<p>I wonder if that’s just “lingo”, as in all “finalists” who do well will receive some sort of merit award OR an all or nothing sort of situation. The latter would mean that we lose those who would have actually seriously considered coming with only a partial scholarship. If the latter, they need to work on that scholarship endowment very soon. </p>
<p>Numerically, this breaks down to: scenario 1: Finalists=what would have been a “semi-finalist” last year + finalists. scenario 2: just finalists. As in, very simply put, less people will be considered for the scholarship than before. </p>
<p>The language describing the narrowing of the of the pool of this dated Emory Scholar fact sheet makes it hard to tell one way of the other <a href=“Search | Emory University | Atlanta GA”>Search | Emory University | Atlanta GA; the link can be found at the bottom. Based on that selection scheme, the current selection scheme is basically saying “no partial scholarships!”. Perhaps our fin. aid reserves are strained (though Scholars should have a separate endowment). </p>
<p>Actually now that I think of it, there may be a possibility that this year they increase the number of “finalists” and change the overall definition of finalist. They invite more people to the weekend but at the weekend you have all these people compete from everything 2/3rds tuition to full ride+grant money. That way you increase competition and have a tighter “finalist” community… It would be unlikely that Emory would just suddenly cut 75 2/3rd scholarships worth money over 1 year transition. And it is also hard to believe them selecting 50-75 people straight from a large pool of probably over 3200 this year… I am guessing that there will be two scenarios:
1-They select a larger number than before of “finalists.” 100-150 or so and have them all compete for everything bottom up
2-Have 50-75 Finalists like normal but then give several (20+) partial scholarships to qualified Emory Scholars Applicants.</p>
<p>Option number 2 seems very unrealistic because it does not correlate with Emory’s decision to do away with the semifinalist stage. I am hoping it is option number one…</p>
<p>Does anyone know if Emory pays for travel expenses to the Finalist Weekend, or if the student is expected to pay? If they do pay, is it just for the student, or for a parent too?</p>
<p>And it is also hard to believe them selecting 50-75 people straight from a large pool of probably over 3200 this year… I am guessing that there will be two scenarios
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Interesting how you successfully predicted that there would be over 3200 applicants…</p>
<p>I have to wonder if such an increase also foreshadows a slight bump in the RD pool apps. as well. As in, maybe we get at least 1000 more as additional people would have applied in the past if they felt they had a chance for merit aid because many such students are above the need based aid thresholds.</p>
<p>@bernie12
I successfully predicted the number of applicants? I did not know those numbers were out already. The increase is expected with the obvious increase in overall RD applicants at Emory which also means an increase in the highly highly qualified applicants to Scholars. The removal of the nomination requirement also contributes alot to the probable increase.</p>
<p>@matrix surgeon
I successfully predicted the number of applicants? I did not know those numbers were out already. The increase is expected with the obvious increase in overall RD applicants at Emory which also means an increase in the highly highly qualified applicants to Scholars. The removal of the nomination requirement also contributes alot to the probable increase.
