Chance Me: Junior

Colleges and Universities A-Z Mount Holyoke College
1

Hi! I’m in the middle of my junior year and starting my college search process. Everyone here seemed very knowledgable on Mount Holyoke and I would greatly appreciate your feedback as to whether I would be accepted. I am going to separate my information into bullets to make it easier on the eyes.

Basic Information
-I am intending on majoring in Computer Science with a possible minor in Environmental Science/Environmental Studies (minor name varies from school to school)
-I attend a medium sized public high school in Connecticut.
-I am a white female, if that makes any difference.
-Worked all three years of high school so far, as noted in my e-cs
-I was born in late 2001, making me one of the youngest in my grade

Academics
-I took the SAT my sophomore year (March 2017) and got a 710 English and 610 Math (1320 total). I am aware this is far below the average for most people accepted. I hope to rise to at least a 640 in math this spring to make this a 1350 (still not great). Four people in the past three years, however, have been accepted to Mount Holyoke from my school with an average SAT of 1320, so I am not sure.
-My GPA from last year was a 3.53 unweighted and 3.743 weighted. I currently have all As in my classes, so I expect this to become about a 3.6 unweighted and 4.0 weighted (first year with APs).
-I am currently taking 3 APs (Environmental Science: A, Statistics: A, Language: A-) and 2 honors courses (Pre-Calculus: A, US History: B+). I am in two regular ed courses (electives) and have an A+ in one and an A- in another.
-I have taken two accelerated studies in Science and one in World Language (Spanish). I also studied two years of Latin. I have taken 4 previous honors courses, really the most I could in my first two years of high school.
-I am on the advanced math track at my school.

Extra Curriculars (Here is where I stand out)
Freshman Year
-Member of Shakespeare club, student-based human rights org, Latin club, student newspaper, and choir
-Statistician for high school women’s basketball team
-Organizer for first annual LGBT+ pride month
-First year of working in the winter: Youth basketball
-Third year of working in the summer (summer after 9th grade): Youth basketball camp, assistant to camp manager

Sophomore Year
-I served as a member of both the marketing and activist support boards of a youth activist organization
-Attended a youth activist camp
-President/founder of an international academic competition club
-Class Secretary
-Student Representative
-Chairperson for the Business and STEM departments
-Organizer for second LGBT+ pride month
-Organizer for International Women’s Day
-Organizer for cultural awareness day
-Statistician for high school women’s basketball team
-Member of student-based human rights org, and Latin club.
-Second year of working in the winter: Youth basketball
-First year of working an additional job: Youth basketball

Junior Year
-President/founder of an international academic competition club
-Student Representative
-Chairperson for the Business and STEM departments
-Statistician for high school women’s basketball team
-Treasurer for student-based human rights org (continue organizing previous events)
-Youth Volunteer Corps member
-Coordinator for senior projects
-Third year of working in the winter: Youth basketball
-Second year of working an additional job: Youth basketball

I’m sorry this is so long and I hope I have given all the necessary information. If anything else comes to mind or if you have any questions, I will gladly share the information. Thank you so much for your help. I’m a little lost as to where I fall in the grand scheme of things and how selective my schools should be. I love Mount Holyoke for the care they put into their students while still having a very diverse environment similar to that of larger schools.

2

The average GPA there is 3.8 and the average SAT score is 1410. Stats are on the low side, but the college has a 50% admit rate. You’re still in the statistical range, so you have a good shot. You probably took the SAT too early. Study and retake it. Get As in your classes and you should be fine.

3

I realize that is what number publised on CDS but it appears too high.
Only 55% the enrolled class had a GPA> 3.75
Even if the 55% had a 4.0 (they didn’t) the average can’t be 3.8

27% between 3.5-3.74
12% between 3.25-3.49
3% between 3.00-3.24
1.5% between 2.5-2.99
https://www.mtholyoke.edu/sites/default/files/iresearch/docs/CommonDataSetMHC_2017_2018.pdf

4

Your scores are perfectly fine. On their own, they won’t push you in, but they won’t keep you out.

If you think you’d fit in and really want to go, showing interest by visiting and interviewing can help. I strongly recommend it. They have holistic admissions and look at a lot more than grades and scores (although those are important – MHC students are smart).

