Tufts Syndrome?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Tufts University
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<p>Just looked at 2006-2009 admit data, and average scores for Tufts from his school was 3.69/2256 and 3.85/2298 for UChicago. Both schools know S2’s program well and I think that made a difference. Even so, he had a GPA below the usual benchmark at both – hence the essays, essays, essays. We know kids with higher GPAs who were declined at each. OTOH, he was in a sweet spot at Bowdoin and Carleton in terms of GPA and scores, and was waitlisted at both.</p>

<p>S’s focus was on fit, not prestige, and like his older brother, that approach proved quite successful. </p>

<p>Thanks, Dan!!</p>

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<p>I think the Tufts Syndrome label should be given a lethal dose of Propofol.</p>

<p>I was interested to see who got in and didn’t get in from both my daughter’s school and the local public school, during this latest bout of RD admissions. The kids I know of who were accepted ALL had very high data (3.9, unweighted GPA and 2250+ SATs) and were, objectively, iconoclastic in their interests and pursuits–all were pretty gifted writers, as well. The kids who did not get in varied in their data–some high GPAs coupled with below 2100 on the SAT, some very high GPAs coupled with 2300+ SAT scores. Of the kids who did not get in, they were all hard workers, definitely bright-to-very bright, but were not my idea of out-of-the-box thinkers, even though all had a panapoly of ECs. I am not by any means evaluating other Tufts applicants who were waitlisted or rejected in terms of their originality or creativity. I am merely observing that if I were pressed to categorize the applicants I know, well, who didn’t gain admissions to Tufts, I would say that they lacked iconoclasm.</p>

<p>And if it’s any vindication for Tufts–we have close family friends whose children got into Tufts. One of the applicants has narrowed down her final choices to Cal and Tufts after getting into Stanford, Harvard, all the UCs, Wash U. and a handful of the more liberal LACs. Her reason for narrowing down her choices to UC Berkeley and Tufts, even though seemingly different schools, were that they were the most intellectually vital schools and that she felt most welcomed there (she could not say enough about how wonderful the administration and current Tufts students had been to her when she had visited and how bad her Tufts visit made the folks and students at Harvard look).</p>

<p>Another kid I know who got accepted to Tufts also got into #s 2-14 of the (absurdly relied-upon and valued) USNWR ranked colleges. He did not apply to MIT, hated it. His first choice is Tufts if he gets the financial aid that he needs to attend. This kid is incredibly gifted in music, math, art, science and has some really unique endeavors and is very politically-minded. But, definitely, he stands out as unique. He said that Tufts spoke to him like no other school and that he had one wonderful interaction with Tufts personnel and students after another. He attended two classes–one in the humanities, one in the math department–and was floored by the giftedness and warmth of the two professors he observed.</p>

<p>My daughter, too, had high data and very original interests and accomplishments–an unconventional thinker, as well. And like the other accepted kids, above, she wrote really beautiful and compelling essays.</p>

<p>So, “Tufts Syndrome” or an admissions system that probes and investigates its applicants deeply enough not to be smitten by high data, exclusively.</p>

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<p>Tufts syndrome does not exist. Not at Tufts, at least.</p>

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<p>The assumption that so-called “Tufts Syndrome” is the reason when people with great “numbers” are rejected is baseless, and it is premised on an overly narrow and largely uninformed view of the admissions process. If a student with a 4.0 GPA and 2400 SATS gets rejected from Harvard, that is obvously not Harvard’s version of “Tufts Syndrome.” Similarly, when a student with outstanding “numbers” gets into Harvard but is rejected from Brown, COlumbia, Penn, Duke, and Williams, that is not because those five schools suffer from their own version of so-called “Tufts Syndrome.”<br>
It is because constructing a class by “numbers” alone would be a poor approach; that is why even Harvard rejects half of its applicants who have perfect SATS. Top schools look for diversity in their entering classes, and not just ethnic diversity, but diversity in geography, intellectual interests, personality types, extracurricular interests, etc. And Tufts, as much as any school I know of, puts a huge premium on the applicant’s “voice,” as reflected in essays, recommendations, etc., so that even outstanding “numbers” won’t get you in to Tufts if the rest of your application fails to persuade the AdCom that you would make an interesting addition to the class it is trying to put together.</p>

