<p>In one sense this is an unfair question that I've posed. There is no such thing as "one size fits all". But I am seriously bothered by the fact that I have very little sense of what is the "right" number of applications for our S.</p>
<p>I've seen students on this board who've applied to 5 places, and others who apply to more than 20. Is there any "right" number or at least a range of numbers? I know there have been other threads in this forum that pointed out the number of applications was up and that yield might drop accordingly. </p>
<p>It does seem to me that there are several factors that weigh into this decision. You obviously shouldn't submit more applications than you have the time to do a careful job on, although the common application reduces this problem somewhat. There is also the question of costs: application fees can easily mount to $100. </p>
<p>In my mind you should ideally have at least two schools in each of these categories: Reach, Match-Reach, Match, Safety. That would dictate eight applications. However, if your reaches are top tier schools where the competition is so unreal, you're probably going to have a better chance if you apply to more than two of this type.</p>
<p>So where does this leave us? I am leaning towards a minimum figure of eleven: four reaches, three match-reaches, two matches, and two safeties. This seems like a lot of applications. Am I being realistic, or am I overreacting? </p>
<p>Part of me feels it's almost "unfair" to send in this number of applications, and that the adcoms would throw up their hands in dismay if they knew. The other part of me says the situation we have leaves me no choice but to have my son grind out an extraordinary number of applications.</p>
<p>Since you're located in Texas, is your S in the top 10% and would he be happy with a state school as a safety? If so, he can do what I did, and just apply to one state school as a safety because of automatic acceptance. That said, I suppose I ended up applying to two safeties, a mush of 3 top-25-but-not-top-5 schools that I don't know exactly where they were for me, and MIT as a reach.</p>
<p>Cami - imho, the best way to go is: ID schools of interest (whether safety, match...) which have non-binding EA or rolling. Apply to those (in our case, it was 3). Get your acceptances in mid-December or earlier. Then, more apps ONLY to schools you'd dearly love to attend more than what you have in hand. No more need to play the odds to be sure you've got a "yes" in April. This plan applies also to any reach schools, but fewer of them have the rolling or non-binding EA option.</p>
<p>If possible, don't limit it to only one EA, because if rejected or deferred, it is a major downer and you don't get that relaxed feeling we all did who went this route. </p>
<p>If you don't have a safety in the EA/rolling category, FIND ONE!</p>
<p>PS at some schools, applying early enhances the chances of merit aid.</p>
<p>I agree with KrazyKow that if your son is in top 10 and likes some of the top state schools (UT, A&M etc), then those easily fit as safeties. Most of the TX public colleges use the same application (Texas Common App at applytexas.org), so even if you choose to apply to more than one of those, the application process is a breeze - no recommendations required, just fill in the form online and type in your essays. When he's choosing other schools to apply to, make sure that they are colleges he would actually attend. If your son would rather attend UT (or some safety school) more than some other college, then there's really no point in applying. I personally applied to two reach schools EA, 5 other match-reachs RD and UT on rolling admissions.</p>
<p>Also, has your son looked into some of the honors programs at Texas schools?</p>
<p>I think about 8-10 makes sense, but much more than ten and it may begin to seem scattershot. For a strong student whose numbers match super-top schools but who has no outstanding hook, three or even four reaches (if they are also good fits) is fine--you might get lucky with one (or more). Then three or four good matches, starting with almost-reaches and running to almost-safeties (the better the student, the hazier the concept of match becomes). Then two true safeties, so that if worst comes to worst you still have a choice--and be sure the safeties are schools that are compatible with the rest of the list.</p>
<p>Both my kids (classes of 2004 and 2009) applied to 8 schools, distributed roughly as outlined in the original post. The advice to use EA for a safety concerns me (rolling is great), only in the sense that since it definitely ups a student's chance of acceptance, it might be better saved for the dearly loved reach/match school. If, however, the student has not identified such a school by fall, then its use for the safety would seem to make good sense.</p>
<p>Donemom, you are confusing EA with ED. EA doesn't need to be "saved up" - one can apply EA to as many schools as desired. My daughter plans to apply EA to every school which offers it.</p>
<p>We would definitely want to use the ED choice for one of our reaches....probably Brown, unless he decides that Chicago is his one and only love, and doesn't want to give that possibility up even for ED at Brown. (Either way is fine with me.) </p>
<p>However, the idea of applying to a safety EA school (or a rolling one) is interesting. Chicago is not restrictive -- you can apply to as many other schools as you want. Right now, none of our schools takes EA or is rolling except Chicago so I would have to search for a suitable candidate. </p>
<p>His counselor has told him he should get into UT under the 10 percent rule unless his grades take a nosedive. (They do seem to be fine.) The question is whether he could make it into a smaller niche: plan 2, Dean's Scholar, or Liberal Arts Honors. He has been hesitent about the size of UT and the gigantic classes which heavily use TAs. There are less than 200 plan 2 kids so that is VERY competitive. Liberal arts is a little easier. We will probably give them both a shot. </p>
<p>Anyways thanks for all the ideas and advice. We are leaving shortly on a tour of colleges so hopefully we can begin to winnow things down.</p>
<p>Cami215, it really depends on an individual student's goals, application strategy, and where that student stands in the competitive process. By strategy I mean that one student might be focusing on trying to get into reach colleges -- or another might be focusing on trying to garner the best financial aid. If the goal is to "shop" financial aid offers, a few hundred dollars extra spent during the application process could reap thousands of dollars in savings the year later -- but that is only if the student truly intends to attend the school with the best offer.</p>
<p>Actually, calmom...it depends on the EA policy.
