<p>Re: 800 word essay. My DD wrote hers on "hooked on phonic's worked for me, call 1-800-abc-defg. She got matched to her #1 school! Don't stress, write what you know! IMO overthinking essay's kill's the original thought.</p>
<p>kyledavid, I know what you mean - maybe on the aggregate Questbridge grants more opportunities for the "real" applicant to show through, but I was rather annoyed by all of the word and character limits. Not necessarily the essays but things like the 255 word count you have to explain per parent, that sort of thing. I will use the Additional Info section to go in more detail but still... (granted the Common App doesn't even have a space like that tho it does let you upload a doc)</p>
<p>So here's an example:
If I get into Georgetown regular decision without Questbridge but then I get admitted to Columbia using Questbridge, do I have to go to Columbia?
So basically my question is which schools that use Questbridge are binding and which are non binding?
The schools that interest me are Univerisity of Chicago, Columbia, Penn State, and Yale.
Thanks</p>
<p>From Questbridge:
"When a match is made between a finalist and a college, the agreement is binding (with the exception of MIT, Notre Dame, Princeton, Stanford and Yale, which are not binding)." - QuestBridge</a> National College Match - Process Overview</p>
<p>This is only for the College Match round. If you are not matched with any school but decide to forward your Questbridge application so that it can be considered a supplement to any partner school's regular decision round, you are not bound to any school. In this case, if you are admitted to Georgetown and Columbia for the regular decision round you would be able to compare financial aid offers side by side. </p>
<p>Last note: it is not unheard of for an applicant to not get matched to schools like Stanford, Yale, Columbia etc. but get admitted in the regular decision round (with almost an exact financial aid offer that would be offered through Questbridge). APPLY! and if you don't get matched, TRY AGAIN!</p>
<p>hey i have a question</p>
<p>so as of now my position i havent taken sat I or IIs and the app for qb says the last date you have is for oct6. obviously i cant take both tests in a day...so i started thinking maybe i should take the act in sept and then the satII in oct. i wonder is taking the act w/o the satI going to hurt my chances of getting into qb or other schools? someone told me that most elite colleges (im looking into swarthmore, amherst, williams, chicago, etc) are hesistant about accepting kids w/ only act scores? now the person who told me this info might have not been entirely truthful, so i wanna know if its alright if i take just the act? and what score should i be for those schools like 31-34ish and higher?? i cant find lots of accurate info for act score avgs and i believe sparknotes info is wrong (they report several very elite schools such as amherst, williams, stanford and others as only 25 and 26 which is hear is pretty low). i havent studied at all for the act and i really dont know anything about it so i need an answer soon so i can start studying for it. </p>
<p>please reply soon! thanks</p>
<p>It's fine to take the ACT instead of the SAT, in fact, many of the QB partner colleges will accept the ACT w/writing in place of the SAT + SAT IIs. </p>
<p>Here's the testing requirements for each college:</p>
<p>QuestBridge</a> College Match Program - Required Standardized Tests</p>
<p>So it should be fine if you take the ACT in September and the the SAT IIs in October. Hope that helps answer your question. Good luck.</p>
<p>LaVieEnChocolat:</p>
<p>
[quote]
If I get into Georgetown regular decision without Questbridge but then I get admitted to Columbia using Questbridge, do I have to go to Columbia?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>As Carlosd3co, yes, you would have to go to Columbia if you get matched to it through QuestBridge.</p>
<p>
[quote]
it is not unheard of for an applicant to not get matched to schools like Stanford, Yale, Columbia etc. but get admitted in the regular decision round (with almost an exact financial aid offer that would be offered through Questbridge). APPLY! and if you don't get matched, TRY AGAIN!
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Exactly! In fact, this past year, Stanford took over 100 students RD (roughly 6 times the number of students matched).</p>
<p>Over 900 students in total got matched or got in RD. And that isn’t even counting the number of acceptances (just the # students).</p>
<p>fastdry:</p>
<p>
[quote]
so i started thinking maybe i should take the act in sept and then the satII in oct. i wonder is taking the act w/o the satI going to hurt my chances of getting into qb or other schools?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>No. If the partner school requires the SAT, they always allow the ACT (with or without writing, depending on the college).</p>
<p>As I advised others, if you have to take the SAT and SAT IIs this fall, you should just take the ACT in September and SAT IIs in October. That way, all your scores will be ready for the Match program (even if they aren’t for QuestBridge’s selection of finalists).</p>
<p>
[quote]
someone told me that most elite colleges (im looking into swarthmore, amherst, williams, chicago, etc) are hesistant about accepting kids w/ only act scores?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>They are wrong. The colleges clearly state either is an option.</p>
<p>
[quote]
now the person who told me this info might have not been entirely truthful, so i wanna know if its alright if i take just the act?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Go for it. :)</p>
<p>
[quote]
and what score should i be for those schools like 31-34ish and higher??
