Did emory issue some acceptances without scholarships also today or those will have to wait till march end?
Just to be clear, it is not at all unusual for students to send a message to schools that they are withdrawing their applications, but the school doesn’t act on the message. Some just because of red tape screw-ups, others because they just don’t bother. While it is also true that a lot of students don’t do the polite and correct thing by sending notifications of application withdrawals, many do. You cannot assume that just because a student gets an acceptance even after getting accepted ED somewhere else, that the student failed to send a notice of withdrawal from the process.
First, many congratulations to all those who have been accepted and received scholarship offers.
Left perplexed with my own decision though: In-state, legacy with a 2390 SAT (one attempt), 36 ACT (one attempt), SATII (ML2: 780, Bio: 770, Hist: 760), 4.0 UW GPA (top 5%), most rigorous curriculum at a very competitive school, 4 APs (3-5’s, 1-4), loaded ECs and leadership, plenty of community service, GHP, great recommendations + great essays (9-10).
Have already been accepted to H (EA), so perhaps not that big of a deal. Would have created some serious decision challenges, but alas, that is not to be 
Only thing I can think about is lack of demonstrated interest by not applying ED? To be fair, didn’t want to commit to any university prematurely and wanted to make an informed decision after receiving all decisions.
Feeling pretty bummed but am sure will rebound.
@TimSmith76 u’ve got really great stats… H, as in Harvard?
I am a little confused as to how they select the scholars… when i talked to the admissions committee it seemed like they were saying they decide whether to make you a finalist for Emory or Oxford scholars based on which one they think would be the best for you and not based on academic merit once you get through the first round of qualifying… Is one program better than the other?
@TimSmith76 Did you not get accepted into the colleges or just not the scholars program… I also got into H (i assume you mean Harvard) early action but didn’t get accepted into the Emory Scholars program, so I was little bit confused. The website is not completely clear on what the criteria is.
@JuliaY ; @tkdgirl98
Yes, H is Harvard
I didn’t do ED for Emory, so haven’t yet recd the admissions decision. The letter states that I will be notified of the decision by Apr 1, the planned date for RD.
Still struggling with their decision criteria.
Congratulations on your acceptances to Harvard - awesome! But getting into one school really isn’t the same as getting into all schools. Last year, plenty of IVY bound students weren’t selected for Emory Scholars. The scholars program is giving LOTS of merit money (possibly free rides) to their students. They pick the ones that they most want on their campus and then provide them with an incentive to attend Emory. Just because you weren’t selected doesn’t mean that they didn’t recognize your achievements and talent. It also doesn’t mean that you won’t be admitted to Emory in the spring. It just means that there were a few other students that they placed above you in how much they wanted them to attend. Every admission committee works differently - different people make different decisions…
can we request for the scholars program from Oxford to be changed to Emory?
I haven’t chimed in much - but my D is a finalist for Emory Scholars. Her stats are 33 ACT and top 10% GPA in her class (too hard to explain their grading system.) She’s a well rounded kid, and from what I understand the process was holistic just like admissions. They aren’t looking for just top academics, although that’s a must, but also looking for intellectual curiosity and commitment to community, etc. etc. My guess is that they could have filled those spots over and over again with such a strong pool. You never know exactly what the tipping point is for any kid. From her letter it’s says there are about 100 finalists. We are stunned and grateful! Really stunned and really grateful!
Does anyone know how many non-finalists eventually get accepted? Would it be a much less proportion now?
out of the 100 finalist for Emory and 60 Finalist for Oxford, how may will be finally awarded after the interview etc.,?anyone knows this?
@TimSmith76 I empathize with your disappointment, and who knows what the admissions committee took into account in making their decisions. I think not applying ED probably wasn’t that important, though. My son was delighted and honored to be named a finalist yesterday, and he applied RD. (Emory was his first choice, but because of finances, we weren’t comfortable with a binding commitment anywhere.)