For example, Harvard's website says:
"Students applying to Harvard under the Early Action program are not ordinarily permitted to apply early elsewhere in the fall, either under Early Action or Early Decision programs. Harvard will rescind its offer of admission to a student who does so. "</p>
<p>Sandy-owl, that would then be SCEA. Don't we have an alphabet soup? LOL. D is thinking about the number 10, of which she has nine, 3 of which are EA or rolling. </p>
<p>2 are out of state admission and financial safeties that she can attend for in-state school prices. The next 3 are admissions matchs/safeties but financial matchs with their merit profiles. And the next 4 are from slight reach admissions /financial reach to lottery/lottery. Seems about right to me. We are stewing about whether she needs another merit shot, or another lottery shot. Since she has found neither we are merrily trucking along with essay topic discussions. How about: "my dead pet that taught me the true value of diversity?"</p>
<p>Harvard and Yale do not have true EA - they have a hybrid which at least Yale calls SCEA (single choice early admission). So it's a matter of terminology, but to the extent we use it, Harvard & Yale are deviating from the standard.</p>
<p>I would apply to as many as you feel comfortable with. If you are going for top 25 schools and you have the stats, I believe in playing the odds and sending apps to all schools where you believe you could be happy. If you get into more than one, you have some FA leverage. I would do an EA to a top school and ID to Rice for sure. Don't apply to schools where you won't be happy. It just creates problems if they try to buy you in. Don't apply to safeties where you won't be happy, you just might have to go there.</p>
<p>And sometimes it's the guidance department that will tell you how many you can apply to. My nephew could only apply to 6 schools. For some public schools, it must be an overwhelming job for the GC's when the apps need to be sent out.</p>
<p>There are a large number of schools which offer EA, although they do not tend to be the very most selective. No easy way to list them; you just have to check the websites of each school, or some of the popular guidebooks.</p>
<p>Donemom, you can try this . Go to Commonapp.org, source out there document that list all their member schools , admission status, and timetables, and requirements. It's on a PDF file and you just have to look around for it. I can't ever find it in a hurry, but I did find it today. Once printed it is an invaluable cheatsheet.Good luck,as for the EA common app schools it will give you all of them.
I found it. Miracles never cease
Try this app.commonapp.org/Additional_Forms/requirements.pdf </p>
<p>Obviously , we all know to verify this info on the college website itself.</p>
<p>I have heard 4-7 was a good number. I applied to four, but many of my friends (those who didn't plan on attending the HYPS schools which seems to be all the rage on this board) applied to 1-3.</p>
<p>I agree 100% with your strategy. My son applied three years ago. At that time his high school limited the number of applications to 8. I thought this was an arbitrary and unrealistic number for kids shooting for super-selective colleges; today I think it is even more so. </p>
<p>I dont think admissions are random from the AdComs viewpoint, but I think it is for the applicant. There is simply no choice but to apply to several as you cannot accurately predict your chances. (There is so much that is "unfair" about the whole admissions process, that I don't think you should even go there.) If financial aid is a factor for your family then the list may grow exponentially. Hopefully there will be a point of intersect.</p>
<p>Along with having the time and energy to do a good job on his applications (and having cooperative recommenders and guidance counselors) the important factor to me is making sure that your son has good reason for every school on his list. Im not endorsing an eight-ivy scatter shot, but I dont think you are either.</p>
<p>Having an early school that is EA is a wonderful tool. Depending on the outcome he could recalibrate his list at the last minute: more safeties if hes denied or deferred, fewer if hes accepted. This of course pends totally on his WANTING to go to his EA choice. Sounds like youre covered on that base too.</p>
<p>Well look forward to hearing his reactions post tour.</p>