Following Stanford denial, this student is seeking other potential fits. Find out what The Dean has to say: https://www.collegeconfidential.com/articles/other-good-fit-options-for-disappointed-stanford-applicant/
That denied student comes across as entitled and a whiner. No wonder Stanford denied him.
Life lesson: It’s not always about stats. Sometimes it helps to be gracious and humble, as well as confident.
I hope he figures this out before submitting his next app.
@TomSrOfBoston
Agreed. The Dean was very gracious and kind in her response. I think both of us may not have been so kind.
I think that anyone who expects to get into Stanford, regardless of their stats, doesn’t realize the reality of the fact that there are FAR too many fully qualified students applying to far too few slots. That said, I’ve personally witnessed lesser students who were legacies get slots over vastly more qualified students. It’s certainly Stanford’s prerogative, but it comes across as being unfair. That’s a good life lesson, but a hard one to swallow.
I looked at the REA link to see those accepted, deferred and rejected, and for most applicants, I honestly didn’t see any significant differences in GPAs or test scores or even ECs. But did notice Stanford seems to give a nod to first generation or low income applicants. So must have come down to LoRs and essays.
Never ceases to amaze me that with so much info having been disseminated for years regarding the holistic admission practices at highly selective schools like Stanford and its peers that there are still so many applicants expecting and making assumptions about their chances at such schools based primarily on their stats and ECs.
I wonder what the student meant by he’s a “good fit” at Stanford and whether the student has conflated “fit” with Stanford’s “prestige,” “great weather,” and such. If the student applies RD to other highly selective schools with that same mindset, the student will be in for another round of surprises. As a former Harvard interviewer, I’ve never met a single student who was able to answer to my question, “Why Harvard,” with any satisfactory level of intellectual decency, only the blank stare or some mumbling that basically didn’t amount to anything but “well, because it’s… well… Harvard.” Stanford AdComs, I’m sure, are keenly aware of the prestige-above-everything-else type of applicants that each year pile up tall on their desks. The applicants need to be aware that what they think of “fit” from their perspectives could be totally misaligned with the “fit” from the institutional perspectives.
I’m not surprised that someone who is 16 or 17 years old, has only been around their school peers, and has always been at the top of their academic pack maybe doesn’t have the best grasp of how big and competitive the stage is that they’re competing on. It doesn’t help when they’ve been assured by their friend group since middle school that they will get in to whatever college they want. All the dry statistics in the world can’t balance against strong emotions and limited experience.
Parents should be the front line of tempering expectations (and entitlement) but we’re often just part of the problem.
The beauty of all of this is the LIFE LESSONS these students will learn. I remind my D21 all the time that life isn’t fair even in the work place. It’s not always the more qualified applicant the gets the job I see it all the time in my 30+ years working in corporate America. Better to learn sooner than later. I seen a lot of people that come across my desk that look great on paper just to get them in and they are not a good Team Players, poor communication skills, etc.
For the top colleges grades, test scores and the like are just gates to pass. So the accepted and rejected students will all have similar stats. What they are typically looking for is students that push themselves inside and outside the classroom. They are also risk takers. Personality also makes a difference. Demonstrated leadership skills are very important.
How do you match up in these areas?
Its time to eat humble pie. But really i don’t see anything much special about Stanford, there are thousands of schools with harder academics and comparable programs. The only unique thing I can think of about Stanford, it is very strong job connection location in Silicon Valley. I do not understand the fuss about Stanford, and why students believe its better than so many other schools. Is it the palm trees? I just do not understand the allure, but I think 80% of Colorado students apply to Stanford. And 99.99999% get rejected. The only way into Stanford is being a recruited athlete or a top legacy candidate, where grandma has a building named after her. I even know such a legacy family and only two of the four children got into grandma’s school ! Stanford is a very very poor bet. Why are students so stupid to bet poorly?
They need a probability and statistics class, I guess.
We said no to Stanford, and never took a look, with our sons. Just say NO to Stanford, is our motto, its a very poor bet and its not really that fun there, according to the Colorado runners and volleyball players we know there. In fact, female athletes in engineering are told clearly --YOU do not really belong in Stanford Engineers. Its a very sexist school and always has been. I would NEVER sent a daughter to Stanford. MIT is much better if you really need to kill yourself for four years.
@Coloradomama It’s funny you mentioned this. Last year while in line at an IKEA in Palo Alto, I happened to run into a lawyer who lives in Denver who was a Stanford grad and one who interviews local Colorado candidates. At the time, my kid was applying to Stanford and we got around to talking about odds of getting in.
In his 10+ years of interviewing Colorado candidates, not one single person that he has interviewed has gotten in, even though he could have bet the ranch on a few of them that they would have gotten in. It’s getting to the point where he’s seriously considering not doing the interviews anymore, he personally feels depressed that it’s so impossible to get in.
“there are thousands of schools with harder academics and comparable programs.”
THOUSANDS???
uh, no. :)) 8-|
The school is a research powerhouse. The Silicon Valley job connections are largely there because Stanford was there first. On a graduate level, it is nearly impossible to top. Literally impossible to top for several disciplines.
I was in my third year interviewing for MIT before one of my interviewees got in. And then he turned MIT down and I found out he went to Stanford.
It is somewhat discouraging to keep interviewing when the admit rates for the top schools are so very low. But, I do feel that I get to meet some very smart and accomplished people. I’m sure that they will do well wherever they go.
Honestly… follow your heart and choose universities… I have come to a point where everything and nothing about portfolios matter! (HAHAHAHA)
@Coloradomama According to Naviance, Stanford took 3 students from our school every year for the past 3 years. Not sure who they are, some might be athletes. I know one student got in early this year - a double legacy and Hispanic.
If there is nothing special about Stanford, there is nothing special about any college. I think having that kind of attitude is fine. But from my son’s experience there, it’s pretty decent school: I mean, where do you get to hear billionaire entrepreneurs speak in your classes on regular basis? I mean, Stanford does have some strong points.
I believe there are billionaire speakers at UPenn, Columbia, and other schools near big cities.
There are a lot of kids from my high school, in Colorado, who get into Stanford every year. Most are athletes but not all, and it isn’t as if the athletes didn’t figure that into their choice Keep playing golf and you might get into Stanford. Swim swim swim your way to Palo Alto. The high school has so many student athletes that it has GCs who know the NCAA rules better than the coaches.
Stanford, ND, Duke are elite schools that offer D1 athletics at a high level. They attract top athletes.
I think it’s rather sad that many parents have voiced their displeasure at this applicant’s sadness. I don’t see anything in that student’s question that indicated that they “expected” to get in, and I certainly don’t see any evidence of entitlement. All I see is that the student idolized Stanford, and felt that their positive qualities meshed well with the intellectual and social mission of the school. They didn’t get in, and considering how strongly they seem to have identified with the school, it was a major disappointment for them, especially considering that the student may not be wrong in that less accomplished students were accepted. Not only that, but by asking this question, they’re clearly attempting to move on with their lives. The child might be naïve, but they’re not being arrogant. This just teaches him that life isn’t fair.
Yes, it’s hard to get into Stanford. We understand numbers and percentages as well. The kid wants help, and frankly, to comment so snidely on this student’s sadness reflects more on your own sense of misplaced superiority than on the student’s arrogance.