<p>So, I've just noticed so many threads on CC where people ask others to "chance" them. I find this very pathetic because:
A- People on here have NO experience with admissions and do not work for admissions offices so they can't tell. They are mere high school students who are going through the same thing you are (many of them merely judge students by their SAT scores).
B- What's the point? I mean just apply to wherever you want to go and see how it turns out. I have a couple of friends with relatively low SAT scores getting into penn and other ivy leagues/ivy-caliber schools. You never know until you try so don't waste your time trying to get opinions from unexperienced people. </p>
<p>Just try your best, hope things'll turn out well and don't listen to people who are trying to put you down.</p>
<p>Actually, some of us are current college students, who are trying to help others. I agree that High School students should not judge or chance though, since no one really knows
what the quota is that year for a specific college. We as college students though, have a little more insight since we are aware of who got in, at least in our own school.</p>
<p>I’m going to agree with both of you, to an extent. Chancing may be of some use when parents or current college students respond, and say, yes, I got in or my son got in with similar stats. The problem, however, is that it is very common to have 2 students with similar stats apply to the same college and get different results. It’s just like using Naviance - it can tell you if you are in the ballpark, but there is never a guarantee. Sometimes we are very puzzled as to why one student was accepted and the other was deferred when they have similar stats. It might be the quality of the essay, the ECs, the teacher recs - or it might just be that they had too many applications from similar students. One of the biggest challenges with the college admissions process is that the results of one individual student do not always make sense. So, chance threads - not very useful, except in a very general sense.</p>
<p>I posted a chance thread after applying. I think what motivated me to do it was b/c I’m hungry for some kind of feedback (good or bad) from college students until the wait is finally over. Of course, every comment on a chance me post should taken with a grain of salt.</p>
<p>Actually, many colleges including Caltech have current undergraduate students as part of the admissions committee. Their opinions carry weight when the committee makes its final decision, so they aren’t taking a backseat in the process.</p>
<p>In addition, it builds a ton of confidence when someone hears that they have a decent shot at their top school. If they are asking as a Sophomore/Junior, then they will get more motivated to work hard.</p>
<p>It seems obvious that one can figure out the likelihood of getting into a school if the decision is just based on scores. But it’s not so cut-and-dry. There’s so much more to it than just the numbers and more and more colleges are taking that “holistic approach”.</p>
<p>It helps to see those stats of others because the decision goes well beyond just numbers. It also helps to see who else is applying. And for some, it’s just what to do while waiting.</p>
<p>People who chance tend to try to motivate, especially when they see juniors/sophomores (“work hard and apply… you never know…”). I agree that chance threads are helpful, but not accurate at determining one’s chances.</p>
<p>Not necessarily demotivate, rather refocus. I’ve seen several cases where a student will list a series of schools that are all extreme reaches, and then a safety that’s reach. That person is risking all rejections unless he or she posts and is given a reality check. Some students just don’t have the background to understand admissions criteria. </p>
<p>While encouraging students is a good thing, creating unrealistic expectations is a terrible thing.</p>
<p>What would make this forum more appropriate? 1. No responses when people “guess” or “project” SAT scores. That creates unrealistic expectations for students that do worse than their projection. 2. People should only reply if they have very good knowledge of a particular school’s admissions history. Right now, most “chancers” use uneducated guesses along the lines of “well, he’s not qualified for MIT, so that’s a reach. Georgia Tech isn’t as good as MIT, so that must be a match, and Virginia Tech isn’t as good as GT, so that must be a safety”. This is not correct logic. 3. No “chance me and I’ll chance you back” logic anymore. Consistent with point 2, ten uninformed chances are not worth as much as one informed chance. 4. The colleges should be listed in the title. How else will the informed respondents be able to find the thread?</p>
<p>^^^agree. Ten uninformed chances are not worth much. But I think most kids who visit this particular thread are trying to get a reality check. Therefore, aren’t all these chances a guess (or uneducated guess) to some degree?</p>
<p>Definitely, the college name should be in the title.</p>
<p>There are some well informed posters that pop up from time to time. You can generally get an idea who they when the OP lists ten colleges and the person only replies about one. The people that reply for all ten then add a link at the bottom are the guessers.</p>
<p>It’s definitely hit or miss, especially because we have little grasp of the context students are evaluated in. Even inside of certain geographical areas, the relationships individual high school have with colleges varies.</p>
<p>Technically, everyone is guessing, G.P. Even someone who used to work for an admissions committee can’t say for certain whether any particular person will get into Harvard. All people here can really do is say whether or not you are similar to people who have gotten in before.</p>
<p>A. You don’t have to be an admission official. If you follow who got into what for about 5~6 years (yeah, my father and I did), you can get a general sense of who gets in and who doesn’t.</p>
<p>B. Yeah, what if someone doesn’t even bother asking and applies to all Ivies and nowhere else, and gets rejected by everyone? Many people here have gotten into Ivies or have sent their children to Ivies, so they can be well informed.</p>
<p>Basically, if someone says “chance back” anywhere, chances are they are not well informed.</p>
<p>Blindly guessing and educated guessing are two different things. Besides, there are current faculty and admissions counselors that are on here from various schools. Most of the time they try to remain anonymous, but sometimes they leave characteristic responses that all you to identify them.</p>