I think the bigger factor, one that most people don’t really consider, is one of geography. You are from GA. Emory gets a lot of applications from students in GA. Harvard gets fewer. As such, you are more desirable to Harvard, relatively speaking, than to Emory. If you were from MA, your admissions results might have been reversed. If you were from WY, you probably could have gone anywhere :).
I’m from NH and it doesn’t seem like it worked in my favor in any way, as I had similar/better stats to many of the people who received scholarships or became finalists. With such a high number of applications, results are very unpredictable. I think another factor may have been when you applied (very early vs. very close to the Nov deadline), but I’m not sure.
Also, is anyone a finalist for the Dean’s Music Scholarship? I felt very confident in my chances for that scholarship, but I did not end up being a finalist. I’d be interested in hearing from anyone who did!
Mom of Oxford Scholar Finalist here. I’ve talked with quite a few people on both campuses, and it was clear that the committees are looking for somewhat different students. The stats matter, but as has already been said, this was the most competitive year ever, and so looking beyond the stats to interests, interest in and knowledge of the college/univ, and the “fit” of the student became critical. Also, Emory and Oxford have different needs for rounding out the freshman class, and try to craft a class that has ethnic and geographic diversity, and also a diversity in interests and probable major. Those factors are very different on each campus. My son felt (and wrote, and the college agreed, apparently), that while he was a good fit for Emory, he was an excellent fit for Oxford. They are quite different in character. That is why you can be admitted to both, but only compete for the scholarships at one.
I’m an Oxford finalist too and accepted to both Emory and Oxford! Had a few q’s: is emory scholars better than oxford scholars? i didnt get any amount on my letter stating that i had received any merit scholarship yet even though I’m a finalist; does that mean all finalists get at least 20k like some of the non-finalists?
emory isnt my top choice but it sure feels good to be accepted to such an excellent and top school! congrats to everyone else who got the decisions they wanted and for all the others, I hope u get a more positive reply in April!
Yeah who knows what Emory takes into consideration - got a likely letter for Yale but was not selected for an interview. Laughing right now.
@Madeon: It isn’t Emory, it is the scholarship program. Do not attempt to equate or compare the two as you would ECAS for example and private peer institutions. That just doesn’t make any sense. Someone admitted to HYP or schools like that will probably certainly be admitted to Emory, but will not be offered a scholarship from Emory nor an interview. It would almost be better to assume that many others selected to interview gained admission or will gain admission to some of those places as well. The idea that another selective school’s scholarship program should be significantly less selective and more predictable than the most elite schools is non-sense especially when said program and school had much larger application volume. Also, unlike Ivies, Emory has to play the yield game, so why interview people whom as soon as they get into a school like HYP, will still not really even consider the Emory offer even if it financially more appealing. By interviewing every person who seems like they will also get into HYP, they are undertaking a huge risk of wasting interviews and also risking their class shaping ability.
Believe it or not, many schools want students as capable as those at HYP (and many selective schools have bunches of such students) but who would also help create a character on such campuses unique from said schools.Selective schools should not be looking for exactly the same things beyond high stats and lots of EC’s. All of them would be exactly the same with different levels of prestige if they did that. How dull…In addition, the schools are not structured the same. Like if I am recruiting I want someone who will benefit from programs that the school is actually good at. Like why recruit a genius math student when the math dept will not serve them well and a promising new dept. is underdeveloped when I can recruit an aspiring NBB, English or Creative Writing Major? These are areas where Emory is actually very strong in undergraduate education. Even, if a mismatch does yield, the last thing you want to do is bring an excited student and then disappoint them with the level of academics or teaching within their area of interest. They will be more prone to transfer away.
I think the decision was probably made holistically too. I think my essay lent itself to portraying me as a good candidate for an environment like Oxford, and I think I am, though I like city campuses more. I’m excited to see oxford, but do you think it would be possible to tour emory as well while we’re there?
@ Bernie12—Have Math/Sci heavy kid. Is Emory not strong in these subjects?