<p>Applying to seven schools was nothing. If I could go back in time I would have applied to more. I would have added Penn, Dartmouth, Amherst, Williams.</p>
<p>Each student has a threshold of "too much". If you start losing track of the schools and start making too many mistakes and do a lousy job on the apps, it's too much. Also, remember if you are applying to schools that require demonstrated interest, you may be stretching yourself awfully thin.</p>
<p>thethoughtprocess - Why did you change your mind?</p>
<p>As of right now, I know I'm applying to 4 UCs, SLO, and a couple privates. My final list will probably be around 10. Now that I'm getting a better idea of where the stress of applying to many schools comes from, I think starting apps in the summer would be a very good idea.</p>
<p>Wow jamimom... that's the first time I posted at the same time as another poster. Hahah how cool. </p>
<p>I've visited some colleges already. So far, I've felt "nice college" and "I could never come here" but I've yet to feel "Wow... This is THE college." </p>
<p>I'm trying to find my "too much." I want to know the pitfalls of applying to 8+ colleges before I send in crappy applications with the wrong college name in my essays.</p>
<p>My D applied to 16, 2 were in state 1 page apps. She needed finaid and decided to visit after acceptances. She got into 14/16. If she had visited first her list would have been shorter. She had lots of great scholarship and finaid offers to pick from because of the large number of schools but with scholarship apps and 3 of her schools not using common app, it was a ton of work and a LOT of essays. If you have the resources to visit first I would recommend it. If money is an issue then my D's system works well.</p>
<p>There is nothing to lose with applying to ten schools, unless they are safeties (like Cal State, etc). Then it isnt worth it. At the high end though, its worth every cent.</p>
<p>lol, schoolduh, i was just kidding around</p>
<p>i applied to 11 schools- it was a REALLY good idea to apply to many and i suggest it. I didnt really apply to any safeties, but it was comforting to know that there were more envolopes coming when i got my first waitlist. I got into my first choice, but it was worth the effort to ensure that no matter where i ended up i would be happy. I selected my schools very carefully, and i suggest that you just get a list of not just many schols, but many schools where you would be happy.</p>
<p>Ah. Online sarcasm is sometimes hard to detect. Still, based on your initial post... I should have known. lol</p>
<p>OK, Cornell and Rice are not safety schools for anyone. People have been rejected at these schools who have gotten into Harvard.</p>
<p>I have posted this before but I applied to 20 schools and I am very happy i did. I got into 17/20 and I was able to pick and choose among all my schools. I know if I had visited each of my schools beforehand my list might have been shorter but in my situation I coulndt and I wanted to ensure my place in a top school. I dont think you have anything to lose by applying to alot of schools though I must say it was kinda hard to decline so many offers. If you cant do the research before you apply than applying to alot of schools is not a bad thing and might help you in the end.</p>
<p>I think it really depends on the person. I applied to 9 schools and a lot of people told me i was crazy, but looking back, I wish I had applied to even more. In my opinion, its honestly sooo nice to have a lot of options come April. If you're willing to put in the time and effort, it's definitely worth it.</p>
<p>The thing with applying to so many schools is that it costs so much. I calculated the costs of applying to three colleges, and it came to about $400. I know this is an investment, but if you don't physically have the money, there's nothing you can do.
Also, there's something called opportunity cost. In economics, opportunity cost is defined as "the value of the best alternative you give up in order to do or produce something." What do you think the opportunity cost of applying to 10+ colleges is?</p>
<p>applying to 9 colleges and buying a few good books? </p>
<p>You mean with time and labor, its 400, because app fee's are 60 on average.</p>
<p>Thousands and thousands of dollars is the opportunity cost for NOT applying to ten places. If you are in financial straits, chances are having multiple offers and negotiating power will be worth literally up to 100 times the application fee. That, and not being in the right place for four years - possibly some of the best years - of your life. </p>
<p>That is the REAL opportunity cost, not the $10 bucks an hour you could be making somewhere else. You have to think big picture.</p>
<p>Money is a cost. Some people are able to get fee waivers, and others aren't. I don't know what schools you applied to, most of mine cost 60-80$. I know what opportunity costs are, which is why I said it really depends on if the person to know if the utility you attain is worth it.</p>
<p>
[QUOTE]
You mean with time and labor, its 400, because app fee's are 60 on average.
[/QUOTE]
</p>
<p>No, I mean with SAT tests, ACT tests, score reports, transcripts, and application fees.</p>
<p>
[QUOTE]
Thousands and thousands of dollars is the opportunity cost for NOT applying to ten places. If you are in financial straits, chances are having multiple offers and negotiating power will be worth literally up to 100 times the application fee. That, and not being in the right place for four years - possibly some of the best years - of your life. </p>
<p>That is the REAL opportunity cost, not the $10 bucks an hour you could be making somewhere else. You have to think big picture.
[/QUOTE]
</p>
<p>It seems that in this place, the hypothetical person is not applying to the right schools. If he or she is only accepted to one in ten, they need to consider different schools.</p>
<p>Sometimes there's just nothing more you can do. Would anyone here apply to fifty colleges? Why not?</p>
<p>if an "average Joe" were to ask a CC member why he thought a school he was applying to was considered safe, the CC boy would understand that it is a totally different ball game/perspective for him as compared to Joe. </p>
<p>the same applies (sorry for the poor analogy) to schools and students who apply to "higher-ranked" schools, be it by USNews or prestige or whatever 99.999% CC members marvel/obsess/worship. you may think that Cornell and Rice are not safe schools for anyone--all crapshoots; however, despite what you may believe, there are people who can consider these schools safe ones (to use the term most of you recognize)-- based on academics, achievements, athletics, community involvement, (+ many more factors), and most importantly niche.</p>
<p>To the above posts: you shouldn't have to apply to 10 schools to be able to "find" what you are looking for afterward. I just hate the tendency of most individuals to accept what is given to them. You should know which schools you would definitely attend if accepted and apply to THOSE schools. Know what you want in a college and then find the college and then apply to the college. If it is a good fit for the both of you, you will be accepted. Don't be lazy, don't apply to schools for their sound, don't wait for acceptances to determine your future--you have the power, now realize it!</p>
<p>Willow, for kids looking to go to less selective schools, sure thing, you dont need to worry since there is a strong probability of acceptance. But at the top level, it really is a crapshoot, and you want to give yourself the most options you can have. I have seen this myself many times, often top kids who didnt apply to enough places ended up at lesser schools. I got lucky and Columbia let me in, a friend got lucky and got rejected to all his choices but Brown, another friend was rejected everywhere but Penn. We all are SO glad we applied to enough places, you just cant tell anymore.</p>
<p>Remember in most cases at the top level the school is choosing you, not the other way around. Perhaps Rice and Cornell are "safe," but unless you really want to go to those schools you are in trouble if you dont apply enough places. I would have done anything after I got my decisions to have applied to a couple more places.</p>