@TooOld4School Yes, I’m sure that makes a difference. I think your stats get you into the pool of “qualified” students for a school, and after that it’s intangibles, something that catches the AOs’ attention, or sometimes just the luck of the draw. It’s also possible admission to certain majors is harder than others within the same school. I know that’s definitely true of Cal and other large publics, but I’m not sure if that applies to selective privates like Rice, Vandy or Cornell?
(In retrospect, Vandy would probably have been a good one for my D to apply to, but she refused to consider anything in the south because of the hot weather, with the exception of Rice as her cousin was admitted there.)