Bowdoin definitely has godlike food, my cousin can attest to that!
All of those are valid reasons to choose Bowdoin, and would sway me towards Bowdoin, but, he should try to keep an open mind. I would encourage him to not only attend admitted students events, but to connect with current students who share his academic and EC interests. Itâs hard to make a decision when thereâs probably no wrong choice.
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Hi guys! Question from a confused dad. So, my daughter just got waitlisted at Bowdoin and I am a little shocked. She has a 4.67 weighted GPA and is the sole Valedictorian, a 35 on her ACT, was a Rotary exchange student to Italy, 1st chair all state alto singer, and Hispanic. Not a lot of other extracurriculars, though. But, jeesh, what more can a girl do? She was pretty crushed to say the least. Any idea on how she didnât make the cut?
To quote someone on the Colby thread: âitâs rarely a matter of ânot good enough,â but rather simply ânot what is needed.ââ This applicant sounds perfectly equipped to do well at Bowdoin, they just didnât need her for the class they were building. No one (applicant or parent) should feel entitled to a school with a 9% acceptance rate. No matter how qualified they might seem.
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Hello from another parent of Bowdoin WL crushed D. Our daughters will send the stellar interest letters so the AOâs can see the error of their ways.
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Bowdoin will have an 8% or so acceptance rate, lower if you just consider RD. That means itâs a reach for all applicants, and many high stats students are turned away each year because thereâs not enough spots. Certainly take the waitlist spot, but at the same time students (and their parents) should get excited about the schools that have accepted them. Good luck all!
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Gosh, this college process is such a crapshoot. DS waitlisted, but got an early write to Amherst. He was disappointed about Bowdoin, but he loves Amherst. I guess you never know what colleges are looking for, as Iâve seen candidates on this thread being accepted to 1 LAC, but not another. I guess each school is looking for different things.
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Maybe yield protection.
In context, the ranking below shows how some of the schools discussed in this topic appear by estimated selectivity (for the class entering in the Fall of 2019). It shouldnât be surprising that acceptances, denials and waitlist offers appear across closely positioned schools. Changes in order from year to year should also be expected.
U.S. News Selectivity Ranks (NLACs)
ď¸1. Pomona
ď¸2. Harvey Mudd
ď¸2. Haverford
ď¸4. Amherst
ď¸5. Hamilton
ď¸5. Swarthmore
ď¸5. Williams
ď¸8. Barnard
ď¸8. Bowdoin
ď¸10. Washington & Lee
ď¸11. Wellesley
ď¸12. Colorado College
ď¸12. Smith
ď¸12. Vassar
ď¸15. Carleton
ď¸16. Colby
ď¸17. Colgate
ď¸17. Davidson
ď¸19. Claremont McKenna
ď¸19. Grinnell
ď¸19. Middlebury
19. Wesleyan
I think if she really wants to go she should let them know! What a great applicant your daughter sounds like.
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Thanks! You sound like you have a lot of great options, so congrats and best wishes!!
@boondoggle1234 , the mantra on the Boarding School thread is âlove the school that loves youâ. Youâve got a good one!
@PerformingDude , Colby and Bowdoin have the same food serviceâŚ
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Doesnât Colby use Bon Appetite Dining Service? Bowdoinâs is in-house AFAIK.
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^^ This is what I had heard from students. But you might be right. Bowdoin has more interesting menu options, so itâs not like itâs coming out of the same kitchen. But Bates apparently has better food than Bowdoin(Niche survey, according to business insider) and both are above Colby in that ranking.
Bowdoinâs food is definitely made in-house. They even publish some of their most popular recipes so we can make them at home when the poor kids have to leave their yummy dining hall and slum it to eat in their parentsâ kitchen again. You can follow Bowdoin Dining on Instagram.
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Right on:)
Donât have one yet. She got waitlisted on Early from Harvard and this is first response from normal timing. She has applied to UPenn, Columbia, Yale, Georgetown, Middlebury, and Wesleyan too. She just really loves Bowdoin:/âŚ
There is a lot to love about Bowdoin, I have a D there now. Good luck with the remaining decisions, andâŚplease tell me your D has applied to some target and safety schools in addition to the reaches you listed 
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Do you require a lot of financial aid? Seems like a lot of schools take that into consideration when pulling kids off of waitlists. I hope your D gets some good news in March with some acceptances. All of those schools you listed likely have sub-10 percent acceptance rates in RD.
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I was thinking the exact same thing about safeties!