<p>Hello,</p>
<p>I was rejected when I applied RD to Dickinson last year(Fall 2013). I am thinking about applying to Dickinson this year as well but as an EA applicant. Are there any perks of applying again to a college you were rejected the previous year? Or disadvantages for that matter? </p>
<p>Also, I know Dickinson is a great college. But, are there things I need to consider before committing myself to the college?</p>
<p>Dickinson offers 3 types of applications: early decision (ED), early action (EA), and regular decision (RD). Only ED is binding. So applying EA would not be “committing” yourself to the college.</p>
<p>Also, transfer applications are different, so the 3 types described above would only be applicable if you took a gap year rather then enrolling in another college.</p>
<p>I don’t know for sure, but I would guess that it is a disadvantage to applying to a college that has already rejected you. Is there anything that would make your application stronger a year later, such as higher test scores, worthwhile activities during a gap year, etc.?</p>
<p>sacchi-</p>
<p>I am planning to apply as a first-year applicant. And regarding improving my application this year, I am retaking the SAT and hope to improve on my score of 1980 (1380 composite) this year. Regarding extra-curricular activities I am currently involved in an internship at a decent NGO. But I believe it might not be enough. Can you suggest me any worthwhile extracurricular that will really do good to my application?</p>
<p>OP, it still depends on which type of first-year application you intend to submit (ED, EA, or RD). But honestly… your odds of acceptance probably aren’t that great after being rejected previously. I hope you have a backup plan for what you will do next year (other places to apply) if you don’t get in at Dickinson. My D graduated from Dickinson – it is a fine school, but there are many, many other colleges, and you can get a great education at a lot of them. No one here (or even in admissions) can tell you what extracurricular to add that will get you over the admissions hump.</p>
<p>Are you international, or are you a US citizen? What is your financial situation?</p>
<p>intparent-</p>
<p>I am an international. I can probably pay upto 10K/yr. So, as you can figure out I will be needing quite a significant financial aid.</p>
<p>About applying again, like I said I will probably be making changes to all my stuffs(personal statement, CVs) and retaking the SAT. So, I feel can come across as a stronger candidate this time around. And, don’t college rate you better because you applied to their college the previous year? I mean doesn’t it indicate that I really want to join their college especially considering I am applying early?</p>
<p>And, Dickinson isn’t completely my dream college. So, I guess I will have little trouble finding another college that fits me well. But, it is just that I thought my interest in the college would shine through if I applied again. </p>
<p>Anyways, what about applying again(maybe even early) to the colleges that had me on their wait-list?</p>
<p>Thanks.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>We’re not admissions officers, so it’s hard to say, but I doubt it. I’ve followed CC for a number of years, and know a lot of college age students, and I don’t think I’ve ever heard of a case where someone was accepted to a school after having been rejected the prior year, except for one case that was a non-flagship state U with pretty clear admissions criteria, and an improvement in test scores allowed the student to meet the requirements the next year. I’m sure it has happened, of course, but I think it is probably infrequent based upon my anecdotal experience. When I’ve heard about students who decide to take a gap year because of a disappointing admissions season and reapply the next year, I’ve heard of them purposely picking different schools to apply to.</p>
<p>It’s somewhat mysterious what makes admissions officers at a particular school decide whether or not a student would be a good fit for a particular college. For whatever reason, Dickinson’s admissions officers didn’t consider you a fit, so I wouldn’t think that they would change their mind the next year, unless there was something significantly better about your application the next year. I’m not trying to discourage you from applying to Dickinson again, just to temper your expectations.</p>
<p>For colleges that you ended up on the wait list, perhaps that is a big more promising. </p>
<p>In general, being an international student requiring significant financial aid makes it more difficult to be accepted almost everywhere. Look for schools that are good about meeting need, because it’s no use getting accepted to school that you won’t be able to attend. Good luck.</p>
<p>^
Thanks you very much. sacchi.
Whatever you said definitely makes sense and there are plenty of other colleges for me to choose from.
I think part of my failure to get admitted to a college has to do with some bad college decisions. I mean I think I got a little bit carried away and didn’t have sufficient safeties.</p>
<p>as an international with significant aid need you should have 2100+ SAT impressive achievements. My friend ('16) who got about 50k aid/ yr has 2300 SAT. you know every n each year will be more competitive. You are admissible for sure, but need a lot of aid… that’s why you are rejected.</p>