<p>I'm interested in hearing from other parents who have had their child rejected (not even waitlisted) at their alma mater~~~particularly if these were not "reach" schools for the child. We find ourselves in this position this week, and to rub salt into the wound, the school called me last night on a fundraiser call! (University of Richmond). Like I'm going to even CONSIDER that!!!!</p>
<p>One of my best friends, had legacy to U Penn on BOTH SIDES and got a flat out rejection, not even a coutesy waitlist!! This was a super high achieving kid who is ultra bright, tons of ec's, highly accomplished, the shock waves are still resounding through our school. He was devastated as were his parents, sorry about your situation. Does your child have other schools in mind?</p>
<p>Yes, he does have other schools that were actually higher on his list than this one. So, that is some consolation.</p>
<p>kellyconn -- same thing happened to our S although we had prepared him well for deferral or rejection so he is in good shape. Word is out from friends who are Penn interviewers and from others who live in communities in and around Penn that legacy today is not as significant as a hook or tip factor as it was several years ago. According to these friends, area high schools that once sent several or many kids to Penn now are experiencing what they call the "Penn Massacre". Of course, this is all anecdotal but we are hearing it from many sources. From what we can see, the Penn Alumni Council on Admissions does not provide alumni kids with reliable, helpful information or tips on applying but encourages all legacy kids to apply; in this manner they help feed into the frenzied atmosphere surrounding the college application process and ED in particular. Just my two cents.</p>
<p>sunny_seas~</p>
<p>I can only imagine the "sting" and disappointment. I am so sorry that this happened to your son. And talk about an ill-timed fundraiser call! Ouch!</p>
<p>~berurah</p>
<p>I am so sorry to hear this, sunny_seas. Perhaps the shift is due to the fact that applications at Penn are up >20% this year.</p>
<p>Sunny makes a good point when she says that now that her child has been rejected by her alma mater that she won't donate. It is because of the potential loss of donations from alumni that legacies get special consideration. If this trend continues then many schools will be kissing former donors good bye.</p>
<p>(I wonder if before legacies are rejected the schools check to see if parents were big donaters?)</p>
<p>I think Penn is pretty clear on the fact that legacy is much more of a factor (although still not as big of a factor as it used to be) in the ED round.</p>
<p>My neighbors are both Penn alums. Their bright, talented, accomplished daughter fully expected to be accepted, as did they. The day the rejection came was gloom city on our block. The girl went to Emory, is very happy, and hasn't looked back. My formerly generous neighbors' wallets slammed shut. Based on their experience, I would say the kids get over it before the parents do.</p>
<p>sunny seas -- hope your son receives good news from other schools soon. We have a friend who works in college administration at a school in NYC. She says that colleges which reject legacy kids ED rather than defer ED are short-sighted and are creating hostile alumni relations which will ultimately affect fundraising efforts. We've seen this happen first hand in our own case as we will not continue with donations to Penn. We've also been asked to assume a more active alumni role with a Penn professional school but that will be on hold as well. I also think that when alumni kids are rejected a gracious phone call from the school in advance or just after the fact might lessen some of the negativity and would help.</p>
<p>Admissions Statistics
Class of 2009 Early Decision Statistics</p>
<p>· There were 3,420 total applications in this year's EDP pool, a new record high. Penn admitted 1,169 of these (34.2%).</p>
<p>· The average combined SAT score for students admitted during EDP is 1413 (694V + 719M).</p>
<p>Legacies:
· There were 523 legacy applicants in the EDP pool, down 5.8% from last years 555. 254 of these students were admitted (48.6%).</p>
<h2>· The Alumni Council on Admissions has completed a total of 708 interviews of legacy applicants from June 2004 thru December 2004. With Regular Decision and Transfer candidates still coming in, we anticipate finishing the '04-'05 admissions cycle with more than 750 interviews.</h2>
<p>Legacy advantage really only kicks in during early decision at Penn. It will be interesting to see if there will be the same percentage of legacies admitted this year as in the past several. Overall acceptance rate is notably down this year as they had more applications come in than ever in their history. Overall ED apps were up 21% alone.</p>
<p>Sunny-seas,
I'm so sorry to hear about the rejection. This is not really a legacy story, but I will share anyway. I have to tell you that my son is attending my and my and husband's alma mater (Pitt x 11 years). It was not his first choice, but is was an academic and financial safety. Still, we attended every visit or program that was available. </p>
<p>I was dismayed that he did not receive a full tuition or full ride scholarship, as he had the credentials and fine application to do so. But we were okay with that. THEN, we found that students who received such scholarships to this state school were non-citizens, students with alcohol violations, etc. GRRR! Pitt had the nerve to call us TWICE this year to ask for financial donations. I had to really let them have it, and I may not be done yet. What are they thinking?</p>
<p>U of R? Isn't that the school that decided it was "big time" and raised tuition 40%? and whose president referred to the current student body as "mush" ? or something like that? and whose president has since departed? </p>
<p>We also know a highly qualified Penn legacy student who was deferred ED and later rejected. In his case, he didn't sincerely want to go to Penn and it came through (very subtly - just a lack of passion) in his essays. Very happy now at Georgetown. Our highly qualified but not qualified enough double legacy probably won't apply.</p>
<p>A boy at my D's school was rejected ED at Penn even though he was a two (if not three) generation legacy, with a sibling at Penn. This was quite a shock to him and to the other kids; a deferral was the anticipated alternative to admission. His family was not amused.</p>
<p>According to my D, this boy's grades, tests scores, ECs at least put him in the ballpark; essays could have been an issue, though. The other two kids at D's school who applied ED to Penn -- non-legacies with strong but not spectacular (for Penn) stats/ECs -- were both deferred.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Our highly qualified but not qualified enough double legacy probably won't apply.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>NJres makes a good point... some legacies should not really apply. </p>
<p>I am an active and donating alum but my D did not even apply to Brown, as it is D1 and we both knew her sports abilities would not be a hook at that level and she was marginal at best for admission. </p>
<p>We'll wait and see if my S will be in reasonable range of admission-- I think he'd love my alma mater, but I won't have him set himself up if admission chances are slim to none. I would not want to put the admission office in that postiion nor put HIM in that position. He'll almost certainly apply to H's school, UVa, as legacies there are considered with in-state applicants and that is a huge boost.</p>
<p>Anecdotally, it's my understanding that legacy really only applies if you are not asking for financial aid. Mind you, I'm not able to back this up with anything other than anecdote.</p>
<p>A tangent,</p>
<p>Are legacies based purely on donations or also the track record of the parents? Do schools keep academic records and outstanding awards for an extended time?</p>
<p>Tropical, I've wondered the same thing. My track record was good, and I went on to a competitive graduate school program and a successful career. So, that wouldn't be it in our case. But, we've focused donation-wise more on the grad school and on my husband's alma maters. We would have been paying full freight for my son--no financial aid. At any rate, U of R won't be seeing any "mush" money from here! I do think it would go a long way from a PR standpoint if schools could soften the blow with some sort of acknowledgment of the legacy factor. At the very least, the fundraising calls should be doubly screened around admissions time. Oh, my--I just had a sinister thought--what if they are beefing up the fundraising calls during this admissions "waiting" time, and somehow the call cut too close to the rejection letters going out? OK--now I am getting paranoid!!!!</p>
<p>perhaps not so paranoid, timing is everything</p>
<p>is you last name at the end of the alphabet, are you located far from the school, hmmmm</p>
<p>know you have me wondering</p>
<p>I'm too paranoid now to respond!! Seriously, though--I am in Richmond~~~top of the alphabet.</p>