<p>My safety was University of Alabama. For top students they have Computer Based Honors(40 kids/year) and Fellows (around 40 kids/year). Every single kid is Ivy calibar and all have at least a full tuition scholarship if not more</p>
<p>RM (#37). Appreciate your examples. Could you please give the full list of applied/accepted/rejected for those two students? My guess is that they got in a few other good schools right there with H and Penn. Those schools you given could think these kids are so good that they are clearly using them as safeties.</p>
<p>Again, we see that “one kid story” again. In so many years, that is THE ONLY example you can find? There are outliers in everything. If we use about 25,000 per school per school per year. So, that is ONE out of 2.5 million (25,000 x 20 x 5) applicants in the last five years.</p>
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<p>As you know, good students are way more than just high test scores and high GPA. So, I will not be surprised to see few students with high test score got denied at any of the top schools. </p>
<p>BTW, I didn’t mean to pick those two particular schools out. They are among the most elite schools. They happen to have two easiest names to spell in T20 range.</p>
<p>^^Dad II, that “one in a million” is enough to make those schools not safeties. Safeties are GUARANTEES…nothing you listed is anywhere close</p>
<p>“Safeties are GUARANTEES…nothing you listed is anywhere close”</p>
<p>If that’s so, then no school which doesn’t have automatic admits isn’t a safety for anyone.</p>
<p>^I agree. Most flagships have “if you have x Sat and Y Gpa, you’ll get in” Those are safeties.</p>
<p>The only school I called a safety was the one that admitted based on stats. The others are matches at a minimum</p>
<p>Ahhh… Sorry, you misunderstood me. I was pointing out how ridiculous of a statement that is. </p>
<p>I feel that if you can simply replace the word safety with the word guarantee, you might as well not have the word safety at all. If something is a guarantee, why bother thinking about the chances of getting it at all? Do people talk about their chance at getting into a community college?</p>
<p>A safety is somewhere that realistically, you’ll get in. If your chances are 999,999 in a million of getting in, that’s a safety. If I would make a 1:20 bet that I’m getting in, I’m calling it a safety. </p>
<p>You’re just defining safety as something no one else is defining a safety as.</p>
<p>^that’s how I chose to define safety. I would hate to be that “one in a million” for whom that safety doesn’t work out and then have no college options. </p>
<p>Safeties imply Safe…I don’t think Duke or other T20s qualify as such</p>
<p>My daughter applied to top-20 universities (and is attending one of them). Her safety was our flagship, the University of Maryland at College Park, which does not have automatic admits, but has not in recent history rejected a National Merit Semifinalist. (In fact, it usually gives them merit scholarships.)</p>
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<p>On the basis of the experience of my son’s and daughter’s classmates and friends, I think this is incorrect. I know of excellent students with impressive ECs who were realistic candidates for HYP but ended up with no acceptances from the top 20. Everyone should have a REAL safety school – and that doesn’t mean Duke or Cornell or Northwestern.</p>
<p>as a writer who has no desire to stay in-state, my safety is university of iowa. can’t beat the writing program! also, university of alabama. both have generous merit aid.</p>
<p>and i agree, duke is NOT a safety for anyone, really.</p>
<p>R6L, i don’t know your stats. I would like to think a super good student may think differently than you do.</p>
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O.k. Marian, may be I should change that to 99.5%</p>
<p>Duke a safety? Are you kidding? Colleges with admissions rates of 20% or less are reaches for all students, even those with fabulous stats.</p>
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<p>DadII-I’m in the top 1% of my class, 34 ACT, have thousands of volunteer hours, AP Scholar, and am a nationally ranked debator…</p>
<p>but you’re right, a super good student would think differently than me…</p>
<p>I’d like to say something nasty, but instead I’ll just :D</p>
<p>Dad II: While I won’t attack your claim that students with a good shot at the top 5 are guaranteed a spot at a top 20 (I’ll let others’ anecdotes tell a different story), that’s only a helpful match/safety if that student would actually want to attend that top 20.</p>
<p>UMich is a good example. Tons of top students apply to UMich, hear back in October/November that they’re accepted, and then apply regular to more selective schools. Fine. But how many of those students even for a split second consider attending UMich? How many of them have researched the school substantially past its admissions information, how many of them actually like the school? How many of them have lists that are full of schools like a more selective version of UMich? Not many.</p>
