IMPORTANT: Is Questbridge Worth It?

Parents Forum
1

<p>I have tried putting this thread in two other forums, and have recieved lots of views but hardly any replies. I suspect it's b/c many CC'ers just know that much about Questbridge I guess as one person had admitted. So I'm hoping the parents here might have more knowledge</p>

<p>Dilemma:
Okay. So I'm a Pakistani female whose total family income is about 17K. Would I have better chances of getting into Columbia ED or through Questbride's College Match program (assuming I'm even accepted) which only lets u do RD with Columbia? Like could it be that one would have a better chance of being accepted ED, but not necessarily be "matched" with Columbia due to the limited number of questbridge scholarships? I heard that the partner colleges, like Columbia, mainly use questbridge as a way of recruiting UVM's, which I'm obviously not. Any advice? I would SO appreciate it! :D</p>

2

<p>Oh, and also the website did have a quote from an admissions officer from Amherst college who said that the value of quesbtridge was considered a hook like a legacy or an athlete. But, the whole ED vs RD is exactly what's confusing me. The deadline is REALLY early - September 30th. But when u go to additional info for Columbia, it says Regular Decision only. Now I don't know if that's because finalists who aren't "matched" with colleges early on can simply forward their questbridge apps to the partner colleges Regular Decision without having to fill out another additional form. So yeah, I'm CONFUSED. Thanks by the way for trying to help me out in this dilemma. Sorry for ALL this writing.</p>

3

<p>Why would you go through ED if you would be bound by Columbia's fin aid package if accepted? While there would probaby much if not all of your need met, does columbia have caps on student loans based on household income?
The thing that appeals to me about questbridge is the opportunity to be considered favorably at many selective schools in one process as opposed to individually applying. while Columbia may be your number one, I'm of the mindset of casting a wider net when looking at extremely selective schools.</p>

4

<p>well, i know that for Columbia, families whose income is below 25 or 50K (i can't remember which) have kids getting financial aid on a no loan basis. Either way, I'm okay in that department. And the thing is, none of the other partner colleges such as Yale and Stanford that Questbridge has appeals to me. The only top college I'm really interested in is Columbia...and thus is why I wouldn't want to have a binding contract with a school other than Columbia that I happen to be "matched" with. Any other advice?</p>

5

<p>None of those other schools appeal? Why? Has to be New York or something? Why?</p>

<p>Just curious as to why Columbia is the only school for you.</p>

6

<p>NYGirl, I am not sure where all the confusion comes from. I think you are mistaken about being allowed to apply RD only and that Columbia only uses QB as a recruiting for URM students. You may want to explore the listing of the past students who won a scholarship at Columbia. </p>

<p><a href="http://questbridge.org/students/student_profiles.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://questbridge.org/students/student_profiles.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>The next place to visit is the web page that describes the entire process by ... date.</p>

<p>
[quote]
September 30, 2007
The National College Match Application is due at 11:59 p.m., Pacific Time.</p>

<p>*October 26, 2007 *
Applicants are notified of their finalist standing.
Finalists are given instructions about how to proceed. Applicants not chosen as finalists should proceed with their Early Decision, Early Action and/or Regular Decision applications.</p>

<p>November 1, 2007
Finalists must submit required documents to the colleges that they have ranked. See College Specific Requirements for deadlines and details.</p>

<p>November 30, 2007
Finalists notified of College Match results.
Finalists who are not matched may apply to QuestBridge's partner college through the Regular Decision process. See the Regular Decision Process page.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Understanding the different deadlines will help you see why you cannot be a QB finalist and file AN ADDITIONAL ED application for Columbia at the SAME time. . Why? Because your QB application is essentially a ED application to all the schools you DID rank (except for the schools that are specifically EA.) You're named a QB finalist on October 26 and the Columbia deadline for ED is November 1st. So you can't submit you QB Finalist documents to Columbia AND file an ED application to Columbia. Even if it was accepted, it would not make any sense.</p>

<p>Regarding your disinterest for any school except Columbia, that should not be a problem at all --except it does not make much sense to an outsider. Simply apply by the QB deadline, check the requirements for Columbia, and when making it as a finalist, simply rank Columbia Number 1 and ... nobody else. Then your application will only be reviewed by Columbia. If they accept you, you're done and you'll know before December 1. While you can't submit two ED applications, nothing precludes you to resubmit your QB application to Columbia and a bunch of the other schools RD or EDII. </p>

<p>Do you increase your chances at Columbia by completing the QB application AND the Columbia application? Absolutely! And as a bonus, you save some money!</p>

7

<p>You should really consider all the Questbridge-affiliated schools. </p>

<p>Just of curiosity, do you come from a conservative Muslim family that would not like to see you dorm? I don't know...could just be silly of me to speculate, but it sounds that way.</p>

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<p>Xiggi has it exactly right. In addition, Questbridge often offers (though probably not in your case) more money and perks (travel dollars, etc.) than applicants would have gotten had they only received "need-based aid". Questbridge allows colleges another way around their claim of being "need-blind" (because, by definition, in consideration of Questbridge applicants they are not), and a way for them to offer more than 100% of "need" in securing top quality low-income applicants.</p>

<p>It's a win-win for everyone.</p>

9

<p>NYGirl, you really should click the QB to death and look for links to the past years. For instance, here's the transcript of last year private chat organized by QB for Columbia's applicants:</p>

<p><a href="http://questbridge.org/resources/chat_transcripts/sep_6_2006_4pm_columbia.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://questbridge.org/resources/chat_transcripts/sep_6_2006_4pm_columbia.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>One of the greatest benefits of the QB program is the numbe of opportunities a candidate gets to puts his (or her) best foot forward though extended essays or a small chat!</p>

10

<p>thanks everyone!
DSC: I like Columbia b/c of research opportunities, liberal campus with peoples always stuffing petitions in ur face (like I do in HS..lol), core, class size, NYC, strong clubs like MSA and Organization of Pakistani Students, good for pre-med, campus feel, type of students (always running around and not laid back like California...could be biased b/c I'm a New Yorker), and the list goes on and on.</p>

<p>Cryptic: My parents are fairly conservative Muslims but dorming is thankfully not an issue for me</p>

<p>Xiggi: Thanks a lot for your help!</p>