So in total I applied to 26 schools and so far I have only been accepted to two and are waiting back from 4 more colleges. This is making me really depressed because some of the schools I got rejected from, accepted some students who have a lower GPA than I do and less extracurricular activities. The two schools I got accepted into were my safety’s and I got rejected from a bunch of my target schools. I don’t know what to do.
I also got wait listed from two of my target schools.
I’m in the same position. Which colleges did you get rejected and waitlisted?
You like your safeties and they are affordable?
If so, there is no problem. If not, they were not really safeties.
I got waitlisted from U of Miami and Lehigh. The colleges I got rejected from would be a very long list but they are at least in the top 40 of the nations best schools…
I guess I like my safeties but just thinking about how I am going to go a college with people who did not try as hard as I did in high school makes me really depressed.
@aboa123, hopefully, you tried hard in HS because you were interested in learning and improving yourself, not just to get in to certain colleges.
I tried hard in HS pretty much for both reasons.
Well, what did you expect when those schools were lottery ticket chances? If you got into one, it would be like winning a lottery. The problem is that this is not a pure statistical model and if you were not a someone likely to get into some of such schools by not meeting certain test scores/grades, you aren’t getting into any of them. You could have applied to a thousand. Zero chance or a small fraction times any number comes to a zero or possilbly less than one, depending on the size of that fraction. Had you focused your list more on your matches, you might have come up with some more accepts. I’m glad that you added safeties to your list. Those are always the most important schools to pick. You really are in the same situation as many other kids–you just threw in a bunch of 'let’s give it a chance" schools that were really low to no probabilityin getting accepted.
But even so I still should have gotten into my target schools and I applied to at least 5…
Are you an international with outstanding financial need? They seem to have the worst luck in the college process. It may honestly just be because you have outstanding financial need whether you’re international or not. There is definitely some disconnect somewhere, though. Clearly your match schools were not true matches.
“just thinking about how I am going to go a college with people who did not try as hard as I did in high school makes me really depressed”
You know, there will definitely be people at these schools who ‘tried harder’ (what does that even mean?) in high school than you did. And yes, some who did not try as hard. The same could most likely be said of every school that w/l or rejected you.
Any school with less than 30%acceptance rate is too selective to be considered a match by anyone regardless of stats. That would include Kenyon or Lehigh. Have all your answers been sent?
Financial aid could be a reason because I have no money to pay for college whatsoever and it clearly states that on my FASFA.
@SevenDad, yes that is true but since it is my safety it is obviously a school filled mostly with people who did not try as hard as I did in high school.
It isn’t that big of a deal. I don’t know which schools you got accepted to, but chances are they are going to provide you with great opportunities. If you really are a talented, hard-working kid, you will find ways to shine regardless of where you go.
Getting rejected by these schools does not deny your potential and/or talents. If anything, it says you did not work as hard, in high school, as they expect from their future students.
Keep your head up, look at the stars, and try to reach them. Once you get there, you will find that the journey was far brighter than the stars. (I know right, I’m so weird)
Thank you for that inspirational encouragement and the schools I got accepted into are Temple and Spelman but that is literally what everybody says about college rejections.
Yes indeed, that could be a major factor. Some colleges are “need blind” but many are not. Or maybe the whole “need blind” concept is false. See the following article about it:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bev-taylor/need-blind-admissions-is-_b_5615698.html?
Will Temple or Spelman cover your financial need? If not, you might consider a “gap year.” I am not normally a fan of taking a year off, but financial shortfall is a good reason to wait. If you thought you were worthy of top 40 schools then you should be able to get full tuition at schools with excellent merit scholarships. The University of Alabama is one such school, where having an ACT of 32 or higher gets you a full tuition scholarship. I know it isn’t Harvard, but it is solid and might be affordable. The Huntsville branch of U.Alabama might give you a free dorm room, if you have an ACT of 34.
http://www.uah.edu/admissions/undergraduate/financial-aid/scholarships
Anyhow, taking a gap year could allow you to target schools that guarantee merit aid. Of course you could still apply to some of the schools that rejected you. Persistence often pays off. It also often gets the attention of admissions departments.
Both Temple and Spelman are great schools. Spelman in particular has an amazing, powerful alumna network. However it doesn’t meet need - and they’re been wonky about their FA awards, you need to call and email and make sure they’re on track with that info.
If you have high need and you applied to need-aware colleges, it may have played a role. Or did you mostly apply to 100% need colleges like Bryn Mawr, Kenyon, WashU, or Yale?
Can we know where you applied, your ACT/SAT score, and GPA? Did you apply through Questbridge?
I agree with NROTCgrad, if neither school meets your financial need, it might be worth it for you to take a gap year. It is JUST postponing college, but it can be hard to explain to your family and friends; but the CC community would help you in identifying colleges that would meet your financial need while offering academic challenges.
Just do really well at your safeties… then you will shine there and have a better prospect for grad school or jobs. College admission is really unpredictable now… so, don’t take the rejections personally.