Thanks @dramakid2 ! Nope - yesterday was DD’s bday and she didn’t want to spend it in quarantine. So we’re headed there this morning. As my type-A kid, she has handled all the packing herself. And announced this morning, gesturing to the MOUNTAIN of bags and bins, “see it isn’t THAT much.” Lol.
I always get butterflies as we crest the hill on 16; I’m eager to return today, even if it’s only briefly. I know faculty and staff have been working very hard to get us to this point.
She’s so excited to get back, and we’re happy to get her back to her people and the place she loves.
Pomfret is having limited visits M12-M17 before they got kids back on campus. They will include an invite to schedule it with your acceptance. I have southwest tickets (so cancelable) to go if she gets in, because I think it may be our one shot to actually set foot on a campus if she gets accepted there. Honestly if this works like I expect and few places have in person revisits I bet it really helps Pomfret’s yield.
FYI-- admission.org (part of SAO) just announced that applications were down 11% this year overall (noted for both boarding and day). So, it seems the schools that are experiencing record numbers of applications are the selective ones within a certain geographic area. It was also noted that while most of the MS and HS grades all experienced a drop in applications numbers, PG year applications rose by 57%. Applications for grades 9-10 decreased about 13%. International applicants decreased by 28%, also.
So, for those who were panicking about the drastic increased in applications, and increase in competition for spots - it seems that some of the lesser known gems may have experienced the opposite and if M10 is disappointing, there may be post-M10 spots at these other, more unpopular places.
Welcome. This isn’t a great thread to get answers to questions (other than simple ones) because the conversation drifts. But it’s a fine place to drop in and introduce yourself. And especially on the BS side it’s a pretty friendly place. I’m doing this backwards and have gone through college apps 3X but this is my first for BS so I’ve only been over in this side since August.
It sounds like our girls may be similar, mine is at LPS and is a strong but not exceptional student, and plays volleyball but is not a star. We also need substantial FA, more than 50%. Our only overlap is NMH. We are rural and a plane ride from everywhere D applied.
Thanks. We’re a long car ride from the boarding schools. I put a driving limit on where she could apply since it is her first time away from home. Now that’s one of the things I am second guessing as it gets closer to M10. Good luck to your daughter.
Thanks for that link. That was an interesting article, not sure how to process all of it. One take away is that with international apps clearly down that probably helps full pay families in particular.
My guess is that it is a less extreme version of the college admissions landscape this year. Still a mess with a few head scratchers (on the college side, Colgate had apps up over 100% this year, which was far more than most increases). I think the conventional widsom there is that colleges are really uncertain about yield, so will make more extensive use of the waitlist than normal. It would not surprise me at all if BS does the same.
Interesting about PG apps. There is a public school near us that is offering a “bridge year” to any junior or senior who feels they need an extra year of high school because of what they missed from covid. A colleague who lives in that district says that it seems like many athletes will be doing that in order to get a shot at recruitment.
In addition, a lot of colleges are suggesting this year’s HS senior athletes to take a gap year, because the NCAA allowed the college seniors to maintain their NCAA status for an additional year due to COVID. So, less college spots will open up this year as a result.
The athlete side of things is going to be a mess for a few years until this gets worked through. Because those kids who drop down to do a PG year don’t go away, they are just adding themselves to the 22 class. And you have current college students looking to transfer because suddenly the spot they were waiting on isn’t going to open up.
Rough for everyone, but recruited athletes (and current college athletes) are dealing with the same issues everyone has (remote learning, missed proms, etc.) but also have another layer on top of that.
I wish my kid could take some cues from your DD (and Happy birthday to her too!). I’m running around right now prepping a fedex package for his TEXTBOOKS! Yes, he got an earful from me. argh!
If applications from international students are way down, I wonder if that just means chances of acceptance from the international bucket got way better, or if schools will have a different international:domestic ratio for this incoming year
My guess is that it mostly helps internationals, but my understanding is that they are mostly full pay. If a school normally has 25% internationals at full pay, and drops down to 15%, the remaining 10% are going to be filled by full pay kids not FA kids.
I could be wrong, but that was my understanding. That is the conventional wisdom on the college side I think. The school may have a target it has for international, but more importantly they have a full pay target that they need to come close to or very bad things will happen.
Just to add briefly- I think they would try to fill up international spots as best they can, but schools worry about fit, too, so they won’t just fill holes with misfitting international students to fill those holes - I would think they would go to FP domestic candidates that fit well first. Also, schools worry about yield and until there is a true light shining at the end of this international travel tunnel, they may be considering taking less international students and going to more domestic FP students who are more likely to be able to attend next year.
Just my humble opinion.
Calling out in case it isn’t jumping out to readers that this is SAO data only, so the Gateway-only schools (which would include Andover, Exeter, DA, HK, etc.) are not included. Which speaks to perhaps the same college pattern (as @dadof4kids pointed out): highly competitive schools have huge increase while smaller or lesser-known schools are the ones to have fewer apps.
This may be THE YEAR OF THE GEM!
There is one question I can’t quite reconcile, but maybe I just need another cup of coffee – if both boarding and day are each down 11%, then who is making up the 1% overall domestic increase?
Also I will point out in case it isn’t also obvious – the impressive percentage increases in later grades are much easier to obtain because the base number to begin with is much lower. Not to suggest the impact isn’t important, but just calling it out.
Minor quibble: “less well known places” would be more apt.
I find the statistics rather unsurprising.
With a lot of schools being test optional, some applicants feel more comfortable applying to the low admit schools. They (I think misguidedly) assume that they have a better chance, and need not hedge their bets.
With some people going out of their mind during remote and/or hybrid learning, and considering alternatives. They are not necessarily researching schools, and are just applying to those they’ve heard of. Besides, their child is brilliant, and it would be a waste of time and $ to go to a less well known school. And they need lots of FA, which clearly isn’t available at those schools with tiny endowments. (I apologize for my sarcasm. And really, knowing how my household was last spring during lockdown, I can sympathize with these parents - it is difficult to think coherently when you are trapped with a caged (insert wild animal). Because forget lions, even a cornered groundhog can be scary.)
I could go on… It’s easier and less expensive to visit and interview by Zoom, making the commitment just an application fee…
What we are seeing for the less well known places is a continuation of last spring, based on the size of the freshman class at my child’s less well known school.
I think it’s probably more of the “well what do I have to lose?” and the “go big or go home” mentality at play, which is the hallmark of someone who has not done any real research and is throwing spaghetti at the wall to see what sticks.
(You know how some schools ask “what other schools have you applied to” as a way to manage yield? If I were Andover/Exeter this year, I would be tempted to ask this question just to weed out spaghetti-throwers.)
