Hello everyone, I am very interested in any advice you would be willing to share. My rising senior son has narrowed his choices to Notre Dame, Vanderbilt, UVA, and Wake Forest. He is debating whether to apply EA to Notre Dame. Would you recommend he do this to improve his chances, and do you feel he would have a realistic chance of getting accepted to Notre Dame as well as these other schools? His stats are below. We are interested in hearing any feedback and feel free to be blunt!
Unweighted GPA: 3.9
Weighted GPA: 4.25
ACT: 33
AP: US History (5), Human Geography(4), European History(4), Am Lit (4)
EC’s:
4 year varsity football on one of the top programs in the country. He does not want to play in college. Time investment is intense, spending 10-15 hrs per week with football. Captain 2 years.
Spanish Club, Key Club, Interact Club
200 hours of community service. Has been an active participant in leadership roles in 3 mission trips to the Dominican Republic
Very active in church youth group, Weekly bible study, FCA
Work experience includes operating a lawn service and church camp counselor
I will try to help as the parent of a kiddo who will be attending this year as a freshman. Please note that I don’t have any particular knowledge other than that. So here are my thoughts:
He is aiming high. Does he have safety schools, i.e., schools where he is assured admission and that you can afford? (For purposes of the rest of this post, I will assume the answer is yes.)
I think EA can be a boost at ND, but not a huge boost. There are restrictions on it, so make sure your son abides by them. (For example, I believe applying EA precludes an ED app elsewhere)
I think your son is a very viable candidate. I believe ND pays a lot of attention to test scores, and then recommendations and essays. Again, I have no good inside information but I think these matter.
Hi! I haven’t posted in a while, but had a daughter graduate from ND in '11 and a son there now (class of "17) Both were accepted EA, one in pre-med and one now a chemical engineer. I would be happy to help! That said, I think you have an excellent chance at EA acceptance! I think you may be a little light on the AP’s though. I would say, that if your application is ready, go ahead and apply EA. If they think you are light, they will defer you to the regular pool. I don’t think it would hurt to try for EA! Best of luck!
I have two daughters, one a junior and the other (going to be) a freshman at ND. Your son’s profile is very similar to both my daughters, although I think their EC’s were broader and somewhat deeper. I understand that the time commitment for football might preclude extensive involvement elsewhere for your son, but to give you an idea, they were both multi-sport varsity athletes, held school wide leadership positions, service work, etc. Both applied EA, were deferred then accepted RD. Two pieces of advice I can give you specific to ND are 1) get to know your regional rep, and 2) use the ND supplements to show Admissions why you would be a good fit. ND is somewhat unique in that they really look for students who understand and will contribute to furthering the mission of the University. The supplemental essays are the best way to showcase this aspect of your application.
Thanks for the great feedback. A question I have is whether there are any “cons” to my son focusing on his mission work in the Dominican Republic in his essays. This experience really has had an impact on him, but I have seen on some threads that admissions counselors are inundated with essays on mission trip experiences. Appreciate anyone’s advice.
I think if the essay is well written he will be fine, however I do caution using the topic for the CA personal statement as I have heard the same thing from multiple admissions people that the topic is over done and rarely done well. Perhaps he can talk about it in his supplements. The CA also asks that you list your activities in order of their importance to you and gives space for a short statement detailing any additional info you want to provide. (At least last year’s did.) My daughter had taken a mission trip the summer before her senior year that was as much a religious pilgrimage as it was a service trip. She listed it first in order of her activities and used the additional space to elaborate on why.
I would caution against using Wake Forest as a safety. They are quirky. Make sure he sets up an interview with them sooner rather than later. I think he needs a “for sure” safety and WF is not one.
Thanks, he interviewed at Wake two weeks ago and thought it went very well. My fear is that he applies to ND or Vandy EA/ED and gets waitlisted or deferred. Then applies RD to Wake and gets deferred - - while he may have had a better chance at acceptance EA with Wake. The worst case would be if he does not get in to any of these 4 schools.
Agreed. I would call Wake a solid match for your son but know that Wake waitlisted or even outright rejected students with similar stats last year. They are all about fit and demonstrated interest. They do take Pro Humanitate very seriously so the service aspect of your son’s resume will be of interest to them. Schedule an interview ASAP. If at all possible, do it in person.
Agree with the others; you have no safeties on your list unless you live in Virginia. Also, noted another thread in athletic recruits where your son is stated to be in 2nd AI band with 3.45 and 29. Also, FWIW, we were told by ad com that EA confers no substantive benefit at ND.
Your son seems to be a viable candidate for ND based on gpa/act. ND puts a lot of weight on leadership and service and he also appears viable there if he can do a good job of explaining what sports and his mission trips meant to him and how that can in some way add to the ND community. ND attracts a pool with strong academics, but candidates have to have something more too, and in some cases that “something more” can vault a kid with leadership or service over someone with better scores. ND Admissions provides this guidance on what they seek: http://admissions.nd.edu/apply/evaluation-criteria/
The new (last year) restrictive early action means he could apply both EA to UVa and REA to ND but that he could not apply ED to WF nor ED to Vanderbilt if he chooses REA at ND.
From what I understand, the regional ND admissions contacts are very willing to talk to and advise students on whether they are a viable fit to apply REA to ND. I would reach out to them for input and as a way to get additional information and establish a relationship.
Your son may be interested to know that ND is one of just a few schools that has intramural tackle football and that it is very competitive and fun (in case he wants to keep playing for fun). Intramurals are huge there since about 70% of students were varsity athletes in high school and intramurals are an outlet for good-natured competition and spirit between all the dorms.
All four of your schools are good and pretty tough to get in. I can’t say anything bad about the others but I will say that ND has been an off the charts experience for our child. The university is an amazing and growing force for good in the world and an exciting place to be a part of. You will be challenged academically, socially and spiritually and have opportunities around the world. The networking opportunities my child has had after one year are astounding. The culture around service and sports is second to none. ND likes to say you are making a 40 year decision if you come. For the right student there is not a better university from which to stretch their wings and fly.
Good luck to your son! Reach out to that regional admissions rep and get their input about REA.