Official 2008 Questbridge National College Match Discussion and Help

<p>Can we be creative on our essays for Questbridge? (ex. draw, etc)</p>

<p>You want to draw on your essays???</p>

<p>Is it worth applying through Questbridge if my household income is like $30,000, including child-support, but my dad's income is like around $150,000. He agreed to pay a portion of my older brother's tuition and I think he will do the same with me, but my brother still had to take out about 20k in loans to go to Harvard, which isn't all that bad. I wouldn't mind taking out loans as long as it's not too much, but I was just wondering if I should try Questbridge or just stick to the normal application.</p>

<p>I'm slightly freaking out right now, because I attended an online class at the CC this summer, and they screwed up my transcript. Plus, there's issues going on with grade changes... </p>

<p>I know that the deadline's September 30th, does that mean that the transcript has to be RECEIVED by that date? Or does that mean that's teh date it's sent via mail? I read about asking the counselor to fax the transcript and test scores, does that mean I don't order them from Collegeboard and the transcript is "unofficial" and I don't have to ask my HS to send the transcript?? I'm so confused. Please help! </p>

<p>also, I'm not sure I'm going to be able to pull off all the essays in a month... adn the chances of getting finalist is SO small. Under the FA programs of the schools i'm applying to, my family qualifies for no loans and great FA (eliminate tuition,etc). So should I still go ahead with QB? I'm so busy with the app I don't have time to study to retake the SATII Math either... the rest of my scores are pretty good, and so are my other 2 SATII's, it's just the Math one that I did terrible on. I'm wondering if QB is worth all this stress if the chances of getting matched are so small and that we can't use it for RD.</p>

<p>I am an international student and I am quite confused with the application process
Does anyone have some experience:</p>

<p>I Apply on the match round to Yale --->If I am not selected as a finalist..--> Wants to use Questbridge application for Regular Decision --> In the regular decision, can I apply for Early Decision to Amherst??</p>

<p>(I understand that the chart in questbridge website says that if I am not matched for a finalist (QuestBridge</a> National College Match - Regular Decision Table) , I can apply using QB app for Amherst's Early Decision, BUT I'm not sure if that applies to International Student (since in the match round, int. student are not allowed to apply to Amherst))</p>

<p>If I recall correctly, there are a FEW (not many) schools that list on the QB site that if you do not get matched anywhere, you can still get an application to them for their EA/ED. For example, I believe Swarthmore, which has ED I and ED II, says you can still send them an app for ED II if you were not matched. </p>

<p>Now, as to how Questbridge factors into this, I don't know whether they would forward your app to these schools for ED if you asked them or whether you would simply send in a normal app directly to the school. I think, but am not sure, you would just be sending the school their regular app, but you could still indicate to them that you are a Questbridge finalist since ... you are. </p>

<p>Does that sound about right? Again, the key here is that there are very few QB schools that indicate they allow you to do this.</p>

<p>do the "adversities" -- that people seem to be mentioning so often on this thread -- portrayed in the essays have to necessarily be those overcome because of financial difficulties? or can they just be a problem, that doesn't necessarily point towards financial difficulties?</p>

<p>weilly:</p>

<p>
[quote]
Can we be creative on our essays for Questbridge? (ex. draw, etc)

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Sure, why not? Just don’t waste space that you could be using to elaborate on your situation, or on passions of yours, etc.</p>

<p>(I’m not sure how you’d draw on your essays, since the fields are text-only.)</p>

<p>
[quote]
I Apply on the match round to Yale --->If I am not selected as a finalist..--> Wants to use Questbridge application for Regular Decision --> In the regular decision, can I apply for Early Decision to Amherst??

