@Lindagaf Indeed. It was hard work and time consuming for her… and expensive for me.
She was pre-warned though early on by a Yale admissions rep who told her that in this current climate the two groups that have it worse are: 1) overachieving and highly-qualified Asians or even Asian-Americans of both genders and 2) overachieving and highly-qualified white unhooked female applicants. Apparently, there are just way too many of each categories applying these days. She told her that this could be alleviated some if you are from the right state or right area - as geographical diversity could help. In my daughter’s case, being from one of the 4 most populated states was an extra negative.
Years ago… things were very different. It was not a huge disadvantage being Asian, as their application #s were not so high then. And back then, being an overachieving and highly-qualified white unhooked male applicant was a disadvantage.
Finding a hook of course can help any applicant.
It apparently all relates back to the goal of creating a diverse and well-rounded freshman class. Colleges, especially elite colleges receiving tens of thousands of applications, can only accept so many of each category. That Yale adcom rep joked that it is too bad my daughter does not live in Idaho. Oh well…
Here are a couple of the articles written online about it that we discovered after the fact…
My point to the OP is simple… research, visit schools, choose wisely… but also play it safe. There are no guarantees in this process. It is better to be safe than sorry. College admissions have certainly become a combat sport lately lol
^That is totally correct, in regards to Asians and unhooked white girls. I have a good friend. Asian D, 2370 SAT. Class Val. I warned her mom. I suggested in all seriousness that they could greatly improve her chances of getting into HYP, etc…by moving to Alaska. I think they consdered it :-). Their D ended up at one of the top LACs, which was what she really wanted anyway. Just as well, because she was denied from all Ivies and Tufts.
OP, don’t be freaked out by these stories. No idea what kind of student your sister is, what your race is, or your family circumstances, but she will get into college, rest assured. My D is an unhooked white girl and she had lots of choices. Make a good list; that’s the key.
@WWWard I agree on that admissions race part, but its exciting :)) In my country we don’t usually apply to that number of school so I don’t think my parents will be convinced of applying to these so many colleges and pay there fees (though I actually applied 8 across Canada, US, and Egypt; my home country. But still my parents won’t repeat it.
@Lindagaf Well just as intparent said the tuition costs would be a limiting factor in our selection, so I don’t think we’ll come near to highly selective US colleges for that reason. Maybe we can do that with Canadian top schools. The reason is think Int’l scholarships are so scarce that as we should bear in mind we can afford that school for 4 years then later be hopeful for financial aid to alleviate the stress on my parents (and future me**) … Am I Right?
As I’ll become a college senior it would be her Freshman, I promised to finaid her when I graduate and get the job.
Quite honestly, I wouldn’t start anything at this point. She’s only just started high school. Make sure she’s taking a courseload at an appropriately challenging level for her, and encourage her to get involved with activities that interest her both in school and in the community and not to be afraid to try out new things. She has no grades or test scores, she is young and whatever ideas she may have about majors or colleges will probably change over the next few years. I would hold off on trying to make any kind of list at this point–I think it can only create stress and pressure to do things to look good to colleges at the expense of the exploration that will benefit her more.
I think the only thing she really needs to know now is that grades do matter and may restrict her options later, so she should work hard and take school seriously.
Yes, it is true that international financial,aid is very hard to come by. I am not great with that, yiu can probsbly get a lot of info by searching on this site. Alos, I suspect that only the most competitive International applicants have any chance of getting into those colleges that do give financial aid to foreign studetns.
I’ll put up a plan for coming 4 years but I won’t bother her with it for now. Maybe I’ll just introduce her to the college concept, get into discussions to know what’s in her head for college experience, then familiarize her with the universal requirements if she’s eager. This year I’ll focus on the test preparation part and encouraging her to engage in ECs with disregard to college (introducing to HS life) Maybe I’ll let her buy Fiske’s and the majors book on her sophomore but we won’t get near to college selection this year! Hope this will work well with her and making the process interesting rather from stressful.
I found this book on Amazon, you guys tell me what you think of it?
PR “top 381” is more manageable and more useful. The descriptions are shorter, there are lists. It’s good to start with.
Fiske goes more in-depth - wait till the 2018 edition is out.
AdMission Possible is a good book to learn how admissions work - she can read it on her own, it’s very user-friendly.
Will your sister have an opportunity to visit the US/visit you? This could be an opportunity to see a variety of colleges.
Being a girl from Egypt is likely a hook, because it’s difficult to be a girl in Egypt (compared to many other places). Anything she manages to do is likely to be magnified because it’s harder for a girl to be out and about in Egypt.
“we should bear in mind we can afford that school for 4 years then later be hopeful for financial aid to alleviate the stress on my parents” => no, for most colleges, if you don’t apply for financial aid, you’re not eligible for financial aid (unless something horribly catastrophic happens ie., your parents’ business burns down.) The most generous colleges tend to be “meet need” colleges, including LACs. Some universities, as you know, also offer merit scholarships. You could explore women’s colleges. And of course, there’s your own college.
For now, her focus should be to find activities she likes to do as well as books in English so that her fluency becomes excellent. Any book she can find and likes will do.
lol