<p>I know that when your child starts applying to colleges, he's supposed to pick a reach school, several probables and a "safety" school. How do you know if you're overreaching?</p>
<p>I started this thread almost a year ago:</p>
<p>Post # 14 was most helpful in answering the question.</p>
<p>I think it is evaluated differently depending on the selectivity of the school and the factors the school evaluates. A good state U, will usually evaluate based on gpa, test scores and rank. A quick look at the common data set for the school will tell you if you child is in range.
A super selective schools, "unhooked" students should be at the 75% on the common data set and bring something else to the table as well (at least that is what I have gleaned around here) to be considered competitive.</p>
<p>Just using the numbers is a good place to start, but you could feel you are right in there with scores and that's only telling about half the story when it comes to smaller schools or otherwise not big Universities.</p>
<p>exactly, modadunn....as usual.....</p>
<p>If your scores or grades are below the 25 - 75 percentile range the school is probably a reach, however some schools (like the Ivies, or some of the select liberal arts colleges) are reaches for everyone because their acceptance rate is so low. It's more of an art than a science to determine exactly what a reach vs a match may be in some cases. For my son all his match schools were also reaches, but his safeties were dead safe. :)</p>
<p>I would consider a school a reach if any part of your child's stats fall below the 25% and/or if that school accepts 33% or fewer of its applicants. I think I am far more conservative than some you will find here but the way I figure it, any school that only accepts 1/3 of its applicants is a crap shoot. </p>
<p>What I learned on CC this time last year is that there are many students who overestimated their chances and were left with broken hearts so when my daughters were applying this year I encouraged my girls to reach if they liked the school but I made sure they were aware of the accepted students' stats and the accept rate. The advice I got here was build the list from the bottom up meaning begin with a safety your child would like to attend then add any others in the match/reach realm. </p>
<p>Applying early to rolling and EA schools is another strategy meant to help guarantee the kid will have someplace to go in the fall and keep the surprises at bay come 4/1</p>
<p>All the schools he's looking at, he falls within the 25-75% of SAT scores (most right in the middle) - but he's not from the area he's applying to. We're from the Southwest and he's looking at schools in VA and DC area. Also, how did you know that his safeties were "dead safe"?</p>
<p>If your school has Naviance, that is a very good way to assess how students with your child's stats have fared at a specific college (and thus to determine how reachy it is).</p>
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Also, how did you know that his safeties were "dead safe"?
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I knew they were safe because a large number of kids from our school had applied to them from our school in year's past and no one with his stats (or stats considerably lower than his) had ever been rejected. Even without the school history I'd have considered them safe. His stats were in the the 25% and the acceptance rate was (I thought) 75%. It turned out that one of the schools in question (RPI) was named one of the 25 new Ivies in Newsweek, and they had a lot more applications and only a 40% or so acceptance rate that year!</p>
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What I learned on CC this time last year is that there are many students who overestimated their chances and were left with broken hearts so when my daughters were applying this year....
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<p>Having watched several cycles of applications and results, a recurring theme is that the student...but especially the parents...look at the student's grades/scores/EC's and think how wonderful they are. Wrong focus. Look at the competition at the really tough schools and it's very difficult to keep from being sobered.</p>
<p>4.3 unweighted GPA? Look at the number of valedictorians rejected. 2250 SAT scores? A dime a dozen and half make it and half don't. Member of state honor orchestra, 300 hours of community service, and varsity soccer player? Please join the queue in line 17 and wait to be called. I'm speaking here of the HYSPM-plus schools...calibrate accordingly as you work your way down the food chain. But the point is, for a given school, find the acceptance/rejection threads from the previous years and read carefully.</p>
<p>"I would consider a school a reach if any part of your child's stats fall below the 25% and/or if that school accepts 33% or fewer of its applicants. I think I am far more conservative than some you will find here but the way I figure it, any school that only accepts 1/3 of its applicants is a crap shoot."
I agree with these general guidelines. They are similar to those S used 3 years ago, with much success. The only surprise/ disappointment was the rejection at the super reach [S].</p>
<p>Forgot to mention another reason RPI was safe. They had a priority application, so he knew by November that he'd been accepted. :)</p>
<p>Rolling admissions is great for finding safeties.</p>
<p>Menloparkmom: So there are reaches and SUPER reaches? Wow</p>
<p>Just curious - what is the difference between a reach and a super reach?</p>
<p>I think that most veteran CC parents would agree that any college that accepts less than 10-15% of applicants would qualify as a super reach. There are so many top stat kids, both from the US as well as from abroad, that apply to HYPS, etc that regardless of qualifications, applicants have literally less than a 1 in 10 chance of acceptance. And if you aren't a legacy, nationally ranked athlete, development admit, or otherwise "hooked", your chances at those schools are even less. So chances of acceptance at those colleges should be regarded as a crapshoot.</p>
<p>newtothismom: what I have learned is that when looking at private schools it is advantageous to go outside of your backyard. Many privates are looking for geographical diversity so if your S (and you) are willing for him to go further afield it will likely work in your admissions favor. This is especially true if you are from either the eastern or western seaboard and he is applying in the Midwest. This also often translates to better financial offers from the schools in question</p>
<p>Heck, even my California, soccer playing, middle class, white girls were exotic in Texas :)</p>
<p>Amen, Menloparkmom, it shocks me that so few kids understand this as a quick look at the chances board shows--kids tell anyone with a 2300 that "they're in everywhere" yet we know that's far from the truth. And in the last few years we've seen a good number of colleges joining HYPS is taking under 15%.</p>
<p>I think you need to try to assess your child as objectively as you can. Every applicant has strengths and weaknesses. If scores and grades are consistent (this includes coursework), you want to be in range. It sounds like geographic diversity may help you-- but only if the school cares about it and only if there aren't many applicants from your area. Look at some other things: Are you full pay? Are your child's extracurriculars attractive to the school? How does the high school usually do with that college (this is very telling especially with the more selective schools)? Does your child's race and gender help or hurt?</p>
<p>If your child is in the range, it will depend on how much the school wants the most compelling aspect of your child. So for example, if you are in range and your child's strongest point is geographic diversity, it may not be enough to tip the balance. But if your child is also self-pay or can apply ED, then your chances of being accepted go up dramatically. Some schools don't care about geographic diversity but they really want high SAT/ACT scorers or they really want males (liberal arts colleges) or females (technical schools). </p>
<p>If you can't figure it out, ask the parents here. My daughter's school underestimated her chances last year and I knew it. I came here and asked the parents to help. We were reassured and she ended up with multiple wonderful acceptances.</p>
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newtothismom: what I have learned is that when looking at private schools it is advantageous to go outside of your backyard. Many privates are looking for geographical diversity so if your S (and you) are willing for him to go further afield it will likely work in your admissions favor.
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<p>Oh, yes. Definitely.</p>
<p>We live in the Washington, DC suburbs, and I was astounded by how many very well qualified students got rejected from Georgetown and Johns Hopkins, while others of lesser qualifications got into Northwestern or the University of Chicago. And I have seen posts from Chicago-area parents describing pretty much the opposite situation for their kids.</p>