Has anyone ever seen or heard of someone getting rejected by Notre Dame with a 35 ACT? I’m positive that it has happened, but from all the research I’ve done I haven’t found anyone that got denied with a 35. If you do know someone, what was their GPA?
I’m sure it’s happened. People get rejected with perfect scores from top schools all the time. Especially at ND, fit is more important than scores (or so I would think).
Admission is holisitc. No one attribute, including a 35 ACT, will guarantee admission.
Yes. We attended an invitation only information session and they told us out of 17,000 applications 6,000 had a 1500+ (M/CR) and were also the top 1% of their class and there’s only 2,000 spots. Everyone groaned! They have to turn away tippy top students simply because there are too many applicants.
The same thing happens at other universities too. WashU had 39,000 applications and they only have 1700 spots.
@newjersey17 While I don’t disagree with the overall sentiment of your post. It’s just not factually accurate.
Based upon the stats from this years class that was included in an admissions video that is linked below. (see the 32:30 mark), 24% of the 19,499 applicants scored in the top 1% on the ACT (33 and above) or the SAT (1500 and above). That equals about 4,680 students.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3DQOPx1EGE8
So it’s impossible to have had 6,000 applicants score in the top 1% AND be in the top 1% in their class. It’s probably likely that the stat is something along the lines of 6,000 applicants scored in the top 1% OR were in the top 1% of their class.
Also, while there are technically 2,000 spots for enrolled students, last year they admitted 3,565 students knowing some would choose to attend college elsewhere.
@hahsndh As others have stated, admissions is holistic and ND values class performance over standardized test scores. I can almost guarantee if someone scored a 35 on the SAT but had a 3.5 UW gpa, they will not get admitted to ND.
I didn’t say it. The dean or head of admissions (I forget his title) said it in 2013. He spent three hours explaining how they admit students. It was very informational.
Basically ND is extremely stats conscious and there’s a third thing they want. They want all three: 1500+, top 1% AND selfless students. That’s the golden ticket. So I wouldn’t say they are very holistic. Again this all came from the informational session.
@newjersey17
–On the website and it many articles, ND describes its admission process as holistic. One example is: “Notre Dame practices a holistic admission process that considers students for their exceptional academic and intellectual promise and creativity, as well as their leadership and entrepreneurial records and their heart and sense of service to others.”
----Having holistic admissions in no way implies that academics are not the most important thing considered. Schools that also consider things outside of academics are considered to have holistic admissions. ND definitely does not line up applicants in order of GPA/standardized tests and just take them in order of highest stats.
@happy1 Only as holistic as it can be while still having good stats* @newjersey17 has a point in that they are stat-conscientious, but they also take into consideration other factors like URM and major choice and extra curricular activity when deciding on-the-fence candidates.
@Sheepeasy. We are in agreement. I thought I was clear in stating (although I should not have used a double negative) that meeting/exceeding the academic qualifications is critical part of holistic admissions. It is just that once academics are in place that other things (ECs essays etc.) are considered as well.
Would top 10% and a 35 ACT meet those qualifications?
Per ND FAQ website:http://admissions.nd.edu/apply/faqs/
What kind of credentials do I need to be competitive in the applicant pool?
Sixty-two percent of the students admitted for the class of 2020 were ranked in the top 1% of his or her graduating class, and the middle 50 percent of admitted students scored between 1390 and 1530 on the SAT and between 33 and 35 on the ACT.
I just remembered he also said that he’s aware of the tippy top high schools that if you’re in the the top 10% you are really the the top 1% elsewhere.
The selfless part is from reading your essays. If you look at the common data set you’ll see that volunteering is as important as grades/SATs. That’s the 3rd thing they look for which is very important to them.
ND has a distinctive culture and they are looking for students that fit their culture.
So if you have all 3 your chances are really good.
Good luck!!
Obviously there’s no single factor that is determinative and admissions are holistic. But that’s not the question the OP asked. The OP asked if you knew a 35 ACT kid that got rejected by ND.
My guess is that relatively few 35-ers do get turned down, but I have zero actual knowledge on that. But the data seems to suggest that ND does have a thing for high test scores.
Their middle 50% for ACT scores is now 33-35. The only schools I could find that were at that level were MIT and Caltech. Harvard reports their range as 32-35 for example. Vandy, which very openly lusts after high test scores, also reports 32-35.
ND says they admitted 50% of the kids who were 33 ACT or higher. But recognize that the top 1% isn’t all the same. A 33 is the 99.0 percentile. A 35 is the 99.7 percentile. A 36 is the 99.96 percentile.
So back to the OP’s question. Do you know a 35-er kid that actually got rejected?
One more thought on this.
Brown, as an example, says that a 36 ACT only gets you a 28% chance of admission. So obviously Brown isn’t putting all that much weight on the high scores – they reject 72% of the 36-ers they see and their admissions practices work out to a 30-34 ACT range.
By comparison, a high ACT score (while not a silver bullet) seems to be more highly valued at ND.
While all the high end schools are holistic and all reject high stat kids, that does not mean that they are all holistic in the same way.
Don’t know any 35s but DS has two friends with 36s last year that got rejected.
I found one example from a couple of years ago on this forum.
35 ACT, 2250 SAT, 216 PSAT and NMF a 3.8 unweighted GPA…2/125 in his graduating class
The person applied EA and was deferred, was later waitlisted. Never got off the waitlist since ND didn’t use any that year.
Another one from 2013 that got rejected.
ACT: 35
GPA: 3.75 UW
Rank: not given at my school
Other Tests (AMC, AP, IB): APUSH - 4
Ethnicity: Hispanic
Gender: Female
From Last year a rejection.
SAT I: 2260 ( 720 CR, 780 M, 760 W)
ACT: 36 (35 E, 35 M, 36 R, 36 S)
SAT II: 800 Math II, 730 US History
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.76 (4.02 W)
Rank: Top 15%? (Just a guess, school doesn’t rank)
AP: APUSH (5), Stats (5), Euro (4)
In GENERAL, I would say that you get down around 3.8 or below, you are greatly diminishing your chances.
However, the GPA issue alone can be so nuanced that it’s difficult to give you a good answer.so much depends on the academic rigor of your schedule, the reputation of your school, the grading scale that your school uses. Beyond the whole GPA issue, you then get into the EC’s and essays etc etc etc. Some people could make it in with a 32 ACT and a 3.75 uw GPA because of other items on their application. Some people with a 35 ACT and a 3.75 uw GPA don’t make it in because the rest of their application is lacking.
GD – that’s good info. Thanks.