Mount Holyoke Class of 2023 RD

Will they be posting decision throughout this week ?

GOT IN WOOOOOOOOOOOO

Mine just has the financial aid application list.

I got in with 15k merit!!!

yikes rejected. 3.7 uw gpa, 10 ap classes, 1430 sat. congrats to everyone that did get in!

I GOT IN!!!

@h3m5e7 That’s all my daughter saw at first, but there is a small blue link at the very top that takes you to the decision.

@northjerseymama

sorry your D didn’t get in, she has some great choices, though!! There is no rhyme or reason, really–my D got rejected from a school we thought she’d get into.

D’s stats
4.56/3.93 w/uw .gpa
33 ACT
9 APs (her school is nuts about AP)
2 instruments in 2 bands
500+ hours of volunteering at our local library (since she was 7th grade)
fiction editor of the literary magazine
legacy (though I certainly didn’t donate a building–I was a first gen, major fin aid kid)

For those of you that received merit money, where was it located on the portal? Was it in the decision letter?

I got 20k in merit aid per year (leadership award). It was included in my decision letter and financial aid information.

to all those who got in, congratulations from a current junior! i’ve posted before in this subforum and while some of my opinions have definitely changed (so pleaaaase don’t take what i said in 2016 as a first year as gospel, the only reason i’m not mass deleting my replies is convenience) i’m definitely here for any answers or advice you need. there’s definitely a type of person who will get the most out of mount holyoke, and while i can’t say it’s a perfect match for me i love it like an old friend and will definitely get the feels when i leave

to those who did not, trust me when i say you can get an excellent education anywhere. i got into wellesley but they wouldn’t give me any financial aid, it sucked so hard back then and i felt like a failure going to mount holyoke, but it’s truly been a life changing experience. i’m currently on study abroad for a full year at a prestigious uk uni and on the first night meeting other single year students, I met kids from ivies and kids from regular old state schools and small liberal arts colleges. we’d all made it to the same place. my best friends from high school who are both brilliant (definitely smarter and more driven than many of the elite east coast school students i’ve met), one goes my big home state uni and the other went to community college for two years for financial reasons before transferring to a local college. be proud of yourself for all the hard work you’ve done so far!

my pms are open if anyone’d like to ask questions.

@phoria Thanks for offering to answer questions, I have a couple funny ones that I was too embarrassed to ask during visits.

  1. Whats the party scene like? I enjoy high school parties every now and then, I don’t want to party all day everyday but I am worried that at Mount Holyoke it will be nonexistent. I wouldn’t consider myself a party animal by any means (hence it not being a necessity when applying to schools lol) but I want it to be an option so I can get a semi traditional college social life. Do you have to go to Amherst or UMass for parties? It seems annoyingly inconvenient
  1. Do you feel like most people find "their place" at Holyoke? I'm a pretty basic person in the general sense. It seems like a lot of people are into Harry Potter and love to read. Im worried because I'm not into that stuff. When I did an overnight I felt like I could find a group of friends with common interests but the 2023 Facebook group is making me nervous about that. (I do plan on joining the equestrian team..)

Those are my two main concerns. Keep in mind that Holyoke is probably my favorite college I applied to and I really love it and am very seriously considering attending. From the second I stepped on campus it felt like home and I can’t ignore that feeling but my worries are making me hesitant.

Any thoughts? Thank you <3

Hi- My daughter is waitlisted. I read that MHC had an unexpectedly high yield last year and ended up with a freshman class that is larger than intended. The article said they were aiming for a smaller total class size this year to offset that issue, and would have it in mind in terms of how many they admit outright initially. I’m thinking that will mean possibly a somewhat larger waitlist but also maybe a somewhat better chance than usual that they will use the waitlist. Does anybody have any inside knowledge or insights about this or advice about how to get in off the waitlist? She LOVES Holyoke! Thanks!

