[parentologist]Respectfully disagree. Not everyone chooses to go to H. They will have room, even if its for one student.
That is called yield and is baked into the acceptances. That is why they accepted 1968 for 1660 spots. But if only 307 decline, they will not go to the wait list except for a specific need.
4 Likes
Are some people turning down their Harvard spots? Just wondering what direction we are going.
Of course some people do turn down Harvard. But this year, because of the 350 students who deferred enrollment a year ago, and because they accepted their usual about 2000 to fill a class of about 1660, they are expecting to be seriously over-enrolled in the freshman class. They have limited dorm space for freshmen, are going to have to scramble for dorm space for freshmen (even though the overall dorm space should be adequate). Not to mention that freshman level classes will be over-enrolled, also.
So try to focus on choosing your best option from where you’ve been accepted, and move forward. The chances of them going to the wait list this year are pretty much nil.
1 Like
I feel like Harvard waitlist this year was just a soft rejection. They probably knew there was a 99% weren’t going to be pulling from the pool this year, so they waitlisted the candidates that they seriously were thinking about admitting. So I’m taking it as a “close-but-no-cigar” type of thing.
That is the case every year.
3 Likes
True but this year it’s even more of a rejection than usual if you know what I mean
2 Likes
I believe in equal opportunity for all, but 60 % just doesn’t make sense!!
They’re including people of Asian descent as people of color, which is kind of ironic, since it’s pretty clear from what was revealed in the lawsuit (no Asian received a high ‘personality’ score) that the bar is set higher for Asians. Since they take about 25% Asian-Americans, that leaves approximately 35% for URMs.
1 Like
That is not only ironic but also cruel. Asian-Americans get the short end of the stick in admissions (as clearly revealed by the Harvard lawsuit). On top of that, admission offices have the gall to include them in POC statistics to advertise their diversity credentials!!
3 Likes
Any waitlist updates?
Just released the numbers. Biggest class in history. Over 1900 students when it’s typically 1650. They have to use outside housing to house all the freshman. There is no way they are drawing from the waitlist. Because tests were optional this year, there probably wasn’t a lot of overlap between admissions at the top schools. So plenty of people who got into Harvard didn’t get into Princeton and Stanford, etc.
1 Like
Not disputing what you’re saying, but how do draw this conclusion from TO?
1 Like
Population sampling n=1
Kid got into Stanford, Dartmouth, Brown
Waitlisted Columbia
Denied Harvard, Yale, UPenn
Kiddo did NOT apply test optional
1 Like
Folks say that “anecdotes are not evidence”, but they are when they are anecdotes like this! Congrats to you and your student.
n=1 …LOL! That one is all your child needs!
1 Like
So what happened, jmr0226?
Did you get accepted, finally?
My daughter who went to Princeton had a much better experience than my other daughter who attended Harvard. Congratulations! You will have a great time and fabulous education.
1 Like
My son is deciding between Harvard and Princeton, so I’m curious to hear why your daughter had a much better experience at Princeton in contrast to your other daughter’s experience at Harvard.
1 Like
Sorry for the delay. Princeton daughter found people generally happy, hard-working, and well-adjusted. Harvard daughter found students to be so competitive that they had little energy to make friendships. Many strove for internships, best summer jobs or professional schools from day one. Harvard seemed to have a high demand for its limited mental health services.
Princeton seemed to have a more caring admin and faculty. The eating clubs offered many social options compared to the fewer places in Harvard’s Final Clubs. Socially, there was a strangely high value placed on being from a New England boarding school. Princeton had some of that, but it was not as rampant.
Obviously, the academic departments are most important for your son’s “fit”.
I like to point out that Princeton has beautiful gardens, flowers, blooming Northern magnolia trees, as well as the towpath for runs. Harvard has stately trees, but nary a daffodil or tulip grows in Harvard Yard.
So engprofdad, what’d he choose? I can tell you that my '25 Harvard kid has not had anything like Fauve’s Harvard daughter’s experience. They have done very well academically (even though, like many, without their non-academic accomplishment, they probably wouldn’t have been admitted), have made lots of friends, haven’t needed mental health svcs so cannot comment on its availability. My main complaint has been the very poor food, and in some cases, awful housing, but kid puts up with the food, lucked out on housing. As for the Final Clubs, I think that they are just off the radar of most of the kids. I’m sure they’re important to the hereditary landed gentry, but there are so many people who are not involved in that scene, that it doesn’t matter.
The reality is that the same behaviors that were required to get into these tippy-top schools are going to affect the atmosphere at all of them.
2 Likes