it all works out for your DC !


Get a high test score and this will improve your chances at most flagships. By high I mean 35+ and 1520+ SAT
Anonymous
Post 04/06/2026 10:16     Subject: Re:Rejections
Cannot emphasize enough the importance of a truly, brutally, realistically, balanced list
Anonymous
Post 04/06/2026 10:14     Subject: Re:Rejections
Anonymous wrote:To the OP - I am sorry - this will be my DC next year - DC is aiming high but with 2 B’s this year I don’t think they will do well. We also thought top rigor mattered but should have gone with the easier classes. I hope it all works out for your DC !


Context matters. If those are the only Bs, it's ok. If your kid goes to a rigorous top private, it's ok. If the Bs are in notoriously hard classes, it's better.
Anonymous
Post 04/06/2026 10:13     Subject: Re:Rejections
To the OP - I am sorry - this will be my DC next year - DC is aiming high but with 2 B’s this year I don’t think they will do well. We also thought top rigor mattered but should have gone with the easier classes. I hope it all works out for your DC !
Anonymous
Post 04/06/2026 09:39     Subject: Rejections
Anonymous wrote:People need to stop referring to OP's kid as 3.5 when everyone else uses the weighted scale. It is very misleading. I agree that comparing different school system's weighted GPAs is comparing apples and oranges but referring to unweighted when all anyone hears otherwise is weighted is worse.

The kid had high rigor and a 4.1W from (I think you said? sorry not to reread) FCPS. That is definitely too low for UVA. It is a maybe for William and Mary. And if not Engineering or Business, last year would have been in at Virginia Tech. I am not surprised that OP's kid assumed a yes at Virginia Tech. From everything I have seen on DCUM and in real life, Tech got MUCH harder this year.

Another school that has gotten MUCH harder this year if you're from NOVA is Tennessee. It wasn't that long ago (last year?) that Naviance showed everyone with a 4.0 and above getting in. And a very misleading school on Naviance is Penn State. Naviance shows it as a sea of green at many GPAs but they seem not to distinguish among between satellite campus and University Park.

I am afraid, OPs kid counted on schools that would very recently have been Targets or even Safeties per Naviance and had very bad luck with everything moving quickly. This should be a lesson to all of us with younger kids.


Not true.

UW is more meaningful wrt grades. Evaluate rigor separately.

Anonymous
Post 04/06/2026 09:35     Subject: Rejections
I was just coming to post the same idea.

URI is taking apps until 4/15 if that's of interest.