Will you be applying for financial aid? They meet full need, so if you’re on the cusp the amount of money you need can push you one way or the other. Have you run their net price calculator?

5

With your stats, I think needing financial aid may tip the scales. You should visit and interview, and if it’s your first choice consider applying early.

If you are applying to 10 schools, I would pick 5 less selective than Mount Holyoke, 2 the same, and 2 slightly more selective. If you need financial aid, pick a little lower, if you are full pay you can shoot a little higher.

Your should have 75% of your schools in which your SAT is close to average.

Here the reason. 57% of college applicants are Female, 43% Male, and some schools like a little balance. ( This is why applying to a few all Woman colleges is a GREAT idea ) Some colleges like geographical diversity, and most students apply somewhat close to home. So It can help if your are interested in a few schools far away, but of course it’s harder to visit.

The bottom 25% of an accepted class for LAC’s, have a large percent of Athletes, Legacy, URM, Full pay or connected applicants. Larger schools have a lower percent of Athletes, so not having a hook doesn’t hurt as much.

Between Boston and Washington D.C. there a lot of highly qualified Female applicants, so the competition is tougher than we realized when starting this process. Passing on my thoughts on what we learned. I thing a bump of 30 points on the Math can make a difference. Good Luck

6

How would a college that is need-blind know who is or isn’t full-pay? MHC is need-blind for ~ 95% of those accepted
It is true that the FA office will tabulate how much of the FA budget has been exhausted after the admission office submits the initial group of accepted students. In some years, it is possible that MH is need-sensitive for students on the margin of the admitted applicant pool when considering the last ~ 5% of the applicants and/or waitlisted students.

Another example:

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2016/07/21/what-happens-when-colleges-drop-need-blind-admissions

7

CrewDad, I believe this applicant might just be on the margins at Mount Holyoke. She may also be applying to other LAC"S that are not need blind. I also believe this isn’t exactly true for some colleges. Skidmore also claims to be need sensitive on for the margins. My daughter got waitlisted at Skidmore with 1450 SAT 4.25 GPA and 8 Ap’s, looking at the common data set, she is in no way on the margins at Skidmore. Just my opinion based on our actual results and many of her classmates, not only from high school but current classmates at Mount Holyoke.

8

@Akgj10
I was trying to point out that your claim that the bottom 25% of the class have a large percent of full-pay students isn’t based in fact. Full-pay students are already viewed negativity by some without adding the falsehood that they were very possibly accepted only because of their ability to forgo financial aid.

It’s very possible that your D was waitlised b/c Skidmore suspected that she was using the college as a safety. Colleges do protect yield.

9

CrewDad, I don’t remember saying the bottom 25% of the class have a large percent of full pay students. Thats just some, including athletes, URM and alike. It’s very possible Skidmore wait listed her because she needed a good amount of financial aid, prove me wrong. She visited Skidmore once, and then a second visit for an interview, no easy task as my wife is handicapped BYW. Yeah, I’m still salty about it, I contacted admissions and never heard back. She wasn’t using it as a safety, it would have been one of her top 2 or 3 choices. She accepted a wait list spot at Hamilton instead.
My daughter attends a college with a good amount of full pay students, and we are grateful that these full pay students allow opportunities for others not as fortunate. She says one of the great things about Mount Holyoke is that she knows there are a good amount of full pay students, and many lower income students, and she can’t tell the difference.
However, after going through this process, full pay students get different results than the non full pay students, although after hearing admissions you would think it’s not a factor. ( I don’t mind if a college only accepts full pay students, just be transparent) . Many of these colleges have more students in the top 1% in income than the bottom 60%. Do you think they would wait list my daughter if she was full pay, to protect yield? I don’t respect any college who would treat a 17 year old kid that way, just to make one stat look a little better when their future is on the line. Her guidance counselor is the wrestling coach, so we were kinda on our own.
I think some of this conversation can help CatLover, I would hate for her to over reach and be unhappy with her choices a year from now.
I’m home sick today, I guess I’m just using this conversation as some venting. Sorry if it came off as being against full pay students.

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@akgj10

You stated such in post #4

No apology necessary. Your frustration is very understandable. I hope you get well soon.

11

Mount Holyoke uses a wholistic approach. The rigor of perpetration and prior academic success play a part. The final part is completely subjective. Go visit. Ignore What other’s wrote about income determining admission–it’s BS. Good luck.

