<p>Questbridge friends! </p>
<p>First, way to be. Seriously, I adore you guys and reading QB apps is among the most rewarding things I do in the winter.</p>
<p>Second, though I usually don't leave the Tufts forum, I thought I'd come hang out with you guys. If you have questions or want advice related to college admissions (even if it isn't Tufts), I'm so happy to help. And if you have Tufts questions, I'm even happier.</p>
<p>Oh my god! A real admission officer! how cool!</p>
<p>Hi! And well, you might not like my question since it’s very generic, but I have to ask it since it’s the one thing haunting me…</p>
<p>How are SAT/ACT scores viewed for immigrants with just few years living in the United States? My scores in this regard are pretty much like what I’ve seen from some international students, high math scores, and can’t even reach a 600 in reading… Are admission officers lenient about this or is there just thing thing as “NO! NO! NO! He/She’s going to fail here since he/she didn’t get even a 1900/29”?</p>
<p>Sorry for my question again… I’ve heard a lot of opinions, just want to hear it from a real admissions officer! Thanks!</p>
<p>In addition, I’ll ask another generic question: in general, does a low math SAT score stop an otherwise qualified applicant from getting accepted into good (QuestBridge level) schools? That is to say, is it ever THE deciding factor? </p>
<p>I’m applying ED2 to Colorado College, and though I have some decent scores for their 2/3 of their test flex option (750 SAT Writing and a 5 on AP Lang/Comp), I have a serious feeling that my horrendous 520 Math score will prevent them from even looking at my essays, etc. </p>
<p>Mind you, I’m principally applying to low-reach liberal arts colleges; it’s not like I’m shooting for Yale or anything. Unfortunately, this is all so competitive that it makes my head spin.</p>
<p>Sorry, I know you’re a Tufts guy, I’m just excited to inquire to someone who’s actually qualified to give a response.</p>
<p>Hey Dan,</p>
<p>I’d like to know how exactly the admissions process works. Does more than one person read my application? Is everything read digitally, seeing that almost everything is send online, or do you guys print it out? Is there a round table meeting where all the readers discuss which applicants to accept? How do you set a cut off number of the number of applicants you want to admit?</p>
<p>I understand the methodology varies from institution to institution, but I’d like to know the general inner machinations of this process :)</p>
<p>Do Questbridge applicants, due to the nature of their applications, get a different kind of reading compared to Common App kids?</p>
<p>So, Apologies for the length of my reply, but you ask a thoughtful question and I’m going to give a thoughtful answer. And, as my caveat, like nearly everything in college admissions in the USA, the answers to a lot of questions about how schools do stuff is: it depends.</p>
<p>Regarding testing - many schools, particularly the selective ones, will factor in life context and English language exposure and all the rest of that stuff into their interpretation of what the scores mean. I’d like to be clear about this, that doesn’t mean that standards are lowered, but that how you demonstrate you meet those standards can change. </p>
<p>So, for example: you’ve got two students. </p>
<p>One lives in the suburbs of Washington, DC with two parents who are lawyers. That student’s parents grew up in the US, their grandparents grew up in the US, their great grandparents grew up in the US, and that student scores (just for the thought-exercise) a 600 on the CR, the English section, of the SAT. </p>
<p>The second also lives in the suburbs of Washington, DC, but in an immigrant community where the primary language is a mix of Spanish and English. This family moved to the US two years ago as political refugees from Venezuala (as an example, but it could just as easily be Columbia or Honduras or Cambodia or Sri Lanka or wherever). This student’s parents didn’t finish high school, they speak zero English, in fact no one in their family speaks any English, and this student’s entire English-speaking life consists only of the last two years. And this student, from this background, also scores a 600 on the CR. </p>
<p>Ok, now I ask you, which of these students has the better score? </p>
<p>It’s the same number, but what that number actually means can be many different things depending on circumstances. That second student’s achievement is nothing short of brilliance. We, of course, rarely see cases quite as extreme as the second example above. (though, with our QB applicants, it is MUCH more frequent than in the general application pool, which is why we tend to show you guys so much love). </p>
