I am curious in knowing what certain terms mean in this community. For example, what is reach, safety, and match?
If you think that there are more terms that I should know, please feel free to add.
Thank you.
A “match” is a school in which the student’s GPA, scores, extra curriculars (ECs), etc. seem to fall in line with the average for the school, thus indicating that the school is a good match for them, and they have a fair chance at getting in. By comparison, a “safety” is a school that you can be almost sure you’ll get into (as your GPA, scores, ECs, etc. are well above the school’s average) and that you know you can pay for, while a “reach” is a school that you have less of a chance of getting into, but some shot - these are the sort of “I may as well try and see” kinds of schools. People tend to say that Ivies, due to their low acceptance rates, are in some ways reaches for everybody. Some people are more descriptive with “Safety,” “Low match,” “Match,” “High match,” “Low reach,” “(Mid) reach,” and “High reach.”
A few other terms:
EA/ ED: Early Action (not binding, i.e. if you get accepted, you don’t NEED to go)/ Early Decision (binding)
SCEA: Single Choice Early Action (like EA but you can only apply to one school)
CC: Either College Confidential or Community College, though generally the latter (depends on context)
TAG: Transfer Admission Guarantee
UCs: The campuses of the University of California (ex. UCLA, UCD, UCSD, etc.)
I’ll let you know if I think of anything else.
Oh! PM means Personal Message. It’s kind of College Confidential’s email system.
That was so helpful! Thank you!