Ominous E-mail

<p>Did anyone else get an e-mail from the admissions office explaining their process of selection? It sounded more like a set-up for rejection to me.</p>

<p>I got the e-mail as well. While none of the information was terribly enlightening (aka, I know Middlebury looks at more than test scores/grades) I wouldn’t necessarily classify it as “ominous”. I think the Dean of Admissions just wanted to let all the applicants know the general process. A lot of people (nearly 8,000) applied to Middlebury this year, and I think Middlebury wanted to prepare its applicants for a potential rejection and, more importantly, make them understand why they may have been rejected with a 32 ACT or top 10% class ranking.</p>

<p>I didn’t get this email… does that mean anything?</p>

<p>I’m pretty sure this email goes to everyone, along with a letter to parents explaining the same.</p>

<p>In the e-mail it says it is addressed to “All Applicants to Middlebury for the Class of 2014”.</p>

<p>Oh, and @ randy0167, I took a look at your stats, and they are basically flawless, so I wouldn’t lose too much sleep over not getting this e-mail, you’ll get into Middlebury. Who knows, perhaps it is better NOT to get the e-mail than to get it. Maybe those who didn’t get the e-mail will be getting likely letters.</p>

<p>D applied last year and was sent a long letter (if I remember, it was written on both sides) explaining the process. It seemed to us to be coming too late for the applicant to benefit and we didn’t know what to make of it. MIDD also asked for financial aid clarification and was ultimately offered wait list (which she didn’t accept) so if anyone is thinking that kind of contact means acceptance, it doesn’t necessarily. We never figured out what the purpose of the letter was, or if it was just sent to rejected and WL applicants. (Like most admissions stories, ours had a very happy ending.) I remember thinking at the time that it was a waste of postage and paper, so at least they’re e-mailing it now.</p>

<p>Thanks lefthandofdog, we got a financial aid clarification letter (via email) the other day and hoped that meant she was going to be accepted. Tough to know now that that may not be the case.</p>

<p>JustADad - did you receive the letter explaining the process? Maybe that’s the kiss of death note. Around the time Middlebury announced their decisions last year, there was an article in the New York Times that stated Midd (and a couple other schools) did not offer aid to kids who came in off the wait list. Is it possible D was in the accept pile until aid ran out? We’ll never know. I’d forgotten all about this, but D reminded me because senior friends are now going through the process and trying to divine the signs. I do remember this as absolutely the worst month of senior year - and yet, it feels now like it was 5 years ago. You do come out the other side of this process.</p>

<p>My S came in off the wait list last year, and got offered the same aid as everyone else, so that isn’t true. I don’t remember any signs last year…but it could be the aftermath of trauma. he found out he was waitlisted via e-mail…</p>

<p>We received both emails, the “ominous” one and the financial aid one. When filling out financial aid forms, I remember that Midd didn’t want all financial information until the student was accepted, so we had assumed the financial aid email was a good sign. </p>

<p>I looked at last year’s decision thread someone there had posted about getting the same financial aid email. Another posted suggested that since admissions and financial aid were separate, that it probably didn’t mean a thing in regards to acceptance. No one else in the thread addressed the question.</p>

<p>Don’t worry. I went through this process with Middlebury two years ago with my daughter. It seems that everyone (accepted or not) got the ominous letter. Middlebury is a wonderful school, but there are a lot of wonderful schools, and you only need one. Good luck to all of you.</p>

<p>Son was accepted regular decision last year and we got the same letter explaining the process that you refer to. I honestly think it’s merely intended to calm EVERYONE down a little and explain that you really shouldn’t take it personally if not accepted (even if you do) and how they really try to make thoughtful decisions if you are accepted. I think it’s a valuable letter but has to walk a cautious line. It can’t say we only pick the best and they can’t say it’s a crap shoot. So, even though it would be great if everyone got in, obviously that’s not going to happen BUT at the same time there are a lot of great schools out there, which is absolutely true. Again, once son got all his acceptances (and there were plenty to choose from), you really see that all you really need to make a good decision for you and your family is choice. And too… in a couple of weeks, the decision making will be in the students’ hands and the roles reverse… </p>

<p>Last year around this time, son hadn’t had one acceptance. He had applied elsewhere ED and had applied no where rolling and early action. I don’t recommend it. So hang on tight it’s a long long month. But when it comes to this letter I honestly think it is a general explanatory mailing that you need not read anything into it. AND I remember all too well that others had gotten this letter up to a week before it arrived in our mailbox… so don’t worry if you don’t get it right away either.</p>

<p>Oldbatesie - glad to hear it worked out for your S and that the news report was wrong. It just underscores, for me, that D is exactly where she is supposed to be. </p>

<p>D absolutely loved Midd and the WL was a real disappointment. We were in the same situation as Modadunn - no rolling admissions, one EA decision was a deferral, and most of D’s friends already knew where they were going by late January. That all contributed to a very long, cold winter around here. D had unusual results and when you’re invested in one place or a type of place you might think it would take some time to embrace the choices one is given. I can report, though, that it took about 30 seconds. So to everyone out there chewing on their arm, this too shall pass - April 1st you’ll start planning a couple of revisits and May 1st will come too soon. I hope that every student has a choice. That makes all the difference in the world.</p>

<p>My S was the infamous 5 waiting lists boy of CC fame: Midd, Amherst, Harvard(why he didn’t go ED), Dartmouth, and Tufts(of all places);rejected by Princeton and Williams, no EA or rolling admissions schools, safety was HWS.He wouldn’t apply anywhere else.He wouldn’t visit overnight or send supplements or use any kind of family connections, legacy or influence. We had a dreadful April and May, full of tears and migraine HAs and angst over the entire mess.
In the end it all worked out and is past but not forgotten. And he did learn (and his siblings) a valuable lesson. I have shared this other times-my adherents know ad nauseum-but it is to help other parents(and genius white boys from the NE who don’t play a sport ) learn from his mistakes, and above all LISTEN TO YOUR MOTHER-she might know what she is talking about…</p>

<p>^^ Reading your post makes me SOOO glad that my son already has a solid EA acceptance (Colorado College).</p>

<p>I got both the financial aid email and the email from the Dean of Admissions.
It’s pretty weird though… The FA email said that my noncustodial parent would have a request sent directly to him, but he didn’t get anything that day so I called the woman who emailed me and she said it was going in the mail today and I was like, “Uh, why not email it? Since it’ll take 7456789 years to get to Bosnia.” And she was like, “But there’s no email address…”
“Yes, there is…”
“No, there isn’t…”
“Item A8?”
“Oh…”
“So you’ll email it?”
“Yeah, and I’ll send you a copy too.” (My father doesn’t speak English.)
“Okay great. Thank you so much.”
And that was like last Wednesday I think, and I still haven’t gotten anything.</p>

<p>sumachine…good for your son that he got into CC EA…three years ago, I got into both Midd and CC…chose CC becasue of the block plan among other things. At the end of the process, I just felt that there was nothing about CC that invoked an attitude and I have never looked back. seriously consider CC with him…it is the type of place that for me, left me with a viscereal emotional reaction that I didn’t get anywhere else…Good luck!</p>

<p>Haha, I think everyone freaked out. I freaked out just seeing an email from Midd in my inbox.</p>

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<p>I may be confusing you with someone else, but didn’t you get waitlisted at Midd? Perhaps you got accepted off the waitlist in the summer? Or maybe I’m just thinking of another poster…</p>

<p>Question: What is this Financial Aid email that people are talking about here??</p>