[quote]
What I was suggesting is that an increase (at least not a very sizable one) in RD applications is never “obvious” for Emory and hasn’t been for the past 2-3 years (I mean, it’s only grown from 17k flat to 17.7k). However, the increase in scholar apps. alone will probably add a lot (as in a bigger increase than over the past 3 cycles combined) to the app. pool. As in, if there is a slight (as in a bit more than the past cycles, but nothing spectacular), then a decent chunk will be explained by the increased rate of scholars applicants, which alone can probably be explained by the self-nomination process as opposed to increased RD interest first and self-nomination second. I’m coming up with this based upon the fact that Emory is not like most of the other elite schools that increase the app. pool size dramatically every year “just because”. It grows marginally if at all. On the other hand, it’s somewhat possible that it will fare better than normal because the marketing tactics precipitated by the new admissions portal and other social media associated with it may be proven to help a lot. But who knows? It normally takes until April or March for them to release any information about the app. numbers whereas many elites will arrogantly release theirs as soon as humanly possible (which makes me wonder if they are actually counting incomplete applications that can’t receive a decision in the numbers) so as to brag about how selective they’ll be as if students don’t already know. These tend to be the schools that still write articles about how the new incoming class is “far better than the last” every single year. It’s rarely true. They’re only marginally better and have the same academic/intellectual attitudes (if there wasn’t a decent climate of intellectual engagement before, there probably won’t be one for the new class, whereas a school that had it before will have it again even if the new class has lower scores). For example going from a 1480 average on the SAT to a 1490-1500 is not some mind-blowing increase in caliber that faculty and other older students will notice. It just means the adcom for the school is cherrypicking numbers in hopes that USNWR will play requests for ranking increases and it won’t. I would be annoyed once Emory starts doing this sort of stuff (as if it wasn’t essentially doing it with the SAT scandal thing). At least when we write articles about the new class, they aren’t about how smart they are (everyone knows that), and about their diverse interests and life stories/journey to Emory. Stories more digestible than how the class is becoming ever closer to statistical perfection. </p>
<p>Interesting how the Emory Scholars weekend also overlaps with Notre Dame’s Hesburgh-Yusko finalist weekend. Emory and Notre Dame travel on the road together (with UNC-Chapel Hill and UVA) so the admissions folks must know each other very well and must be aware of each other’s deadlines. Hesburgh-Yusko has been out for awhile. The Emory date is more recent. What frustrates me is that for these exceptional students who truly do not qualify for need-based aid but parents can’t afford the $60K sticker price, these merit scholarships are imperative. Should my daughter qualify for both, it is difficult to choose, especially since she hasn’t visited either campus. Of course, this is serious cart-before-the-horse, but the Emory and Notre Dame applicants are probably quite similar.</p>
<p>With all the colleges that have a scholars weekend, and the fact that they have to do this all within a one month timeframe, I’m sure it wasn’t possible for everyone to have their own weekend … After all, we’re talking 4 weekends and many scholar schools. I also assume that they don’t care about the overlap. If someone chooses to attend another college’s scholar weekend then that will be one slot open for someone whose first choice is emory.</p>
<p>Uhm, I don’t think we’ll have much overlap with ND. However, lots with Chapel Hill and UVa. However, honestly, those 2 are so different from us that I wouldn’t bother even considering Emory if I preferred one of them (or likely both) over it. because the preference likely is not driven by academic reasons (unless the person is interested in engineering or other areas not offered at Emory. Outside of these areas, Emory is academically comparable, but smaller and kind of more “focused” I guess). People considering Chapel Hill and UVa are more likely to try for Duke, Vanderbilt, USC, Tulane, UCLA, those types of places, not Emory (though maybe some Ivies for the prestige/ego boost). Emory’s not going to win those who cross-apply and then are cross-admitted to places like those (except maybe Tulane) primarily because of the atmospheric differences (and in the case of Duke, prestige difference as well). </p>
<p>@bernie12 In relation to your reply to my Belk post, while the two schools may not seem on the “peer” level, they are peer level scholarships for which students, who are, as go2mom describes, the “in betweeners” economically. My son and I have had numerous discussions over the past year in which he has come to understand that both the economics and the many, personalized, other benefits that becoming a Belk scholar would bring elevate Davidson from its status as a place where his stats might place him above the “average student profile” numbers-wise – a position he has been in at high school and which he can’t wait to shed to a very attractive prospect for undergraduate education. Again, if he was fortunate enough to become an Emory Scholar finalist (long shot, but you never know) because we are not geographically close to either, and thus have visited Emory, which he really liked, but not Davidson, it effectively means not giving Davidson a chance and also having to give up a chance at a great opportunity at an excellent, if not precisely “peer” institution. I’m sure there are many others in this position - particularly southerners.</p>
