Need advice after rejected/waitlisted from almost every college

Chance Me / Match Me!
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Not sure if can get Honors this late but that doesn’t matter. Can apply for that later if wanted.

They would get the $28k out of state auto merit making tuition $4k or so.

The school is nearly 60% OOS and loaded with kids from the northeast and Chicago and West Coast.

Apply by May 1st and send the SAT/ACT NOW

You’ll get Presidential. Arizona will be a little more but an easy app, no test, tuition will be $8k or so with the 4.0.

Even if you decide a different tact than a Fall start - best to have a seat somewhere to give you some breathing room while you decide. And these apps are easy. I listed other schools too but they are rolling so while possible, not assured. I’d throw in for Tulsa since there was Emory, Rice, Wash U. Tulsa is a safety valve for those kids who don’t get in. So it makes sense. That one is likely but not assured.

https://scholarships.ua.edu/freshman/out-of-state/

https://mlc.ua.edu/classics/

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According to the Alabama website, students can apply for admission and this scholarship until May 1 but need all supporting documents in then.

https://scholarships.ua.edu/freshman/nationalscholars/

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My son applied to Alabama in November, so I wasn’t tracking this could still be an option. OP this could be such a great choice so you can start college at a school that will be thrilled to have you attend.

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Many fine schools still actually …

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National Merit was mentioned in the original post, so I was assuming that meant he was a National Merit Finalist and would be eligible for Alabama’s National Merit Finalist Package.

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Gotcha then Tulsa makes even more sense to apply. Full ride.

So yeah both !!

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Just food for thought… you can take a gap year to work, do more service, maybe find research if possible … or you can take one of your acceptances (I would go with whichever is cheapest). Go there and rock star that first year (so in your case keep doing what you’ve been doing!), but take classes with a transfer in mind. Do some research this summer as to other schools you see as a fit for you (not in the top 25 but still top 100). Look at not only location but also ones that have coursework that interests you (but that may be smaller … and just forget about rank and look at their professor profiles - where did they go to school).

There are many well-known schools not on your list that may have been a better undergraduate fit for a Classics/History major. The idea being that you undergrad at a midlevel prestige, make a name for yourself with your professors, then apply to Masters or Doctorate programs at those highly rejective top schools. Figure out where the undergraduate professors went to school (they will be writing your LOR for grad school and if they are alum it could carry good weight).

Some suggestions from a quick Classics search (not taking into account ranking at all-many of these are still highly selective but certainly not HPY selective): Bowdoin, Northwestern, Davidson (NC), Furman (SC), W&L and Wm&Mary (VA), Sewanee and Rhodes (TN), Tulane, Loyola (Chicago, Maryland or Nola), Villanova, Hobart, Miami Ohio, Swarthmore, Lehigh, Bucknell, CaseWestern, Carnegie Mellon, Macalester, Baylor, John Hopkins, Ole Miss… and consider reapplying to Emory but check the Oxford campus.

Good luck! Know that it really isn’t you or a slight on your accomplishments. You are an amazing scholar and will certainly bloom wherever you are planted. It just seems as though good grades, test scores and strong ECs plus a FirstGen hook are just not enough these days (which is just crazytown!) But you will be successful! Your path will just look a little different than your original plan A.

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The only problem with these great offers is that the OP’s parents evidently are interested only in what they consider prestigious universities. In which case, a gap year may be necessary unless the OP can get off a waitlist.

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You say that except they applied to UMN, Rutgers, PSU, Pitt -

There’s zero difference (in reality) - I can’t be assured what the parents think.

Not sure he said where he WL but a Tufts, Wake won’t happen. Tufts took zero in the last CDS. A UC is a small possibility . Very small. And frankly ridiculously overpriced for a classics degree although cost is not in discussion.

Mom/dad need to change their tune quickly and learn the reality of our system.

If you have nothing, something is better …and frankly those I’ve recommended (and there’s more- I just haven’t sought them ) but these are interchangeable with their safeties.