[/quote]
</p>

<p>No. Regular decision and early decision are two different rounds. ED is, as the name implies, early and means that you are bound to attend; the deadline is in the fall. RD notification is in the spring (deadline in the winter), and you aren’t bound to attend anywhere.</p>

<p>In your case, it’d be: match round to Yale ---> not selected as finalist ---> use QB application as well as other required apps for RD at Yale and Amherst (and any other schools you want to apply RD) ---> get in normally ---> choose a school</p>

<p>Or, it could be: match round to Yale ---> not selected as finalist ---> use QB app to apply early decision / early action to some schools (as long as the deadline hasn’t passed for the early round, you can apply to it, given that you are not going through the Match round—which you can’t do if you’re not chosen as a finalist)</p>

<p>Or, it could be: match round to Yale ---> selected as finalist ---> matched to Yale (accepted early). And if you want to apply to other schools after being matched to Yale, you can do so in regular decision.</p>

<p>Some schools also have ED II, which you may apply to if you find out that you weren’t matched. A few schools let you apply to ED I, too.</p>

<p>Make sense? :)</p>

<p>tennischick035:</p>

<p>
[quote]
Is it worth applying through Questbridge if my household income is like $30,000, including child-support, but my dad's income is like around $150,000.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>It’s possible that you’d become a finalist. Will they take your dad’s income as part of your total income? If so, then you probably wouldn’t become a finalist. However, if there are some definition issues (as in, he will contribute little), then you may become a finalist if you explain it in the additional info. It just depends on how much your father’s income matters in relation to yours. You might even be eligible for a non-custodial parent waiver—meaning that he won’t contribute at all to your education. That would mean that QB is definitely worthwhile for you.</p>

<p>athenegoddess:</p>

<p>
[quote]
I know that the deadline's September 30th, does that mean that the transcript has to be RECEIVED by that date?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Since the transcripts are faxed in, yes, it has to be received by that date.</p>

<p>
[quote]
Or does that mean that's teh date it's sent via mail?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>No, counselors must fax the transcripts in.</p>

<p>
[quote]
does that mean I don't order them from Collegeboard and the transcript is "unofficial" and I don't have to ask my HS to send the transcript??

[/quote]
</p>

<p>The transcript needs to be an official one from your high school. If your scores are not on your transcript (many transcripts do have students’ SAT scores), then you need to give them to your counselor to fax. You do not need to have official scores sent; you could just print them from the College Board’s site, or you could just give your counselor a copy of the score reported that the CB sent you in the mail. All your counselor needs is some kind of semi-official score report to fax in.</p>

<p>
[quote]
also, I'm not sure I'm going to be able to pull off all the essays in a month...

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Why not? Try to do them on the weekends when you have more time. They’re really not as bad as they seem. I promise. ;)</p>

<p>
[quote]
adn the chances of getting finalist is SO small.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>I don’t think so. Roughly half of the students who apply are chosen as finalists. Getting matched is a different story, but whether you do or don’t, you’ll have finalist status behind your belt, which could help you in early rounds to schools or in the RD round (where as many as five times the number of students matched get in).</p>

<p>
[quote]
So should I still go ahead with QB? I'm so busy with the app I don't have time to study to retake the SATII Math either

[/quote]
</p>

<p>I’d say it’s worth it. At this point, you have to do some serious time management. Try to work around studying and working on the app, in your other commitments. Study during the little bits of time that you aren’t doing anything—like waiting for class to start. </p>

<p>However, if you have other strong SAT IIs, you don’t need to retake SAT II math, unless it’s required by the schools you’re applying to and you want to better your score.</p>

<p>
[quote]
I'm wondering if QB is worth all this stress if the chances of getting matched are so small and that we can't use it for RD.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>What do you mean you can’t use it for RD? Some schools require an additional app. However, I’d say at least some of them use their app as well as QB’s app in their decisions.</p>

<p>stasis:</p>

<p>
[quote]
do the "adversities" -- that people seem to be mentioning so often on this thread -- portrayed in the essays have to necessarily be those overcome because of financial difficulties?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>No, they don’t. It’s really just about your background.</p>

