<p>Is anyone going to Accepted Students Open House on 4/7? I will be there with D2. And after the 2 feet of snow we just got yesterdya in MA it can’t wait!</p>
<p>My son was accepted EA but without scholarship- SAT-1380, Class rank-15%, GPA (UW)>3.8, W-4.52 (7 honors/APs); he received president’s scholarship at Tulane (25K) per year and similar scholarship from Case Western. Also, accepted to Univ. of Michigan. I think Miami’s fixation on considering only students ranked in top 10% of class is shortsighted and as a result, they miss out on really qualified kids. Class rank is no doubt important and clearly a metric for US News ranking but it is influenced by the strength of the individual class and the school. With Miami’s yield at only around 20%, even with most kids matriculating in the top 10%, they could significantly improve the yield with a more holistic and sensible evaluation of a student’s record. Obviously, my son is not going there-Michigan is likely and waiting on a few others.</p>
<p>Calblaze I agree. UM is very focused on improving their rankings and class rank is a part of that, according to USNWR at least. UM definitely put too much emphasis on the whole “top 10%” thing. Based on the stats you provided I think your son was deserving of at least a small scholarship. </p>
<p>I had a friend who got into NYU, Tufts, Wakeforest, and USC but was outright rejected at Miami because of being only in the top 25%. The thing was, it was almost entirely because he had a subpar Freshmen year of high school, but I guess Miami doesn’t take that into account. </p>
<p>Their review process is hardly holistic. They’re more concerned with gaming their rankings than truly accepting and rewarding intelligent, high caliber students.</p>
<p>@mumof2 going to open house with ds. We are locals so we just have to worry with traffic and parking.</p>
<p>I think you are both short sighted and upset that your child did not receive any scholarships. Each school is different, you cannot compare schools and scholarship awards. My child was not in the top 10% and received a scholarship. My child was also accepted to Tulane and received nothing. After visiting the school and meeting with people in the Business School, they are looking for well rounded students. Most students that are applying have taken 7 AP Courses and scored well on standardized tests, but they are also looking at work experience and accomplishments outside of school. At the end of the day, if the school really wants your child, they will offer scholarship money. In your case, I guess Miami did not want your son and in my case Tulane did not want my child.</p>
<p>I don’t have a child going to UM, but I have had my own experiences and I’ve seen the experiences of many friends with UM. UM can evaluate students however they please and I’m sure plenty of kids get scholarships that are out of the top 10%. However, I do think UM places a disproportionately large emphasis on class rank. In fact, by their own admission UM adcoms say that class rank is very important and that they prefer high class rank and average scores vs average class rank and high scores. I personally don’t feel like class rank is an entirely fair metric to measure the caliber of applicants. It doesn’t account for a poor freshmen year, or an upward trend, and obviously at some high schools its significantly easier to be in the top 10% than others. On top of that, even at the same high school each graduating class has varying strength. </p>
<p>I think if USNWR suddenly decided to put more weight on standardized test scores, and less on class rank, UM would probably change its tune. This isn’t a problem to an extent. I think it’s good that UM wants to improve its rank and break into the elite american universities. I do, however, see an issue with it when they’re willing to do so at the expense of qualified, intelligent applicants.</p>
<p>After visiting the school and actually speaking school advisors, they are focused on students thriving at Miami. They did not say this, but if your child had a hard transition to high school and had poor grades their freshman year, who is to say that the same will not happen when they go to college. I have known many students who had a difficult transition from high school to college. They were all bright kids. I believe they look at that. You have to look at the full 4 years. It is all about consistency and committment. </p>
<p>For certain majors at Miami, after the initial major related courses, you must have minimum GPA’s to move forward. They stressed the point of making sure that students graduate in four years and they are not on the 5 year plan. I like their approach. If you really want to know what is going on, you need to speak with the various academic advisors. Admissions counselors are sales people.</p>
<p>rightofway- the fact that a child struggled with the transition from middle to high school in no way is comparable to the transition from high school to college. All children mature at different rates and adolescence is a big part of that first transition.</p>
