So, What Does One Say To This?

Parents Forum
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<p>I am perusing the boards looking for ways to keep myself busy so that I don't think about the latest local US Embassy warnings......and for potential DIL's (just kidding.....) and then at the board for one son's school I come across the thread below- which is appropriately also posted at boards of the other noted schools (add one more, now Stanford, too).</p>

<p>And I read the replies, some sincere and useful, some understandably sensitized, some amazed, some jealous....I realize I have no 'feelings' about this- I am not personally impacted on any level- I have no kid waiting on a wait list at one(or more) of these schools. </p>

<p>So, I start to write a reply of 'know yourself...figure out what you would regret...do the research you should have done....' And then, I re-read and am struck by the naivete of the OP and the posting? Disconnectedness? I start to feel...snippish...and so I stop. I write nothing. I have no reason to doubt the veracity of the post...I know nothing of the kid....cannot imagine the 'dilemma'..I keep saying to myself, what is the 'meta' of this message....</p>

<p>""""Picking The Right Ivy League School
Hello fellow CCers! </p>

<p>Please hear me out completely before making any comments. </p>

<p>Fortunately, the acceptance/rejection hype has (finally) settled. It has been a stressful four days for all of us, I'm sure.</p>

<p>However, for many people, the process is not over. I applied to many schools, and was very lucky/fortunate to have gotten into some great schools:</p>

<p>HARVARD (Single Choice Early Action)
PRINCETON
YALE
PENN
COLUMBIA
DARTMOUTH
CORNELL
BROWN
RICE (Interim Decision)</p>

<p>Currently, I am completely lost as to where I should begin to decide on a college... I hope I am not the only one in this predicament. I do not solely want to rely on USNews or Statistical Rankings to decide my undergraduate degree. I have not visited any of my schools, but am planning to visit four of them in the upcoming month of April. </p>

<p>Question: What else does one consider outside of financial aid and "campus likability"? What determines "fit"?</p>

<p>Is there an alumni who can provide some assistance in describing how his/her personal experience has been regarding the aforementioned undergrad program(s)?</p>

<p>Much thanks,
(A very confused and torn.) Tri"""""</p>

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<p>Do you have a link to the original post? Someone else did a post similar to this the other day, and it turned out to be a troll. They said they'd been accepted to all the ivies, provided a list of same, and then complained they hadn't been admitted to George Washington U, since it broke their perfect record!</p>

<p>That particular poster just had two posts to his/her credit, and the first one was also highly doubtful. If the one you quote is a troll post, it's an amazingly cruel thing to do when so many others are in mourning over multiple rejections and waitlists from such schools. If not a troll, it's hard to believe that such a person who seemingly doesn't have a clue would actually be admitted. My vote is on the troll.</p>

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<p>An addendum to my last post....</p>

<p>I checked on the threads and found the original post. You are right. This is a real person, not a troll. Like you, I have nothing positive to say. It does make one wonder not only about the poster, but the way the whole system works.</p>

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<p>Sounds like a foreigner.</p>

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<p>OP is Vietnamese living in Texas, now also accepted to Stanford. Many posters have been less than gracious in their responses to him.</p>

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<p>Buridan's ass - starves to death as it cannot decide between two equi-distant and equally desirable bales of hay.</p>

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<p>I read the same post and found I couldn't even formulate a <em>thought</em>, let alone a response. This year's crop of CC graduates seems to have done better than in the past several years - at any rate, I can think of several students who seem to have unanimous acceptances, and I'm thrilled for them. But for some reason, it hurt to read this post (and I don't have a graduating senior, and none of my children have applied, or will apply, to any of the schools on the list!). I can't tell if that's because I can't help thinking of the many wonderful kids who were disappointed this go-round, or because this upends what I thought I understood about ultra-elite admissions.</p>

<p>Then again, maybe this kid is the Next Big Thing? I guess what one says is, "Nice problem to have."</p>

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<p>I have no horse in the race this year, so no personal rancor. But I'm shaking my head over this one. It is unfathomable to me that a kid – any kid –could manage to accumulate acceptances from every single Ivy plus Stanford without appearing to have even a rudimentary notion of what any of these schools is about. What ever happened to the need to demonstrate fit in one's applications? Is the focus on fit only relevant for LACs and smaller, “niche” universities like U of Chicago? Not required for the Ivies? I really don’t believe that. How do you show 'em you have something they want if you don't know what they want -- or even what they offer? How do we account for this student’s result?</p>

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<p>I wondered if English was not the first language, as the comments seem stilted...I wondered if he was as shocked as anyone would be(!)....I just didn't know what to think..and I knew what not to say. I am not sure that the replies are a lack of graciousness on the part of some, I just think the post is easily not so much mis-read as mis-interpreted...Ultimately, I guess, I am with you on this one Frazzled1..The kid must be something else. I think he might be advised, however, to be a bit more sensitive to those in entirely different 'predicaments.'</p>

<p>WJB I wonder on that account as well....not a single visit, possibly little knowledge. They all must have been anticipating him- he must be one of the 'knowns'!!</p>