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<p>I think it does happen. Because I was accepted to Tufts but waitlisted to BC and Northeastern. Tufts and BC are similar ranking but northeastern is way low. I was ****ed at northeastern but they prob waitlisted and rejected me cuz they new I was more qualified than their students. So probably they do the same thing at Tufts. But admissions is weird, Tufts was not one of the schools I was interested in, because despite I was interested in it, I never really visited there and it is not as known as other colleges in Boston area.</p>

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<p>If you weren’t interested, then why did you apply? I just don’t get it.</p>

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<p>lizzy great is a ■■■■■. Her story from other posts don’t add up and she clearly is just intent on bashing Tufts. lizzy not so great?</p>

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<p>izzygreat wrote "I was ****ed at northeastern but they prob waitlisted and rejected me cuz they new I was more qualified than their students. "</p>

<p>Nope, I think that Northeastern had you figured out correctly.</p>

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<p>^^^^^^^^^</p>

<p>Too funny, tomofboston.</p>

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<p>^^I’m with buzzers. I don’t know what her beef is, but lizzygreat appears to be a ■■■■■. (And if her posts are a reflection of her writing and grammar, it’s no surprise she’s having so much trouble in college.)<br>
Ignore her railings.</p>

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<p>She has also laid claim to being in the Conservatory and Fine Arts undergrad programs, which I would think is fairly undoable.</p>

<p>Minimally, whatever campus she is on (if she is even on a campus), she should avail herself of mental health services.</p>

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<p>Yield protection does exist, but Tufts does it a lot less than many other schools, and it isn’t particularly common anywhere. Most of the people who think they are victims of “Tufts Syndrome” probably aren’t.</p>

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<p><<most of=“” the=“” people=“” who=“” think=“” they=“” are=“” victims=“” “tufts=”" syndrome"=“” probably=“” aren’t=“”>>></most></p>

<p>Exactly, but it makes a deferral or rejection go down more smoothly, I imagine.</p>

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<p>I think things like Tuft’s Syndrome get invented because there is no way to measure who a student is and what they will contribute to a community. It’s easy to see who has the best GPA, SAT, ACT…but, no one knows who has the best essays.</p>

<p>In my opinion the essays are vital. Not in the - write them perfectly, tell them what they wat to hear and be PERFECT - but, rather in the - as best as you can in such a narrow window, show them WHO YOU ARE. Be genuine, be who you are never, ever be who you THINK they want you to be. You’ll be wrong 99 out of 100 times.</p>

<p>Admissions departments are made of PEOPLE who are intimately familiar with the community they serve. Their job is to create a diverse community of thinkers and doers that FIT.</p>

<p>We all need to understand that we CANNOT figure out a formula because there isn’t one per se. It is about creating a class of students in a micro community environment. No student is better or worse in the grand scheme of things - one just may be a better fit.</p>

<p>I am so proud of who my daughter is and what she shared in her college applications. I figure the job of finding HER best fit (when or if she isn’t a fit at one of the schools she applied to) is more concise and clear when the college or university bases their decision on fit.</p>

<p>I applaud Dan at Tuft’s for sharing their style and attempting to debunk myths. I also get why we hang on them - it affords us some sense of control in a place where we have none. Zero. Nada.</p>

<p>I can assure you that no one has ever asked me (except as a HS Senior or a College Freshman) what colleges I applied to and who rejected me. I have the distinct pleasure of doing what I love in life and because I got a great education at a place where I fit in I do it very, very well.</p>

<p>Focus on the positive and you will create more of it.</p>

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<p>So much for Tufts syndrome. Son, with very high test scores and GPA, is in at Pomona, Brown, Penn, and a few fine LACs. And Tufts, too! He is headed to Tufts and humbled and delighted to be accepted.</p>

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<p>Two things I’ve noticed are:</p>

<ol>
<li><p>Students are over-obsessed with grading; SATs and GPA are really only one aspect of a good submission. They really are. The admissions people keep telling students this, but they never seem to get it. (Maybe this is the real Tufts Syndrome.) Your essay is HUGE, not in how well written or entertaining it is, but in what it tells about yourself, which they are really interested in.</p></li>
<li><p>Every school has a different style of admissions. Tufts seems to want students with superb talents, those who have distinguished themselves nationally or better internationally in some specific way. William and Mary seem to want thinkers, humorists, students who would make great roommates and pose fascinating questions in class. The top Ivies want students to be politically active and excellent communicators. Stanford likes sports, etc.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>Our counselor has been telling my kid for years to expect to be rejected for no reason, and accepted for the same. This year the only person we know who was rejected by every school only applied to only 4 schools (!) and despite being qualified, wrote a pretty dismal essay. Yikes!</p>