<p>Also, to make the blanket statement that Tulane wants our son but Miami does not is inaccurate. Nothing is all-or-none- the fact that your child was not in the top 10% and got a scholarship may be an exception, and congrats, but does not reflect the predominant focus of Miami on the top 10%. In fact, we were told our child had to be in the top 10% to be considered, which may have been inaccurate but it’s the rule rather than the exception-that’s also is what is on the website. Moreover, our child received scholarships at other comparable institutions and admissions to “higher” ranked school. In sum, I and others are just arguing that Miami may be losing some in a tier of applicants show are a really good fit for the school.</p>
<p>If you think the transition is seamless from high school to college, it is just the opposite. For many kids, this is the first time they have been away from home. There are no parents to make sure that they study for tests and do their assignments. Kids make bad social decisions. </p>
<p>They are some schools that tell you that they discount the freshman year and I can see their arguement. As far the the 10 % remark, I think they are looking at more well rounded students. Again, speak to the academic advisors. They can give you great insight to the philosophy of the school and what types of students succeed at Miami.</p>
<p>Also, I believe geography is a factor as well. </p>
<p>I do believe that Tulane wanted your son more than my child. If Tulane wanted my son, they would offered him a scholarship. From what I read, they were plenty of kids who had lower stats than my child, who recieved scholarships.</p>
<p>First of all congratulations to all the kids that got accepted with or without scholarships to great institutions like Tulane and Miami. Parents sometimes forget that going to college is a time of great stress and just the fact that they’ve been accepted should be celebrated. Scholarships are not a given. Ives are very selective about scholarships no one complains. Miami has many grants available to students.My friend’s daughter was accepted at UPenn but could not afford it and went to UM. She started with a small state scholarship. She then met with the UM finance advisors and he helped lower her tuition to $6,000 (more than $20,000 in grants). Some of my sons friends got scholarships and others did not. If money is what matters the most, go to the institution that offers you the most. If the institution is what matter to you, then try to work with them and see if other grants are available.</p>
<p>I don’t think UM looks at a poor freshmen year with the mentality of, “Oh, they’d have a rough transition to college too.” </p>
<p>Even if they recognized that a student has made great strides in their 4 years and is qualified, the freshmen year may still leave a dent in their class rank.</p>
<p>UM can’t report to USNWR that “the student just had a bad freshmen year.” No, they just report a class rank. So UM would sooner accept a student who made the top 10%, even if another student who wasn’t in the top 10 was equally or more qualified. </p>
<p>I know plenty of kids from my HS who were averagely smart who managed the top 10% along with decent test scores. I also know students who were very smart and had excellent test scores, but weren’t in the top 10% due to a poor freshmen year, or other extenuating circumstances. </p>
<p>My point is that UM would sooner accept or throw money at those reasonably smart students in the top 10, than the very smart students who weren’t in the top 10% for what most colleges would consider understandable and pardonable reasons.</p>
<p>reddog25-completely agree; it’s a policy that will continue to see low yield.</p>
<p>We should make a list of the parents who have DS or DD or are definitely going to have freshman at UM in August. My DS is at 99% (just waiting to hear from 2 more schools - we will know for sure by the end of next week), so I’m not putting myself on the list yet (don’t want to jinx myself!).</p>
<p>Anyone want to start?</p>
<p>Hi All,</p>
<p>I was checking in as I remember exactly a year ago when I was in your shoes. My son had a difficult time deciding between some amazing schools, but ultimately decided on Miami. It has been a great decision - FOR HIM. I stress the FOR HIM as it was not about what I wanted, or the random rankings of a school, or even the money. He turned down higher ranked schools and greater scholarships, but felt the U was the best fit for him. So far, so good! While he had struggled a little freshman year in HS, he has not at college- 4.0 first semester in mostly 200 level classes. I think by college most of them have greatly matured and know what they need to do to succeed. They have proven that with their HS accomplishments or else would not have gotten in. He also has some wonderful opportunities due to the fact that he came into school with 23 credits. It is allowing him to get dual degrees and still graduate in four years. His advisors have been amazing in setting up his curriculum, and he will even be able to do a semester abroad. Speaking to the Deans helped him make up his mind. They were surprisingly available, and still are.</p>
<p>Good luck to you and your children !</p>