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<p>Interesting, Robyrm. I didn’t know that there were kids out there who were “known” to colleges in advance. We’ve all seen the tales of rejections this year (and every year) for Intel and Siemens finalists, nationally recognized musicians, brilliant mathematicians, etc. So what sorts of accomplishments land a student in the “known” category?</p>

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<p>Listen, we had a boy from India who got into all the ivys he applied to plus Stanford. He was the most amazing 16 year old! Down to earth and brilliant. His mom said he kept a messy room though. He struggled with where to go and finally ended up on the left coast with a little help and encouragement from his left coast librarian.</p>

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<p>I'm most shocked that this appears to be a REAL person. Odds of getting into all these schools is staggering. Got to give the kid credit, he certainly has whatever these schools are looking for. I like the topic for his first essay.</p>

<p>Applied to all 8 ivies and hasn't visited even ONE?? Penn and Columbia don't seem to have much in common with Dartmouth other than they're ivy--- obviously some major trophy hunting going on here so the initial WOW factor faded quickly for me.</p>

<p>How do you respond to his "dilemma"? Beats me...</p>

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<p>I find myself having mixed emotions, like you Robyrm. While I believe his questions are genuine, and he seems to be genuinely looking for information, the fact that he posted them on every college site he got into can certainly rub people the wrong way. If he'd gotten into only 1/2 the schools, we wouldn't be having this conversation. I can't totally blame him.. The system never ceases to amaze me...</p>

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<p>Is it possible that this kid applied to all the Ivies but simply did not expect to get in to more than one or two? I mean - obviously he is must have something going for him, but he may not have been quite aware of what a strong candidate he was. </p>

<p>In any case, there are people who attend colleges without having visited, and the internet provides a wealth of information. So assuming that finances are not an issue, I think the kids first step should be to go on line and view information about the academic offerings and policies of each college. There's a world of difference between Columbia and Brown.</p>

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<p>Here is his post with a list of credentials:</p>

<p><a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?p=2072383#post2072383%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?p=2072383#post2072383&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>He sounds quite impressive--first generation college, so probably his parents weren't able to help much with advice in the whole college search and application process.</p>

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<p>Interesting ... I had the same response but then decided I didn't want to get into another argument about whether someone is a troll or not. I haven't read further in the thread -- how do you all know this is for real? I once saw one person providing all sorts of details; people were suspicious but couldn't prove anything. Then I investigated and found that he couldn't have won a particular competition when he said he did because the application deadline hadn't even passed at that point. Then he stopped posting ...</p>

<p>Anyway, I didn't post because I thought that it could be genuine and I didn't want to be ungracious. My daughter happens to know one of these WOW (walks on water) candidates that got into everywhere, so I know they do exist. But then this girl also knew quite a bit about different schools, had preferences, and was able to make an informed decision. </p>

<p>Of course, what calmom has said could be true. The candidate didn't want to come up with preferences until he saw where he managed to get in. But then why just apply to those particular schools to begin with if he doesn't know what he wants? My daughter has another friend who just wanted an Ivy or name school (or her parents did, rather). So she applied everywhere.</p>

<p>Perhaps the poster has parents like this and that is what informed the application list? </p>

<p>You know, even if there is a large element of chance, given the large number of applications from those who have good enough qualifications for an Ivy, isn't it statistically probable that a few will get in everywhere and a few will get in nowhere? I would think it extremely unlikely for there to be NO completely successful candidates. Of course, there are always a few jaw-droppingly amazing candidates out there too.</p>

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<p>I responded to him, but after Roby's post, I went back and saw that he was admitted EA to Harvard. In other words he did not need to apply to all the other Ivies! If he wanted to keep his options open, he could have applied to one or two more, but not all of them.
He is impressive, but no more than the African-American kid, Candlize,from the same area who also got into Harvard.</p>

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<p>A wunderkind he may be, but I think that posting the same message on every forum shows, at the very least, a lack of tact and sensitivity-- even for a a 16-year-old. I also note that he lists his schools in order of their US News rankings.</p>

<p>Cross-posted with Marite. Yes, with an EA Harvard acceptance under his belt, why apply to every single Ivy, especially since no Ivy qualifies as a financial safety or big merit prospect? Sounds like trophy hunting.</p>

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<p>wjb , did you read The Gatekeepers? It's been a few years since I did, but I seem to remember certain accomplished students were "known" to admissions people in that book. Selective schools are always on the lookout, and some students are bound to be spotted ahead of time, whether through their GC's or other means.</p>

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<p>My guess is that if the Parade Magazine can find the top students, so can the Ivies...and they are looking out for them come application time...(I don't know this, but I am sure it happens...)...wouldn't it be sad to think that educational institutions only 'scouted' for sports??</p>

<p>This is one of the reason our school limits applications. The boy may not have had college advice from parents who are immigrants- granted. He was probably the superior student from his high school ever- granted...but....</p>

<p>After thinking about this, there is only one reason an otherwise resourceful kid would not, after an EA admit at Harvard, not take the time to understand the differences among the other Ivy league schools and eliminate at least a few applications based upon their genuine differences.... </p>

<p>Amazing yes? Amazing un-grace....</p>