<p>@bernie12
Wow, I did indeed have the correct prediction! I just did some statistical analysis on the numbers from years past and predicted them for this year. (I have a weird of doing the same for every school that I apply to because I like using statistics and methods to predict things). </p>
<p>Currently 50 out of 3200 applicants is a mere 1.6% percent acceptance rate. I really really doubt the ability of the admissions folk to select only 50 out of a pool of more than 3200 applicants. I am sticking to my theory of there being 100 or so finalists. The comments in that notification bernie12 mentioned by Admissions Daniels gives a slight hint towards that as well.</p>
<p>I was just proposing a reason. I didn’t say such a scheme is right by any means. I’m just saying they don’t care. They probably should, but they don’t. They probably only think in terms of “peer” institutions based upon rankings and cross-applications, in which case they won’t care. </p>
<p>@matrixsurgeon: Your statistical analysis predicted what may be a 40-60% increase in scholar apps? You had scholars numbers or were you using other admissions statistics? I want to know what prediction it was based upon. And also, are you pursuing something quantitative at whatever school you end up?</p>
<p>@rampions - You are spot on. For kids who have to take financial awards into account, the luxury of Emory being their “number one” just isn’t reality.</p>
<p>@bernie12 – I think you will find a lot of overlap between Notre Dame, Emory, Vanderbilt, USC, Tulane, etc. These are all high stats kids with incredible EC’s, GPA’s and can contribute tremendously to the Emory campus. These are kids who have to say no to the Ivies because their parents simply cannot afford the price tag. Prestifious scholarships like Morehead-Cain, the Robertson, Cornelius Vanderbilt, Emory Scholars, Hesburgh-Yusko, etc. were created by many of these institutions to attract Ivy-level students. To say, they don’t care may be true but really is unfortunate.</p>
<p>I think you will find a lot of overlap between Notre Dame, Emory, Vanderbilt, USC, Tulane, etc. These are all high stats kids with incredible EC’s, GPA’s and can contribute tremendously to the Emory campus. These are kids who have to say no to the Ivies because their parents simply cannot afford the price tag. Prestifious scholarships like Morehead-Cain, the Robertson, Cornelius Vanderbilt, Emory Scholars, Hesburgh-Yusko, etc. were created by many of these institutions to attract Ivy-level students. To say, they don’t care may be true but really is unfortunate.
[quote]
</p>
<p>I just think you find more overlap with Vanderbilt (I think this used to be much more common, but isn’t anymore), USC (I have yet to understand why, but I’ve heard of many cross-apply to us and USC), and Tulane than ND, primarily because of location (you know, partially attracted to west or south for the weather type of applicants). And I agree it’s unfortunate. However, to be be honest, again, if a student is considering those four and somehow win the scholarships (all but Tulane and USC have significantly higher stat. incoming student bodies) for all 4 (lets say they were on a different weekends), most would not choose Emory. They would choose ND, Vanderbilt, or USC, all which have similar social and academic environments. Emory is known as the more standard “Ivy like place without sports and traditional forms of school spirit” that students who strongly consider those four really, really, really want. For those schools, we will probably lose anyway (we can’t even win the normal cross-admits of which there are probably not as many anymore because students are now aware of the stark differences in environment). So for those specific cases, I can really see Emory not caring. But I get your general point and it is unfortunate. Emory is like the oddball of those four and sticks out like a sore thumb and will appear Chicago"esque" (nowhere near the level of intensity of actual Chicago, but in comparison to those places, feels more like Chicago with a pre-professional edge. But see what I’m getting at, for those who wanted Emory for more than it just being a top 20 they got into, you’re getting a niche-type of student not as attracted to D-1 sports, extremely spirited atmosphere, and things like that) in comparison to those places. The students seriously considering Emory among its top choices (as opposed to considering any random high ranked school they get into) typically do not have the same academic mindset and desires as those strongly considering those places. </p>
<p>Yeah, sorry it works out that way, but the best I can do is just provide insight into how they are probably thinking. Just view Emory is the “nerdy” (though, unlike places like Chicago, many students will never admit to be being nerdy or quirky. However, it’s really obvious and is really noticeable for a person seriously considering say, Vanderbilt), quirky, and “serious” school among those. It won’t go out of its way to yield or throw scholarships to those who have an aversion to or are completely uninterested in those sort of things. </p>