Disclaimer: if you don’t like hearing obsessive CC users complain, this thread isn’t for you.
I’m warning you lol
Anyone on here who currently attends Vanderbilt or has been admitted to Vandy, are you worried you aren’t good enough or won’t be good enough? Vandy has been my dream school throughout high school, but now that it’s a reality, I’ve been kinda doubting the validity of everything I’ve done throughout high school.
A little backstory: I’m a poor white instate male with a 34 on the ACT, 35 superscore. Vandy’s IQR for the ACT is 33-35 this year, and that terrifies me. I don’t feel average, I feel below average because I had to take the test three times and buy a Kaplan study book and take like three practice tests out of there. I feel like the only reason I was admitted is because of my income (poor) and that my ACT score really doesn’t compare well because of the studying I did for it. Maybe if I had gotten a real 35 I wouldn’t be feeling like this. My fear is being exposed as someone who really shouldn’t be there this fall and constantly lagging behind my unbelievably intelligent classmates in my philosophy and classics classes.
My ECs look good on paper but it really isn’t saying much with my underfunded, not-seriously-taken high school. Some of the awards I had on my app I got 1st simply because there were only like 4 competitors.
If you look at my chance me threads, you can get a better picture.
I’m not really looking for pity, but maybe a little reassurance. I’ve been incredibly nervous and self-doubting since about a day after I was admitted. I don’t mind being a small fish in a big ocean (that’s inevitable at a T15), I just don’t want to not deserve my spot there, and I feel like it was given to me because of my income level and my applying ED2. I already know I’m probably lagging behind my race and gender demographic in terms of ACT scores.
My S got into an attended a college that was a bit of a reach. He was nervous and spoke to his HS guidance counselor before accepting the offer of admissions there… She assured him that college admissions officers know exactly what they are doing and if he got in then they are confident that he has the ability/skills necessary to succeed at that college. And guess what – he worked hard and did incredibly well there. So understand that you have the skills to be successful. And FYI, your ACT is absolutely not below average – tons of people take the test multiple times, many people take prep classes, have tutors etc. You are fine.
You have an amazing opportunity in front of you. Work hard and take full advantage of it.
@FranciscoPizarro, I know you’re going to do great for 2 reasons, the second of which you may surprise you. First of all, taking the ACT multiple times is not only quite common, but it shows that you wouldn’t stand for a score that you felt was not your best possible outcome. That shows the necessary drive and commitment that is needed for any challenge that a top tier school will put in front of you. The second reason you will do great is because you show great attention to detail. How do I know this? I know this because your post is extremely well-written. You took the time to put your thoughts across with clarity and eloquence and made damn sure there weren’t any spelling, punctuation, or grammatical errors. This is not very common on CC as you may have noticed.
It’s not unusual for people to second-guess themselves when they’re handed a sought-after prize, but this type of thinking is self-defeating. There may very well be schools that reject you even though you are very much qualified to be admitted, leaving you feeling discouraged. Please be careful about feeling bad about the rejections, and then on top of that second-guessing yourself on the acceptances. Try to think of yourself as being as worthy as the next guy, which, according to Vanderbilt’s admissions department, you are.
Now, I understand that there are people who get admitted to great schools who probably shouldn’t be there, but you’re not one of them.
I think you will do great because you don’t assume you will do great and you understand you need to work hard. Believe it, not many of your incoming classmates have the self awareness to think they might be average or below average. Vandy is not easy for anybody and hard work will pay off on all fronts.
What you are feeling is not unusual, my D wrote an essay while we were in Alaska celebrating her HS graduation. While she never told us about her concerns about going to college and next chapter of her life, she expressed that in that essay. But like her, I hope you turn your anxiety into actions…contact professors if you want to do do research, see if you like to attend any pre college programs, e. Media Immersion, etc. Believe yourself and be prepared to work hard. You will do great!
