Explain rolling admissions to me

Applying to College
1

<p>Okay so rolling admissions means "first come, first serve," so they accept/reject people as they come in, instead of waiting until some application deadline, and then reviewing EVERYBODY and making their decisions.</p>

<p>Does that mean if a school practices rolling admissions, you're not really <em>competing</em> with anybody? I don't see who you could be competing with if it's strictly "first come, first serve." Does that mean it works like, once they get to your app, first they see if they still have space in the program, and then if they do, they just look at YOU alone and see if you have what it takes to be accepted? And you're not directly competing with anyone?</p>

2

<p>Yes, that is my understanding.</p>

<p>Rolling admissions is great for a safety school. If you meet or exceed their requirements and apply early, you are in and you have that acceptance in the pocket. It really reduces stress for the remainder of the application year to know you are going somewhere, no matter what.</p>

<p>This is not to say you won't find schools you might be happy at with rolling admissions. For instance, U Illinois UC has a highly rated engineering program. My son used it as his rolling admissions safety. Although he ended up going elsewhere, he ended up preferring it to a couple of the other regular admissions schools he applied to.</p>

3

<p>Yes, rolling admissions means they are not "selective." If you meet the criteria for admission --and if there is space for you in the incoming freshman class-- then you will be admitted. The operative words being "if there is space for you."</p>

4

<p>First off, rolling admissions is often not pure rolling admissions. A lot get admitted or rejected as they apply but then they tend to hold many that may be closer to the borderline until applications are complete or near complete. Also, it does not mean lack of competition. They are rolling on the basis of reliance on their historical figures for total applications and quality of those applicants and thus you are competing with admission standards established based on that history.</p>

5

<p>agree with drusba.. You are competing against the known historical standard. This happens at any college, even Harvard. The super elite schools are not lining everybody who applied up in a row and then saying that they like Bob instead of Mary. Bob and Mary are being compared to what they know from experience will be an acceptable applicant.</p>

<p>Rolling admissions means that they don't have an application deadline or fixed date when they will inform you of the decision, but they will try to do so within a few weeks. Also, if you apply too late, the space will be filled.</p>

6

<p>Obviously this time of year is late to apply for rolling admissions freshman. What about rolling admissions transfer applicants? Is right now considered late/normal/early for fall 2006?</p>

<p>I understand what you're saying that you're being compared to a standard based on history. But how does that DIFFER from simply their requirements for admission? For example, are you saying they might require a min 2.5 GPA, but in reality, due to what they EXPECT to get from all their applicants, if you have less than a 3.0 you're already out of the running even if you apply at a good time? And I'm not talking ivy league here, I'm talking like, state schools.</p>

7

<p>it's when your application is so bad that they roll it into a ball and chuck it at your head while laughing maniacally.</p>

8

<p>You can look in one of the college guides and lookup what they think is the type of person they normally take. Transfer applications are different in how they are evaluated. They don't care how you did in high school. The main thing they care about is how you have done since high school. The recs are probably more important because they are coming from professors instead of high school teachers. Don't be mislead by the gpa for entering freshman too much because gpa's in college are lower than they are in high school. I really recommend that you talk to the advisors at your college. They will have a track record for people in your college. If you are in comm college, they will really have a track record concerning people applying to state schools.</p>

9

<p>Does anyone know the website that has all the schools with rolling admissions?</p>

10

<p>Yea, it is:
<a href="http://www.princetonreview.com/college/apply/articles/types/rollingcoll.asp%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.princetonreview.com/college/apply/articles/types/rollingcoll.asp&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

11

<p>Thank you :)</p>

12

<p>Certain applications are such a good fit that there is no need for competition or holding off sending an admit notice. Think of rolling admissions as EARLY DECISION without the ED application submission deadline.</p>

<p>Rolling admissions simply means that you may not have to wait until March 30/April 1 to find out if a college is interested in you. I feel it's a much more humane approach than keeping candidates on pins and needles until April 1.</p>

13

<p>
[quote]
You can look in one of the college guides and lookup what they think is the type of person they normally take. Transfer applications are different in how they are evaluated. They don't care how you did in high school. The main thing they care about is how you have done since high school. The recs are probably more important because they are coming from professors instead of high school teachers. Don't be mislead by the gpa for entering freshman too much because gpa's in college are lower than they are in high school. I really recommend that you talk to the advisors at your college. They will have a track record for people in your college. If you are in comm college, they will really have a track record concerning people applying to state schools.

[/quote]
What kind of college guide are you referring to?</p>

<p>Wow, your post sort of depressed me. They really don't care about my high school record at all? I thought it would be very heavily considered since I've only completed ONE semester in college. I also got no recommendation letters because I didn't really have a very personal relationship with any of my professors, so I didn't feel right asking them. Basically I just have a great high school record, a low first semester GPA from college, and my essay, applying to a big state school. Now I'm wondering, did I apply too late in the year for a fall sophomore transfer? And is that college GPA ALONE enough to disqualify me, despite other good stats?</p>

<p>So you're saying, they will review my app against a STANDARD that has sort of been set by precedence. How does this standard coincide with their minimum requirements for transfers? If the standard is much higher, what's really the point of the minimums at all?</p>

<p>I wasn't even considering that they might defer me until later in the year. That would suck. Is that very common for transfer applicants?</p>

