My first son will begin his junior year at Stanford this fall. My other son begins his senior year of high school and would love to follow his brother to Stanford. However while my first son had good stats(34ACT top 2% of his class, sports, improve), I don’t feel like my younger son would get in (1320 SAT top 10% of class, a good runner but little EC’s). I know that Stanford likes to admit siblings as my son has met several but I don’t want him to get his hopes up. They are very different kids and I fear that the competitive nature may be challenging for him but I don’t want to discourage him from applying. He would also be happy at any UC(which will be difficult as well). Arizona and USC and Cal Poly( SLB) and Pepperdine round out his choices. Any thoughts on which school he could get accepted to? His brother keeps hyping it up and telling him that he will get in but I don’t want him to be too discouraged if it doesn’t happen. Any thoughts?
Coming from another Senior who has a sister that graduated from Yale, I can definitely tell you there is a competitive aspect driving your other son. While I’m no admissions expert, your son is definitely on the low end for Stanford. That doesn’t mean he can’t get in, but it is pretty unlikely. Coming from someone in a similar situation, I’d say to let him apply and support him in his endeavor. Don’t hype him up, but be supportive in him because support from a parent is definitely beneficial. No matter where he goes to college, just let him know that you’re proud of him.
I think it’s time for big brother to back off. It’s great he’s happy at Stanford, but little brother deserves a chance to find a school that he’ll be happy at, as well.
If he is religious enough to want to attend Pepperdine, would he want to add other compatible religious schools to his list, rather than mostly big public and secular private schools?
You did not mentioned (unweighted and UC-weighted-capped) HS GPA, so it would be hard to give any idea of how realistic each of the named colleges is for admission.
Arizona and Cal Poly should be possible.
Stanford IS a high reach and being a sibling is not a tip nor a boost let alone a hook.
Big brother should back off or empower little brother with other choices than his own.
Find exciting options - perhaps out of state so that it doesn’t feel like "not-Stanford.
Look for fit - is he excited about basketball? Then hype Gonzaga. Surfing or marine science? Lots of colleges near beaches, from SDSU to UCSB to UNC Wilmington on the Eastern seaboard. Etc.
Go on trips that include college visits and add a cool factor (game, water park, museum…)
Be clear about your budget, btw. Run the NPC. Don’t suggest a college before you’re sure it’s affordable.
Don’t compare colleges to Stanford - findways to make them standouts on their own.
I agree. I would:
- ask the older brother to stop touting Stanford as the be all and end all. It is great he is so happy but he needs to remember that there are tons of amazing colleges and universities out there;
- have everyone recognize that Stanford is a huge reach;
- and to support and get excited about whatever college your younger son ends up at.