<p>Okay now this is child bashing. To say that one child is more interesting than another doesn't require anything factual whatsoever. Didn't WashU have over 22,000 applications to review in two months time? I'm sure that the "interesting" factor was weighted heavily.</p>
<p>I don't know that "interesting" is the proper word. Too all encompasing - obviously means different things to different people. But I go back to previous posts - the adcoms are looking to build a class with multiple components. It could be that in any given year a particular student was not as good a fit as another student. The year before or the year after it may well have been a different decision. Is your student the missing piece - maybe - maybe not - but almost impossible to predict untill they see the applicant pool for that year. With the very limited data available on CC, it is impossible to know the answer. </p>
<p>Given the fact that WashU had more than 22,000 applications, I am sure that it is not an easy job. Will there be some questionable decisions - probably. Will there be kids who should have been admitted and not WL - again probably. But it is a human process with subjective variables as part of the decisions - all in all WashU seems to do a pretty good job of assembling its class every year. That is very obvious once you visit the campus and meet the students.</p>
<p>i apologize if that word came off as offensive, i couldn't think of another..perhaps "all-rounded" or "typical washu student"?</p>
<p>The same comment from Shoe66's post, " not even NM commended" struck me. Since when does testing well 2 years before you will be attending college automatically make you more qualified for acceptance than another student?</p>
<p>Bicoastal ^That got me, too! Jeez, does shoe know how that sounds?</p>
<p>Not only does a test that you took 2 years ago help/hurt your acceptance at most schools but all the tests that you have taken in high school contribute to your GPA, SAT, ACT, PSAT(National Merit), etc. Three and one half years of testing that can help or hurt you. While there are truly exceptional students who are not NM, you will find many NM finalists amoung those accepted to top schools.</p>
<p>collegekidsmom and bicoastalmom: I think you are both right. BTW WashU has the 6th highest number of NMF's enrolled in absolute numbers, of any college in the whole country, so while, as ST2 points out, they try like HYPS et to "build" a class, they also accept and enroll a lot of high stats kids.IMHO.
Also think that I agree with ST2 in that adcoms are not infallable and I think would admit they can make mistakes and that especially for close calls it can be more art than science. I think it is unfair to make out the adcoms at any school as anything other than professionals who are trying to do a tough job as well as they know how.</p>
<p>Just a clarification - students who become National Merit Finalists do not get that designation just by reason of their PSAT scores. They submit an essay, SAT scores and grades as well. As I said awhile back, my daughter got waitlisted too although she got into UNC and U of M. While she might not be what WashU is supposedly looking for, she was invited to the honors program at both of these institutions. Also, one of her classmates was accepted to Harvard but not WashU - seems strange to me.</p>
<p>Perhaps we should reserve our judgment until the school (and the USNews) disclose the enrolled students' stats later.</p>
<p>let's just agree to disagree...</p>
<p>I am sorry if "not even NM Commended" hurt some people, but the NM program is endorsed and respected by many colleges & universities, even if HS students take the PSAT in their junior year. </p>
<p>My daughter's HS is not large. These girls know each other very, very well -- much better than any application or essay could possibly convey. Wash U simply utilized its own criteria in accepting the two students from my D's HS that it did. The students all congratulated these two girls. I certainly did nothing to attack them publicly (there is still a great deal of anonymity on this board). The students know, however, who the best and brightest among them are. In their minds, they have their own criteria, and I would suggest that they know their classmates far better than Wash U does. </p>
<p>As I said, I am not angry at Wash U. I don't think they play "games" with applicants. Somebody else said that. The bottom line is that Wash U is going to get a pretty darn good freshman class. If my daughter isn't eventually included in it (yes, we sent in her waitlist card), fine, she'll move on.</p>
<p>The perception among her classmates, however, and their families is that Wash U's admissions criteria are "quirky." (one of them actually used that word) The feeling is that fewer students here will apply to Wash U next year. Whether their reasons are valid or not is a matter for debate, a debate we have thoroughly exhausted on this board, in my opinion. The students' perceptions, though, are their own, and perceptions do tend to become realities, especially when 18-year-old students talk among each other.
To me, this is a problem that Wash U will have to face in coming years, if it's admissions decisions continue to lead well-meaning students to describe them as "quirky."</p>
<p>This is my last post on this Wash U board. I don't need the aggravation.
My sincere congratulations to all of you who were accepted to Wash U. Cherish the place that you've earned.
My daughter stays away from CC (thank goodness--:)), but I know she would join me in wishing all those accepted the very best of luck over the next four years.</p>