Acceptance to College

[ReserveRage]

Does anyone have any teenage kids (or other people you know) who are going through the college application process, either applying soon or waiting to hear from schools?

My cousin was just rejected by Boston University and is quite devastated as it was her #1 choice. She was ranked 3 out of ~150 students at a fairly decent private HS, not any kind of outstanding prep school but an OK Catholic school in the county. Her Achilles’ heel was here SATs which were only a bit above average. I think her Writing score was a solid 650, but her V and M were somewhere in the 500's.

I happened to go to the same school and remember several kids getting accepted to BU who were neither top 10% nor had outstanding SAT scores. Have colleges just gotten that much more competitive in the past 10 years?

[Dr T Non-Fan]

Does she have any African blood in her? Even the slightest? That might help.

And, are you sure it wasn't Boston College, the Catholic university?

[Chillax]

Originally Posted by ReserveRage

Does anyone have any teenage kids (or other people you know) who are going through the college application process, either applying soon or waiting to hear from schools?

My cousin was just rejected by Boston University and is quite devastated as it was her #1 choice. She was ranked 3 out of ~150 students at a fairly decent private HS, not any kind of outstanding prep school but an OK Catholic school in the county. Her Achilles’ heel was here SATs which were only a bit above average. I think her Writing score was a solid 650, but her V and M were somewhere in the 500's.

I happened to go to the same school and remember several kids getting accepted to BU who were neither top 10% nor had outstanding SAT scores. Have colleges just gotten that much more competitive in the past 10 years?

Yes. Even for very large, not traditionally picky universities, admissions have gotten a lot stricter.

[Clam Chowdah]

?

[cromdalekid]

i've heard that more and more slots are being held for international students because Universities make 4 times more tuition. well, at least in Canada.

[Yoko]

sounds like ReserveRage's cousin should apply to school in Canada then

[Sean Archer]

If she wants to do engineering, actuarial or architecture check out Waterloo.

[bertuary]

Extracurriculars are also a big factor. It's not just about the grades and SAT scores.

[ReserveRage]

Originally Posted by Dr T Non-Fan

And, are you sure it wasn't Boston College, the Catholic university?

Yes, it was BU. I know BC had a pretty low acceptance rate even when I applied (~40% IIRC). BU was 65% or something back then.

bertuary Extracurriculars are also a big factor

Yeah, she applied to the college of Fine Arts I think. The girl is absolutely obsessed with dancing and probably spends at least 20 hours/week practicing and going to various tournaments/competitions. I thought that would help as not too many HS kids are that enthusiastic about a particular hobby.

[IMP]

yes it gets harder over the years. i am quite certain i would not be accept to UF today based on the qualifications that got me in almost 20 years ago....my lord, that makes me sound so effing old!!!!!!!!!!