<p>To those of you who live in around Princeton or know about inside secrets of how the decisions are made. mind sharing?</p>
<p>i know they use the 1 - 5 scale like most ivies (tho 1 - 9 is more often), do you know who they actually do the selecting process? are ppl from the same school compared againest each other? From the ppl who got in in my community, it seems so random.....</p>
<p>I know I read somewhere that, this year, the freshman class is slightly more than 50% "academic 1s".</p>
<p>As for comparing applicants from within each school, it definitely seems like something schools like Princeton might do. I was anxious about this myself during last year's admission process, but two different Princeton admissions officers assured me that they do not do this. I'm still not totally convinced, but they seemed pretty adamant...</p>
<p>And yes, the selection process strikes me as random, insofar as it is almost impossible to accurately predict if a given applicant will get in.</p>
<p>"the selection process strikes me as random, insofar as it is almost impossible to accurately predict if a given applicant will get in."</p>
<p>Too true...I've heard of so many people with 4.0's, 1560+ SAT's, 790+ SATII's and good EC's who haven't made the cut. This one guy I know did a rocket science project in HS that was considered the best ever in his very competitive magnet school...he wasn't accepted. But he went to Rice and he's working with NASA now, so it may not have mattered in the end (just to give a bit of perspective). It does seem as if a good deal of it is luck.</p>
<p>If that's the case, then good luck to us here at CC.</p>
<p>Admissions at most Ivy League schools can seem so random, but only if you consider it from a strictly academic point of view. Looking at an application holistically, will give a better indication of "chances".</p>
<p>About the 1-5 Ranking - that was the admissions process for Princeton when Fred Haragon was still the Admissions Dean. Things may have changed since then. From what I've heard about that system, 1 is the highest rank an applicant can be awarded. For academics, a 1 is about 4/5 SAT scores above 700, more than 20 solid courses, good grades (generally straight A's). For the extracurricular ranking, a 1 is for outstanding achievements: winning an Olympics medal, writing a book, patenting a product, breaking a Guiness World Record, etc. </p>
<p>I'm not sure if students from the same school are compared, though I assume the Admissions Board would check this towards the end of the reading process - just to make sure there aren't any huge discrepancies between admitted students from the same school. </p>
<p>What I'd like to know is: who reads the applications first? Is it the least experienced admissions officers, or the regional officers - because it can be either depending on the Ivy League school.</p>
<p>no regional officer read first.</p>
<p>So what do you need to get an academic 1??? So far I have a 4.0, 1/112, 1470SAT, and should be in the 700's at least on the SATIIs.... what would that put me at?</p>
<p>1 or 2. depends on a lot of other factors. not just numbers.</p>
<p>Yup. Princetonwannabe - I don't understand your post about regional officers: "no regional officer read first". Do they read first at Princeton or not?</p>
<p>i meant no, regional officers read first. as in, not least exp, not this not that, BUT regional officers read first. almost all schools are like that.</p>