Thank you @OHMomof2
I’ve seen this data before. I was curious how many CC students applied. If quarter of the applicants but half of the admitted kids were CC students, then it’s 2 to 1, which would mean that it’s 2x advantageous to be a CC transfer. Conversely, if 75% of the applicants are from CCs but 50% get admitted, then it’s a disadvantage to be a CC student (given all other stats between CC and non-CC applicants are equal). I’ve seen people claim that Amherst prioritizes CC transfers, but I am curious to know exactly how much. To find out, I would need to know the Community College % share in the total applicant pool.
BTW, do you think this year will be like 2017 with 34 transfers or like 2018 with 21 transfers?
hi @OwlOfAthena !! I did get access to their financial aid portal after a few tries (it was glitchy for me too) and it says everything has been received
have you guys looked at the common data set for amherst?
@glassturtle I looked at it but tbh it didn’t really clear anything up for me
@OwlOfAthena good number crunching. I think anherst really likes CC students, but I’d also be curious to see the actual divide in # admitted.
@OHMomof2 can you clarify how you got to 11-17 spots? Math isn’t my strong suit ?
@glassturtle I looked at it but tbh it didn’t really clear anything up for me
@OwlOfAthena good number crunching. I think anherst really likes CC students, but I’d also be curious to see the actual divide in # admitted.
@OHMomof2 can you clarify hou you got to 11-17 spots? Math isn’t my strong suit lol
@OwlOfAthena I don’t think amherst’s Statement implies they admit 50% cc though? It just means that 50% enroll? I think we would the number that applied and the number admitted to really know more
Half of the admitted transfer pool are CC students. However, we would need to know what % of the applicant pool is comprised by CC students to know if being a CC applicant is actually advantageous. This data–I believe–is unavailable to the general public.
I feel like in multiple other threads I have seen, people have said that being a CC applicant is advantageous, so perhaps going by that may be useful right now, since the data are unavailable help us figure out otherwise. However, I feel like if you called the school and asked, they may be able to give you an answer… The woman I talked to on the phone in the financial aid dept. was super helpful and gave me more info than I even knew I wanted haha
“so perhaps going by that may be useful right now, since the data are unavailable help us figure out otherwise”
I know.
I just have a curious mind: Give me a bit of data, and I will ask for another piece. Give me two–and I will pounce on it and produce a third bit (a meaningful conclusion based off the other two). XD
I am in Computer Science, but Data Science does look enticing to me. I like to use the numbers to find things out.
i support that!! i was like, we really have an investigative team here haha. now i’m like!! we have to get in, it would be so cool to work with you all, you’re so intelligent.
anyway, i just don’t want us all to strain ourselves for info it may be impossible to attain. but we can try!! maybe we could run a test w/ some hypothetical numbers?
That’s a very wise position! I’m just so nervous that my mind is racing and trying to find any food for thought in the meantime for the decisions.
Does anybody know:
I’ve indicated in my application that I am a first-generation college student, but I didn’t mention it in my essays. Will they still take notice of this fact? First generation is listed as “Very Important” in the Common Data Set.
Williams transfer decisions were just released 12 days before announced date. Any insight or update into when Amherst decisions will be released?
@Nightbloomingjasmine
For transfers? Only 4 weeks after application deadline? Wow, that’s fast.
OwlofAthena, that’s what I thought, too!
Hello! I am so glad I finally found this thread, it wasn’t coming up in search when I looked previously. My husband and I both applied to Amherst as CC transfers this cycle so I am hanging out in the waiting room with all of you. I think we would make an interesting Venn diagram, having read through the thread to date - I am a non-traditional, immigrant but now US citizen CC honors student. I am also a Cooke semifinalist and I know that @glassturtle and I have a lot of overlap in the schools we chose to apply to and so far, in the ones who have accepted us too! I am really happy to have found you!
OMG, Congrats! I’m so happy for you guys!
Do you mind sharing your stats, especially the SATs? Williams is a fantastic school–Amherst’s rival. XD
Thank you @OwlOfAthena and @RainbowBritey!! These next few weeks are going to be so difficult but they are really off to a great start. I am still in disbelief— when I wake up in the morning I look at my application portal to make sure it’s real lol.
And I think that I’m going to wait until all my college decisions arrive to share my full stats, but I will let you know that my SATs were actually under a 1400 from March 2016, which is ?! I was definitely myself in my essay (one of the strongest I’ve written), and I also think it helps that I had over a 4.0 GPA in high school and a track record of sustained interest in activities. Even in high school, I won national and state awards for my involvement, and I continued participating in that activity into CC. Other than that, I’m sure I had stellar academic recommendations, some of which were from university professors who taught me over the summer during a two-class intensive program. I lived on campus and really got to know the professors, went to office hours, participated in class, ate lunch with them, etc. So I definitely think I showed those professors that I am willing to work and that I want this more than anything, and I am
sure I also conveyed that in my application.
When it comes down to it, the admission officers don’t want your SAT score or your GPA— they want YOU. It is absolutely crucial that you stay authentic to yourself and show them your true self, your essence or whatever lol, because for selective transfer schools, they are not going to admit someone they feel they don’t know. They are going to admit the person they feel is kind, curious, smart, capable and driven (some traits which your SAT and GPA measure, but only to a certain degree). They are going to admit the student they feel will enhance their campus like no other, because, as we all probably know, one of their primary concerns is “crafting” the student body. What makes you who you are? And why do you fit with x school, Amherst or Williams or anywhere else? Show them this!!
Best of luck to you all, and I look forward to the rest of our college journeys!!
Any chance you could PM me your essay?
I’m really curious to see it. It must be amazing! 
I’m so nervous right now. I don’t know how I’m going to survive these 4-5 weeks.
I wish I applied to Williams. They are like Amherst’s twin, and I love Amherst.
I didn’t take an SAT test though, and they didn’t say on their website that a waiver was possible. However, there is a guy in the Williams transfer thread who said that he got a waiver from them. That’s kinda unfair: They should publicly declare the possibility of getting a waiver if they are going to grant them. :(.
@OwlOfAthena I don’t have SAT’s either, I grew up outside the US (like you, I think?) and moved here as an adult.
So for future applicants - contact colleges you are excited about and ask questions, the worst they can do is say “no” and asking shows initiative, right?