Admissions Strategies

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>So what's your plan for getting in?</p>

<p>My dilemma is this: I love Yale. Everyone loves Yale. No one gets into Yale. Do I 'waste' my early application on a school like Yale where the chances are slim to none, or do I apply early to a school like Brown, which is also very competitve, but where there is a much greater chance of my admission. The downside is that it would always leave me wondering whether or not i would get into HYP (if I even get in to Brown, that is). </p>

<p>I am afraid that if I do EA at Yale, I will get rejected/deferred and thus lose this early advantage at other schools where I may have had a shot early, but will not get in regular</p>

<p>I know that was rather long and convoluted, but I am trying to figure out what the heck I am going to do with myself, come next fall.</p>

<p>thanks! :)</p>

2

<p>I think that's a common dilemma. I would say it depends on how realistic your chance at Yale is. A friend's D had that exact situation. Applied ED (longshot) to Yale. Deferred and then was rejected RD. Unfortunately, she was also rejected RD at Brown and Tufts where she would have been happy. In hindsight, she wishes she had applied to one of those ED where she had a fighting chance. However, if you are a really good candidate for Yale, you would honestly prefer it, and might benefit from the statistical advantage of ED, go for it.</p>

3

<p>thank you :) that was quite helpful, and i really don't want to end up in the same situation</p>

<p>i suppose my c.counselor could help me determine whether i have a fighting chance.</p>

4

<p>If you post your stats here, people may be able to determine your chances. Many have had recent experience with the very same problem.</p>

5

<p>hahah i always sort of hate the people who post their stats. but i usually read, as my curiosity gets the best of me. Anyways:</p>

<p>White female, all girls private school (50 in class), Philadelphia.
-taken most rigorous course load available (only 1 AP so far though...)</p>

<p>senior year: English, Physics C, Bio, AB Calc, Independent study in BC Calc, (since not normally offered), World (all AP), and possible Independent study to complete science fair project</p>

<p>ACT: 34
GPA: 4.01 (junior year grades brought it up from a 3.9. trend towards improvement)
PSAT: 226</p>

<p>no ranking</p>

<p>Essays...should be strong, i think
Recs: i expect very, very good</p>

<p>Last Summer: 6 week full time internship as research scientist at small Pharma company. Independent, award winning (State level) research. Got a letter of rec. Also: completed Alg II course to move up to Honors math, two 'fun' camps</p>

<p>This Summer: 8 week full time internship at NIEHS under branch chief(branch of NIH, but will be living away from home in North Carolina). Hope to get a publication out of this</p>

<p>ECs:
-Editor-in-chief of school Lit Mag (making some dramatic changes, will be in c.conselor's letter) (2 years)
-President of Visual Art Board (28 hour mural project, also will be submitting art portfolio) (3 years)
-Mock Trial (3 years)
-Service Board (since 6th grade)
-Pony Club member (7 years) -->have a list of specific activities...very involved
-Horseback riding 10 years
-3 hours a week service at riding therapy program for mentally/physically disabled children (wrote an essay about this)
-Some regular inschool service activities
-School volleyball since 6th grade (JV capt. junior year)</p>

<p>Academic Honors:
-Cum Laude (junior year)
-Brown U book award (english)
-Mt. Holyoke book award (sciences)
-Departmental distinction in everything but math
-Science Fair Junior year: 1st place regional comp. and 1st place, perfect score, directors award, Women in science scholarship at state level comp.
-A couple volleyball awards</p>

<p>I love physics, which works for me as a girl, but I am also very artsy and will be submitting a portfolio. I feel like I have the "all around" thing going on, with both 2x science as well as history/english being strong points.</p>

<p>Its strange to see my life reduced like this. Anyways, what do you think?</p>

6

<p>Nice to see Pony Club mentioned! It's one of those ECs that means a lot if you know what is involved, esp. in the upper level ratings. You sound competitive anywhere to me. Others may have more specific comments. Good luck.</p>

7

<p>My dad went to Yale, so when it came time for me to apply to school, he wanted me to apply there. I wasn't that interested in Yale because I knew I had NO shot there (I just didn't have the grades or scores, and I was fine with that, but my dad wasn't.) Because Yale is EA, I COULD have applied early there and then gone somewhere else if I got in, but because Yale is Single Choice EA, Yale would be the ONLY school I could apply early too. I ended up not applying early there, because I fell in love with another school and wanted to apply early there instead to increase my chances. I didn't want to waste my shot at applying early on a school like Yale, where I knew I had NO chance of getting in. This is a different situation than you, because you WANT to go to Yale, but I would definetely look around and see if there is another school you love. Yale MIGHT still accept you if you apply RD. Also, Brown is just as hard as Yale to get into, this year it seemed like it was even harder, so I wouldn't necessarily think that you have a better shot at Brown than Yale. All of the ivies are hard.</p>

8

<p>thank you all, for your comments :)</p>

<p>meowmom: do you have any suggestions as to how i should convey the...comprehensiveness of PC, and all it involves? i've been struggling with this.</p>

<p>thank you also, MLRita, for your anecdote. everything helps!!!</p>

9

<p>Brown is nowhere near as hard to get into as Yale.</p>

10

<p>All of the ivies are hard. Nobody should assume that he or she can get into one of them over the others. Brown is more hollistic in its acceptences, which makes it seem like it is easier, but it isn't like they will just accept anyone. I know somebody who got into Yale and Dartmouth but didn't get into Brown. You just never know.</p>

11

<p>Depending on your specifics, how about an extra letter of recommendation from your DC or RS. Or include the standards of proficiency for your current rating with a short introduction as a supplement. Or include a list of any related accomplishments (events, shows, rallies, USEA membership/level, clinics etc) in some organized way. Using it as a essay topic is always a good way of explaining something that might be underplayed or overlooked otherwise. There was talk of having the National office publish something to explain it all to colleges but I don't know if it ever happened. Check with them too.</p>

12

<p>excellent ideas meowmom! thank you so much. i want to make sure the adcoms fully appreciate the cult of pony club :)</p>