<p>Hello everyone. I'm a high school student from NJ. I have been looking into Stanford, but have been hearing from peers that Stanford is even more difficult to get into for east coast students. Without focusing on specific cases of people who did or didn't get in, is there a known trend that students from california are more likely to get in? Sorry if this question seems silly but feedback would be appreciated. :)</p>
<p>Have you asked your peers to explain their reasoning? If so, what is it?</p>
<p>OmG…what a mentality!!! when did the West Coast Vs East Coast feud start in college admission? Maybe I am not well informed. Many people might argue all night long that admissions these days is a mere lottery…anyway that still depends on how you look at it.
You are in high school you better get so focused on your SAT and/or ACT, recommendations and essays. Forget about the West/East coast blablablabla…let’s talk about important stuffs…</p>
<p>Hey @orbdas , good question I think that the general idea is that california schools prefer california students, which makes sense for state schools but people say stanford is like that too… No one has cited actual evidence which is why I’m asking here to see if anyone knows.</p>
<p>Thanks for your feedback @dexter25 , it’s not so much that I feel any competitive spirit against the west coast, I was just wondering if I was at a disadvantage in this case because of my location. And don’t worry, my SAT’s are taken care of, recommendations are set, and essays are in the works.</p>
<p>What incentive would Stanford have for giving California applicants preferential treatment, though? With the possible exception of nearby “feeder” schools that consistently send Stanford solid students, I can’t think of a logical reason why an applicant from California should be preferred in the admissions process. If anything it would be reasonable to think that Stanford may pay more attention to one of two otherwise equally matched applicants if he or she would add “geographic diversity” to the class, even if that diversity factor just means being apart of the Californian plurality on campus.</p>
<p>On the whole, though, I seriously doubt that east coasters and west coasters in general face significantly different odds for admission.</p>
<p>Stanford has more CA students because more qualified CA apply. As is it one of the few elite schools on the west coast, it appeals to the west coast kids. There are plenty of great CA private prep/public high schools that pump out kids each year who want to go to S.</p>
<p>Thanks @orbdas and @camomof3 ! All of your points make perfect sense. I doubted my classmates a bit as well, which is why I came here. Certainly a relief that my already slim chances (I mean 7% acceptance rate!) aren’t lower because of location. :)</p>
<p>I hope this is the case(for my kids anyways), my kids have their hearts set on Stanford. I feel it’s a bit too far away. </p>
<p>They are against our instate school. Which is perfect. </p>
<p>Just a thought…could they possibly deny more kids from the east coast because they feel that they may not attend because of distance? Is that something that they consider? To protect their yield? </p>
<p>@Duceandaquarter I really don’t think any of the top schools considers yield that much - they all want the best students with the best fit.</p>
<p>I would think the only exception is for more obvious cases - e.g. if one of the parents teaches at Harvard, or if the student spent every summer at a Yale summer program for instance.</p>
<p>@yebhip </p>
<p>I echo what other says about how many CA students would prefer a CA school, especially Stanford. My DS went to a top 150 HS in the area. IIRC from Naviance last year about 50-70 people applied to Stanford vs. maybe 10-20 for each of the Ivies and a huge number, probably 100+ apply to UCB, UCLA and USC every year.</p>
<p>In terms of the historical year for you school, Stanford has over 82% yield, HYP between 50-60% and Columbia around 25% yield. I think the last one is more about the environment (big city, vs. people raised in suburban mellow CA) than any reflection on the school.</p>
<p>
For the class of 2018 (Columbia is 2017):
Harvard=82%
Yale=68%
Princeton=69%
Columbia=61%</p>
<p>Parchment members in particular stat ranges show a similar acceptance rate for in state vs out of state. Some examples for applicants over the past 4 years are below:</p>
<p>3.9+ GPA with 4+ AP classes and 2200+ SAT – 29% in state vs 28% out of state
3.85-3.95+ GPA with 4+ AP classes and 2100-2300 SAT – 12% in state vs 11% out of state
Less than 3.85 GPA and less than 2100 SAT – 7% in state vs 7% out of state.</p>
<p>The 1% difference in the higher stat ranges is not statistically significant with the sample size. Note that several other selective colleges show a different pattern, with a greater rate of acceptance rates for in state vs out of state. Some have specifically said that they favor local kids. For example, the dean of admissions at Harvard has said that if two kids are equally qualified and one is from Boston, they’ll favor the local kid, and has mentioned giving special attention to applicants from New England states. </p>
<p>@skieurope </p>
<p>I meant “yield for our” not “year for you”</p>
<p>In other words those our the yields for our high school. </p>
<p>sorry for the sloppiness. ;)</p>
<p>@fluffy2017 Thanks for clarifying.</p>
<p>Thanks for your input everyone. It certainly makes sense that CA students would be especially interested in Stanford. And thanks @data10 for the segmented acceptance rates. As an AP Stats student, your number talk really speaks to me (and I’m happy to know that I fit into the 29/28% range) :)</p>
<p>At least as of 7-8 years ago, the Stanford admissions office was telling East Coast alumni and donors that it was a (slight) advantage to have their kids be applying from the East Coast. No one verified that, though; it could have been complete b.s.</p>
<p>My guess would be that there’s no real difference for people applying from the Boston-Washington corridor. There may be some advantage for people applying from areas where Stanford may not get as many applications – West Virginia, Kentucky, Alabama (just guessing). </p>
<p>If you look at the numbers, you would have to factor in the extent to which (a) essentially all of Stanford’s faculty/administrative kids are West Coasters, (b) a majority (maybe a large majority) of the most active alumni are on the West Coast, © it’s easier for coaches to recruit on the West Coast, (d) the historical feeder schools are on the West Coast, and (e) a lot of the outreach to disadvantaged applicants is going to be on the West Coast. If you are from L.A. or Seattle, and not in one of those categories, I doubt you have any kind of advantage vs. an equivalent student from the New York or Boston metropolitan area.</p>
<p>The best thing to do? Apply and pray for the best. If you don’t apply, it will be a no.</p>