If your gonna dream, Dream BIG.
@nstasi Ok, good! Anyways, I think you’ll get into at least one of the big ones. You’re definitely a strong applicant. Have hope and be optimistic! And even if you don’t get in, realize it may not have been your lucky day. It doesn’t make you any less of a great student/person.
Thank you…College planning has been a very long road. It’s important to be happy about where the road ends and new roads open.
What are your thoughts on attending a highly selective school vs a great state school?
@nstasi A highly selective institution’s greatest benefit lies in the classmates and friends you will meet; they will provide the greatest intellectual and personal growth compared to a state institution.
Also, a Top 20 college’s name opens more doors.
On the other hand, a state institution often costs less, offers high-quality academics (mostly, though not quite, as good as that of a highly selective institution), and affords you a greater opportunity to stand out as a top student.
Thanks …
Don’t forget that wherever you go, you are great students/people and it totally depends on you to make your future brilliant. I’m sure all of you will create a better world in the near future. Good luck everyone!
I wanted to weigh in on the issue of a great state school vs. a highly selective private institution. I did my undergrad at Cal Berkeley in the late '80s - early '90s. Tuition was about $900 a semester (in state) and I got a great education. However, there were so many students that you could easily get lost. Students just learn to advocate for themselves. Help is everywhere and you just have to ask for it if you need it. The student population is definitely more diverse than you would see at a private institution. A lot of my classmates were very bright but didn’t have the money to go anywhere else or who wanted to stay near home. There were a lot of other students who really weren’t college material and flunked out.
I went to Tufts for medical school and it was a completely different experience. The students who weren’t doing well got assigned tutors. Of course, there were only 150 people in my class and it was EXPENSIVE. My husband did his undergrad at Dartmouth and whenever he tries to tell me how much better his school is than mine, I remind him that we wound up at the exact same medical school. We are both doing great in our careers. I can count on one hand how many times a year I get asked where I did my undergrad!
My son applied to private schools and not Cal because we are not California residents and out of state tuition makes Cal almost as expensive as a private school. Its reputation is fine, but they don’t take care of their undergrads the way a private school would. Also, illegal aliens who graduate from a high school in California get in state tuition, which I don’t think is fair. Harvard is much smaller and there is so much tradition. It would be a great place to go to college. He applied to 7 private schools of varying selectivity. If the next couple of weeks don’t go well for him, he still has time to apply to our state school. They take applications in the summer for fall semester (not selective at all).
Harvard is a reach for everyone but we will all find out soon enough. Good luck to all. It is NOT the end of the world if you don’t get in. Everything happens for a reason and the path you follow may or may not lead through Harvard. Either way, it is okay. Wherever you go, make the most of your college experience. Like Frank Bruni says, “Where you go is not who you’ll be.”
@m22boys - Bruni’s quote is very true. Einstein did not become Einstein because he was at Princeton or Feynman did not become great because he was at Caltech. Rather it is the other way around. Because they stayed there, the institutions became famous.
Harvard 2020 early acceptee here! If you guys have any questions about acceptance, what it’s like, etc, I’m here to answer! Plus, I know this is probably all you can think about right now because we were all the same way back in December
Congrats @XCRat2016 ! That must have been awesome. Just a question, what do you think was your hook?
@hola1997 I would possibly say my hook was being Native American, but you can never say for sure. In fact, there are a lot of other EA people I’ve met who don’t really have a hook at all. One current junior told me that there is about a 50/50 mix of “sharp” people and “round” people in each class, sharp meaning somebody who is extremely impressive in a single, focused area(the people with the strongest hooks), and round meaning people who are more well-rounded (no huge hooks). I would definitely consider myself a round guy, but the early round probably brought in the majority of the sharp people in the class based on the people I’ve met.
@XCRat2016 : Wonderful! Well at least you are off to a great well-deserved vacation! Thanks for sharing your info! Hopefully, I will be able to see you at Visitas if things work out for me 
EA Deferred applicant here! Anxiously and incessantly praying for a miracle. 
@hola1997 I hope so too! Best of luck!
@XCRat2016 what are the conditions for a acceptance? like what kind of grades do you need to maintain for senior year so that your acceptance is not rescinded?
@CharliGibbons Avoid Ds, Fs, felonies and fraud (in admissions).
Are any of those in your immediate plans?
@CharliGibbons they did not give any specifics on that at all, in fact did not even mention the possibility of rescinding. Our assumption remains that you should maintain relatively similar grades to what they based their acceptance on, but it’s fine to slack off a little bit. As far as I know, they rarely rescind, and only do so in extreme cases, but I don’t think anybody is willing to risk it
@rahuilmars231 That is amazing!!! Congratulations!!! ^:)^ I’m so happy to hear, even though I don’t know you, I’m still excited for you!
Anyone been contacted by admission officers asking for anything in the past few days?