[/quote]
</p>
<p>There’s no score that you “should” be. The colleges do not have score cutoffs and don’t even necessarily look for a general score. Many students use the ACT median as their yardstick, just for a rough goal (so if the ACT range is 30-34, a 32 would be the roundabout goal). If you don’t make it to the median, that’s fine; roughly half the students are with you.</p>
<p>
[quote]
i cant find lots of accurate info for act score avgs and i believe sparknotes info is wrong
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Either go to the individual sites, or go to [url=<a href="http://www.collegeboard.com%5D::">http://www.collegeboard.com]::</a> College Planning Made Easy | Inside Source for College Admissions Requirements<a href="it’s%20much%20more%20updated%20and%20generally%20accurate">/url</a>.</p>
<p>Are the colleges which you rank for the college match the only ones you are able to forward for the RD decisions? Or, if not matched, can you rank colleges specifically for the purpose of the RD round?</p>
<p>
[quote]
Are the colleges which you rank for the college match the only ones you are able to forward for the RD decisions?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>No. You can ask QB to forward your application to colleges that you didn't even apply to in the Match round.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Or, if not matched, can you rank colleges specifically for the purpose of the RD round?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Well, for the RD round (when QB forwards your application), you don't rank any colleges. When you fill out the application, you make a ranking of schools for the Match round, and you check off all the colleges you want QB to forward your application to in the RD round (unranked, as there would be no point to rank them). Think of them as two separate lists.</p>
<p>What if your SATs are very high (2340), GPA is very high 3.85 UW, National Merit, head up the blood drive type volunteer stuff, 4s and 5s on APs, but have no major extracurriculars - no instrument, no sport, no hobby even other than reading? Is this a kid who would ever be a finalist (I'm doubting match)? Or might get accepted as a fnalist with RD to Rice, Pomona, Swarthmore, Williams, Amherst, Haverford or Vassar maybe? Is it possible to slide in without some out of the books passion? Curious, becoz we've already crossed off HYPS because of this lack, and am starting to wonder whether anything beyond UF is possible, even with Questbridge.</p>
<p>MattsMom, just go for it. Make the essays spectacular, get good teacher recs, and shoot for the stars. It's free applications to multiple schools :D.</p>
<p>The application is up!</p>
<p>His teacher recs are outstanding, but we are concerned with the essay. Since we've always lived within our means, there are no obstacles without overstating the situation. His essay theme is basically avoiding the chaos (overstated) around him by escaping into books and immersing himself in schoolwork. He's a funny, bright kid and I'm afraid only dysfunction is coming through. This is hard. Oh, and he's got an obviously Jewish last name, so I'm thinking he's not going to win any diversity contests either!</p>
<p>The schools you listed prefer the creative type of essays, so writing about "chaotic" situations may work to a disadvantage than say, writing about a weird obsession or just a really quirky situation.</p>
<p>Rep, that sounds like great advice - thank you</p>
<p>MattsMomFL:</p>
<p>
[quote]
but have no major extracurriculars - no instrument, no sport, no hobby even other than reading? Is this a kid who would ever be a finalist (I'm doubting match)?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>When a student says he has no ECs, I tell him to really evaluate what he does. You say he has no hobbies other than reading; are you sure? What does he do when he gets home from school? Read until bedtime?</p>
<p>Reading can be an EC too, if it's significant enough. What are his goals? How do they relate to reading? Does he like to write?</p>
<p>With what you've said, I'd say he'd have a good shot at becoming a finalist. Whether he'll get matched or not, no one knows--I'd say he has a good chance there as well, if he chooses the right colleges. The super-selective ones (YPSM, etc.) will be difficult, of course, but not all will (implicitly) require students to have lots of ECs.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Or might get accepted as a fnalist with RD to Rice, Pomona, Swarthmore, Williams, Amherst, Haverford or Vassar maybe?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>I think he'd have a good shot of getting into at least one of them.</p>
<p>Definitely go for it. He's a high-achieving low-income student, and I'd say he actually has a pretty good shot at getting matched to one of those that you listed, or at the very least getting in RD. Don't just settle for UF; it's a great school, but your son should shoot for the stars.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Since we've always lived within our means, there are no obstacles without overstating the situation. His essay theme is basically avoiding the chaos (overstated) around him by escaping into books and immersing himself in schoolwork. He's a funny, bright kid and I'm afraid only dysfunction is coming through.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>That sounds like a plan. Don't feel afraid to make hardships, etc. known, or even prominent, on the application. The QB application is designed to allow students more space to expand on things that could potentially be a positive factor in admissions: context is always taken into account. I know some students emphasized it in their essays and they succeeded.</p>
