He’s my third and final going through this process. My oldest was applying in Fall 2016. EA has become more popular since then. And it is nice to know early- but my son’s confidence in getting in anywhere is not very high at the moment. I’m trying to be positive but Auburn has over 80% acceptance rate. And wondering if he should have stuck with regular classes to have all A’s instead of challenging himself. We felt that in long run he’d be better prepared for college even if he didn’t get all A’s.
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Exact same thinking here. My daughter is well aware of the acceptance rate, and now feels terrible and is fearful about other schools. Her college counselor said she felt “excellent” about her Auburn app.
I don’t mean to take away from the high stat kids who rightfully earned their acceptance, but my daughter feels washed up with a still strong, honest GPA, tough AP classes and leadership and state awards.
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Funny thing is - when we did NPC with his unweighted GPA, it says he could qualify for 15k scholarship.
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I am so surprised by all these deferrals. Sending hugs to all of you and your kids. Please keep things in perspective. Your kids have NOT been rejected. In all likelihood, they will all be accepted in the regular round. 
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The whole process was strange this year. They took away the short answer questions and said they will only look at grades and scores. Very unlike Auburn in the past. My son has lower scores than some of the others that were also deferred but GPA was 3.9, SAT within range (although low end) and legacy parent. Blows my mind how someone with high GPA and scores were deferred. I guess we wait to see what happens in March. Wish they would review again earlier.
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It just reminds me of my son and how UGA was in 2015. Back then, UGA said early action was just numbers, strictly that. Unapologetically the case so that’s just what it was. ( I believe Mr. Graves says UGA is more holistic now.) Anyway, my son with a 35 ACT and APs, etc was told to expect to be deferred by his counselor, which he indeed was but got in regular decision. But UGA was 48% acceptance rate at the time, so we just rolled with it. Auburn doesn’t publish anywhere near that acceptance rate, and of course things change, but did they change that much from 77% last year? I don’t know, something doesn’t make sense and the lack of data is befuddling and incredibly discouraging.
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The biggest issue is, with a deferral and no notification until March, other schools’ application deadlines will be expired by then. Kind of shocking with an 85% acceptance rate that there would be this many referrals with folks in their stat range.
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So many deferrals with great stats are surprising to me, too. Maybe some of you can reach out to your admissions counselors and double check to be sure you were sent the correct letter and ask when your final decision might come and what they think your chances are for being admitted. I wonder if they have gotten more applicants this year and just want to be careful to stay in the range of admitted Freshmen who they know can fit on their campus…and 2 of the dorm halls are being remodeled so I wonder if that means less spots available this year? I would still recommend taking rigorous classes in high school to prepare for the rigors of college and to prove you can be successful in those types of classes.
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While we are thrilled for our son’s acceptance, it is very interesting to see the kids that seem to be above the average GPA and even above the 75%tile for SAT/ACT get deferred. Since I have another child coming along in a few years that is also interested in Auburn, I am curious to see what responses the families receive and if they are admitted in the later round.
Based on Auburn’s outcome, my daughter’s list just went from about 7 schools or so to nearly 20. And I bet we aren’t alone in that line of thinking, which of course runs up applications everywhere. We are putting schools on her working list we never thought we would. That’s insanity, but getting deferred from a school with those acceptance stats just reinforces the feeling like it is the Wild West out there… SEC schools have increased their recruiting and marketing efforts out west and up north and it’s felt. To illustrate, when we came to visit Auburn in October, we were in a room of about ~90 people (parents and prospective students). When asked who was there from Alabama, not one hand was raised (we are OOS too, border state). When asked who had parents that went to Auburn, not one hand was raised. That made me nervous then. Apps are up, for sure.
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Carter6, we are in the exact same boat. We are adding schools, rethinking strategy fearing she won’t get in to any.
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See below…(from the LA Times (Oct. 4, 2021).) Good luck to those deferred, as I’m sure it is a very stressful situation and hopefully works out for the best for you and your student!
“During the 2020-21 admissions cycle, the widespread adoption of test-optional policies emboldened students to apply to colleges that once seemed out of reach. Yet the increased number of gap-year students who had deferred enrollment, mainly because of the pandemic, made students nervous about the availability of spaces in freshman classes. This combination of hope and uncertainty led students to apply to a record number of colleges, driving up application totals and lowering acceptance rates across the country.”
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Sending good vibes to you NoVaMom73 and all other deferred families. Covid fallout just won’t quit it seems.
And of course congrats to all accepted! It was well earned!
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I think we are going to have to add more schools too. And I am not even sure where to start!
I spoke to our admissions counselor this morning. She said that they are not looking at anything but Scores and grades. She confirmed that my son’s SAT score was what got him deferred. They do not look at demonstrated interest, legacy or recommendation letters. None of that matters. It is all just a numbers game now. She said they have received a record number of applications this year. Congratulations to all that were admitted and good luck to those that were deferred. I guess COVID just did us in 
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Agree about the numbers. Such a message to send to the young people going out into the world, but sadly isn’t unique to Auburn.
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I spoke to ours and heard basically the same thing. It’s very disheartening for these kids!
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What was the intended major? My DD had a lot of friends deferred and they all seemed to be nursing, pre-med or another medical field for study. Wondering if intended major makes a difference? Her major is business and she was accepted. Sorry for these kids to experience this so early on in the process. Some kids thought it was a safety and they were deferred. Crazy.
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So I wonder- if the kids who went test optional all were deferred? They only have their GPA being evaluated and maybe class rigor, essays? My thinking is they put kids in two pots- with test scores & without. Those with test scores given more than a cursory review. Those without, pushed to “deferred” as almost a punishment? Congrats to those who were accepted but my student is like others now worried that they need to now start applying to schools they really may not want just to have a place to land.
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For what it’s worth- my daughter sent her ACT and was deferred. (29, not super exceptional, but I think that’s top 10%, but I’d have to check that).
Anyway, here is another thing I find rather annoying: these schools know their apps are up 30-40% or whatever, lowering their acceptances and sending kids scurrying to apply elsewhere. But they keep their notification date the same- mid March? And commitment is May 1? So those of us scrambling now will have a ~6 short weeks (during school year including senior activities) to visit and choose from schools we thought weren’t in the mix? Seems like they could give final decisions sooner as a courtesy given the environment?
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