Need advice after rejected/waitlisted from almost every college

Chance Me / Match Me!
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Have your high school counselor call your wait list schools and push hard. Otherwise take a gap year and reapply. I know lots of kids who got into very elite schools in this way. UMass is also a great idea. Great school great town. Don’t let people push you into those Soutthern schools if that is not what you wanted (which it obviously isn’t).

Some of the waitlists are yield management. If you counselor calls and says you will accept on the spot if offered, quite likely some may come through (not the Ivies but some on your other list).

I suspect you applied to too many schools, were not well advised, didn’t show interest in the way they monitor, and your app felt generic.

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I would get your guidance counselor’s help in reaching out to those waitlist schools. There’s no reason for you to not start college in the fall and taking online classes will make you a transfer student. Many colleges will only accept transfers after they complete their first two years.

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I know these schools fairly well, and seeing OP’s profile I’m pretty certain it’s because he applied late. Perhaps mid Jan or later?

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No, I don’t think this is correct.

You applied to the colleges of arts and sciences at all those universities. They don’t admit based on what you say you want to study, except for nursing, engineering, etc… Most colleges don’t make you declare a major until sophomore year. Students change their mind about majors all the time.

I think one issue is that you received poor advising at your high school. If you shed a bit of light on that, we might be able to give you better advice. Were you at a school with too many students and limited guidance counselors? Did your GC help you create your list? Who wrote your recs? Did anyone give you feedback on your essays? Did you show interest at schools that consider it? Why did you choose the colleges you applied to? Were your supplementary essays rushed?

You are a great student. My honest thought is that if you reapply again next year, with a thoughtful list of well chosen safety, match and reach schools, with great teacher recs and good essays, and if you do something meaningful and productive in a gap year, you will be accepted to some excellent schools. I do not think you have to “settle” for a college that will admit you in the spring. U Mass Amherst is not settling, of course.

If you REALLY a want to get going, I think it’s perfectly fine to start at CC, have a great year, and begin your transfer process for Fall of 2024.

There seems to be some disagreement here, but not all universities and colleges require two years of community college before transferring. (Of course, as a transfer student, you’re unlikely to get much in the way of merit aid, which can be a real downside to transferring, but you may well be considering colleges which don’t offer merit aid anyway.) Brandeis, Colby, and Bates, as examples of very selective colleges, offer classics and accept community college applicants after one year, or even one semester.

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The only ones I’ve heard of that do this are the UCs. Are there others?

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Amherst College “strongly encourages” two years of CC: https://www.amherst.edu/media/view/811977

If the OP wants to consider the CC to four year college transfer route, he needs to look at all colleges of interest and see what they state on their websites. I hope we can all agree now that not all colleges require two years of CC in order to transfer. I could create a large list of four year colleges and universities that do not require two years of CC, but that’s a different topic.

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The issue isn’t whether or not two years are required- the issue (at least as I understand it) is will a year of CC enhance this kid’s profile? We don’t know. Will a year of CC contribute significantly to his education other than knocking some Gen Ed’s off (which he may not need depending on where he ends up?). Brown- strong Classics. No Gen Ed’s at all. Just an example. Columbia- the Gen Ed’s at a CC won’t replace the core.

For sure applying late in the cycle was a mistake. And you’ll need your GC to help figure out if there were others.

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Got it.

If you’re talking about single digit acceptance rate colleges, it won’t be the CC. It will be what else the student achieves during his (potential) time at CC. I mentioned previously that if he wants to take a gap year and reapply to very selective colleges, he should do something notable, whether he attends Cc or not.

As the student was already rejected from then Ivies, they are probably a nonstarter, barring the student doing something really exceptional.

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It seems that it would be advisable for the OP to take Latin and Greek as a first-year college student. This would not appear to be feasible at most community colleges.

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Briefly speaking, my parents found a family friend who is a yale graduate and stanford mba and he does counseling advising for high school students who are applying to colleges. He sort of promised to my parents that I will definitely get into one of the “match” schools I applied, so my parents won’t allow me to apply to any real safety (literally won’t let me apply to schools like BU). I was honestly really doubtful that “match” schools would guaranteed admission but my parents really believed so. He helped me write my essays and supplements, and he told me to not focus too much on writing supplements for the “match” colleges because he thought I would definitely get into one of the T20 schools.

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I think the odds of transferring successfully after a year at a community college is low. Take the example of Brown you cited, for example. Brown requires a transfer student to have completed at least one year of study at the time of application. This means OP becomes eligible to apply for a transfer in the summer of 2024, at the earliest. However, transfer applications need to be completed in the spring, so he would miss the deadline for next year. Someone who knows more about Brown can correct me, but that’s my understanding after reading what Brown says on its website.

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What about I enroll in a college for spring semester next year then do a junior transfer application? How is that comparing to going to Penn State/Rutgers alternative campus then do a sophomore transfer?

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Some colleges may allow transfer after just one semester, but some may not (e.g. Brown).

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Can you speak with the transfer folks at Penn or Rutgers and find out their policies on (M) one from a regional campus to the main campus for your second year?

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Based on the information quoted, Brown requires a transfer applicant to have completed a year of college before planned matriculation.

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I am thinking about whether applying as a junior transfer would be a lot more difficult than applying as a sophomore transfer.

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Brown says “before planned matriculation.” Not before application. Anyway, OP has been rejected there and is unlikely to be admitted.

Back to OP. @AirMetro maybe your advisor was a bit out of touch with the current climate of selective college admissions. It’s surprising they didn’t suggest any smaller colleges at all. Anyway, water under the bridge now and time to move on to your next steps. It’s very admirable that you appear to be really seeking a way to move forward.

You haven’t mentioned finances so far. Assuming you are full pay, will your parents fund an overseas education, for example? And have they given you any restrictions on where you can attend college?

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The Brown info that Lindagaf posted says a transfer student has to have completed one year of college to matriculate, not apply. So second semester first year apps are ok. I will say many Ivy transfers are hooked in some way…athletes, URM, military, coming from CC with agreements with the school, or coming from certain other two year schools with paths to the Ivies like Deep Springs.

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This is helpful. I strongly advise you to not work with the person anymore. If affordable, I encourage you to hire someone to look at your app and essays, and go from there.

We do still need to know if your budget is constrained…if it is, it makes transferring, no matter the year more difficult.

Are any of the schools mentioned in this thread that are still taking apps appealing to you?

If not, I would encourage you to look at the UMass spring entry option, or UK/Canada options if they are appealing. You can certainly go through the entire application process again, which should start this august with an app to Pitt.

There is likely not enough time for you to do something meaningful enough to change the outcome at the schools that did not accept you this year. As someone else said you can’t take classes during any gap, or you will lose your status as a first year when you apply to most schools.

Lastly, BU is a reach for all unhooked applicants, similar to your match school list.

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Hey now! Tim Cook graduated from one of ‘those Southern schools’ (Auburn) and he’s running Apple … we might not be Ivy League to you but the South educates some might fine folks! Plus our weather is way more appealing! (as long as you can stay inside in the summer… really hot then!)

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