<p>I'm not sure whether the schools you listed prefer any "type" of essay (quirky or creative or chaotic); I don't think anyone can. The essays in particular are hard to gather data on. I sincerely doubt that they prefer one kind over another. Just be sincere and try to show enthusiasm in the essays, and he should be okay.</p>
<p>Good luck to you and your son. :)</p>
<p>S1 sounds exactly like your son and he's happily matriculating at Trinity, another Questbridge school. I can't say enough good things about Trin; they've really done well by us in every way.</p>
<p>Wow...thanks for all of the input. He wants to be in academia - he's now thinking of a dual major in anthropology and linguistics. His biggest EC and the one that takes the most of his time is peer tutoring. Learning has always been easy for him, so he really loves to teach, plus he comes from a family of teachers, so teaching and being taught is all about love for him. So, his activities when he is at home is reading and then sharing insights about what he has read. Because money was an issue when he was a little, the library was the only place we could go that he could take as many books as he wanted to read without money being an issue, so they're very freeing for him. Even his social life this summer revolved around a book club three of his friends organized that had books not included in the school's summer reading. He also follows politics very closely and is becoming very interested in economics, so his interests may continue to evolve.</p>
<p>4th house, I'll definitely take a closer look at Trinity now after hearing your positive report - thank you</p>
<p>
[quote]
His biggest EC and the one that takes the most of his time is peer tutoring.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>That's an excellent EC. He could even write an essay on it, mentioning what you just said (why he loves it, etc.). It shows that he has initiative (in choosing to tutor others), drive (in following through), persistence (in continuing it), leadership (in being able to teach), and work experience. If he charges and has put his earnings to good use (paying family bills, buying test prep materials, etc.), that's definitely something to mention as well.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Because money was an issue when he was a little, the library was the only place we could go that he could take as many books as he wanted to read without money being an issue, so they're very freeing for him.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>That sounds like the perfect essay topic. ;)</p>
<p>
[quote]
Even his social life this summer revolved around a book club three of his friends organized
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Another essay topic. :p That shows he's engaged, appreciative of intellectual endeavors, willing to interact and work with others; not to mention it demonstrates leadership (in starting the club) and sustained personal efforts during a time when most students relax.</p>
<p>
[quote]
He also follows politics very closely and is becoming very interested in economics, so his interests may continue to evolve.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Something also to mention: shows he has an open mind, curiosity, appreciation for a broad spectrum of learning, and so on.</p>
<p>Really, your son has more than you would think. I don't think even HYPS should be ruled out; his extremely high stats combined with what you just explained makes him an excellent candidate. I know quite a few who didn't have much in the way of ECs, but who were just genuinely interesting people with a story to tell, people who were engaged and enthusiastic, and they got into HYPS. (They were unhooked, as well.)</p>
<p>Since you mention his interest in linguistics, I'll add that Stanford in particular has an excellent linguistics department (ranked #1 or #2), with top faculty, a huge variety of courses (it saddens me I won't be able to take them all), and engaged students who are required to take graduate-level courses as an undergrad; Stanford values advanced study in linguistics and prepares its undergrads superbly for grad school in linguistics. In addition, there's tons of research going on in linguistics at Stanford, and the department is really dedicated to getting undergrads involved; plenty of money is allotted to student-faculty collaborations, and there are summer research internships (among others) only for undergrads in linguistics. And of course, Stanford has top facilities (computational semantics lab, spoken syntax lab, etc.).</p>
<p>Some other QB schools that offer top linguistics programs: MIT, U Penn, U Chicago, Swarthmore, Haverford, Yale.</p>
<p>I have a few questions:
what percentage of QB finalist are matched? Why would a low income student apply to top schools through QB when if that student will recieve an almost full scholarship from such schools if admitted? Places like MIT, Yale, Cornell, are giving full financial aid to students with income < about 60,000?
will applying through QB increase your chance of admission? who gives the scholarship, QB or the school?
thank you!</p>
<p>Kyle, wow....you've just given us a whole new prism to look through. Really outstanding points, THREE essay ideas (!), and the evaluation of linguistics programs at the various QB schools is a terrific bonus. Thank you! Feeling a lot more positive now. :)</p>