12

@akgj1. Your assertion that legacy, URM, athletes are the bottom 25% of MHCs admitted class is complete horse hockey.

13

@Akqj10 the statements you made about MHC admission are pretty off-base. MHC strives to maintain a balance of diversity and talent in each class. And by diversity, I don’t mean race or income. I mean different types of young women with different ambitions, skills, and talent. Rigour of high school curculium and previous academic success are factors but certainly not the only criteria. Finacial aid is complex based upon the student and her families ability to pay and nothing to do with her SAT/GPA. This why college confidential “chance me threads” for holistic admission colleges are useless.

14

I should have been clearer, my mistake, I will try to clarify. My response was two fold, one, her chances of being accepted to Mount Holyoke, and the second in her question “I’m a little lost as to where I fall in the grand scheme of things and how selective my schools should be.”

I agree Mount Holyoke is great in allocating financial aid, as they have a large percent of lower and middle income students for a selective college, my daughter being one of them. I was trying to point out that most of the other selective colleges ( I said LAC’s, I did not specifically say Mount Holyoke, but I understand the confusion, my bad) will not be as good in this regard.

I think this applicant might have a tough time getting into some of the need blind colleges.

I used Skidmore as an example, a lower ranked college, who is need aware. My daughter got wait listed with 1450 SAT, and I contacted admissions and was told, unlike what I heard at the info session, they do not consider need just on the margins (like Mount Holyoke does) but looks at it all along in the process. Colby, Kenyon are also similar schools in which I would be stunned if many students in the bottom 25% were not either Athletes, URM, Full pay or otherwise hooked applicants. Colby, Kenyon and Skidmore are listed as having as many students from the top 1% in income than the bottom 60%.

The point I was trying to make is if she doesn’t get int Mount Holyoke, the similar colleges might consider more if she needs financial. She needs to really research other colleges and have a wide range of schools and understand need aware means different things at different schools. We targeted Mount Holyoke from the get go knowing how great they were in this regard, but also targeted Skidmore and were let down when all was said and done with their different definitions of need aware from the start to the finish.

If you re-read my post, the bottom 25% was referring to “if you apply to 10 school” was more of a generalization of LAC’s and not specifically Mount Holyoke, but as usual I could have been clearer. Sorry, but I have to say, at times I feel some people try to pick on one tiny point and rip you, and it kinda takes away from the larger points of the discussions, so chow for now.

15

@Akqj10, I understand your disappointment about Skidmore, but the reality is that it’s become a very “hot” college in the past few years and the admission rate is down to 22%. Many high-stats students apply who just aren’t going to get in. It may or may not have to do with financial need. One thing I’ve learned is that you really can never know what makes a college say yes or no. Unless your D’s guidance counselor can somehow get the scoop, it’s likely to remain a mystery.

As far as need aware, our son is applying now to a school that bills itself as such; when I called to get more detailed info, I was told that they’re need aware for international students only. I would not have known that otherwise.

16

I agree with a bunch of above. Skidmore isn’t easy to get into, and 1450, while obviously good, is not going to get you in on its own. However, I am absolutely certain that for some people, financial need matters at Mount Holyoke, because we were told so in those exact words by an admissions dean a few years ago.

It’s never the entire piece, of course. They want the best students, and a mix of diversity and talent, and I think they do as good or better a job at this than any other school. What does happen is that if you’re on the bubble of being admitted, and if you have more need than an applicant who is in all other ways equal, they pick the other person. As much as they hate it, they do have a budget.

It’s worth noting that the dean was clear that it’s definitely not all about stats and need, quite the opposite. Tons of people get in with lower stats AND more need than people who are not admitted. She said sometimes they just see “something” in the overall picture presented that makes them want that student.

17

Hi everyone, I wanted to update this as it has been quite a while since I last posted. To answer some questions, I would be a student capable of paying full rate and I would not be expecting financial aid. I recently took the SAT again and got a 1420 (760 Reading/Writing, 660 Math), so I am feeling more confident in acceptance to Mount Holyoke. My GPA is now a 4.1 W and 3.8 UW now as well.

However, due to a string of tornadoes in my area, I will likely be unable to take all three AP exams as planned this year (AP Stats and AP Lang are rescheduled for the same day, I will likely take Lang, I already took APES).

18

Looks promising