<p>Upon returning home from spring break (PANAMAAAAA!!!!) I was greeted by two admissions decisions, as many of us were. Unfortunately, I was wait-listed by UChicago, and outright rejected by Vanderbilt. </p>
<p>I considered these two schools my "best chances" - as odd as it seems - simply based on their relatively higher acceptance rates. But, as I was rejected by both, would you assume that I will be similarly stricken down by schools such as Yale, Harvard, Columbia... or even JHU, Duke, Cornell? </p>
<p>I'm not going to act like I'm the most qualified applicant in the world. I have pretty good numbers; I fall above the median in many cases as far as SAT/ACT goes. </p>
<p>But, leaving the numbers out of it, would you say that rejection from "lower tier" schools is a strong indicator of what is to come of later admissions decisions from Ivies? Is all hope lost? haha not to sound overly defeated.. it's just kinda disheartening. </p>
<p>Well, let me know what you think. Thank you very much.</p>
<p>It’s certainly possible to see rejections from less selective schools and then acceptances from more selective ones, especially since Vandy and UChic have such distinct personalities. But their selectivity is right around that of JHU and Duke and a little higher than that of Cornell–I certainly wouldn’t get cocky or overly confident of my chances for those schools or HY/Columbia. I assume you have safeties?</p>
<p>Go back to your list of colleges and universities and take a long, hard look at the institutions that you considered to be safeties. If none of them absolutely would guarantee you admission based on your stats, then you don’t have a real safety on that list, just a bunch of (at best) low matches. If you do have a real academic safety, is it also a real financial safety that you can pay for with nothing more than federally determined (FAFSA) aid? If it is more expensive than that, you need to identify an academic safety that is also a financial safety. Chances are that if your stats are in the range where U of C is a reasonable place to apply, you can find somewhere else that will admit you and give you the financial aid that you might need. Pop by your guidance counselor’s office on Monday, and have a chat about your options.</p>
<p>I got your same exact decisions for Vandy and UChicago but thats because I’m an international student, is that true for you? Because if it is then don’t even worry about that since those schools are need aware for internationals instead of need blind. I was accepted to NYU and BU because they don’t promise to meet 100 percent of financial need, so they don’t care if I’m international. As for top schools, harvard dartmouth princeton and Yale don’t care if you’re an international (need blind) and will meet one hundred percent of demonstrated financial need. Best of luck! :)</p>
<p>but no, don’t take them as indicators. they may discourage you, nothing can stop that, but still, admissions are weird. take heart and believe that wherever you’re meant to be, you’ll end up being there.</p>
<p>They’re not necessarily indicators that you’ll be rejected.</p>
<p>Yes, the probability of rejection from your remaining schools given that you’ve been rejected from these schools is greater than it would be given that you were accepted at these schools, but that doesn’t mean that you’re going to be rejected for sure.</p>
<p>More selective schools accept candidates rejected by less selective schools on a regular basis. Especially when it comes down to ECs, essays, and recommendations, it really all depends on what the school was looking for and who else applied, which is different at each institution.</p>
<p>I am not an international applicant, but I DID apply for financial aid. Would that have been a factor at Chicago and Vandy? </p>
<p>And I have safeties. I’ve heard too many horror stories about not getting into college at all, so I’ve been pretty diligent about paving an alternate path. I have amassed scholarships at Indiana University that will be roughly equivalent to a full ride with a small stipend (which I’m pretty pumped about!), and I am safely in at Purdue and Rose-Hulman. So you don’t have to worry about my poor little soul not getting into college this year. haha thanks for the concern though :)</p>
<p>They have plenty of money, so financial aid shouldn’t have kept you from getting in. I don’t know about Vanderbilt, but if your essays weren’t good enough, UChicago has plenty of people with better stats than yours to fill up the class. I also wouldn’t assume that those two are necessarily “lower tier.”</p>
<p>I’ve heard that those schools don’t give as much money though. And I used the term “lower tier” hesitantly. I didn’t mean lesser, I just meant less competitive. That’s pretty agreeable.</p>
<p>merit is one thing, but need is a different story isn’t it? idk, i’ve just read somewhere (or at least i think i have) that applying for aid at certain places can be a bad idea</p>
<p>It probably doesn’t affect you in top tier schools unless you are international. The rest of your schools are lottery, so just keep your fingers crossed. Actually, Vanderbilt and Chicago are kind of lottery too. (I was waitlisted at Chicago too, I feel ya!) There really isn’t anything you can do now, so relax and forget about decisions until Wednesday.</p>
<p>Because your stats are within range, or above, those two schools as you have indicated. I’m guessing that they’re looking for a particular type of student, as glassesarechic pointed out.</p>
<p>So be aware, but I wouldn’t freak out just yet. </p>
<p>As for me, I’ve been waitlisted at Scripps and Hamitlon and accepted at Mt. Holyoke and Smith via SAT optional. I’m guessing that my two waitlists are due to my SAT math score (which is pretty dreadful.) Would any of you take this, because it is the SAT in my case, of a pretty good indicator of a rejection from my top choice Barnard?</p>
<p>if you’re not an international and you apply for financial aid they are still need blind, so i don’t know what to tell you except not to be discouraged!</p>
<p>Do not take it to heart. I’ve seen way too many stories about people getting waitlisted/rejected and lesser school A and being accepted to greater school B. Every adcom board is just so different, and the tiniest detail in your application may make you jump out at one particular adcom. It’s all a very strange process. </p>
<p>Good luck with your upcoming decisions- I think you have a better chance at Duke/JHU/Cornell than you did at UChicago and Vandy anyway.</p>
<p>I know personal anecdotes are only helpful to a rather small degree, but I would like to let you know that I have a friend who had the misfortune of facing rejection from UCLA, Berkeley, and Georgetown. On April 31st, this individual wrote in his facebook status that he expected the next day to be among the worst in his life. This student went on to receive a fat envelope from a certain ivy league school where he currently attends.</p>