<p>
[quote]
or can they just be a problem, that doesn't necessarily point towards financial difficulties?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Yup—they may or may not have to do with financial difficulties. Often they do, but not always.</p>

<p>My D keeps getting questbridge emails I imagine because she is african american/biracial but from what I can tell our income is too high to qualify (~100k). That being said we are struggling financially with the very high cost of housing in Seattle and everything going up, up, up and no we don't have luxuries or vacations or even car payments.</p>

<p>Does anyone know if it would worth it for her to apply?</p>

<p>for this program, you can apply to Yale AND other schools right? i know that probably is the case but i thought Yale was single choice for EA.</p>

<p>thanks so much, kyledavid08!! </p>

<p>:D</p>

<p>btw, does my counselor have to fax in a school profile or anything like that as well?</p>

<p>Thanks for the response kyledavid80. Questbridge has this to say about NCP income "The income of your non-custodial parent will not be included in your primary household income, nor will it affect your status as a QuestBridge finalist; however, colleges require your non-custodial parent's income before making you a scholarship offer. If you have no contact with your non-custodial parent, you need to submit a non-custodial waiver form."</p>

<p>I don't think I can fill out a waiver because I do have contact with him, it's just that he moved out of the country when I was really young and he sort of started a new family then I didn't really see him until he moved back when I was in 10th grade, but I do have contact with him now. I was just wondering if my dad's income would make me uncompetitive with the other Questbridge kids when the ad coms from a school like Stanford looked at me. I don't want them to think I'm cheating the system or something, so I was thinking I would be better of with the normal application. Thanks again.</p>

<p>I noticed MIT required recs from one math/science and one humanities - but on the National College Match requirements, there are no specifications listed under MIT. They just take the entire Questbridge application...should I not worry about it? Call MIT?</p>

<p>Is 75K too much?</p>

<p>My father is dead; do I still need to fill out the non-custodial waiver form?</p>

<p>Hi repzolow, you talked about writing extra essays for QuestBridge application. Can you specify what kind of essay were you required to write about? </p>

<p>And how about other parts of your application? Anything extra that you submitted which might have helped you?</p>

<p>Hey guys! I just found out about the National College Match and I am debating on whether I should start it or not. There are only three weeks left and I don't have an essay and the teachers that'd be writing me recommendations would probably need at least 4 weeks.. My parents' income is somewhere between 30k and 40k. SATs--CR is very low since I am not a native English speaker. But I am pretty satisfied with my M and Wr.Well, anyways, does using Questbridge allow you to also apply through common app and to different colleges than the ones from the college match? I mean, it's not binding until you be a finalist, right? I am sorry if this is a confusing question, I have to make a decision in like the next a day or two. :(</p>

<p>The scholarship awarded to matched finalists is a 4 year full-tuition scholarship. Does anyone know if the 4 years must be consecutive?
I've heard that it is sometimes helpful for some careers to spend a year as an intern.</p>

<p>hello,do this questbridge open to international students.Btw,I'm American but not living in the States..</p>

<p>thank you kyledavid80 again!!</p>

<p>Now i have a question to ask (again):P</p>

<p>as you answered that I could use QB app for RD round (if i'm not matched). However, I emailed Amherst and they answered
"You are correct that Amherst College will not accept a Quest Bridge application from an international student for the match. We would strongly encourage you to use the Common Application and the Amherst College Supplement to the Common Application (both available on the Common Application web site and on the Amherst College web site) to apply to Amherst Early Decision or Regular Decision. "</p>

<p>That means they prefer me using the common app. and the QB app i'm doing will be for no use (after the match round that I have very little chance)! (because I will not be taking the SAT subject test by October, since one of my subject is Japanese--offered only November...so it wont be in time for Match round anyways)</p>

<p>I'm loosing hope.....
Can anyone tell me QB app is more preferable in any of the colleges? or anything that can help or suggest me? Should i continue doing the QB app with 3 essays anymore???</p>