@4sugarplums Your D has been accepted at some great schools, right? I don’t think homeschooling puts her at a disadvantage for the schools she’ll fit into and be happy with. Also, she’s been waitlisted at other great schools. I think there is a certain randomness about the whole thing. And being on this site can indeed make you crazy. I would consider Bard, SL on same plane but my D is in with aid at one, waitlisted at the other, so what to think? And here’ The latest kicker for me: D is now saying she only wants to go to AMDA (acting, singing conservatory) which has a 38,000 gap each year. I’m going to lay low for awhile and hope it all works out. Gap year a good possibility, as long as there’s a serious plan, and money saved. Hold on.

@kschneeb do you know what the acceptance rate was for this year? Where did you see the article? My advise for wait list if for your D to write a letter or send an email on her desire for enrollment and any updated activities she has done since she sent in her application. Good luck to you and her. This admissions process is brutal!

@kschneeb
Yes they did have a huge class last year. My daughter is a first year (they call them firsties instead of freshman). I will share that Scripps had a similar issue the year my daughter applied- they accepted a huge class year prior. She was accepted at every other LAC she applied too. We were shocked. For reference she received the trustee scholarship at Mt H. I believe Mt Holyoke is being very cautious and I am certain there will be a lot of movement from the waitlist once the dust settles. They had to do a fair amount of shuffling to accommodate the large class in terms of adding additional classes and converting spaces to dorm rooms. It’s a great school and I have my fingers crossed for your daughter. I think it would be a great idea for yours to write a letter expressing her strong desire to go there. They are big fans of interest and you never know!

Current senior here -

We did have a phenomenally large first year class last year (they needed to turn some common rooms - and the old Wilder dining hall - into rooms over the summer), so it wouldn’t surprise me at all if they were more conservative with the initial admits this year.

@LifeisGood124

Jumping in to put in my unsolicited two cents!

There are parties at Mt. Holyoke. It’s not every weekend, and it’s not all the time (you won’t find one the week before finals) but they absolutely happen. There are parties in Chapin Auditorium (hosted by orgs) a few times a semester, and those are a bit more formal in that they usually have a DJ and sometimes food, and there are frequent smaller parties in larger dorm rooms and common rooms. If it’s an interest, you will be able to find it.

I can only speak to my own experiences, but I have definitely found a “place”. I think that college is a bit more fluid than high school, in that you can hang out with people in different contexts. I have science friends, history friends, faith/interfaith friends, and gaming friends. You can find people who are into the same things you are, guaranteed. One nice thing about being on a sports team is that you have an initial set of built in people to hang out with, who are all definitionally in to at least one thing you also like! On the other hand, MHC is definitely on the nerdy side as regards to campus culture, so that’s something to be aware of.

@Veryapparent @Bbates75 and @FireflyLights thank you all very much for your replies! It really helps to have some context. My daughter Is still waiting to hear from two more schools, both reaches— one being Bryn Mawr. She loves Mount Holyoke and Bryn Mawr nearly equally so we will see where she stands after she hears from the last two. If she doesn’t get into Bryn Mawr I’m going to encourage her to write a letter to Holyoke, but she also needs to focus on choosing between the schools she is into and getting psyched for college! She has good choices—including Hobart, Clark University, Sarah Lawrence and Skidmore. I feel very comfortable that no matter what she is going to end up somewhere where she can be happy and get a great education.

One more question-I’ve read conflicting opinions as to whether one should try to visit the campus again and possibly interview with a member of the admissions staff. She did do an alumni interview. What do people think?

@Bbates75 here’s the link to the article I referenced above:

http://www.mountholyokenews.com/news/2018/9/13/mount-holyoke-works-to-accommodate-first-years

@kschneeb
Was there anything in the waitlist info that discouraged additional communication? Did they say anything about how they process waitlist? If not I’d only think it could help. Did your daughter interview prior? If so I would not go for 2nd interview.
She has some great schools to chose from and I think you are right to have her focus on those for the time being. Most of the women’s colleges release info this week so my guess is most have a preference for one. I know my daughter declined all of her other schools by end of March. I think people understand that others might be waiting for their spot. Either way congrats!