<p>Hello people, I got a letter from Harvard congratulating me on my academic performance . It said it got my name from CollegeBoard and that they wud be sendin me an application packet later ...
Btw my SAT scores werent expectional ( i got 2180) and i live in India.... So I wasnt expecting anything especially from Harvard ..... So does make any difference or its just a random letter sent out to a million ppl .....</p>
<p>It's just an advertisement letter they sent out to millions of people.</p>
<p>anyone else ... ????</p>
<p>I second #2 - many schools send out similar letters and brochures, it doesn't really mean anything in terms of actually getting in. (They just hope you spend the $100 to apply.)</p>
<p>Yeah ... I kinda understand now ... for a moment i got all excited and thats wat they want me to do ... they want me to apply so that they can reject me and boost their selectivity ...</p>
<p>There's a recent similar thread that i suggest that you use the archives to look up because you'll find even more info.</p>
<p>Harvard does NOT send such letters to people who based on the info from College Board appear to have no chances of getting into Harvard. However, getting such a letter does NOT mean that you have an extraordinary chance of gaining entrance. You have the same chance that most internationals have, which is probably even less than the overall 1 in 10 chances that most applicants have.</p>
<p>All Harvard is going on is broad info about your board scores . Colleges can buy lists of students from College Board, and the colleges can designate the score ranges and other info such as gender, race, country of origins, reported gpa, reported proposed major. Clearly, your board scores and self reported gpa fall in the range of students who can be successful at Harvard. That, however, doesn't mean that you're in -- the Harvard admissions dean said that last year 90% of applicants had the background that indicated that they could be successful at Harvard if Harvard had had the space to accept them.</p>
<p>Consequently, if you're interested in Harvard, you have a shot, just don't assume that you're a sure bet for admission.</p>
<p>I am a Harvard alum interviewer, which is how I got my info.</p>
<p>"Colleges can buy lists of students from College Board, and the colleges can designate the score ranges and other info such as gender, race, country of origins, reported gpa, reported proposed major. Clearly, your board scores and self reported gpa fall in the range of students who can be successful at Harvard."</p>
<p>Northstarmom, this is great information and helps students and parents understand the barage of glossy pamphlets they may be receiving this fall from college and universities.</p>
<p>Thanks for the great post.</p>
<p>I'm just wondering. Doesn't Harvard have a lot of money? Why would they just send out letters for your 100 dollars if they have as much money as I think they do. Then again... u never know.</p>
<p>thanks a lot Northstarmom ....</p>
<p>dunja-
Harvard, or any school, doesn't send out the letters just "for the 100 dollars." They want to see as many applicants as they can so they can pick from the best pool. One way to find good prospects is through test score lists. It's just a preliminary screening, and more economical than sending the letters to all graduates.</p>
<p>yes, it means that you are accepted because you are special and you live in India and because we have a shortage of people here in America who want to get in Harvard :rolleyes:</p>
<p>there are college rankings and the more who apply and get rejected, its a part of the criteria for where a school is ranked</p>
<p>kind of ego driven</p>
<p>... I still stand by the $100 ;)</p>
<p>Answer: its no doubt a random letter based upon computer generated results, however its not sent to "millions", more typically it would be sent out to 1000's, and the primary purpose is to improve (i.e. lower) the ultimate overall acceptance rate, and the secondary purpose (rare cases) would be to actually come up with a viable applicant, who might have additional hidden factors overlooked in the raw data producing the computer generated results</p>
<p>Even though Harvard is arguably at the top of the pyramid, it still needs to keep ahead of the competition, most noticeably Yale and Princeton</p>