So my daughter just received news yesterday that her ED application was deferred until March, needless to say she is crushed. I’m unsure what exactly is wrong I know her scores were probably mid-range, 1370 SAT or 1390 Superscored. She has great extracurriculars she has stuck with for years.she, is very active in school, community, volunteer work and talented vocally ( All State Vocal Jazz and All State honors choir) She had at least 4 leadership positions. One of her recommendations was from a Harvard PhD. GPA is 4.12W/3.87 UW, They said to let them know of her continued interest, keep up with grades, and let them know if she has other awards or achievements, and maybe submit another
recommendation.
Sorry I wasn’t finished. I just wondered if anyone had the same experience or had any insight as to if we still have a fighting chance at acceptance. The semester is nearly over and she continues to stay extremely active, she also works part-time. She’s a mover and a shaker and we thought it was a perfect fit. I don’t see a lot changing by spring. We can get another reference, and she will express her continued interest but were just not sure what deferrel means if it’s just a polite no. Does anyone know acceptance rates for Oberlin Arts and Science College for those who have been deferred? I should also add she is also applying at the Oberlin conservatory and wanted to pursue a double degree. I’m not sure if this fact would have affected the decision. Any insight would be greatly appreciated. Sorry to ramble it’s hard, we were waiting for decision day tomorrow and the email came early.
I am not super familiar with Oberlin, but from what I have seen, many LACS defer a lot of students into the RD round, and some do get accepted. I suspect that the schools feel they have to take certain ones (athletes, legacies, super stars, other hooked) to build out the frame if the class, but that they then want to look at the whole pool before extending acceptances in the spring.
I don’t know about the conservatory angle. It sounds like your D is doing all the right things. Make sure she let’s them know of any prizes, accomplishments, etc. It also means that if she finds something else she likes better along the way, she is no longer locked in.
Sorry for your early disappointment. Hang in there!
Thanks for the input!
I do not understand why she did not get in early decision. I would contact the admissions office, and let them know that she still very much wants to attend, and if they need anything else with respect to her application.As stated above, you should make sure that the application shows her accomplishments. I would bet that she gets in regular decision.
It may not be anything to do with your daughter’s credentials. Your daughter seems like she’d be an excellent fit for Oberlin.
I don’t know if Oberlin is need-aware or not, but it’s possible that she may have been deferred based on financial reasons and they want to wait to see how much they can offer in financial assistance to all their accepted students. Oberlin is experiencing a financial challenge right now as described in this Inside Higher Ed article:
Best of luck to you and your daughter!
Definitely tell your daughter to keep trying because she seems like a great fit for Oberlin and is a strong candidate for regular decision admissions. Have her stay in touch with admissions and let them know that it’s her top choice. It’s a great school and my daughter is having an amazing first year, so I hope she gets good news in March. Keep us posted!
@Joderbug36 I’m sorry your kid got a disappointing result in the ED round. She sounds like a good student and strong musician who will do well wherever she lands.
The first thing you need to do is reframe this for her. It’s not about something being “wrong.” It’s about a hugely competitive process where they get LOTS of great applicants, most of whom have nothing “wrong” either and they can only take some of them. The “holistic” admissions process is wildly unpredictable from the outside.
Read (and maybe have her read this article by Frank Bruni, who wrote “Where You Go Is Not Who You’ll Be.”) https:// www.nytimes.com/ 2015/03/15/opinion/sunday/frank-bruni-how-to-survive-the-college-admissions-madness.html
Make sure she has a good list of matches and safeties for the next round so she has good choices in the spring (people here can be very helpful with that), encourage her to keep up the good work, and assure her there was nothing wrong, it just wasn’t her day.
Also, a couple of other notes:
- Oberlin accepts fewer than 30% of applicants, meaning it's best framed as a reach for most students. Maybe a high match for some, but never a given. You apply, it's a roll of the dice.
- Mid-range SAT scores for a given school at best get the application on the table. At a selective school they're unlikely to tip the balance in favor of an ED admission unless there's something truly exceptional in the mix.
- Schools don't care whether a recommender has a PhD or not. They care whether the recommender has personal and specific knowledge of the the kid that makes them shine.
- All state is great, but there are a lot of kids in a lot of states, and Oberlin is on the radar for many musical kids.
Hope this helps a little. And make sure the rest of her list is nicely leavened with matches and safeties.
Also, read this excellent thread. h/t @Lindagaf
Maybe this blog post written by a waitlisted Oberlin student will give your daughter hope!
https://www.oberlin.edu/blogs/all-roads-lead-oberlin-eventually
Your daughter’s stats seem within range for acceptance. I think she has a chance in the RD round, so I wouldn’t give up just yet. She might consider one more try at standardized testing if there is a date coming up (has she tried the ACT? My D did better on that than the SAT) If she gets a better score, she could have her file updated and that might nudge the needle a bit.
Other LACs that are strong in music are Lawrence (Appleton, WI) and St. Olaf (Northfield, MI). My daughter, who is at Oberlin, also applied to St. Olaf and it is a special place, albeit with a less “quirky” reputation than Oberlin. Dickinson and College of Wooster are also possibilities. If the deadlines, haven’t passed, she might want to consider some of these.
Seconding Lawrence University in Appleton, WI, which also has a wonderful Conservatory, and has more fluidity between the Con and non-Con students. For instance, at Oberlin, only Con kids can audition for the ensembles, and there are separate"College" only groups. Oberlin College (non-Con) kids can audition to take private lessons from Con professors, but we were told almost never are accepted – they can freely take private lessons from upper level Con students. At Lawrence, all the ensembles are open by audition to all students, not just the Con kids. While the Con kids are expected to be the stronger, more competitive applicants, the faculty we spoke with made clear that non Con kids can, and do, get seated in the most competitive, highest level ensembles.
Some other Ohio schools to consider include Denison which has strong connections to the Columbus music scene and is building a new performing arts facility which will open in fall '18. Also, Wooster has a separate music scholarship, by audition in Jan/Feb, I think. Skidmore is another one with highly competitive music scholarship for non-music majors.
Explore alternatives, encourage your daughter to keep her grades strong so Admissions sees those after first semester. Bottom line, admission as a double degree student at Oberlin – to both the world class and highly competitive Con and to the College, as a top 20 LAC – is very competitive. It’s hard when you feel your child’s disappointment, but a deferral does mean she is considered competitive for admission.
Another thing is that Oberlin had an unanticipated shortfall in admissions for fall, 2017, which I think they would try to make up this year. It should be easier to get into Oberlin this year, than last year. I think your daughter has a good chance of getting in.
Thank you, this makes ALOT of sense because her financial aide package was a huge one. I was wondering if that had something g to do with it. We will keep our fingers crossed.
Thank you, this makes ALOT of sense because her financial aide package was a huge one. I was wondering if that had something g to do with it. We will keep our fingers crossed.
Yes, we have revamped our outlook with new colleges and different directions. So let the cards fall where they may she has been accepted at 12 other schools so far with 4 more really fun ones waiting for regular decision. I tell her she will end up exactly where she is meant to be. We know competition is tough and perhaps some her application may seem weak. Either way I’m proud of her she’s a very hard worker.and she has done all of this while also holding a job. Just holding our breathe for spring and then making a final decision
my sense is that the conservatory is a tougher admit than arts and sciences. I’m guessing she’d have been admitted straight away without the conservatory app. As others have said, oberlin is not need blind and I believe they are under some financial duress.
Where did your daughter end up? Did it work with Oberlin?