<p>Do you think that adcoms will learn from this year's toughest ever admissions that kids with fairly high stats applying to 2nd,3rd tier schools should not be rejected for "using them as safeties"? These kids may need these schools or be rejected everywhere they apply--as we have seen from recent CC posts.</p>
<p>Maybe a huge note on the application stating "I am not using you as a safety!" would help?</p>
<p>Pyewacket. We must have cross posted. See my post above "stop the insanity." </p>
<p>The NACAC report shows that there is very little incentive for the most selective colleges (any school that accepts less than 50% of students) to worry about whether a student is using them as a safety or not. They have more than enough applicants to choose from and their yields are enormous. The shoe needs to be on the other foot - it is the responsibility of applicants themselves to stop treating their applications to what they perceive as second best schools as less important. Everyone needs to treat the application to their second choice schools just as carefully as they do their first choice schools. </p>
<p>I hope this year's juniors and their families will take note.</p>
<p>
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Maybe a huge note on the application stating "I am not using you as a safety!" would help?
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</p>
<p>Good applications all have that huge note attached. It's called the "Why Acme University?" essay.</p>
<p>Yep. My D was waitlisted at Columbia and accepted to Princeton and Stanford. Her stats put her right at the high end for Columbia. She visited twice. The irony is, Columbia was her first choice. The alumni interviewer asked her where else she was applying, and like the straightforward human she is, she told him. She also told him about the legacy/connection status for all of her other applications. Then he asked her if her parents cared where she went. She told him Columbia was her first choice. Although we can never know, I believe it's very possible they waitlisted her because they thought she might not attend. Ironic, huh? Although I would have had reservations, I would have supported her decision.</p>
<p>I think it's a two way street. I'm a little peeved that my son put a lot of time and effort into all of his applications, treating them all with equal concern--and one school must have thought he was using them as a safety, because they couldn't be bothered to send any sort of communications, or return any of the enclosed cards. No emails, no phone calls, no mailings, no nothing. Their aid package was ridiculous, way off the others that were within 2K of each other. A little mutal respect would go a long way.</p>
<p>"Everyone needs to treat the application to their second choice schools just as carefully as they do their first choice schools."</p>
<p>And that includes not only research and visiting, but wanting to go to every school, whether it be #1 or a safety, on that list were it to come down to it.</p>
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And that includes not only research and visiting, but wanting to go to every school, whether it be #1 or a safety, on that list were it to come down to it.
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Yes. And in our case, we let family pressure decide her EA choice. </p>
<p>Another point of reform - but moderate, not sweeping...I also wish all colleges would go to EA. My D would have applied to Columbia EA except that she wasn't 100% certain and they are ED. By the time she was certain - too late.</p>
<p>And in some cases, what looks like a "safety" is really a first choice because of special opportunities that might be there....</p>
<p>Alumother:congrats on your daughter's wonderful success. I do think that it's unlikely that Columbia would deny based on where else she might be applying--I just don't believe top schools do that "Tufts syndrome" thing; I can think of numerous axamples of super kids accepted at a couple of first rank scools and denied at a couple of others. Seems incomprehensible, but it's based on so many factors you can know nothing about, so don't sweat it.</p>
<p>And in some cases, what looks like a "safety" is really a
first choice because of special opportunities that might be there</p>
<p>Short and sweet of it - exactly right!!! That is pretty much what happened to our DD - got accepted at all - but the kinda safety had that special opportunity that the others lacked - and there she be!!</p>