A family member with a 36 ACT score and a greater than 4.0 GPA was rejected by GT. In addition, he has dozens of extracurriculars. So nobody is safe.
This was also an early action applicant
That’s too bad. Perfect stats aren’t a guarantee of anything, so students need a well balanced list. If he has a safety or two on his list he’ll be fine. Did he apply to the school you’re attending?
Instate?
Same story last year. I think the example I remember from last year was in state, too. We still see people talking about GT as a match. It isn’t a match for anyone.
Having “dozens of extracurriculars” is not a good sign. Admissions is looking for people who have meaningfully participated in their activities and who have made an impact. You generally cannot hold leadership positions or make significant contributions if you are “involved” in dozens of things.
Having a weighted GPA above above 4.0 also doesn’t always tell the whole story. A large number of Tech applicants have made straight-A’s or very close to it, so someone who has a weighted average above 4.0 but who made a number of B’s may not be as academically competitive as others, despite having a high test score. In fact, a high test score with numerous B’s could be a red flag, indicating a bright but undisciplined student. These types of students do not tend to fair well at Tech, at least at first, because they have not learned good study habits and may experience a rough transition to more rigorous college academics.
And when it comes to test scores, having a 36 vs. a 30 on the ACT or a 1600 vs. a 1400 on the SAT does not represent a huge gap in ability or in preparation for college. It’s not surprising then that admissions chooses to weight other factors when looking at applicants who are all exceedingly well prepared academically, rather than just choosing those with the highest “stats.”
So no, admissions is not playing around. Successful applicants don’t rely on numbers, they submit an application that paints them as academically qualified, yes, but also as mature and likely to make an impact in their communities.
https://admission.gatech.edu/first-year/contribution-to-community
He has gotten into plenty of other schools including UMich and Purdue, so he will have a home, just not in ATL.
He is indeed an out of state student, which probably does diminish his chances.
Their loss. I have never like the holistic approach for admission. Back in my days (looooooooooong ago), all we needed were good GPAs, good SAT/ACT scores (no superscore) and difficulty in HS course selection. We didn’t have to BS on essays or doing community services. “Community service” is what you will contribute to society after getting the degree. It is more impactful. Honestly, I have kids currently in college and graduated from college recently from top schools and mediocre schools and they have all said most kids don’t do much in college in term of community service except for partying, going to games and if engineering majors, studying studying and studying.
@parentofsix It’s certainly your prerogative to hold those views, but I don’t think Georgia Tech is at a loss because it chooses to admit students based on more comprehensive criteria than mere test scores and grades, although due to the outstanding qualifications of Tech’s applicant pool, Tech can still maintain what are arguably the highest academic admissions standards of any public university in the country while looking at applicants holistically.
Having more involved students makes life at Tech a more enjoyable and rewarding experience for students and campus involvement often makes a lasting impact on the lives of students after they leave Tech; it certainly has for me and many of my friends. There are even some employers, including investment banks, consulting firms, and the Big 4 accounting firms, that generally won’t consider candidates who were not meaningfully involved outside of the classroom. They do this because the want their people to be leaders and leaders get involved.
Some students do choose not to get involved once they arrive on campus, but that proportion of students decreases when admissions focuses on selecting those who are most passionate about what they do and about making an impact. Holistic admissions is undoubtedly a subjective and imperfect process, but I wouldn’t want Tech admissions to change their approach in favor of more heavily weighting scores and grades that would not be meaningfully higher than they are now. I believe a decreased focus on selecting involved and passionate people would have a direct and negative effect on campus life, both inside and outside of the classroom. People are more than test scores and grades and I want future Tech students to experience a campus life surrounded by the most engaged and promising peers possible.
The tough part is when you are in state and your free engineering education goes away because there is no place else in state to get it. That’s wrong.
@parentofsix I am not sure when “your day” was, but from what I have heard from my parents, it was much easier in the mid '80s through the '90s because the Baby Boomers disappeared from the college scene around 1982 or so, and there were not as many kids applying to a lot of these competitive schools. The competitiveness of these applications really picked up in the last 20 years, when the applications started increasing dramatically. Part was due to the broader acceptance of the Common App, which made it easier to apply to multiple schools; part due to the increasing numbers of students from population growth; and part due to the enormous number of foreign nationals and competitive-college-seeking-Asians that didn’t exist in the US 30 years ago.
@threeofthree Georgia Tech has responded to this issue by implementing a variety of pathway programs, including the Regents’ Engineering Pathway Program (REPP), that allow for in-state students to start their college career at another in-state school where their HOPE scholarship can be used and then transfer into Tech after meeting certain requirements. There are also other in-state ABET accredited engineering bachelor degrees offered through the University of Georgia, Georgia Southern University, and Kennnesaw State University. Many students who get rejected by Tech are also eligible for strong scholarship offers from state schools in nearby states, which can help equalize the loss of in-state status and the availability of the HOPE scholarship.
Please keep in mind that the State of Georgia only provides 16% of Georgia Tech’s annual funding. It also only provides about 25% of annual funding for UGA and both of these numbers are down significantly after steep legislative cuts starting in the early 2000s. In dollar terms the state provides about $266 million annually to Tech and $436 million to UGA. If Georgia residents really want Tech to increase the number and ratio of in-state students they admit, that effort needs to start at the ballot box, by electing politicians who value increased funding higher education, which could include higher taxes. At least for the last 15 years, funding higher education has not been a priority for Georgia’s state government and Tech should not have to reduce the quality of its student body or research initiatives because the state repeatedly chooses to scale back funding for higher education.
UGA still isn’t acredited in Mech Engineering and some of the other major categories, perhaps they will be in 2019, they promised it would be by 2017 and it wasn’t. Pretty sure that whole engineering college at UGA was set up as a way to say GT rejects had another option with a Zell Miller scholarship. I am aware of the pathways but the dedication a kid gives to school and study and makes the grades and makes the scores, they should be admitted locally to GT if they fit the academic profile. Auburn is full of GT rejects - unfortunately not everyone is able to afford that option, even with their merit scholarships it is still expensive. Fortunately for my son, he was able to attend, graduate and is now a graduate research student with tuition waivers and a living stipend. I will never have a good opinion of GT.
Amazing what a good night’s sleep can do for your perspective. My late night response shows some still simmering anger - but in actuality, it all turned out great for my kid. It’s me the parent and my pocketbook that is still ticked off. I’m really feeling for those kids who got the EA rejection or deferral, those with lower grades, scores, and accomplishments are accepted over you for whatever reason - you may get over it long before your parents do.
The exact opposite can be true as well where kids “not up to par you would think” get in too. These days it is about making the perfect class not finding all of the perfect kids.
I agree that it is frustrating when your child has worked to earn the Zell Miller scholarship, but may not get into GT. The pathways programs also don’t work well when you already have two years of college coursework completed through DE and AP.