A BIG CONGRATS Francisco! Look, you did not get tutoring for the ACT or for your high grades or awards. You made it in because of your smarts, ability to stand out, and overcome the limitations placed on your economic background. From what I know about Vandy, is that they really try to pick not just bright students, but good people too. They clearly want you there, so please take a moment to enjoy that they see you as part of their community. Other than that, work hard and enjoy your 4 years there!!! BTW, my son applied, and I am on pins and needles for him, but I truly believe Vandy did the right thing in accepting you. ;0)
@FranciscoPizarro Have no fear. Trust the admissions people know their business. The admissions people had more qualified applicants than they could accept and they chose you with confidence you could succeed at Vanderbilt. Their evaluation matters more than anything people on this board might say. Don’t dwell on the ACT test scores–that’s all water under the bridge now and no longer important. What WILL be important is what you do when you arrive on campus. Work hard, seek help when you need it, banish doubt, and make the most of your opportunities. That formula works in most places. Best wishes at Vanderbilt!
You will do fine @Franciscopi at Vandy! I would venture that you will do great there for classics. I have a kid who is studying creative writing at Vandy, he has nothing but great things to say about his classes and his professors. He said his professors are all scholars in the subject they teach. The classes are small, around 15 students, taught in seminar style. He gets the chance to read the the classics from all the great civilizations.
I will bet my bottom dollar that you will enjoy your Vanderbilt experience.
Sincerelove is spot on. A little fear is a good thing. The students that get into trouble are the ones that think they are “all that” and don’t need to work hard.
I recall (years ago!) when our Duke freshman brought home a classmate for a 3 day weekend when it was too far aa journey for classmate to go visit his own family. Classmate had taken 11 AP classes compared to the 3 APs my son showed up with at Duke from our less sophisticated school district. Friend’s school district was so intense that students signed up at the Community College in desperate attempts to get to the top 10% of the class with weighted grades.
I mention this because I do think that public and private school graduates arriving at Vandy have mastered rote learning to a degree that was not the norm in our hometown. Their parents may have been shrewd about moving to intense school districts. But Vandy doesn’t take kids from only tip top public and private schools! Thankfully!
Study habits, good sleep habits (very hard to pull off as a freshman), and effort to memorize what you are assigned to review will keep you safely inside the normative grade experience at Vanderbilt. The best quality my son brought to the table was a lack of jealousy for the just plain gifted and/or the % of more privileged background students around him. He loved and respected them all for their unique areas of talent. He observed his friends who had fabulous study habits and he copied them. He could appreciate his fellow students clearly regardless of the economic background. Thankfully, Vanderbilt does not fill the class with only the top demographic in terms of economic background! They easily could do, so but the Board of Trustees has a vision for Vanderbilt that will make you proud to be an alum someday.
Now I will switch to a parental commentary on not getting freaked out by an academic stumble. Vanderbilt Wants You To Succeed. Everything is in place to make sure you do! Both my sons made faulty decisions on time management at least one semester resulting in one class that was very dicey in outcome, and could have resulted in barely passing. There are SAFETY features for students, you dear children who worked so hard at perfection in high school. Both my sons went to their Academic Deans, discussed, applied and were permitted to drop one class. Then they had to figure out how to make up for this. It cost $ to retake. (Calculus for one son, a hard science for another).
One step up and two steps back happens to excellent students. Vanderbilt has a particularly good plan where even if you end up completing a course with a grade you want to overcome, your bad grade is on the transcript but not factored into your GPR, your second retake grade earned is the one in your GPR. They don’t let you do this over and over obviously. On a case by case basis. The point is that you will probably have a stumble but there are a ton of advisors at Vandy who have a better sense of the Long View of life than you do now.
The key is to take responsibility and to make a plan. One son had blown off a course as “easy” and discovered in exams he had underprepared. He spent his nights when he should have been memorizing what rocks look like writing film reviews and articles for the school paper and traveling with the debate team. Another son decided to spend his priorities and sleep on frat rushing and he got sick and learned that you can’t actually prepare for a test if you start studying at midnight. Fall term sophomore year he did a change up. Lights out by 1am and rose daily at 8am and treated college like it was his job that required the best of his alert hours. That’s what worked for him. Every student is different.
You will observe that taking on some of the more important core quantitative courses for things like premed or engineering will be addressed strategically by students in ways that are particular to their learning style. My Vandy son made up a course in summer semester.
All Vandy students were strivers in high school. Striving at the college level is different. You are discovering yourself instead of having to stay with the herd. A stumble here or there is often the norm, not the exception. Both sons finished graduate school with honors and are fully credentialed and in the workforce. Dealing with adversity is part of college for all.
No catastrophe will befall you at Vandy academically. There are many many failsafes, formal advisors and upperclassmen to consult with you as you work out how you use Vandy’s vast academic offerings.