<p>So after each kid's SAT, we got the deluge of college emails. We knew to expect it, based on the fact that they checked the "yes, send me stuff" box. But they started coming in way before we had/have results. Here is the thing...high achieving SAT kid got email from high reach type schools, as well as some less selective schools. Now, lesser scoring sibling, who did ok (read, above average but not a score that is attractive to the likes of HPYS, and the like) retook the SAT last weekend, and again we are suddenly receiving emails from mid tier schools, but not selective schools. We are fine with the eventual choices he will have, so it's not about wanting him to go to a more prestigious school. It's just got me wondering if these schools are privy to info from the college board before we are. Like, knowing that a certain kid scored in a certain range, and hence they should send out the recruiting email? I know scores aren't even available until March 27, but it just seems odd to me that there has been a sudden up-tick in correspondence so soon after the test.</p>
<p>Shellz, my daughter started getting college mail as a ninth grader. She had not taken an SAT. She had not participated in any talent search types of programs. She just started getting mail. We advised her NOT to check the box when she took her PSAT and SAT. By that time, she was already getting a ton of (useless) mail.</p>
<p>The mailings came for highly competitive schools as well as smaller ones.</p>
<p>We quipped that DD should have applied to WUSTL, and include ALL of the mailings that said what a great addition she would make to their campus. She didn’t have an ice cubes chance in hell of being accepted there.</p>
<p>The good thing about email is that if you don’t want it, you can flag it as spam, or block the URL. With snail mail…it was IMPOSSIBLE to stop receiving mail.</p>
<p>Thumper: Lol…we could have wall papered our home with our kids’ college brochures. I am continually amazed by the amount of money these schools must spend on printing and mailing them. They must get a return on the investment… Thankfully, it seems that since our oldest went to college in 08, the trend has been more email than snail mail. Maybe with all the savings, the colleges can drop tuition prices. ;-). A parent can dream, right?</p>
<p>I guess I am antsy right now. S needs an improvement in one particular area on the SAT, which if he did so might mean he would be attractive to some more selective schools. (Actually one in particular). So, the fact that we are seeing the same emails, or emails from schools of similar selectivity, makes me wonder if he did not improve where he had hoped he would. I’m hopeful that I am wrong. </p>
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I don’t think the schools see info on individual kids. They are buying/renting mailing lists from the College Board, who I’m sure groups them up in a million different ways, based on scores, zip code, what was checked off, etc. And they certainly have at least the raw results weeks or even months before they are sent to the kids.</p>
<p>The funniest thing was my son getting email from certain small women’s colleges in the midwest. Repeatedly. (His name is an unambiguous English language male name.)</p>
<p>BTW, apparently some colleges seek higher application numbers, so they can boost their acceptance statistic (i.e., get the % lower), which helps with the USNews ranking algorithm. And some schools do target high scorers, for similar statistical reasons.</p>
<p>One more thing: many emails are sent by an email service company (subsidiary of Pearson’s, if I’m remembering correctly), not by the colleges directly. Bulk email costs are fairly low, the programs are mostly automated.</p>
<p>Some schools like UMN would even offer you free application and waived the essay requirement.</p>