<p>Having a safety you don’t like for the sake of having a safety is useless. Call me old-fashioned, but I’d prefer to apply to schools that I might actually attend.</p>
<p>R6L, if you are as good as you said and applied enough schools. wait until April and then come back to this thread. I bet you will think differently about safety as you do today. </p>
<p>BTW, I don’t think I said something nasty. Those people know me know my definition of “super good” students. There isn’t that many of those per year.</p>
<p>^I applied to 5 schools that I liked. Only 1 in the top twenty. I’m not reliant on prestige like some posters</p>
<p>My definition of safety will NEVER change</p>
<p><<<in our=“” view,=“” schools=“” such=“” as=“” georgetown,=“” vanderbilt,=“” tufts,=“” duke,=“” etc.=“” are=“” not=“” safeties=“” for=“” anyone.=“”>>></in></p>
<p><<<someone mentioned=“” tufts=“” and=“” that=“” is=“” not=“” a=“” safety.=“” i’m=“” an=“” alum=“” interviewer=“” for=“” interview=“” countless=“” top=“” students,=“” vals,=“” who=“” have=“” been=“” declined=“” at=“” tufts.=“” my=“” own=“” kid=“” loved=“” was=“” student=“” even=“” double=“” legacy=“” she=“” considered=“” match=“” school=“” on=“” her=“” list,=“” sure=“” bet=“” safety=“” all.=“”>>></someone></p>
<p>Agreed–my daughter, ED1 at Tufts, with very high data (tests and GPA), was not a “shoe-in” at Tufts; in fact, she knows, for ED1, of a kid, ranked 2nd in his top-notch, private Bay area high school who was deferred at Tufts and another kid from our local and quirky public high school, which sends a lot of kids to the Ivies, top-notch LACs, Rice, Wash U., Berkeley, UCLA, etc., with a 2400 on his SAT, who was rejected, not deferred, from Tufts, for ED1. Ironically, she was more of a “shoe-in” at Stanford (in which she wasn’t interested), where she had an impressive transcript from their High School Summer College and had been approached by Stanford (her professors and the high school summer college people) to apply because she had done very well in the summer program, had very high data, and the all-important shtick for Stanford, if you’re not a CEO or celeb’s progeny (although she is a legacy)–community service (and, actually, and a very unique community service at that). She is a legacy at Stanford as well. My daughter worried about getting into Tufts, with which she had fallen in love, much more than she would have at Stanford and some other very selective schools .</p>
<p>I don’t like to call Michigan a safety–again, my daughter knows some really qualified kids, who will be accepted at some very selective schools, come Spring, who did not get into Michigan, EA. My daughter did get into Michigan–was invited for the honors program–and felt much relief getting that notification before she heard from Tufts because Michigan, too, was high on her list. She would have been, after having done her research of colleges, thrilled to attend the honors program at Michigan.</p>
<p>But, no, Tufts wasn’t a safety, especially because on top of high data, Tufts is the quintessential school who does admissions, holistically–which is not only a positive thing but also frustrating if one is trying to gauge their chances, there.</p>
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<p>Thank you, and I 100% agree with you on this one. No everyone wants to go to a T20 even they have the stats.</p>
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None of us would expect everyone to think a like, right? Otherwise those schools who buy NMF with full tuition will be full of them. However, I would like to think there are probably more NMF at HYP than the like of U of A. </p>
<p>BTW, I don’t mean to change the subject. I was just learnt that GS offers a “spring break” internship (one week long) to college students. It is designed to get the students to know GS. Does any one know if they offer that to all universities or only a limited number of schools?</p>
<p>Take U of M off the safety list, as per the current info session they will be joining the common ap and will then switch to ed and regular admission</p>
<p>Sons safties were UVa, UNC, Brandeis, Mich State.</p>
<p>Financial safeties were Tulane and Miami (FL).</p>
<p>Valedictorian son (with high stats and great EC’s, Recs…) decided to go with Miami (full tuition and Foote Fellow) as oppposed to Berkeley (paying about 50K/year. </p>
<p>Is he happy. VERY!!!
Financially, we will pay for grad school and he will end up with a post graduate degree and no loans, etc…</p>
<p>My D had applied to Cornell and Columbia
Accepted at both
Safeties were Michigan and Maryland
Financial safeties were RIT, Boston</p>
<p>Turned Out that the safeties offered her a full ride, the financial safeties offered no such ride (probably figured she wasn’t really interested)</p>
<p>and she ended up picking another school entirely…</p>