<p>What the number ends up being is less important than what that number says about you. Similar numbers can say very different things.</p>
<p>And that’s my segue into answer @Zamiota’s question. What your numbers say, speaking perhaps too broadly, is that you have profound ability in some academic areas and room for growth in others. That’s not the worst thing, and different schools will handle that differently. At some schools, there are remarkable and talented faculty in subject areas that are under-enrolled. Sometimes, it’s a particular major, sometimes we’re talking about a type of major. Let’s say Colorado College has such an English department (I don’t know if they do or don’t) - they’ve got faculty who are itching for high talent minds in that area. You apply, and you’re a reader. You love books, you love philosophy, and you’re strong both on your transcript and in testing in those disciplines. You’re more likely to get in, even if you’re sporting lower math numbers. </p>
<p>But, since you can’t control your testing at this point, your job is to put together an application for Colorado College that displays the power of your mind and the depth/nuance/skill of your thinking in the subjects that you feel strongly about. You need to show that you’re smarter than your numbers even, and you need to arm whoever goes into the admissions committee room with tools to show their colleagues what you will bring to a classroom (metaphorically) that will excite the faculty.</p>
<p>@Garridokiwi - we’ve got a few posts on our blogs about that. At Tufts, we hold a ‘committee’ with a group of admissions officers in the room. We read the summaries (often quite lengthy) of the applicants, discuss, then vote. Let me see if I can find a good one…</p>
<p>Here’s the reflections of one of our admissions officers experiencing his first committee - it’s from last year, but still a relevant read: [My</a> first time in committee](<a href=“http://admissions.tufts.edu/blogs/inside-admissions/post/its-my-first-time-in-committee/]My”>http://admissions.tufts.edu/blogs/inside-admissions/post/its-my-first-time-in-committee/)</p>
<p>We’ve got a bunch of posts, actually, that give you a look into our process from a variety of perspectives, including a live-blog from last year. You’ll find a lot of what you’re looking for in there, and we try to be honest about what we do. The one question you might not find explicitly included is your question about cut-offs. While there isn’t a set ‘cutoff’, we do have statistical models that help us predict how large a class we would enroll based on a given group of decisions, and we know the number of students we want to enroll. If you are, like me, a numbers nerd, it’s absolutely fascinating, and also weirdly contradictory in nature. Our individual decisions are guided by an appreciation and understanding of that single applicant - there’s so much humanity and personality involved. But the class as a whole requires you to be able to zoom out and see the aggregate big picture, and that’s driven in large part by the number of seats in the class. </p>
<p>@Fullmetal27 - The match does, sort of, but that should make sense given how different the match process is. But for the majority of our QB admits, who submit their QB apps but are admitted via regular decision, the process is very similar. The QB app is designed to give you a LOT of room for self-expression and your life story. I feel, reading them, that your personality really emerges from your QB app (question for you: do you feel the same way when you write it?). Our own Tufts app is structure with a <em>very</em> similar set of values, so aside from the questions you answer in your QB essays, we don’t have to do much differently from an evaluation standpoint.</p>
<p>We just released our ED decisions - so to any of you who applied ED (instead of the match) and heard back in the last few days… I hope you got nothing but good news.</p>
<p>Dear Dan,</p>
<pre><code> I am a a QB finalist and would like to thank you for taking your time to reach out to us little guys. I am honestly in love with Tufts and would love to apply for early decision II but my parents want me to wait and see where else I can get into. That being said, I would choose Tufts over any HYPMS or similar institution.
My question is whether I can also send in a common app with supplements to Tufts along with the QB app? I want you guys to see my dedication for your school.
Could I do this?
