Do certain talents or abilities give you a big advantage at highly selective schools?

Applying to College
1

<p>This is my first post, so please excuse me if this question was already answered. </p>

<p>How exactly does extraordinary talent help in admissions processes at selective schools (ivies, mIT, Stanford, selective LACs like Bowdoin)? I know that "hooks" like being URM, recruited athlete, or child of donors will give you an advantage but how exactly does it work? Do they pull out say African American students and review them seperatley? Or do they just take the hook as one positive factor and dont give the application any special treatment? </p>

<p>Now, how would this apply to extraordinary talent? Lets say you are one of the best bassoonist in the nation, and colleges would need qualified bassoonists to fill the spots in wind emsembles, right? So do they take all talented bassoonists out of the general applicant pool and just pick the one with the most outstanding academics, test scores, etc., so that they can fill the spots with award winning bassoonists (who are still academically qualified to go to the institution in question)? Do they seperate the most exceptional musicians, artists, scientists, writers, dancers, etc., in order to fill "spots" in the class (meaning the university wants so many of a certain background or talent)? So, in essence, are top notch musicians only competing against other musicians, and the most academically qualified students are accepted? Perhaps in a similar fashion to how they choose recruited athletes from the best academically in order to fill sports teams (if this is what they do or am I confused?). </p>

<p>Just as a side note, when I say "extraordinary talent" I mean the cream of the crop in their field. Not just a person who has played the flute for a few years in band and is reasonably good. Musicians who have played solo at Carnegie Hall, Broadway actors, scientists who have made some earth shattering discovery, founder of national nonprofit organization, etc.</p>

<p>Sorry if Im completely confused on the whole admissions process. Btw, I know that extraordinary talent is not the same thing as a hook, I was just making a comparison. What kind of special treatment do admissions officers give to extraordinary talent? To hooks? Thanks so much in advance to all who answer, I know that this is a bit of a loaded question. :) </p>

2

<p>The selective applications process is subjective and comes down to how an admissions director “feels” after reading your teacher recommendations, guidance counselor report, EC’s and essays, and compares them to all other applicants. </p>

<p>That said, if you are a primo bassoonist and a college needs a bassoonist this year – Admissions probably needs to take a few bassoonist every 2 years to keep the school’s orchestra’s going – then you have a “tip” which is really different than a hook. “Tips” are more unpredictable than hooks. For example, maybe the school took 6 bassoonist’s last year and they don’t need any more this year – so you can be the best of the best and still be rejected by a school for reasons that change from year-to-year. If you are an Intel finalist, you have a “tip.” Ditto with having your Broadway play produced when you were 17 years old (that girl went to Yale) or selling an App for $10 million dollars that you created when you were 16 years old (that kid went to Harvard.) But, truth be told, those students are not common. See: <a href=“Guidance Office: Answers From Harvard's Dean, Part 3 - The New York Times”>http://thechoice.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/14/harvarddean-part3/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>

</p>

3

<p>Here’s a great article about how applications at selective colleges are read: <a href=“Secrets of Dartmouth Admissions Office”>Secrets of Dartmouth Admissions Office;

4

<p>Thank you so much gibby, those two articles were very helpful.</p>

<p>If a college was in need for bassoonists, and you have excellent academic stats (4.0 GPA, great SAT, challenging course load), would that put you at a significant advantage compared to if the college wasnt in need of bassoonists? </p>

<p>Also, will being an enrolled Native American and track athlete (hoping to get recruited) help my chances at a highly selective college significantly? </p>

5

<p>Thank you so much gibby, those two articles were very helpful.</p>

<p>If a college was in need for bassoonists, and you have excellent academic stats (4.0 GPA, great SAT, challenging course load), would that put you at a significant advantage compared to if the college wasnt in need of bassoonists? </p>

<p>Also, will being an enrolled Native American and track athlete (hoping to get recruited) help my chances at a highly selective college significantly? </p>

6

<p>If a college has an orchestra where they care about the quality and they need bassoonists and you are very good, they will want you. Same with track if you are good enough to be recruited. Being Native American helps too.</p>

<p>Does MIT care about the quality of their orchestra (do they even have one)? I know Northwestern does.</p>

<p>BTW, if you’re that good with the bassoon, shouldn’t your music teacher be able to help you look?</p>

7

<p>I think Native American is also more rare. Dartmouth is one Ivy that I’m aware recruits Native American. But I think you must have activities or such to identify that you are Native American, not just checking the box.</p>

8

<p>Many colleges require the student to be registered with a tribe to select NA.</p>

9

<p>

</p>

<p>Yes, if you were an award winning bassoonist, I would think you would have an advantage. If you’re just an average high school bassoonist, it probably has no effect. As others have said, if you are a Native American student that is registered with a tribe, that is probably the biggest advantage, more so than a recruited athlete or talented bassoonist.</p>

10

<p>

</p>

<p>Enrolled Native American is a huge hook to start with (ignoring the athletic component). </p>