<p>I noticed from reading another thread on this board a surprising set of statistics. Two separate Vandy admissions blogs from last spring indicated vastly different middle-50% ACT score ranges.</p>
<p>ED admits - 31-33 (664 total admits)
RD admits - 33-35 (3414 total admits) [WOW!]
Enrolled freshman (CDS) - 31-34 (1601 total enrolled)</p>
<p>If ED admits are intended to be the most highly qualified, it is odd that the range is so much lower for this group (roughly 75% of the ED admits would be in the bottom 25% of RD). </p>
<p>I suppose the easiest way to reconcile these numbers is that while the yield rate from the ED group with lower scores should be close to 100%, the yield rate for the RD group with higher scores calculates out to under 30%. Many of the 850+ admitted students with scores of 35 or 36 must have enrolled elsewhere.</p>
<p>Crunching the numbers a bit further, roughly 1,000 enrolled freshmen have an ACT score of 31 or lower, with only a couple hundred of these students having been admitted ED. Thus, even though the RD range is intimidating, there is still significant reason for hope.</p>
<p>These data might interest no one other than me, but I thought I would post it anyway.</p>
<p>What makes you think that ED admits are intended to be the most highly qualified? </p>
<p>ED admits are actually the least qualified of accepted students. That’s the main incentive behind applying ED. There’s a much higher chance you will matriculate, so the school is more inclined to accept you, even with lower scores, to increase their matriculation rate.</p>
<p>Anyways, I’m having trouble following your math. 75% of the student body (1200 students) has a 31 or higher. I’m not sure how an entire 1000 students could be at 31 or lower unless the vast majority of them were 31s.</p>
<p>My assumption about ED students being exceptional results from the fact that they can be deferred if there is any question about their qualifications. Also, the Vandy admissions site states, “Early Decision students are highly qualified and highly enthusiastic applicants who receive consideration amongst a smaller pool of students; thus, the higher admit rate.”</p>
<p>Also, it looks like yopu caught a pretty significant math error. I used 25% of the total admitted (4078) while I should have applied it to the statistic for enrolled freshmen (1601). Apparently there are probably only a couple hundred admitted RD students with a score of 31 or below (assuming a roughly even distribution), in addition to a couple hundred admitted ED.</p>
<p>You make a good point about ED. Still, most people (both applicants and students here on campus) feel that it is easier to get in through ED. I think the same applies to most schools. I feel Vanderbilt’s statement may be a bit of an exaggeration; the pool of students may be a concentrated group of highly qualified students, but thrown into the RD pool, there would be many more-qualified students above them and it would reduce their chances.</p>
<p>However, something just struck me-- Vanderbilt’s athletic community applies ED. They have a significantly lower test score average and must make up a substantial portion of the ED pool. This may account for a lower middle 50%: just artificially lower because of athletes.</p>
<p>In general, it is slightly easier to get in if you apply to ED. You are committing to the school and most schools will reward that. Also, I don’t believe Vanderbilt defers students (you are either accepted or rejected if you apply early).</p>
<p>Pancaked - Are athletes really admitted during ED? In one of the admission blogs titlled “Early Decision on the Mind” it said athletes were NOT admitted ED, but as part of the RD pool.</p>
<p>Is there information on scores of ALL applicants (not just accepted)? For instance, of the 28,000+ applicants, how were the scores spread? I would think a lot of higher scoring students apply at Vandy. But of those 4,000 admitted, how many with 31+ scores were turned down? Does that make sense?</p>
<p>So, I’m thinking, of the 28,000 that applied, if 24,000 scored below 30, then a score of 31+ would be pretty certain! But, if of the 28,000 that applied, 15,000 scored 31+ it would be a little harder, even with a 34-35.</p>
<p>32-34 is the enrolled ACT range for current freshmen.
This means that 25% of the students in the class of 2016 (approximately 400 freshmen) scored a 32 or lower on the ACT. However, you should be very conservative about your chances as an applicant with a score of a 32 or lower unless you have a very significant hook. Most athletes fall into this category; I would estimate that there are around 100 athletic recruits each year at Vandy, and I would expect maybe 95 of them to be at or below a 32. This is also where you will find students who come from extraordinarily wealthy families, students who come from families with ties to the university, students who come from Wyoming, etc.
However, we don’t know enough from just the 25th to 75th percentile range to draw many conclusions. It could be that students up to the 35th percentile are still at the 32 mark, in which case it would appear that there is quite a bit of room for a 32 in the student body. By the same token, we don’t know what percentile students start scoring a 32 at either – it could be the 15th percentile, in which case only 15 percent of the incoming class would be scoring below a 32. Given that Vandy only requires the Common App, I would always encourage someone to apply if they even had only a slight interest in attending.</p>