14

<p>For transfer admissions, you need to check the application time for any particular school, but many are in the application process now and only started recently. The minimum GPA requirements for a transfer generally means that you need that to even apply, but does not mean you will be admitted just because you have the minimum. The higher your GPA is above the minimum the greater yoor chance for admission, and even rolling admissions schools often sit on a lot of transfer applications (at a rate much higher than freshman admissions) until the end of the transfer application period. Also, if you are applying for transfer as a freshman, the schools will usually consider both your high school (including SAT score) and college record.</p>

15

<p>Thank you for the info, very informative.</p>

<p>Yes, I applied only my second week into my second semester of my freshman year. I'm just really trying to figure out how they'll view a great high school record compared with a somewhat low first semester college GPA.</p>

<p>Any hints on what you think would lead them to "sit" on an application? Is it possible since my high school record is so good and since that wasn't too long ago at all that'll be enough to make me pretty safe? This is UPitt, btw, if that helps, dunno how selective they are with this stuff.</p>

16

<p>archcommus, you have me (and probably others) confused about what type of transfer you are interested in.[ul][<em>]Exactly how much college work have you completed?
[</em>]Where are you going to school now and where do you want to transfer to?
[*]When do you want to transfer?[/ul]The rules/requirements for someone trying to tranfer into a Freshman or Sophomore class are significantly different than what is required for a Junior class. You need to communicate more clearly about what you are trying to do!</p>

17

<p>Ok, you really need to review the UPitt website to determine what the requirements are for transfer applicants who are in their first year elsewhere...</p>

<p>NOTE: All high school graduates who have attended post-secondary institutions, colleges, or universities are considered transfer students.</p>

<p>Transfer Student Credit and
Grade Point Average Admission Guidelines
<a href="http://www.pitt.edu/%7Eoafa/trans_guidelines.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.pitt.edu/~oafa/trans_guidelines.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>The requirements, including hs experience, seem to depend on which school/college within UPitt you want to transfer into and how many college credits you have completed. The way I read it, some UPitt schools/colleges DON'T ALLOW transfers after one year elsewhere.</p>

<p>Also pay close attention to the transfer application deadlines, which vary by school/college within UPitt...
<a href="http://www.pitt.edu/%7Eoafa/trans_deadlines.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.pitt.edu/~oafa/trans_deadlines.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>The 2004-05 Common Data Set indicates the following regarding 2004-05 transfers:</p>

<p>3,252 transfer applications
892 admitted applicants
637 enrolled applicants</p>

<ul>
<li>minimum college 2.80 GPA is required. </li>
<li>current college transcript is required.</li>
<li>hs transcript, SAT/ACT scores, personal essay and statement of good standing from current/prior colleges may also be required.</li>
</ul>

<p><a href="http://www.ir.pitt.edu/cds/0405/pittsburgh/framedef.htm%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.ir.pitt.edu/cds/0405/pittsburgh/framedef.htm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>You probably already know all of this, since is sounds like you have already applied to UPitt. </p>

<p>I don't have any personal experience with UPitt transfer adcom decisions/strategy...sorry!</p>

18

<p>You could contact:</p>

<p>Robert C. Dilks, Jr.
Director of Transfer and Nontraditional Recruitment
<a href="mailto:dilks@exchange.upb.pitt.edu">dilks@exchange.upb.pitt.edu</a></p>

<p>and inquire about the status of your application. If I was Mr. Dilks, I would ask why you want to transfer after only one semester elsewhere, is there an explanation for your 1st semester performance, and what makes you feel that you are worthy of transfering to UPitt?</p>

<p>So, you better have some good answers prepared.</p>

19

<p>Thank you very much for all the care in your posts, gsp. Sorry I wasn't more clear, the thread sort of got off-topic so I wasn't planning on divulging all the details.</p>

<p>All of the information you just posted I have already researched (many times, heh). I am a freshman with only one completed semester of work. I want to transfer fall 06 as a sophomore. As you know I want to go to UPitt, and I'm currently at Grove City College.</p>

<p>My first semester here I only got a 2.96 GPA! BUT, consider. First, that is in engineering, which typically yields lower GPAs than many other majors. Second, GCC is a VERY competitive school. Their selectivity rating on PR is a 95, to be exact. And Pitt is very close to GCC, so they should factor in the quality of the school I'm coming from, correct? Also, my high school record is very very good: 3/240 class rank, 1250 SATs, nearly a perfect GPA, even unweighted.</p>

<p>So here's why this all confuses me. On one hand I think, I have great HS stats and am coming from a great college, of course they'll accept me! OTOH, I look at my low college GPA, and the fact that last year they only admitted 892 of 3252 applicants, and I think, okay, I am DEFINITELY getting deferred or rejected.</p>

<p>Then I got excited when I remember that they do rolling admissions, because I thought, hey, as long as they have space, I meet the requirements so I'll definitely get in. But then I read here, that they still hold you to a standard, even if you meet all requirements, and I may just not meet that standard.</p>

20

<p>You think he would ask me those things personally through email, and that they may actually have a bearing on my application? Do you think I should do this? What should my initial email say?</p>

<p>I did try to address those things in my essay. I said I learned a lot about myself and that GCC was clearly not matching my traits (explains why I want to transfer so soon). I said I considered Pitt in the past but regret not applying, and that now every aspect of their school excites and intrigues me (explains why I want to transfer). I did not specifically mention why I got the GPA I did my first semester, I just said that the curriculum was rigorous. Really, that is slightly under a B average, which isn't all that awful for a first-semester engineering student.</p>