</code></pre>
<p>Thanks Dan!</p>
<p>You can, but you really <em>really</em> don’t need to. The QB app is really fulsome, and the truth is that there’s only so much writing that we can productively talk about when doing your application review (and the QB app has plenty already). </p>
<p>Really, if you want to show your dedication, just send me a quick email to say how dedicated you are. That’s a lot easier and just as purposeful as doing the supplement. :)</p>
<p>You can find my email here: [Dan’s</a> Blog Posts](<a href=“http://admissions.tufts.edu/blogs/inside-admissions/author/dan-grayson/]Dan’s”>http://admissions.tufts.edu/blogs/inside-admissions/author/dan-grayson/)</p>
<p>I don’t have a question or anything… But I just wanted to say that I really appreciate you helping us Questbridge students. </p>
<p>Often it seems like our demographic - high-achieving, low-income (with all of the struggles and tribulations that usually come with it)- is ignored at elite colleges like yours, which is why many of my friends in similar situations don’t even dare to apply. High schoolers in general usually forget that there are actual people reading their college applications. Sometimes, they still think this process is completely mechanized, that perhaps a computer plugs in the statistics, forgoes the essays and spews out a result. </p>
<p>Thank you for reminding college applicants, including me, that there is an underlying sense of humanity in college admissions.</p>
<p>Aww! I’m so happy to help. What you’re talking about is the reason I wanted to jump into the message boards here. Too often (I think), universities expect you to find your way into the channels we prefer - which is great if your parents have graduate degrees and you go to schools with savvy counselors who can tell you exactly where those channels are.</p>
<p>But that’s ridiculous. Really, we should be finding the spaces where you already are, and making ourselves available for you there. That’s, for me, the best part of QB: a significant lowering of the barriers between all these incredible low-income students (you guys) and us. </p>
<p>Good luck everyone in the final days before the flurry of Jan 1st deadlines!</p>
<p>Does the entire admissions committee get a chance to read/see my essays? Or is it just one or two admissions officers who read them then advocate for me?</p>
<p>I’m wondering because if it’s just one or two people reading essays I worked really hard on and those people don’t make a good case, whether it’s because they’re not as experienced as the veteran readers or just not ‘feeling’ my application, then that’s a little upsetting…</p>
<p>Hi!</p>
<p>By any chance, does Tufts still provide full tuition in rd round for QB finalists? If so, what is the percentage of those that receive it.</p>
<p>Thanks. :)</p>
<p>Hi!</p>
<p>By any chance, does Tufts still provide full tuition in rd round for QB finalists? If so, what is the percentage of those that receive it.</p>
<p>Thanks. :)</p>
<p>Tufts meets full demonstrated need for anyone who applies. I believe that is the same commitment as the QB arrangement, maybe Dan can confirm. If you need more explanation of how that works, reply back. Also this page and the aid calculator may be useful to you.
[Tufts</a> University Admissions Department](<a href=“http://admissions.tufts.edu/tuition-and-aid/]Tufts”>Tuition & Fees | Tufts Admissions)</p>
<p>Sorry, I was slightly off–the QB is a no loan package. With full need colleges, you may get some Federal Direct Loans and possibly a small family contribution.
[Scholarship</a> Details](<a href=“http://www.questbridge.org/for-students/ncm-scholarship-details]Scholarship”>QuestBridge | Scholarship Details)</p>
<p>Since Tufts meets 100% of need and I assume you’re a QB applicant with typical assets, Jumbo financial aid should be sufficient. It’s not necessarily a ‘full - tuition’ scholarship, but just really really good aid.</p>
<p>Yup, that’s right. Our aid policies are exactly the same in all our rounds of admission: if you have need, we meet it in full. For so many QB applicants, family incomes are low enough that they already qualify for a full aid award without loan. If you would have qualified for that in the match, then you’d qualify for it in Regular Decision.</p>
<p>Dan…</p>
<p>I don’t know about Questbridge, but I have a question on behalf of a student I am mentoring through a program at our company. </p>
<p>I am mentoring a local high school student who wants to go to college. She will be first in family to college. She is a Salvadorean immigrant since age 8 or so, very low income, and has applied for permission to stay in the US under the “dream act”. She is a resident of Virginia which has not passed a state dream act (yet, fingers crossed). </p>
<p>The change in her visa status under the DACA has allowed her to work legally part time. She now works 20-30 hrs a week to help support her family and has no personal savings. She babysits her younger siblings including one who is severely handicapped. She is 16 and in 10th grade. Last year she had mediocre grades but since getting word of the Dream Act acceptance she is motivated to try for college. Her Sophomore grades so far are mainly As and a couple of Bs. Her counselors and teachers are enthusiastic supporters and believe she could be very successful in college. However, she will not qualify for instate tuition or state or federal aid. Going to college would be transformative for her and for her family. She is disheartened by the situation that she is treated as a foreign student and will have to pay out of state tuition even for community college and with no eligibility for state or federal aid. She is a hardworker and good student, but I am not sure if she will be prepared for an elite school by senior year. </p>
<p>What type of financial resources are available for this student in Questbridge program? Are any schools willing to give extra aid to her to make up for ineligibility for Pell grants, loans etc? Has Questbridge made an exception for dream act students? </p>
<p>Tips and ideas will be appreciated!</p>