<p>I live in Wyoming, which has the lowest population of any state in the US, so we also have the fewest number of college applicants. I know about colleges wanting a diverse student body in terms of ethnicity but do they also want students from all regions of the country? I know I will have to have good grades and good test scores, but will being from Wyoming give me an edge in the admissions process?</p>
<p>For some colleges, I definitely think it helps. I think that schools like to be able to say, “We have students from all 50 states.”</p>
<p>^^^ yep, rosered is right. Coming from Wyoming will definitely help you at schools that don’t get many students from your part of the country.</p>
<p>probably, especially since Wyoming is one of the less populated states</p>
<p>Sure, but a small edge. In other words if you’re in the pool they’ve decided to take but they only have room for 20 and they have 50 to choose from, geography can be a tipping factor at schools that like to be able to say they have students from every state. Dean Fetter gave pretty much this example in her book “Questions and Admissions: Reflections on 100,000 Admissions Decisions at Stanford”. But its not a huge push; first you had to get into the pool of very competitive candidates.</p>
<p>So if I were to have a SAT that fits the range for the school and a great GPA would this help me to get into a school like Stanford or the Ivy league? Or would it be more of a factor at less competitive schools?</p>
<p>The most selective schools look at MUCH more than grades and scores. They look at whether you’ve taken the toughest classes your school offers, your ECs, your recs, your essays, etc. Be in the running after all these factors are considered and then where you live can be a tipping factor. But its not more than that.</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice. I will keep all of that in mind when I apply. (:</p>
<p>I’m not completely informed on the quality of education of Wyoming but, wouldn’t it be more advantageous for a college to select students with equal stats at say a california or new york school, just because of the quality of the high school? I know there are some wyoming schools that are better than those from new york or cal, but overall does it really make sense?</p>
<p>I think I know what you mean. We don’t have any private high schools, but my school offers a good amount of AP’s and honors courses. I would definately have to do well on testing to show my GPA wasn’t because the school was less rigorous.</p>