<p>Does the school in question use “level of applicant’s interest” as an admissions criterion? (See common data set section C7, or the admissions tab for the school on [CollegeData:</a> College Search, Financial Aid, College Application, College Scholarship, Student Loan, FAFSA Info, Common Application](<a href=“http://www.collegedata.com%5DCollegeData:”>http://www.collegedata.com) .)</p>
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<p>I did notice, and think that makes little sense when trying to ascertain the “value” of yield in a … comparative process. The examples I have used indicate that comparing yields represent an errand’s fool it there was ever one. The yield number ONLY makes sense in its well-defined context of THAT school. So, yes, a school with a 12 percent yield deserved to be analyzed with attention to the reasons of that yield, but it means absolutely nothing in terms of comparing to other schools, be it Harvard or Tulane or Lane College. </p>
<p>A school with a 80 percent yield might be one that is so attractive that only twenty percent pick a different option. And another school with a 80 percent could be one that admits such a high number of students who have NO better option than attending such a non-selective school. Feel free to use Harvard and Nebraska for an illustration!</p>
<p>PS Fwiw, the admissions and yield numbers for the service academies have no relevance whatsoever. Their reported admission rates are pure ** as the selection process is unique.</p>
<p>I had not thought about yield rate before. On the other hand, we have looked at 4-yr grad rates at schools D is applying to. I think that is a really critical piece of info because the point is not just to attend, but to complete a degree and do so in the “normal” amount of time (and saving an extra year or two of expensive private school tuition.)</p>
<p>After reading this thread, I think it might be a point of interest to make you wonder why but probably is not definitive of itself to set a minimum alert level. </p>
<p>Start by looking at ED or EA. If they are EA, then frankly, I wouldn’t look further than their stats for middle 50% accepted and THEN, the stats on the matriculating class. Most school websites publish that info and there would see any significant difference between what they admit and what matriculates.</p>
<p>If they are ED, maybe check out schools that appear to be their peers and see how that compares. Maybe there is a trend in that region that makes sense. I doubt you’d get a real answer out of an admissions office, but you could ask. </p>
<p>If your school uses the Naviance database, you should be able to look to see what the overlaps are in applications from your daughter’s school to college of interest A. That also might show you if indeed everyone is using it as a safety. Is that your real concern–she might yearn to go to a school that is a sure thing for her, but not be happy with its reputation?</p>
<p>Yield also reflects marketing strategy on the part of the school. Some schools would rather have lots of applications than a high yield. So they make the application free, eliminate supplemental essays, and send mailers to every HS student in the country. This will drive applications up, but yield down. This strategy is a smart one for the long term if the school’s goal is to increase its nationwide brand.</p>
<p>Sure, one way to look at this is that the student body at School X didn’t view that school as a first choice. But it may also be true that at School Y down the street (which has the same ranking as School X, but a higher yield), the student body is a group of people who don’t aim very high.</p>
<p>Golf – fwiw, I believe that USNWR has dropped yield from its rankings formula because it was too unreliable and subject to fluctuation and manipulation. It can be hugely affected by things like how much/little the school uses ED1, ED2, EA, SCEA. Schools can also game the yield number (and the admissions %) through crafty use of deferrals and wait lists. </p>
<p>If a school gets popular or doesn’t have an app fee, it can get a ton of casual applicants which will drive down its yield. Tulane (where I have a kid) has a low yield due to these factors. Couldn’t care less about Tulane’s yield (even though it has hugely improved in the past few years). </p>
<p>I look at the stats which are harder to game than admissions % and yield % – the selectivity stats of the kids that actually enroll, retention rates, graduation rates.</p>
<p>Harvard’s 80% yield is impressive. But if you ignored the yield stat and looked at other metrics, you come up with the exact same conclusion.</p>
<p>I think that if the yield were very low for a school my child was considering, I would want to figure out WHY, but not dismiss the school outright. Possible reasons have been well enumerated by other posters. A school that is often used as a “safety” for very bright students may have a low yield, but still offer a great education. (eg Brandeis).</p>
<p>One other possibility not mentioned (I don’t think- I scanned previous posts) is the effect of the Common App. A school that offers a free application or doesn’t require supplementary essays might be added to the list for the heck of it. One poster listed Northeastern and Case Western as having low yields. Neither school requires a supplementary essay and Case (at least for this year) did not have an application fee.</p>
<p>Very good points everyone. Thanks! Much appreciated.</p>
<p>We even made it as a “Featured Discussion.”</p>
<p>Wow, first of my threads to do so. ;)</p>
<p>“But doesnt such a low yield raise a red flag?”</p>
<p>For a small LAC no. However, you should also consider its retention and graduation rates. Many people who apply to LAC’s opt for another LAC or go to a university, just for a bigger name. Further, with the Common App its not uncommon for students to apply to a dozen schools. ED also distorts any institution’s true yield rate. If its a nice place definitely apply.</p>
<p>Those who apply to a dozen top schools, well obviously they can only attend one of them, so that will hurt the yield for the others. Doesn’t mean they’re bad schools or any such thing. 12% yield I would be a little concerned about, though I’m sure it has to do with cost compared to other options, something you won’t find out for sure until comparing the finaid offers.</p>