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There’s still some vestige remaining of local snobbery towards UMass, depending on city/town/school. D loves it. Tons of very smart kids doing extra work (minors, double majors, etc.) yes, it’s also a party school. Both can be true! Highly recommend going there and doing well.

To OP: if thinking of applying, make sure to visit UMass. They want local students to visit and not take them for granted. I don’t think demonstrated interest is an official thing, but a counselor at the high school told us this and we made sure both kids had official visits. Good luck!

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Yes, maybe now they’ll reconsider. The OP only applied to those “safety” schools after being denied/waitlisted at the reachier schools.

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Yeah that’s fair. That’s why he was rejected.

This is the time of year we get these stories.

I hope others in the future learn.

Plan for that safety.

It’s easy to say name your top colleges. Harder for people to say Rutgers etc if they think they are top shelf.

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Please keep in mind this an 18 year old who came here for help and finds themselves in a vulnerable and sad situation. They don’t need to hear “told you so”, have their self confidence further undermined or have their personal experience used to validate adult posters opinions and agendas.

Treat this kid the way you would want your kid treated.

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Could you elaborate on what that means?

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OP—just wanting to be sure you understand that some of the schools with good merit that people are mentioning are still taking applications now for entry this fall. That includes University of Arizona and University of Alabama.

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OP, you could put in an application for the coming year to St Andrews, Durham, UCL, KCL and Glasgow, all highly ranked for Classics. Although the deadline has technically passed, they are less stringent about that than in the US, and you could well get an offer for the autumn. You could do the same at Trinity College Dublin

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Please note that the OP said this mid-topic regarding his parents, however:

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@AirMetro at this point, a LOCI is warranted for the waitlist schools. Having your school counselor reach out could help, especially if the school has sent students to these colleges in the past.

Do you have any additional awards or something new that was not reflected on your applications when they were sent? If so, ask the school counselor how to get this info to the college(s).

Yes, there are still colleges taking applications, if there are any on the list that meet your desires.

Taking a well defined gap year could also be productive if things don’t work out this year. You could reevaluate where you applied…get applications done perhaps to a different variety of colleges…and Net some good acceptances.

Read this thread. It’s old…but the things expressed in it still apply. This kid also had no acceptances the first time around…but did a well defined gap year and totally landed on his feet very well.

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Sure. Honestly I was grasping at straws trying to figure out how you could be turned down at your safeties. I think the answer is - you never had safeties until after their regular deadlines or too late for Pitt. That’s likely the answer.

No point to belabor but now you know your matches weren’t close. Frankly not close for any student. There was a poster last week not in at BU but attending MIT. So if you go another round, please take the safety into account first - and multiple. And instead of a Vandy, maybe it’s Miami. Instead of BU, maybe it’s GW etc. also, please make sure your essays are yours and not your advisors!! An Elon or Furman instead of Wake

What I meant by my EC comment is some kids list such heroic ECs that without proper context or documentation that they might seem a bit of a stretch. But now we know your safeties were applied to late, this is less of a concern

You noted:

Latin Club President, International Relationship Club Founder, Wrote articles, research papers and book in Latin, selective summer programs in Classics, senior member in Debate, MUN and Student Publication, a lot of CS hours every year

Perhaps writing a book in Latin is seen as a stretch and providing a link to it would be ‘proof’’ . Do you note the name ? Could a quick search find it etc to verify that you wrote it etc ?

How did you define CS hours ?

Again I was just trying to see where you might have gone wrong.

The real answer may be that you applied only to reaches but you mis calibrated due to your advisor and applied (early enough) only to reaches. Did you ED anywhere ? Did you demonstrate interest at those who consider it ? Visit, do on line sessions, open emails etc.

If money is not an issue, you might consider ED1 and 2 if you decide to try again. Personally I hope you start this Fall and have a wonderful experience. This way, the name is a bit different than you thought, but the experience can be just as great!!

Best of luck.

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Thanks- I missed that.

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