Usually colleges defer because they want to see how the entire applicant pool looks, so they won’t release deferred decisions earlier - the deferred applicants will be considered along with everyone else
1 Like
But didn’t the Ivies and Stanford push back their SIR dates?
We’re on pins and needles waiting for VA Tech results. I haven’t heard their application numbers yet but it was bound to go up anyway because it’s their first year on the Common App. Add in the test optional and who knows how to predict it. They’ve also struggled to predict yield accurately.
3 Likes
Good luck to your kiddo. We’re in northern VA and my son has LOTS of friends in the same boat. I am very curious to see the numbers for VA schools when everything shakes out.
1 Like
just by three days.
1 Like
Riverside does have a ”new” medical school and does have some sort of UG-to-med school guarantee. And Riverside has rapidly moved up in the USNWR rankings.
Watch out, hyperbole ahead: Riverside is like Paris or Vienna compared to Merced. 
You know, I poked and prodded D to apply to OOS schools, just in case, but noooooooo!
1 Like
LOL. And I guess the upside to UC Riverside (my niece went there) is it’s a 20 min in/out of the Ontario airport. LOL. We live in Sacramento. A downgrade from Sacramento/Elk Grove is tragic!! 
3 Likes
I’d be tempted to defer the ones that might be shotgunning solid safeties in order to find out if they are serious.
Same with us for Duke. We’re nearby so a feeder school – every year 6 to 8 kids. A good number accepted have parents who work there which is a boost. Can’t tell me there’s not a quota!
We flew out of Ontario when we visited the 5Cs – it’s like going back in time 30 years, lol! Pretty, um, let’s call it ‘lackluster’ airport, but it sure was easy peasy!
1 Like
Did you know that Merced’s building its hospital? I think I read somewhere that it’s either a joint venture with the local hospital there or a stand-alone. But yeah, still nothing compared to the Paris of Riverside
1 Like
@amsunshine UCs are definitely not for every student. But compared to many other in-state universities in other states, many of the UC’s are top 20/30, major recruiting hubs for Fortune 500 recruiters, research opportunities with public funding, renowned professors, and with a fully-loaded $35k/yr in-state tuition, it’s a bargain. The large classes sizes aren’t for everyone. I went to the University of Washington and similarly the first 5 quarters had classes with size ranging from 350-800 people in a lecture hall. But it’s what you make of it. Large sizes meant it was super easy for me to beat the curve by a couple standard of deviation. No one will say it out loud but if you’re pre-med or engr, the intro classes are all about weeding kids out and if you work hard and study hard, the large class sizes benefit you grade-wise. Kids definitely have to be independent, though. There’s no coddling til you get into your department at the earliest. But if they make the most of it and go to office hours, getting time with the profs isn’t an issue. We have friends with kids who are premed. All getting out in 4 years. There’s a template they recommend for each student based on degree they want and if they follow those, they should be fine.
6 Likes
I realize they are top ranked schools, but I’m not convinced those rankings are well deserved. Also, we are very cost sensitive, and personally just don’t think $35k is a bargain. Maybe in relative terms, but there is no way we’d pay that much money to send our kid to a UC (well, frankly, we can’t afford to as that is more than our EFC). I can see how that price tag would appeal to full pay families, however. Agreed - the UCs aren’t for every student. Nor is any school for that matter!
Oh my. I cannot unsee that.
4 Likes
My D considered UCs but decided to look instead to Canada. Her thinking was that if she was going to go to a huge university she might as well go north and save $. UBC, UofT and McGill are all great schools, although you really have to advocate for yourself. Not much in the way of support. Who knows where she’ll end up as she also applied to LACs in the states. Are any of your kids considering Canada?
3 Likes
I haven’t read everything but I keep seeing references to the UCs. I went to UCLA a million years (20). ago but I also live close by. Since you can’t really tour so much, if you have questions about the surrounding community maybe I could help. I am concerned about the area post-covid as homelessness has reached an apocalyptic and tragic level. I’m not sure once evictions resume how that will impact the community. This has been a dramatic change over the past few years. UCLA is amazing and going to school in an urban setting provides a rich experience. Exposure to real world is particularly wonderful for those interested in Public Health, Social Service, Public Policy, etc. Amazing programs are emerging to address the dire need in the community. But it would benefit parents to prepare kids for attending UCLA this fall, particularly if you have not left your community. It can be shocking to walk to the village coffee shop and be dodging a combination of film crews and the unpredictable population of chronically unhoused individuals that reside in and around Westwood. The campus itself is gorgeous and kept very safe. The students and faculty…amazing. The city is rich with culture and public transportation makes it easy to get just about anywhere…not to mention Uber and food delivery services for everything from McDonald’s to some exotic sushi spot in Hollywood. I just wanted to offer a real world perspective as a mom (whose child applied anywhere but California). I visit UCLA as a respite to the chaos of the city. And student housing largely keeps kids close to campus. But when you venture to City Target or the grocery store in the village, you can count on encountering some desperate folks. It could be as simple as having a conversation with your kid about what to do in certain situations. My kids, high school and middle school, roam around town in pairs or groups but not without incident and they are well versed. That said, I see that they received almost 140,000 applications.
8 Likes
@JESmom, Friend of mine has a son who is also on pins and needles waiting for VA Tech, and I happened to hunt down EA numbers for them this morning, so here you go:
EA apps up 35% (from 20,991 to 28,256).
I did not see numbers for RD.
3 Likes
I just wonder who they can get to go live and teach in Merced? I mean, you can’t commute from anywhere really. Maybe young teachers go to cut their teeth and get into the UC system?
We are in Canada, my daughter is American and although she did apply to some US schools, at this point we prefer that she stays in Canada. She was admitted to U of T- it’s a very good school, internationally ranked. Your dollar will go far in Canada too! McGill also out east and of course UBC. These are Canada’s top 3 universities.
4 Likes
I know a soph at Vandy who was rejected (OOS) from UNC.
1 Like