<p>L O C A T I O N
Being in the Northeast or California generally equates to more applications and lower acceptance rates, even where the entering student scores are similar. This is slowly starting to change, particularly at the top-ranked southern and midwestern schools. Until about 10-15 years ago, places like Carleton, WashU and Vandy had MUCH higher acceptance rates. Can you believe that applicants had better than a 50-50 chance of getting into WashU and Vandy during that time? It’s true, though it seems like ancient history now.</p>