her full stats:
white female
1530 SAT (760 math / 770 reading/writing)
physics major
3.99 UW (4.27 weighted through 1st half of senior year - 10 APs (but 7 are senior year) - only 8 offered by her school, she found 2 more online)
#1 in her class - except they don’t rank officially, so couldn’t use this
good LOR, and I think essays were good (though those are very subjective)
solid EC’s - but not spectacular (tutoring, started a club, etc.) - good but nothing earth-shattering
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That’s a very impressive kid his stats are slightly better than my kids and my kid didn’t even take the sat. Is Bryn Mawr test blind? That’s an excellent SAT score
Bryn Mawr is test-optional, I believe.
Of the schools D applied to, MIT required tests, CalTech was totally test-blind. All the others were test-optional, but with a 1530 she obviously included it 
So what do you think happened? I’m just trying to learn for the next kid who is a more accomplished (on paper).
How was demonstrated interest?
I think she was high-stats, but relatively high-need. And no real “hook”. And from CA. And demonstrated interest (as AFG8r96 asked about) was probably lower than it could have been. We visited alot of schools, but there was no other schools near BMC and we prioritized visits to places where we could hit 2-3 schools in one trip.
Disappointing, I think she would have loved it there.
She WILL likely opt in to the waitlist, but isn’t expecting anything.
But how are you going to justify the price tag of BMC? I anticipate it being $320K just b/w tuition and board. Throw in trips home and your looking at closer to $350K.
Compare that to a UC like UCSC, not a higher ranked UC but also touchy feely and supportive and it will cost $150K and she can drive back any weekend she wants!
For others who read for the future, you don’t have to visit to demonstrate interest - plenty of virtual options available to sign up for. I had 2 kids choose college from overseas sight-unseen. My Bryn Mawr student interviewed virtually and attended a ton of online sessions/tours/forums as well as interacting with her admissions officer. She ended up applying ED which is, of course, the ultimate show of interest. Many of the smaller selective schools need to see that personal sustained interest especially if very high stats.
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the only way it would work is with some good FA. Based on our EFC it should be doable - but that MIGHT also be part of why she was waitlisted.
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absolutely. She did interview with them, and did some online sessions - but in hindsight not as much as she could have.
They correctly understood they weren’t her top choice - not even top 5, initially. It’s just when she didn’t get into any “lottery” schools, and her other top choices waitlisted her, they moved up…but at that point it was too late to “demonstrate interest”. She treated them as “also a nice option”, but they very clearly figured that out.
That’s another lesson - if the school is worth applying to, it’s worth making the effort to jump through the hoops to be sure you do what they need to accept you. Otherwise don’t bother.
The challenge is of course, for kids playing sports (D played varsity volleyball - but a SMALL school, D6), doing music, taking 7 APs, there’s only so much time in the day to try to cram it all in…
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I don’t mean to be mean, but I suspect there is something else wrong with the application if she didn’t get in with her stats. My kid didn’t attend any events at Bryn Mawr and similar ranked schools and got accepted into most. I had though it was geographical diversity was her “hook” but your experience tells me otherwise. Did you get a professional college counsellor to help her. I’ve heard they leave a fingerprint that the reviewers can pick up.
If they are not-blind (I believe they are “need sensitive”), well then that’s a good possible reason. This is a student who got into Grinnell so I wouldn’t jump to there being a “problem” with the application. @ProudDad_of_D23 I’ve been wondering if your kiddo applied to UCs or CSUs since you are from California? If not, why not? I’m just curious. Possible that she doesn’t see herself at a larger or public school? I have one more coming through this process in an other few years, so I’m always interested in people’s decision making when coming up with a list. My D23 is in at “good” UCs and CSUs but now that it’s coming down to the wire, I find myself looking at the kind of person she is and thinking she might be better served at a LAC. But the ones that are affordable for us (same cost as UCs) are of course not the more highly ranked ones and so she’s a little reluctant, and the ones that she loves and are in a part of the country where she wants to be for college (in/near LA) would cost us more (and probably too much). The one school that is sort of perfect in every way except location is Oberlin (she’s a liberal arts/music kid), where she got enough merit money to make it more affordable. But I can’t sell her on Ohio. It puts me in the mind of your daughter and Grinnell.
I’m thinking need was a factor too - probably had kids who needed aid and also met other institutional priorities. Seems like the best strategy for high needs students is to apply ED to a meets-needs school that is not in the very top tier of selectivity.
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Bingo. My kid got into Cal Poly, SDSU and her top UC choice UCSC (good health care major). But I think she would have thrived at a LAC. She got into some in the top 50 (i.e. Rhodes) with enough merit so it was as cheap as a UC and into several in the top 100 so it was as cheap as a CSU but as you mention, these are not in desirable parts of the country. Add to this, she is a girl questioning her sexuality and all the conservative leaning states got thrown out despite me pointing out colleges are the most liberal towns possible. Sigh.
For that reason I don’t mind her going to UCSC. It seems the most LAC out of all the CSU/UCs
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I wouldn’t lose sleep over this. If a woman’s college won’t support a woman with that kind of demonstrated interest aptitude in math and science, it’s their own loss. Looking back, some LAC’s can be sheltered and don’t provide the best preparation for real-life scenarios. With her accomplishments, your D will forge her own path at whatever institution is lucky enough to have her. And I think tutoring is a great EC - enough to launch my applicant into an ultra competitive STEM program.
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I’m curious if anyone knows if it is typical to get in but not receive any merit aid. This is the only private school that did not provide merit aid. Bummed bc she was rejected at Smith, waitlisted at Holyoke and this was our last Women’s college app. I thought it would be a good fit and maybe better for her given that it’s closer to home (we are in DC area). But we just can’t afford $80k+ a year and do not qualify for needs based aid.
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I know you are trying to be helpful, but saying, “don’t worry about it, it’s there loss” is not the best message. I think @ProudDad_of_D23 's kid deserves to be annoyed. If a kid works hard they deserve a spot. Just looking at our two kids (his and mine) I can’t begin to phathom how my kid got in and his did not. The only explanation I can come up with is major. My kid chose pre-med (biology) which is perhaps not as selective?
From their website, they said merit aid is not common but needs based aid is. I’ve seriously thought if people purposefully step back from their $100K+ jobs to take a job at Starbucks earning $40K. It would make sense if you save $80K on college and if you had two kids even better!
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my S18 went to Cal Poly. We visited multiple times, D didn’t really want to do the “big” schools. She’s at a small private high school (senior class of 38), so even these LACs are HUGE in comparison. UChicago was the biggest school she applied to.
She also wants to “go away” to college - the only place she applied in CA was CalTech. Their acceptance rate was under 2% (maybe under 1%?), but they come up near the top on every list of “top physics programs in the world” so she took her shot.
Applying places that meet need (or at least most of it) with our income puts the total cost not that far off of what UC or CSU’s would cost, and I truly believe a smaller school will be a better fit for her - and it happens to also be what she wants
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