How are college applications read?

I’ve heard things like, “admissions are broken down into regions, so one regional admissions officer will read all the applications from your vicinity.” Is this true, and if so, is this why very few people from the same region get in? The websites of the colleges seem to imply that all the applications are read on their grounds.

I’d say that depends very much on the college. Many colleges don’t get apps from out of their region. Of those that do, they may break down initial readings by region (with a second reading by someone else if not a definite yes or no) but also, may not.

Is there a particular college you are asking about?

@OHMomof2 Oh. I’m asking about the very selective colleges, like Yale, Harvard, Princeton, Stanford, and MIT.

MIT has a really great admissions site where their reps write on all kinds of admissions topics - http://mitadmissions.org/blogs - for example MIT does not do admissions by region, they say: http://mitadmissions.org/apply/process/selection

If you google around you may find some similar info from the other schools you mention.

All schools with specific admissions criteria will review applications to find those students who met criteria for their school. There would be expected differences based on specific requirements and levels of performance based on factors such as size of class, college mission. and any other unique factors. You should expect review of your materials according to admissions criteria and procedures performed by qualified admissions staff at each school.