<p>Wouldn’t a community college have higher yield than virtually any other school? Not many people apply to Local County U without the intent of going, since most are open-admission and accept throughout May. By this logic, I really don’t think schools that are naturally self-selective in application (i.e., only a specific group of students would apply, such as Yale-NUS) can compare to others with more open policies (e.g., common safeties and state schools) in terms of yield rate, so the statistic itself shouldn’t be influential at all in the college search process. Even more self-selective schools on an academic level can fall victim to the breadth of similar programs in yield rate (Yale vs. Princeton, MIT vs. Caltech, etc.). There are simply too many variables to account for.</p>
<p>You can bump your yield by doing a lot of early decision.</p>
<p>The sneakier thing to do is to defer/wait list a lot of applicants. I think that drives down your admission % for USNWR purposes. Then you let kids in off the wait list only after you ask them if they will enroll for sure. Since all those offers get accepted, your yield goes up!</p>
<p>Your daughter shouldn’t worry about what other applicants are thinking. Once she begins her freshman year all that will matter is if SHE is happy where she is.</p>
<p>Bluebayou and GolfFather- Thank you so much for that info and link! WOW…You guys are great! Found the site, easy to use and found retention and yield! I learned something new at my advanced age! Mucho Gracias!</p>
<p>I agree with the others who say that “poor” yield for a particular U shouldn’t be a turn on or turn off towards attending. But a u’s yield rate is obviously inextricably tied with its acceptance rate. There is no u in the country that wouldn’t like to have a yield like Harvard’s and thereby considerably lower its acceptance rate – especially for the U in question in OP’s first blast. So I’m more of the mind that if you think that acceptance rate is a turn on, then you have to think that yield rate is also, per above. I don’t think you can state the same by flipping the prior sentence: I think yield is more important than acceptance rate. So I guess if you’re not turned off by poor (low) yield, you shouldn’t be turned off by poor (high) acceptance rate. There really aren’t that many u’s that have low acceptance rates and low yields.</p>
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<p>While I understand the concept, the 4-yr grad rate can be heavily influenced by the wealth of the incoming student body. At many publics, for example, students work more than part-time to live and pay tuition. Thus, they start out on the 5+ year plan. But that has nothing to do with the college’s offerings per se. Not too many colleges meet full need. It’s just a fact of life.</p>
<p>Also, admissions selectivity has a lot to do with 4-year graduation rates.</p>
<p>More selective schools have fewer students who need remedial course work, take light loads because they cannot handle full loads, fail courses, etc… More selective schools also have more students coming in with AP credit that can buffer against a small amount of light course load or failed courses.</p>
<p>“Also, admissions selectivity has a lot to do with 4-year graduation rates.”</p>
<p>Correct. That’s why six Ivies are in the top 10 for retention/graduation rates. If you intake ultra HQ students, they will graduate regardless of what the school does with them while they are there.</p>
<p>Another thing that affects yield is money. Harvard gives out the most need-based aid. So when a kid gets accepted to Harvard, they want to go to Harvard (because of the reputation) and usually can afford to go to Harvard. High reputation plus affordable cost equals high yield. </p>
<p>UVA is a great example of this. Its yield on in-state students (who pay a lower cost) is about 65% (same as Yale). A fabulous ratio of reputation/cost. Its yield on out-of-state students (who pay more) is more like 25% (e.g. Boston College or Wake Forest).</p>
<p>We could spend another month on this discussion and still be none the wiser. </p>
<p>Yield has different meanings as different factors contribute to the final decision of a student to attend a particular school. Be it money, prestige, or simply the lack of better choices. You could add a dozen more factors and that will still not change the basis conclusion that to applicants the AVERAGE NUMBER that represents yield is absolutely meaningless. What you have is a hodgepodge of individual decisions that have no relevance to the rest of the group. </p>
<p>And that is within the same school. Yield is even more meaningless on a comparative basis, and it surely does NOT become a proxy for the quality of education and it surely does NOT say anything about the selectivity of the admitted and enrolled students. </p>
<p>In the world of college admissions, when it comes to the APPLICANT, the relevance and impact of yield is simply ZERO.</p>
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<p>One can say that about almost everything discussed on this forum. It’s all about different meanings and averages and individual decisions.</p>
<p>Otherwise we could just shut down CC and we can all go home. ;)</p>
<p>Yield doesn’t directly tell you much of anything. It doesn’t tell you where those other students chose to go, or why. It might be that the schools with a lower yield don’t have very much financial aid available, so people go somewhere more affordable. It also could, ironically, tell you that the school is very highly regarded relative to its admissions statistics. Look, for example, at Northwestern. It’s hard to get into and an indisputably excellent school. Its yield is lower than the yield for, say, the University of Memphis which, no disrespect intended, isn’t Northwestern. But, some NU applicants will get into Harvard, Yale and Princeton, and the majority of those will probably go to Harvard, Yale or Princeton. So, a school with a higher yield might actually just be one step down in peer group for admissions purposes.</p>
<p>Another factor is that certain schools draw a particular type of student for reasons apart from academic quality. For example, Yeshiva and BYU both have very high yields. That’s because many of the students who apply to those schools do so because the schools are Jewish and Mormon, respectively. Because that’s an important factor for those students, they’re less likely to be “stolen away” by a slightly better school.</p>
<p>There are any number of potential factors at play. I would be hesitant to base very much on yield. If your daughter likes the school and believes that it’s the best option among the places she’s been accepted, there’s little use worrying about whether other accepted students felt the same way. They’re different people, judging on different criteria among a different set of schools.</p>